Chapter 120 Chapter 120
Chapter 120
Morning came quietly, without urgency, without noise. The hospital room was calm in a simple way that felt different from the chaos of the night before. The machines beside the bed hummed softly, constant and controlled, as if nothing had ever gone wrong.
Celine stirred.
At first, it was only a slight movement of her fingers against the bedsheet, then a slow shift of her head. Her eyelids felt heavy, but not in the frightening way they had before. This time, it was simply the kind of heaviness that comes with deep rest.
She opened her eyes.
The light wasn’t harsh, just enough to let her take in the room piece by piece. The white walls, the chair near the window, the small table with neatly arranged items. Everything looked normal and Safe.
Her breathing stayed even as her mind began to catch up.
The accident.
The sound of the horn.
The sudden impact.
Her hand moved slightly, instinctively, as if checking herself. No sharp pain followed. Just a dull awareness in her body, something manageable.
Then the memories shifted.
Not to the crash.
To him.
Ethan.
Her gaze stayed fixed on the ceiling, but her thoughts moved elsewhere, replaying something she hadn’t expected to remember so clearly.
His voice.
Low and Certain.
“I love you so much.”
Her fingers tightened slightly against the sheet.
“I love you and I want you, Celine.”
The words came back exactly as he had said them. No confusion. No blur. Clear and steady, like they had been carved into her memory.
She closed her eyes again, not because she was tired, but because she needed a moment to sit with it.
That wasn’t something she could misunderstand.
That wasn’t something she could explain away.
And it wasn’t something he would say lightly.
Celine let out a slow breath and opened her eyes again, this time turning her head slightly toward the side of the room. The movement was careful, measured, but easier than she expected.
That was when she noticed Ariana.
She was seated in the chair near the window, her posture relaxed but attentive, like someone who had been watching for any sign of movement. The moment their eyes met, Ariana straightened immediately, relief washing over her face in a way she didn’t try to hide.
“You’re awake,” she said, her voice warm and full of quiet relief as she stood and moved closer. “Thank God.”
Celine managed a small smile. “I guess I am.”
Ariana let out a soft breath and reached for her hand gently, careful not to disturb anything. “You scared me,” she admitted. “You had everyone worried.”
Celine’s gaze lingered on her face for a moment, noticing the slight tiredness around her eyes. “Were you here all night?” she asked.
Ariana shrugged lightly. “Most of it. I went home for a bit, got some things, then came back.”
Celine nodded slowly, absorbing that. “Thank you.”
“You don’t need to thank me,” Ariana replied immediately. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”
For a moment, neither of them said anything more. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable. It gave Celine space to gather her thoughts, though they didn’t come together as easily as she would have liked.
Because no matter how much she tried to focus on the present, her mind kept going back to the same place.
Ethan.
She shifted slightly, adjusting herself against the headboard as she became more aware of her body. The movement was slow but steady, and Ariana quickly helped her settle more comfortably.
“Careful,” she said gently. “The doctor said you should take it easy.”
“I feel fine,” Celine replied softly, though she didn’t push herself further.
Ariana gave her a look that clearly said she didn’t fully believe that, but she didn’t argue.
Instead, she watched her for a moment, then asked quietly, “Do you remember what happened?”
Celine nodded. “The accident… yes.”
She paused, her eyes dropping briefly before lifting again.
“And after?” Ariana asked, her tone just as careful.
Celine hesitated.
Her fingers curled slightly against the bedsheet again as she looked away, her thoughts shifting back to that moment she couldn’t ignore.
“I remember everything,” she said finally.
Ariana studied her face for a second longer, as if trying to understand what exactly that meant, but she didn’t press immediately.
Celine turned her head back toward her, her expression calmer now, but thoughtful in a way that hadn’t been there before.
“Can I ask you something?” she said.
“Of course.”
Celine held her gaze for a moment before speaking, her voice quieter now, more serious.
“Do you think someone can love you like that… suddenly?”
The question hung in the air between them.
Ariana didn’t answer right away. Instead, she took a small step back and sat down on the edge of the chair again, her expression shifting slightly as she considered it.
“That depends,” she said slowly. “What do you mean by suddenly?”
Celine looked down at her hands. “Like… without saying anything before. Without showing it clearly. Then all at once, it’s just there.”
Ariana’s lips curved into a faint smile, not amused, but understanding.
“You’re talking about him,” she said gently.
Celine didn’t respond immediately, but she didn’t deny it either.
That was enough.
Ariana leaned back slightly, folding her arms loosely as she thought about her answer.
“I don’t think it’s as sudden as it looks,” she said after a moment. “Sometimes people feel things for a long time but don’t say anything. Maybe they don’t realize it fully. Or maybe they’re trying to ignore it.”
Celine listened quietly.
“And then something happens,” Ariana continued. “Something that makes them stop pretending it’s not there. That’s when it comes out all at once.”
Celine’s brows pulled together slightly as she processed that.
“So it wasn’t sudden,” she said, more to herself than to Ariana.
“Probably not,” Ariana replied.
There was a pause, then Ariana added, her tone a little lighter now, “If you had seen him yesterday, you wouldn’t even be asking this question.”
Celine looked up at that.
“What do you mean?”
Ariana let out a small breath, shaking her head slightly like she was remembering something she still hadn’t fully recovered from.
“He looked like he was losing it,” she said honestly. “I’ve never seen him like that before.”
Celine’s heart reacted before she could stop it, a quiet shift in her chest that she tried to ignore.
“He didn’t leave your side,” Ariana went on. “Even when they were bringing you in, he was right there. And when they said you had to go into ICU…” She paused, then continued more softly, “He didn’t want to stay outside. You could see it.”
Celine swallowed, her gaze dropping again.
Ariana studied her reaction carefully, then added, “That’s not something you fake, Celine.”
The room fell quiet again.
Celine leaned back slightly against the headboard, her thoughts moving slower now, but deeper. Everything she had felt before the confusion, the hurt, the distance didn’t disappear, but it shifted.
Because now there was something else to consider.
Not just what he said.
But how he felt.
She exhaled slowly.
“I don’t understand him,” she admitted.
Ariana smiled faintly. “You’re not the only one.”
That drew the smallest hint of a smile from Celine.
“But one thing I’m sure of,” Ariana continued, her voice steady again, “whatever he said to you… he meant it.”
Celine didn’t respond immediately.
She turned her head slightly toward the window, letting her eyes rest there as she thought about everything.
It started to make a different kind of sense now.
Not clear.
But not confusing in the same way either.
Her fingers relaxed slightly against the bedsheet as she let out another slow breath.
“I don’t know what to do with that,” she said honestly.
Ariana nodded, understanding that more than she needed to explain.
“You don’t have to decide anything right now,” she said. “Just focus on getting better.”
Celine nodded faintly.
For now, that felt like enough.
But deep down, she knew this wasn’t something she could ignore.
Not anymore.