Chapter 280

Chapter 280

"You're hurt?"

Olivia's voice was urgent, and the deep worry in her eyes gave Michael the greatest comfort.

"It's nothing, just minor injuries. Are you feeling better?"

Michael tried to sound casual to cheer Olivia up, but his tightly furrowed brows gave everything away.

"It must really hurt," Olivia said softly.

Hearing her concern, Michael had a selfish thought — he wanted to keep her here in his room. But he knew that right now, Andrew needed her more than he did.

"Andrew got hurt too. He should be back in his room by now."

The moment she heard Andrew was hurt, Olivia swayed and nearly lost her footing.

"Is it serious? Where is he hurt? Which room is he in?"

The three rapid questions hit Michael like a thorn straight to the heart. He took a deep breath, trying to push the feeling aside, and said with a forced casual tone,

"Upstairs. VIP ward."

Olivia's emotions surged all at once. She turned and headed straight upstairs.

The ward was softly lit, with just a faint smell of antiseptic in the air.

Andrew was resting quietly against the headboard, thick bandages wrapped around his chest and shoulder, his face unusually pale.

He had been about to reach for an apple when he heard footsteps. He quickly lay back down.

When Olivia pushed the door open and saw that it was really Andrew lying there, she walked slowly to his bedside, barely able to believe what she was seeing.

She couldn't believe that the person wrapped up like a mummy was actually Andrew.

"What happened? How did you get so badly hurt?"

Tears welled up in Olivia's eyes without her even realizing it. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but didn't know where it was safe to, afraid of hurting him.

"Why are you here? You should be resting," he said, his voice so faint it seemed like even one more word would drain him completely.

Olivia looked at him covered in wounds, her heart aching, and said softly,

"I'm fine. I had a really long dream — I dreamed you got beaten up, so I came to check on you. Does it hurt a lot?"

Olivia's description wasn't wrong — he had been beaten up. But hearing it put that way, Andrew found it oddly awkward.

He was about to explain that his injuries were mostly superficial and that he'd only passed out from blood loss, but just as he parted his lips, something shifted in his eyes. A brilliant idea came to him.

He let his eyes drop, pretended to breathe with effort, and let a touch of fragility creep into his voice.

"Olivia, I'm badly hurt this time. I don't know if I'll make it through. The one thing I can't let go of, in this whole life of mine, is you."

He looked up, his eyes carrying a depth of feeling he'd held back for years, and used the cover of his injuries to finally say what was on his mind.

"Olivia, if I really don't recover from this... will you stay by my side?"

He looked weak and lost, as if he could give out at any moment.

Olivia looked into his sincere eyes, thought of how he had fought to protect her, and felt something soft stir in her heart. She nodded firmly.

"No matter what happens to you, I'll stay by your side. Listen to the doctors, rest properly, and everything will be okay."

"Really?"

Andrew pressed, not quite reassured.

"Really."

"Then... will you be my girlfriend?"

Andrew desperately wanted to hear her answer. He stared straight at her, unblinking.

Olivia felt a little flustered under his gaze. Using the excuse of pouring him a glass of water, she gave a small nod.

"Yeah."

The moment the word left her lips, Andrew — who had just been lying there barely breathing, looking half-dead — suddenly lit up with a bright smile. Aside from his still-pale face, he looked completely full of energy. There was nothing left of the gravely injured man from a moment ago.

He sat up straight against the headboard, the corners of his mouth curling into a smug yet tender smile.

Olivia stared at him.

It hit her all at once — he had been faking it the entire time, playing sick to get her sympathy.

The tenderness and emotion she'd felt just moments ago instantly turned into embarrassed frustration. She was both annoyed and exasperated, her cheeks flushing red as she stood up to leave.

"Andrew! You lied to me!"

"Don't go!"

Andrew panicked and instinctively grabbed her wrist, trying to pull her back.

But he moved too fast. The sudden jerk pulled at the wounds on his back and shoulder.

"Hss—"

A sharp pain hit him all at once. His face went white, his whole expression scrunching up in pain. His grip on her wrist immediately went slack, and he froze where he was.

Olivia heard him hiss in pain and stopped in her tracks. She turned right back around to check his wounds, her voice caught somewhere between annoyed and worried.

"Are you an idiot? You know you're hurt and you still yanked like that — you pulled at the wound, didn't you? Don't move."

After carefully checking that no other wounds had reopened, Olivia turned to leave, which sent Andrew into a panic.

"Where are you going now?"

"To get the doctor to re-bandage you."

Olivia shook her head helplessly. How does getting hurt make someone act more like a little kid?

The doctor came quickly, re-dressed the wound, and specifically told him to try not to move.

Olivia agreed on his behalf.

"I'll keep a close eye on him. Sorry for the trouble."

After seeing the doctor out, Olivia turned around to find Andrew sitting there peeling an apple. She was so stunned she didn't even know what to say.

"Andrew! What are you doing?!"

Andrew flinched at her shout, paused with the fruit knife in hand, and replied with an innocent look,

"Peeling an apple."

"Why are you peeling an apple?!"

"For you."

Andrew said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Olivia stood there for a moment, then silently took the apple from him and continued peeling where he'd left off.

"Andrew, did getting beaten up knock something loose? Because I don't want a guy with a scrambled brain."

Olivia was genuinely worried about him now. Nina's test results had already come back — the drug had only temporarily affected her mind, and as her body matured and her metabolism improved, she would gradually return to normal.

She wasn't worried about Nina anymore. But now she was starting to worry about Andrew.

When Andrew caught the dig in her words, he nearly choked on the piece of apple he'd just eaten, and rushed to prove that he was perfectly fine mentally.

In his haste, he pulled at his wound again.

Olivia's face went cold immediately, but she still reached over to adjust his position and press gently on the wound, the concern and worry in her eyes impossible to hide.

The room was quiet and warm. Sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling window, casting a gentle glow over the two of them leaning close together.

At the door of the ward, Michael had come to check on Andrew's injuries — and walked right into this moment.

The atmosphere between them made him stop where he stood. For just a second, Michael thought that Andrew was actually worthy of Olivia.

He would wish them well.

The End.