Only you in my love

It was 8:50 in the evening.

The sound of a door opening woke Michelle up, and she turned her head in its direction. Through her blurry vision, she saw three figures standing by the door. Later, the door closed, leaving one person in the room with her. Her vision gradually cleared.

She instantly recognized the man just by looking at his back.

Michelle weakly opened her mouth but no sound came out. It was as if his name was stuck in her throat.

But she really wanted to call out to him, so she pushed herself to make some noise.

"Leon."

As if they were of one mind, Leon strode over to her. Michelle tried again. "Leon," she called again even though her voice was soft.

And Leon heard her.

She was so weak that her eyes were barely open.

But Leon was overjoyed for he hadn't expected her to regain consciousness so soon.

"You're awake." He could finally feel at ease. It felt as if his heart had stopped until she woke up.

"Where am I?" Michelle struggled to sit up but the anesthesia from her surgery had not worn off yet. Even though her head felt fine, she could still feel pain coming from her ankle and knees.

It hurt so much that her face scrunched up and her eyes started to fill with tears.

"Don't get up." Leon placed a hand on her shoulder and coaxed her into lying down again. He then pulled the blanket over her and tucked her in. "We're in the hospital because you needed surgery. Medicine has been applied to your knees and ankle. What do you want? Tell me and I'll get it for you."

Seeing him look so concerned made Michelle feel a little better. Her lips and cheeks were still pale, but she smiled.

Leon was saddened to see her like this. Even though she was in pain, she found the strength to smile at him. He bent down to kiss her forehead. Michelle felt the warmth of his lips even through the gauze.

Suddenly aware of the bandage around her head, Michelle reached up to touch it and asked, "Leon, did I fall and hurt my head?"

"Yes. You have a gash on the back of your head. The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet so you probably can't feel the stitches." Leon peered into her eyes. Worry and happiness swirled in the amber depths of his gaze. He gently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear before cupping her face in his hand. In a low voice, he said, "You nearly scared me to death, Michelle."

She heard the sadness in his voice and felt an ache in her chest. She replied softly, "I'm sorry, Leon. I must have tripped while walking."

"It's good that you woke up at all. Did you really fall on your own?" Leon asked.

"Yes, I think so." Michelle blinked at him.

Leon didn't believe her at first and asked again, "It was an accident? Valerie didn't push you on purpose?"

"No, no. It wasn't like that, Leon." Michelle shook her head slightly. "It was careless of me. I should have been steadier on my feet."

Her voice was hoarse because her throat was dry so she said pitifully, "Leon, I want to drink water."

"Okay, I'll get it for you." Leon got up and poured her a glass of hot water. He took a sip to check its temperature. Deciding it was too hot, he added a little cold water and took another sip. Now, the water was warm enough to drink.

He returned to sit on the edge of the bed and helped Michelle sit up. She leaned against his free arm, and he held the glass up to her lips.

"I can drink by myself, Leon, since my hands didn't get hurt." Michelle tried to take the glass from him, but Leon pulled it out of reach.

"Let me do this for you. Consider it my duty as your boyfriend." Leon squinted as he thought of something and added, "Let me take care of you from now on."

Michelle felt moved by his words. She looked up at him with watery eyes and said, "That's so kind of you, Leon."

"You're the only woman I'll be nice to so be a good girl and drink some water." Leon put the glass against her mouth, encouraging Michelle to raise her chin up slightly as she drank.

She must have been very thirsty for she sipped the water greedily, regaining some color in her cheeks.

The ward was so quiet that they could hear her swallow as she drank.

Nestled in Leon's arms, Michelle seemed as fragile as a flower. But despite the smell of disinfectant, the man caught a hint of a milky fragrance coming from her body.

It was surprising how he was capable of being aroused in this situation, but Leon willed himself to calm down.

'Michelle is injured,' he reminded himself, swallowing audibly.

"Leon, I'm done." Because she drank more than half of the glass, Michelle felt better. But her voice remained softer than usual because she had just woken up. Leon's heart softened. He set the glass down nearby and continued to hold her in his arms. "Let me hold you for a little while longer."

"Sounds good to me." Michelle closed her eyes. She still felt a little shy, but she loved to be close to Leon.

Earlier, Leon had promised to take care of her even in the future.

His words tasted sweeter than strawberries drizzled with honey.

In order not to make him worry, Michelle reassured him with a smile, "I'm fine, Leon. I'll be back to my usual self after resting for a few days. Stop fretting." Leon wordlessly nodded and hugged her.

He only released her when her IV bag ran out so that he could ring for a nurse.

When the nurse came to remove her IV, Michelle couldn't bear to watch the process. It didn't matter whether it hurt or not, she just didn't want to see the needle being pushed into or pulled from her hand. So she squinted and leaned away as the nurse approached.

She couldn't go far, but Leon had been tracking her movements and facial expressions. Because she didn't know how to hide her emotions, everything showed on her face.

Realizing her fear, Leon smiled in amusement and reached out cover her eyes.

"There's no need for you to see it. I'll do the looking for you."

"Okay!" Michelle replied happily. "You can be my eyes."

Leon held her hand in his. After a moment, the nurse pulled out the IV needle and immediately taped a cotton ball over the hole. He pressed his thumb over it with an unfathomable look in his eyes. "I'll do my best."

If Michelle couldn't or didn't want to see things through, he would do it for her.

She claimed that she had fallen on her own. But according to Bryant, Valerie had pushed her down the stairs without meaning to. Apparently, things were not as simple as they seemed.

Leon went to sit on a chair next to the bed before holding one of Michelle's hands in his.

"Nini told your mother that you are staying with her tonight. Tomorrow, you need to call your family and tell them that you're going on a week-long business trip. During that time, you'll stay here and recuperate."

Michelle looked at him gratefully. "Thank Nini for me, please. And thank you too, Leon. Hold on! Nini knows I'm in the hospital?"

"You woke up just after she left with John," Leon explained.

Michelle became anxious. "What? So if Nini came to the hospital to see me, that means she saw you, too. Did she suspect anything?"

Leon's eyebrows wrinkled slightly but he willed his expression to look relaxed. He asked casually, "Suspect what?"

"Suspect that I'm in love with you." Michelle looked embarrassed after saying that.

Despite his annoyance, Leon's voice was calm as he answered, "We're in love with each other, aren't we? Why should we be afraid of suspicion?"

He brought his face close enough to Michelle's until their noses touched. His warm breath fanned her face. "Why don't you want people to know about us, Michelle? Did I do something wrong? Are you ashamed to tell everyone that I'm your boyfriend?" He spoke gently but grievance still seeped into his tone.