Chapter 146
The airbag exploded outward, slamming me back into my seat. My head buzzed with a high-pitched ringing. Warm blood trickled down from my forehead.
Instinctively, I reached up to wipe it away. The crimson on my fingertips took several seconds to register. I was injured.
But why didn't it hurt?
"Miss? Miss!"
Someone pounded frantically on my window. I slowly turned my head to see a completely unfamiliar man's face. He looked panicked, asking over and over, "Miss, are you okay?"
My sluggish brain finally kicked into gear. I'd been in an accident.
"Miss, your front end is completely totaled. Can you still get out?"
Hearing his relentless concern, I tested moving my feet. No pain. I nodded quickly. "Yes."
I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened the door. "There's a lot of blood on your face. Come sit down over here. I already called an ambulance. You're going to be fine."
His face had an honest, kind quality. I nodded gently, then apologized. "I'm sorry. I didn't see your car."
He waved dismissively. "Don't worry about it. My car's fine. But yours..."
"It's okay. It can be fixed." After responding, I wandered over to the roadside barrier in a daze and sat down.
That's when the pain finally kicked in. But no matter how much my head throbbed, it couldn't touch the agony in my chest.
The driver looked concerned about my condition and followed me uncertainly. Whatever he said, I didn't catch a single word.
"Cindy!"
A warm, gentle voice cut through the haze above me. I froze, instinctively looking up.
Ethan stood before me, wrapped in an overcoat, his face deathly pale. He must have rushed here—he hadn't even changed, still wearing his hospital gown underneath.
"You're hurt."
He stepped forward with concern, taking a blue handkerchief from someone beside him and pressing it against my wound. His voice came even softer than before. "Don't be scared. I won't let anything happen to you."
"Ethan..."
The moment his name left my lips, tears poured out. Ethan seemed scalded by them. His other arm gently pulled me into an embrace. "I know you've been hurt. It's okay. Cry if you need to. I'll be right here."
His words triggered a delayed realization—the phone call he'd made earlier. Suppressing my breakdown, I shoved him away and demanded through my tears, "When you called telling me to leave immediately, you already knew Leopold's proposal wasn't for me, didn't you?"
Ethan stumbled backward from my push, his complexion even paler than when he'd arrived. "Yes. I knew."
Tears streaming down my face, I pressed him relentlessly. "Tell me why Leopold lied to me! Why did he do this? What did I ever do to him?"
The agitation made my forehead wound pull painfully. Blood flowed faster, quickly staining my dress red.
"Cindy, don't get worked up. You're hurting yourself." Ethan steadied me. "I'll explain everything, but you need to come to the hospital with me first. Please?"
I shook my head. "No. I need to know now!"
Ethan's face filled with heartache as he looked at me. "Your injury's getting worse. If something happens, your parents will be devastated."
That argument got through to me. I finally stopped insisting.
At the hospital, I became a puppet, letting doctors and nurses manipulate me however they needed.
"Mr. Guise, Ms. Wipere's wound has been sutured. But she can't leave yet. She needs to stay overnight for observation in case other symptoms develop."
"Understood."
Ethan nodded gently, gesturing for everyone else to leave before sitting on the edge of my hospital bed.
I slowly lifted my head. "Can you tell me now?"
Ethan's expression turned helpless. "Sophia told me. She wanted me to take you away, to leave Silverlight City and never come back. When I asked why, she said Leopold was proposing to her tonight."
"I didn't believe it at first, but I was afraid it might be true, so I had someone keep tabs on you. When I learned you'd gone to that restaurant with Leopold, I knew something was wrong. That's when I called, trying to get you out before you could be hurt."
My hands clenched into fists. "Why would Sophia tell you?"
Ethan shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe she wanted me to take you away so she could completely sever your connection to Leopold."
An unprecedented desolation washed over me. I closed my eyes, dropped my head, and laughed through my tears.
"She was right. I can't outplay her. I definitely can't compete with Leopold."
I knew perfectly well Leopold's heart belonged entirely to Sophia. But the slightest hint of tenderness from him turned my head completely. I'd sensed something was off, yet I still dove headfirst into his tender trap. I'd already accepted we could never put the pieces back together, yet I'd still hoped.
This was all my fault!
"Cindy, this isn't your fault." Ethan tried to console me, but I didn't want to hear it.
"Ethan, I need to be alone."
His expression dimmed before he responded gently, "Alright. I'll be in the room next door if you need anything."
I didn't want to talk. I buried myself under the blanket. Only after I heard the door lock and confirmed the room had gone quiet did I emerge.
Staring at the stark white ceiling, my mind replayed the image of Leopold kneeling devoutly, proposing to Sophia. Even clutching my head and desperately trying not to think about it didn't help. The scene refused to fade.
It was like an invisible net wrapping around me, tightening inch by inch, squeezing until I couldn't breathe.
The door lock clicked. Thinking Ethan had returned, I grabbed my pillow forcefully.
But the next second, a tall, imposing figure entered my field of vision. Before I could make out his features, I noticed the formal suit he wore.
My heart lurched violently. Leopold?
But when I finally saw his face clearly, my shoulders sagged soundlessly.
"Leo, what are you doing here?"
Leo didn't rush to my bedside with concern like Ethan had. He stood at a distance, his deep eyes revealing a hint of complexity.
"I heard you were in an accident."
I frowned, setting down the pillow. "Who told you?"
"The hospital called me."
I paused, thinking back before finally remembering. After things had improved between us, I'd added him as an emergency contact for safety reasons. When we'd broken up, I'd meant to change it but never got around to it.
"I'm fine now. You can go."
But Leo didn't leave. Instead, he approached my hospital bed. His gaze locked onto the gauze wrapped around my forehead, his low voice carrying a weight of pain.
"It hurts, doesn't it?"
Right now, I was filled with nothing but resentment toward Leopold, and by extension, I found even Leo's similar face revolting.
I snapped back immediately, "Don't pretend to care. You're just here to gloat, aren't you? I dumped you and immediately became the punchline. Seeing me brought this low must feel pretty satisfying."