Stained

Chapter 51

Damien's nostrils flare with either rage toward the nurse or me as he turns his head to face her. "Under any other circumstances, she wouldn't need anyone to speak for her, but as you can fucking see, she's currently not well enough to speak for herself," he grits out through clenched teeth, his face a mask of barely contained rage.

Despite my fear, his words warm my heart.

The nurse lets out a loud, frustrated sigh. "Right, okay, what's the problem. And please watch your language whilst you're at it."

"She injured her wrist. We think it's broken."

No, he thinks it's broken. But of course, I can't correct him. Not that I would if I could. I'm just clinging to anything and everything that could distract my mind, even if it's for a couple of seconds.

If there's anything my miserable life has taught me, it's that no matter how minuscule seconds seem, sometimes they substantially make the most significant differences.

She begins typing it down, but then her eyes jerk up just as fast, accusation replacing the boredom there just seconds before. "She hurt her wrist, not her mouth. She's well enough to speak for herself." She purses her lips, turning to me.

Damien's eyes narrow into tight slits. "I told you she currently can't speak for herself."

I can see the effort he's making to keep his anger contained, and I appreciate him so much more for it.

The naive voice makes a comeback at the worst moment. 'He's doing it for you.'

No, he's doing it because he doesn't want to create a scene in the hospital. Right?

The nurse rolls her eyes. "Does she have a communication disorder?"

"No," Damien heaves a sigh, his chest expanding wildly with the movement. His hand tightening on mine.

She points an accusing finger at me. "Then she needs to speak for herself."

"Fucking get me another nurse to speak to."

"They're on their break, and the others are attending to more important patients," she batts her eyes in a contemptuous manner.

"You—." I grab Damien's arm, momentarily forgetting about my bad had — which is insane because that's the reason we're in this position.

A slight squeal escapes me. I squeeze my eyes shut and blow out short hurried breaths through my mouth to get through the pain.

"Rose." I hear Damien's concerned voice before I feel his hands cup my cheeks.

I open my eyes and place my good hand over one of his on my cheek. "I'm okay, I'm okay, I can speak now," I pant out, my chest heaving with laboured breaths. As per usual, pain helps me gather my bearings.

I don't know how long it will last, so I pull Damien's hands off my checks and quickly turn to the nurse. "My n... name is H- Hasel- Hazel Kaelin. And I hurt my wrist," I stammer out.

She beats up the keyboard harder than Damien beat up the elevator button. "How do you spell Koolin?" She deadpans.

"K A E L I N," the letters leave my lips in a rush.