She could only lean against the wall, holding herself.
Just as Harper was about to collapse, a knock suddenly came from the door with Patrick's worried voice. "Harper, are you inside?"
Harper suddenly looked up. Her eyes were full of tears and crimson threads. She looked in the direction of the door somewhat incredulous.
Was someone coming to rescue her?
The knocking sound came again. "Harper? Are you there?"
Patrick shouted for her while taking out his phone to call her.
The phone rang on the sofa. Harper listened in a daze for a while before she dared to believe that someone was coming to find her.
Patrick pressed his ear against the door and also heard the ringing of the phone in the room. After a few tries and no one answered, he became anxious and directly pushed open the door.
Harper looked at the faint light coming from the door and couldn't help but cry out.
Her crying filled Patrick's heart with worry.
He quickly turned on the flashlight on his phone, looked around, and finally found Harper helpless in the corner next to the window.
He felt sorry for her, squatted down cautiously, and called out to her, "Harper? Are you okay?"
Harper was squatting in front of him in a mess, with disheveled hair. She was hugging her knees and burying her head, looking like she had been abandoned by the world.
She stopped crying, and Patrick carefully helped her up. Luckily, he didn't arrive too late.
As he gently patted Harper's back, he whispered, "Don't be afraid. It's okay now. I'm here."
Harper didn't speak, but her tears gradually stopped.
Patrick came prepared, bringing candles and a lighter.
He lit a few candles and placed them around the room, finally brightening it up. Harper was no longer as scared.
Patrick held Harper's shoulders, and moved her a bit, revealing a face full of tear marks and swollen eyes, which made him feel heartbroken.
After a while, Harper's emotions finally calmed down.
"Thank you, Patrick."
Patrick watched her expression, made sure she had truly relaxed, and softly said, "Go sit on the sofa. I'll pour you a glass of water."
Harper's face blushed a bit and she hesitantly said, "My legs are numb."
Patrick smiled slightly, reached out his arm to support her, and slowly walked toward the sofa.
He looked at the phone in the corner of the sofa, picked it up, and handed it to Harper, saying helplessly, "Did you forget your phone?"
Harper took the phone, feeling a bit embarrassed like a child who had done something wrong. "I am so panicked. I forget everything."
Patrick looked at her with lingering warmth in his eyes.
Her previous appearance scared him, triggering his protective instincts to the extreme.
But now, Harper had adjusted.
Patrick resisted the urge to hug her again, stood up to pour her a glass of water, and casually asked, "Are you always this afraid of the dark?"
Harper didn't evade the question and nodded. "I've been afraid since I was little. I can't even turn off the lights when I sleep at night."
It just worsened after her father passed away.
Patrick vaguely felt there was a story behind this. But now was not the right time to delve into it. So, he didn't ask.
"If you encounter this kind of situation again, feel free to call me anytime. Even if I can't be there immediately, having someone to talk to can be comforting."
Harper felt touched. "Patrick, thank you so much. If you weren't here just now, I'm afraid tonight..."
"There's no need for formalities,"Patrick interrupted her, his eyes shimmering with soft light. "As long as you need me, I'll be there anytime."
Harper looked at his serious expression and suddenly felt at a loss.
She understood what Patrick meant, but she had already clearly rejected him.
Did she have to distance herself from him?
But she didn't have many close friends.
Matching the previous awkwardness, Harper's stomach suddenly growled.
"Are you hungry?"
As he spoke, Patrick got up and went to the bedside table. "I'm hungry too. I'll call the restaurant to deliver some food."
During dinner, because Olivia fell ill, everyone hadn't get enough to eat.
As soon as Patrick made the call, the hotel staff had already delivered the meal.
They said it was to compensate for the inconvenience caused by the power outage, so they sent some food to each room.
Patrick handed a fork to Harper and served her a bowl of soup. "Have some soup to warm your stomach first."
Harper thanked him and took a sip, finding it tasty.
She didn't know what was going on with this hotel. The electricity was out, but they could still prepare food.
After filling their stomachs, Harper and Patrick sat in silence for a while.
Emotionally, she wanted Patrick to stay because she would feel less afraid and less tense if someone was staying by her side.
But rationally, it wasn't appropriate for a man and a woman to be alone in a room at this late hour.
Moreover, the relationship between her and Patrick was already a bit awkward.
After hesitating for a while, Harper glanced at Patrick. "Patrick, I think Aria will be back soon. Why don't you go back and rest first? You have to get up early tomorrow. The candles are lit now, so I'll be fine. Thank you for today. I'll treat you to dinner when you go back."
Patrick paused for a moment and smiled.
"If you want to thank me, I hope it can be in a different way."
At this moment, he hoped that Aria wouldn't come back tonight, so he could stay by Harper's side.
Harper understood his implied meaning. She choked up, awkwardly smiled, and didn't reply.
On the other side, when Joseph returned to the room, Olivia was tightly curled up in bed, apparently also frightened by the sudden power outage.
Upon hearing the sound, she struggled to sit up and threw herself into his arms, sobbing faintly. "Joseph!"
Joseph hesitated for a moment when he tried to push her away. But eventually, he placed his hand on her shoulder and patted her before helping her back to bed.
"It's okay. There's a problem with the hotel's electrical circuit. They'll fix it soon."
"Where did you just go? My phone is outside, and I couldn't go out to get it. I thought you left me alone."
Olivia felt sadder as she spoke. She was scared just now. The whole room was pitch black, and she couldn't see anything.
"Sorry." Joseph took two tissues from the bedside table and handed them to her. "I had something to do just now."
"When you weren't here... I was so scared."
Olivia grabbed his sleeve and didn't let go, looking pitiful.
"It's okay." Joseph sat down by her bed. "Go to sleep. I'm here."
"Will you leave?"
"I won't."
After confirming, Olivia finally relaxed. She leaned toward Joseph, closed her eyes, and prepared to sleep.
Listening to her gradually even breathing, Joseph couldn't help but think of Harper.
When he left just now, Harper's reaction was a bit intense.
Could she also be afraid of the dark?
This thought came to his mind. Even though his rational mind told him that Harper should be fine, he couldn't resist the urge to go back and check on her.
After a while, Olivia fell asleep.
Joseph found Olivia's phone and placed it next to her pillow. Hesitated for a moment, finally, he left the room.