Chimon - This Moment

Chapter 20

In an effort to end their staring contest, Simon took small strides to Cheryl's side and placed his hand over her bruised cheek, rubbing it tenderly with his calloused hand.

At the feel of his touch, Cheryl immediately smacked away his hand and stormed off towards the lounge, refusing to cave into his affection. Simon released an exasperated sigh and retraced her steps without knowing for certain if it was warranted or even permitted. Either way, he knew for a definite fact that her heart was entirely shattered, and with a resolute sense of determinism, he was planning on staying indefinitely until he put all the pieces back together – even if it meant jeopardizing his career.

Simon followed her into the living room and sat down on the couch within spitting distance, stealing a quick glance at her distressed countenance. Right when he claimed a spot on the couch, he turned around to face her, parting his mouth slightly. Before allowing him to speak, Cheryl pushed herself off the couch and began to make her way out of the room without a single word.

Simon stood up from his seat and proceeded to follow her again, hesitatingly this time, fearing he may have been overstaying his welcome. At the sound of his fast approaching footsteps, Cheryl halted all movement and stopped abruptly in her tracks, wearing a frown on her face. She turned around promptly and glared at him severely, causing him to flinch and stumble backward a few inches. 

"Stay." Cheryl directed indifferently, shooting him a hard look. She held his gaze momentarily before turning back around and resuming her steps out of the room.

Simon respected her request without a single complaint and reclaimed his position on the cool leather. As he sat by himself in the dimly lit room, he stared off into space and sunk into the hard exterior, feeling absolutely gutted by her frosty attitude towards him. There was no doubt in his mind that after all this chaos, she had been reduced to a ball of confusion, masking her emotional disarray with extreme anger. Quite frankly, he wouldn't have expected anything else. Although he knew for certain that he wasn't the sole culprit of her devastation, he couldn't help but feel fully responsible for elevating her pressing pain and anguish. It was the last thing she needed at the moment and it was the absolute last thing she deserved.

After a brief period of time, Cheryl returned to the lounge with a small bucket of warm water and a towel in hand. She took a seat directly across from Simon and placed the heavy bucket on her lap, dabbing the fabric into the warm heat. Without meeting his stare, she took his head into her hands and gently wiped away the dry blood that crusted over his cuts. Although he was far from forgiven, she still took the time and effort to clean his wounds as gently as possible. Regardless of how much he had hurt her, she still cared about him deeply and wished him well.

As Cheryl continued to nurse his cuts, Simon perused her stoic countenance and became staggered by the fact that he couldn't read her expression. As a general consensus, it was common knowledge that she generally wore her heart on her sleeve. In this moment, for the first time since meeting her, he was disheartened to find that he couldn't see her soul when he gazed deeply into her eyes. Instead, she seemed completely empty, lifeless, and distant; reduced to a state of subconscious apathy. Amidst all this disarray, if she happened to lose herself in the course of her calamity, Simon would never be able to find it in his heart to forgive himself for ridding the world of such a unique soul. 

"Cheryl, we need to talk." Simon began softly, breaking the long silence.

Cheryl ignored his plea and threw the bloody towel into the bucket. "I'm off to bed." She replied before slipping off the couch and leaving the room without another word.

She didn't want to seem childish by giving him the silent treatment, but she knew that she couldn't last much longer without bursting into tears. Amid all the preexisting mayhem of her life, so much had happened just moments earlier, leaving her emotions exceedingly unstable beyond self-containment. If she happened to have an emotional breakdown in any second, she didn't want an audience.