Stephanie & Xander

Chapter 17

XANDER.

Everything's a blur. The repeated *tings* are just annoying. Whatever that is. And, my whole body is numb. Yeah, it gets like this every morning that's why it's so hard to get up. But in comparison to all those days, today is the worst. I really couldn't feel my limbs at all.

Staring up, I saw a transparent bag hanging from a metal pole. An IV fluid. I haven't seen an IV fluid since when I was shot 9 years ago. The next ones are from a movie. I wonder whose bag is this... and to see that the tube is connected to me. Damn. I got badly beaten yesterday. I told that dimwit to not bring me to the goddamn hospital!

I force my body to move. My willpower is nothing against this. I can even wake up at 5 am if I put my mind into it. I managed somehow. I pull the needle off my arm. It wasn't painful. Not at all. I'm numb. This is how it's possible in movies. But right now, I've got no time to think about movies. Every fucking second I stay here, the bills also accelerates up. The bills are killing me!

Our bags are beside my bed. The air smells like Stephanie. He's been here. He's probably the one who stayed with me while I'm down. Ma'am Thuy can't because she's got a shop to tend and we don't have anyone else so... but damn. That idiot... he's usually smart. And, now he spends money for hospital? What does he take me for? Wimp? I've been battered throughout my whole life and he saw how I've had recovered almost instantly when I was shot and now he brought me to the hospital.

This is so infuriating! I scream, "WAAAAAHHHH!!!!"

I kick the door open and all the hospital staffs and patients get out of my way. A mother is covering her child's eyes. I hate when they does that. They make me look like there's something wrong in my head. Maybe there is. The fact that I came back home half-dead without even getting my payment except for the down is ridiculous. I know it was pure idiocy but even if idiocy cannot be cured, I know wounds could.

Stephanie's walking down the hallway towards me and then he starts running. His fist is curled and his face annoyed. I can tell he's gonna punch me but my body can't react as I wanted so instead of catching his punch and counterattack, I just dodged. "Don't go running off and nag me about taking you to the hospital, idiot!" he's angry. It was quite scary. Stephanie isn't always angry and when he does it was scary.

"B-but you shouldn't have brought me to~"

"Hospital?" he asks sarcastically. He's smirking and he looks like he's about to kill someone again, this time it's me. He pokes the bullet wound with his thumb and I wince, he says, "Don't take you to hospital my ass. You're badly hurt!"

"Where did you get the money?" I ask.

He didn't answer and tries to curl his arm to mine to escort me back to my room. I figure there's something wrong so I pull my arm off him, "Where did you get the money?"

"From work and I pickpocketed."

"You won't be guilty if that's all you did."

He sighs, "Don't turn things around. You know this is your fault."

"Nobody told you to take me to a hospital!"

"But you lost too much blood!" he tries to keep his calm. His eyes are dark and I can see veins popping on his forehead, "I called Coco. I know you kept his number. I found it and dialled him. You were both AB so he gave you blood too. He's only seventeen and got his parent's consent."

"And, what about my consent?"

His breathing is deeper, "There's your father's consent too... and he gave us passport..."