「 The Professor & I 」VOLUME II

(283) Indecent

Charles' POV

I reached for the knob anxiously but hesitated to swing it open as her wails came intermittently from the other side, choking under the loud splashes. Warily, I turned it and peeked through the small gap, wholly flabbergasted by the view.

When I bathed in the standing stall, our shower chair was temporarily shifted into the tub for convenience and was still at its original location while her wheelchair was totally obscured behind the curtains of steam misting up the transparent encasing.

Stealthily creeping in, I quietly closed the door and retrieved a fresh night dress together with her towel as I patiently waited until the dynamic deluged ceased. Her heavy pants and faltering whimpers were only amplified as they echoed conspicuously through the humid stillness but it was the unblemished fear in her eyes when she saw me that rang the most boisterous.

It was almost like everything had been reduced to slow motion such that I could discern every single one of her micro expressions.

Her sluggishly reclined pose was initially relaxed as she pushed the glass door open. Essentially like she had been finally relieved of enormous burdens, Lynn contentedly combed her fingers through her soggy hair, randomly flicking them, but everything changed drastically when she glanced up towards the towel racks.

Expectedly appalled to discover the blush pink fabric absent from its usual position, Lynn hurriedly darted her eyes around the condensed space and they naturally froze on me but with intense signatures of fluster.

Her breathing that had stabilized since her sudden and incessant crying seemed to have completely paused, like she had thoroughly forgotten that oxygen was an essential component to her survival.

She stared at me with a wholly blank gaze, not even blinking or flexing a muscle as though the entire body had been totally immobilized by overwhelming terror, but her dearest hazel eyes sparkled with such intense dilemma, like she was struggling badly to defeat her internal obstacles just to voice out an explanation.

"It's alright, love. You don't have to say anything," I consoled in a tender tone, slowly inching up to her, and crouched down directly before her chair.

Just when I thought she was still unresponsive, her body dramatically flinched away as my fingers merely brushed over her when I draped the absorbent material over her shoulders. Her torso jolted exaggeratedly on her soaked cushioned seat and under the strange influence of unconventional instincts, she hastily shielded herself with her injured hand.

Mindlessly raising her braced arm in defence, Lynn yelped excruciatingly and she jerked forward in nothing but pure agony as her damaged wrist weakly crumbled onto her lap, twitching vigorously upon impact.

Deep and erratic breaths now compensated the lack of them prior and her drenched figure, clothed under soggy translucent satin, shivered uncontrollably, probably due to a torturous combination of fright, pain, and cold, as she meekly gazed up at me.

Swallowing hard, I diligently strived to banish the crippling aches of my hurting heart from my face and mustered a convincing smile but it seemed insufficient to appease her guilt that brazenly beamed from her trembling frame.

"It's alright, Lynn. I'm not going to hurt you," I reassured kindly and she nodded eagerly, albeit still recoiled into herself.

"I know..." Lynn admitted in a miserable tone, almost camouflaged tears rapidly tumbling down her moist cheeks.

"Then let me help you," I appealed pleadingly and eventually, after suffering a long silence, she nodded.

Swiftly standing up, I warily wrapped my arms around her but her frail body instantly stiffened and her normally charming facial features spontaneously scrunched together in a creased jumble as I noticed her healthy fist balled up in a tight clench.