Chapter 167

Chapter 167

Seraphine's POV

Octavius held me in his arms as we rolled twice across the pavement.

"Are you okay?" I wasn't hurt. I immediately crawled out of his embrace.

Octavius's arm had been scraped by the stones on the road.

The bodyguards seemed to be trying to stop urgently.

But there was a sharp turn ahead. The driver couldn't brake in time. The entire car crashed through the guardrail and plunged straight into the lake.

I instantly breathed a sigh of relief, slowly relaxing.

Thank goodness. We'd successfully escaped.

I turned around, overjoyed, and couldn't help but throw my arms around Octavius.

Octavius smiled too, holding me tightly.

But suddenly, he went rigid. "It's Quinlan."

"What about Quinlan?"

I turned my head in confusion and saw a car suddenly charging toward us from straight ahead.

It was a bright silver sports car. The person inside was Quinlan.

She was already about a hundred feet away, madness and hatred burning in her eyes as she charged straight at us.

Was she trying to run us over?

I stared at the car in disbelief.

In the blink of an eye, it was already thirty feet away.

In that moment, I had no time to think. No time to make any judgment.

I knew that if I didn't do something immediately, both Octavius and I would die here today.

So without any hesitation, the instant the car rushed toward us, I used every ounce of strength I had to push Octavius out of the way.

"Seraphine!"

I heard Octavius's desperate, broken roar. Facing the oncoming car, I slowly closed my eyes.

In my past life, Octavius had died because he'd saved me.

Otherwise, he could have had a beautiful life.

He wouldn't have had to fall in love with someone like me who only brought him trouble. He could have focused on running the Capulet Group, being that top-tier man everyone wanted to get close to.

Now, I couldn't watch him get hurt because of me.

If there was no time to dodge, then let me be the sacrifice.

As long as Octavius could survive.

He'd lost his mother when he was young. He'd been alone. And because of me, he'd been hurt so many times.

I didn't want to see anything happen to him ever again.

I closed my eyes and let the car hit me.

There was no pain. I sank completely into darkness...

I seemed to have a very long dream.

I dreamed I was submerged in water, cold and hungry, wanting to open my eyes but unable to.

Gradually, voices began to echo in my ears.

"How can you not save her? What do you mean vegetative state? You're just incompetent!"

"I don't care what methods you use—I want Seraphine alive!"

Was that Octavius?

It sounded like him.

He was angry. Frantic.

Vegetative state—what did that mean? Were they saying I'd become a vegetable and couldn't wake up?

No wonder I felt trapped, unable to open my eyes.

Octavius must be so scared. So heartbroken.

I tried desperately to open my eyes, to see everything clearly, to tell Octavius not to panic.

But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't do it.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Capulet." The doctor sighed. "We've truly done everything we can. She suffered severe trauma from the impact. Her leg is broken, and her brain sustained critical damage. We've tried every method available, but whether she wakes up depends entirely on her own recovery."

The hospital room fell into a long silence.

Suddenly, I felt someone grab my hand. Warm, wet droplets fell onto the back of my hand.

Octavius was crying.

Those were his tears.

The room was so quiet. Only his soft sobbing remained.

"Seraphine, please wake up, okay? Why were you so foolish? Why did you have to save me?"

"If you don't wake up, what am I supposed to do? All I want is for you to live. Nothing else matters. Please wake up, okay?"

"I can get your father out. I won't let him go to prison anymore. I can give the Whitaker Group back to you. Whatever you want to do, I'll agree to it!"

"Revenge doesn't matter. Nothing else matters anymore. The most important thing is for you to wake up and live peacefully for the rest of your life. Please..."

Octavius pleaded over and over, his words filled with heartache and sorrow.

I hadn't realized I was so important to him.

So important that I mattered to him even more than his revenge.

In that moment, I didn't care anymore about what Octavius had done in the past.

Whether he'd used me or not, in his heart, I really was important—so important that he'd do anything, sacrifice anything, just to keep me safe.

But I'd never have another chance to tell him those words.

I was so tired. So exhausted. I wanted to sink into the darkness forever and never wake up again.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door.

Octavius pulled himself together. "Come in."

Soon, footsteps approached.

Another man's voice spoke.

"Mr. Capulet, everything's been handled. Quinlan's been charged with attempted murder. She's in prison now. I'll work things so she'll never get out for the rest of her life."

Octavius responded coldly.

"Good. Go back for now. No matter how much the Powell family begs or pulls strings to try to get Quinlan out, stop them. If they manage to rescue her, you're finished. Understand?"

"Understood."

"You can leave."

Soon, all the voices disappeared.

The room fell silent again.

I could feel Octavius's gaze on my face, as if he were studying me intently.

Quinlan had already been arrested and sent to prison.

I didn't have to worry about her pestering Octavius anymore.

Quinlan was clearly mentally unstable.

I didn't understand why she'd tried to run both me and Octavius over with her car.

After all, Octavius was someone she loved too.

I kept thinking about it, suddenly feeling so tired, and fell back asleep.

I slept for so long—so long I couldn't even tell if I was still alive.

But every time I managed to regain a bit of consciousness, I knew someone was waiting for me.

Someone kept calling my name, trying to get me to wake up.

But no matter how hard I tried, I still couldn't open my eyes. I could only listen.

Days passed, and I had many dreams.

Suddenly, I dreamed I was lying in a hospital bed. I opened my eyes and saw Octavius slumped over the edge of the bed, asleep.

He looked haggard. Stubble had grown on his chin, unkept. Dark circles shadowed his eyes. He looked like he'd been here keeping me company for a long time.

I lifted my hand with so much effort and placed it on his head, gently stroking it.

In the next second, Octavius's head shot up.

His eyes were bloodshot. When he saw me, the drowsiness vanished, replaced by shock and delight.

"Seraphine? I'm not dreaming, am I?"

He grabbed my hand tightly. "You're awake? Is this real, or am I imagining it?"

I didn't know if this was a dream either—if the him in my dream was really doing this.

My hand was held in his warm palm. It hurt a little.

I opened my mouth. My voice was hoarse from not speaking for so long.

"Octavius, am I awake? Or am I dreaming?"