It was Veronica who asked that Shirley keep guard of Crayson. She had thought that he would never escape, and even if he did, he would not hurt an innocent young lady like Shirley. However, Veronica underestimated his viciousness. Feeling sorry for Shirley and resenting Crayson, she was deep in pain and disappointment.
“Get some good rest. I’ll get you and Shirley to be placed in the same room and keep each other company.” He bent over and gave her a peck on the forehead while his hand caressed her cheek. Then, he reluctantly parted with her.
It took him a few minutes to arrive at Block C and Shirley’s room. He found her unconscious in the bed and Skyler looking distressed while sitting by the bed, holding her hand tightly.
“Is she not awake yet?” Matthew went up to the side of the bed and asked in a hushed voice. Skyler glanced at him but quickly turned to Shirley again, shaking his head and sighing. “No.”
With that, the room was enveloped in silence. A while later, Skyler mumbled, ‘I can’t imagine how she’s going to face the truth when she wakes up. She’s such a bright ray of sunshine, living her life without worries. I guess she might have a hard time accepting that she’s disfigured.”
“The field of plastic surgery is pretty developed back at home. It’s also common to get a surgery done. I’m sure she can get the scar removed once she’s back to Bloomstead.” Matthew comforted him. “Uh… It hurts… Ouch…” Shirley suddenly moaned in pain from the bed, her lips slightly parted.
“Shir?” Skyler called her name softly as he bent forward to get closer to her. Finally, she had woken up after losing consciousness for hours. Her long and thick lashes fluttered like the wings of a butterfly. When she opened her eyes, Skyler’s face was the first thing she saw.
“Sky… Ouch…” When she parted her lips slightly, she felt a burning sensation on her cheek, causing her to reflexively touch it. Seeing that, he instantly grabbed her hand. “Do not touch,” Lying down, she rolled her eyes and said, “My right eye…”
Every time she asked a question, she would pull on the wound and experience a sharp pain. “It’s okay. You have bandages on your face, and they cover up your eye. Your right eye is fine.” Skyler felt suffocated by the sight of a weak Shirley, who was whispering and holding back her urge to speak normally out of fear of the pain.
In bed, she calmly recalled the events from that day. Suddenly, she felt a lump in her throat as her eyes turned red from the tears that had welled up. Silently, they streamed down her face.
Skyler was crushed to see her crying in silence. He held her hand tightly, but the words of comfort stuck in his throat as he did not know what to say to her.
She looked at him with her left eye. “I… I’m disfigured… Aren’t I?” She had to keep her mouth open and use her tongue to make some almost unintelligible noises to speak. That was the only way to reduce the pain. The doctor mentioned that her left cheek was less than an inch away from getting pierced open, which was the reason behind the pain.
Perhaps, Crayson had never thought he would inflict such a serious injury on her. While swinging his hand, the ring on his finger dug into her flesh and caused a deep wound that was visible even on her nose bridge.
Skyler frowned at Shirley’s words, eyes teary from his heartache. He struggled to offer words of comfort, so the least he could do was to hold her hand tight and caress it.
