“Christopher!” I called out as I forced myself to sit up. I leaned against the backrest and stared at the guy without blinking. If I must die in the next few minutes, then I want to at least etch this man’s face in my mind.
I scanned his face while calling out to him. Christopher actually wanted me to call him Chris or darling, but I preferred calling him Christopher. That name carried a different meaning in my heart because that was what I called him when we first met. It got me feeling warm and fuzzy, and safe.
Christopher carried me out of the car and ran toward the hospital. Lyle rushed over as well. He probably never anticipated that his attempted rape would get me to vomit blood and might even kill me. Hence, he looked like he was scared out of his wits
Christopher held me in his arms and lifted his leg to kick Lyle aside. After that, the former rushed toward the hospital. I never pitied Lyle. I simply draped my arm around Christopher and buried my face in his neck.
“You are too handsome, Chris. I don’t think I will ever get tired of watching you, even if I spend my entire life doing so. What should I do about it?”
“You should stay and stare at me forever!”
Christopher took me to the emergency room. A number of doctors were standing by to examine my condition, but I didn’t want to let Christopher go. I kept holding his hand and requested, “Please stay by my side. Don’t leave.”
“Okay, I will be right here. I won’t budge. Be good and cooperate with the doctor. We will be out of here soon,” promised Christopher as he held my hand tightly.
I kept staring at him and refused to even blink. My eyes remained open until the doctor gave me some sedatives. That got my eyelids heavy, and my vision blurred, but I never let go of his hand. I demanded unreasonably, “Chris, you’re not allowed to slip away, okay? I want you to be the first person I see when I open my eyes. Understand?”
“Okay, I will stay by your side forever, and I will watch you. Listen up, Eve. You are my wife. We’re married, and I’ll be waiting for you to wake up so we can have a grand wedding reception. You’re not allowed to sleep forever. Do you hear me?” said Christopher as he held my hand and planted a kiss on it. I couldn’t see well, but I knew that he was crying.
Warm droplets kept dripping onto the back of my hand before they rolled down. It was so hot that I felt like it might scald me.
“Don’t cry, Chris. The Christopher I know is a manly dude who didn’t even frown when a bullet tore through him. He’s not a crybaby, so don’t cry, okay?” I cooed. I tried to reach out to caress his face, but I missed him a couple of times.
Christopher grabbed my hand and placed it on his face. His voice was raspy, and it was obvious that he was suppressing his sobs when he lied, “I’m not crying. My eyes are just watery because some dust flew into them. This is all your fault, you know? You can’t even walk right, and I had to carry you, so I couldn’t protect my eyes from that gust of dusty wind. I will have to spank and punish you for it when you recover.”
“You’re being mean again, but I like it when you tease me. Christopher, I am so glad to have met you.”
Maybe it was because of the medication, but I lost my vision once more. Darkness filled my eyes. Unfortunately, just before I lost my sight, I saw Lyle barging into the emergency room. I pointed in that direction and requested, “Chris, I don’t want to see that man. Will you chase him away? I don’t want to be bothered even at the last moments of my life.”
“Okay, I will kick him out right now. I will keep him away so that we’re the only ones here.”
“I’m sorry, Yvonne. I-I didn’t know that you were sick, and I am so sorry,” said Lyle, whose voice was getting softer and softer until it disappeared completely. The doctor put a pin on my finger soon after, and I guessed that they were measuring my heartbeat.
My anxiousness prompted me to wave my hand in the air. Luckily, Christopher came back soon after. I grinned in that direction and asked, “Chris, am I pretty?”
“Yes. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met.”
“That’s good. I’m pretty, and you’re handsome, so we are a match made in heaven,” I said as I caressed his face. My breathing could no longer get my body to keep functioning, so with great difficulty, I added, “Except right now, I really hope that you have never met me.”
“No! Meeting you is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I have no regrets!”
I couldn’t make out what Christopher said afterward, and I felt weaker while my senses went numb. At that point, I couldn’t even tell what the doctor was doing. All I knew was that I was getting colder, and my surrounding was becoming quieter. I was the only one left there, and I was slowly descending into darkness…
