I could hear someone talking, but I had a hard time telling if he was a friend or a foe. The moment I could feel my hands again, I threw punches at him, yelling hysterically, âStay away from me!â
âEve, itâs me! Iâm Christopher!â Judging by the manâs hoarse voice, I was certain he was equally anxious. Inundated by remorse, he kept me safe in between his arms.
At that point in time, the only thing I had in mind was to flee the scene. In another attempt to escape, I launched another powerful kick at the man, but my effort was to no avail because I was still confined in between his arms.
After one last attempt to bite the man failed because of my dislocated jaw, I tried to knock the man off with my head while yelling, âJust kill me! Kill me instead of humiliating me!â
âIâm so sorry for being late, Eve! Itâs my fault for not being there for you! Iâm Christopher! Iâll never hurt you!â
Whoâs Christopher? Oh! Is he the one I have been waiting for? Heâs the only one who cares about me, isnât he? I returned to my senses and stared at the man with a look of disbelief. He was in an equally pathetic with his forehead drenched in blood and his face puckered in despair.
He couldnât care less by his look and continued holding me firmly in between his arms. Over and over again, he caressed my back and assured me, âYou donât have to worry because everythingâs over! I have taken out those vicious men!â
I repeated after him, âC-Christopher?â
He placed his blazer over me and asserted, âYes! Itâs me! Iâm here! Iâll always be here!â
âChristopher!â As the pent-up emotions came flooding out, I nestled in between his arms and started wailing hysterically, âIâm horrified! I almost killed myself to end my misery!â
While Christopher brought the traumatized me out of the basement, I caught a glimpse of a few men in their military uniforms, including Zachary.
My pupils constricted in fear the moment I saw the men drenched in a puddle of blood on the ground. My heart skipped a beat, and I passed out after shrieking.
When I was unconscious, I heard a few people around me engaging in a heated discussion. They seemed to be having another fight. As much as I wanted to figure out the things going on, I couldnât open my eyes.
The faces of three vicious-looking men flashed back in my mind. They kept running their hands all over my body. In the end, they tore my clothes into pieces with lustful intentions written all over their faces.
I tried my best to run away from them, but I couldnât seem to shrug them off. All of a sudden, they pounced on me and rendered me incapable of motion.
I could feel blood splashing everywhere as soon as I heard several consecutive shots being fired.
âN-No! S-Stay away from me!â As I started shrieking in fear, I grabbed something and started biting it with all my might. I could feel my jaws aching, but I was reluctant to stop until I felt blood in my mouth.
Someone stopped me from moving around and held me firmly in between his arms. I felt a strong urge to cry when I detected the gentle kissed on my forehead.
He repeated himself in a remorseful tone, âEve, you donât have to worry anymore because everythingâs fine! Theyâre all dead as of now! Iâll keep you company and safe! It will be fine!â
As the nightmare stopped haunting me, I could finally fall asleep. I was unsure if it had merely been a few hours or had it been a few days by the time I woke up.
I surveyed the surroundings and tried to reach out to someone, but the racking sensation coming from the jaw stopped me from speaking. On top of that, I could feel my eyes aching.
Zachary approached me and asked, âHey, how are you feeling?â
I shook my head, asserting the anxious man everything was fine. Actually, Christopher was the one I had been searching for, but upon a simple glance around the ward, he was nowhere to be seen.
Unable to speak, I had to communicate with Zachary using body language. I made some noise because I was afraid he couldnât grasp the meaning behind it.
âYou need to calm down because your jaw has been severely dislocated. In the upcoming few weeks, you wonât be able to speak.â Zachary proceeded to summon the nurse over.
As he couldnât get my query, I tried my best to form a complete phrase. âC-Chrisââ
âIâm here!â Christopher barged into the ward and sprinted over to my side. Holding my hands, he repeated the same thing over and over again. When I heard him, I finally regained my composure.
âYou donât have to worry because Iâll always be here for you.â