Chapter 45

Stepping out of the bathroom feeling refreshed, she found dinner prepared on the coffee table. Though “dinner” amounted to nothing more than a chopped meat salad and soup.

Lily, who had been waiting standing in front of the table, spoke up.

“I had it prepared with foods that won’t upset your digestion, but if you’d like something else, I’ll prepare it anew.”

Wanting to grab a bite with something not too heavy anyway, Isu sat down on the sofa.

“I like that soup and minced meat. But Ms. Grace, have you eaten?”

“Please, call me Lily. And as for me, I’ve already had a light bite.”

Stirring the soup with a spoon to cool it down, Isu looked at Lily. She figured eating alone would be fine, though… Just as things were getting a bit uncomfortable, Lily spoke.

“I know it’s awkward, but the president asked me to keep an eye on you to make sure you’re eating well.”

Isu scooped up a spoonful of soup, blew on it for a long time, and put it in her mouth. It was potato soup that anyone could easily eat, but for some reason, it didn’t appeal to her appetite at all; if anything, it made her feel nauseous.

“Ugh…”

It seemed her digestive functions had deteriorated from not eating properly for nearly a month. With nausea overpowering hunger, she put the spoon back down.

“I’ll rest a little and eat later. My stomach doesn’t feel good right now.”

Tapping lightly near her heart, she pressed down firmly on her upper chest. She had felt it since she was showering, but her chest felt tight and congested.

Observing that, Lily asked.

“Does your chest hurt?”

“No, it’s just a bit tight.”

Her body felt chilled and fatigued. Would she feel better if she caught some fresh air? After filling her stomach with bottled water, she said to Lily.

“Would it be possible to take a walk?”

Lily replied that she would call someone to assist with the walk.

A moment later, the brown-haired nurse she had seen when regaining consciousness came in. Following her outside led to a corridor paved with light gray marble.

Being a hospital, she had expected a bleak landscape, but it was as luxurious as a hotel, and there wasn’t a soul passing by. The only people around were the security guards standing at the entrance of the ward and in front of the elevator. Tilting her head in puzzlement, Isu asked.

“Um, is this really a hospital?”

“It is indeed a hospital. This floor is the VIP floor so it’s empty and clean, but the other floors aren’t different from a regular hospital.”

“The VIP floor…”

Only then did Isu realize that she was enjoying luxury thanks to Hayden Wyatt’s wealth. While she felt reassured because the security here looked thorough, the feeling of receiving without having given anything in return weighed heavily on her.

She resolved to work hard to recover her health and be discharged as soon as possible. Stepping out onto the walking path, she deliberately walked energetically to loosen her stiff muscles.

8:00 PM. True to a summer day, the sunset was beginning to fall. It was a sky she had endlessly stared at on the island, but seeing it framed by the hospital’s clock tower felt quite different.

“Say… I was told I was unconscious for about a fortnight, right?”

“Yes. Exactly a fortnight.”

Having spent roughly a fortnight on the island and then sleeping for another fortnight, that added up to a month. Pressing the tip of her finger firmly against her tightly clenched chest, she asked.

“By any chance, did I have my period while I was unconscious?”

The nurse shook her head.

“No. Your biological rhythm was probably completely wrecked due to mental and physical stress. While you’re hospitalized here, we’ll do our utmost to help you find stability. As you find stability, your menstrual cycle should naturally return to normal.”

“Thank you. What’s your name?”

“Please call me Georgina.”

“Thank you, Georgina.”

Isu flashed a comfortable smile. Georgina slowly scanned her face.

It was a face exuding a natural beauty through her smile. Her warm-toned skin glowed without a single common freckle.

Her jet-black, abundant hair and crescent-shaped eyebrows evoked an innocent, childlike vibe. However, the haughty uptilt of her outer eye corners and her contoured pink lips announced that she was a full-grown adult woman possessing a bewitching charm.

People taking a walk after dinner caught sight of the exotic-looking woman and greeted her.

It was only natural to exchange greetings when making eye contact. Watching Isu respond without a trace of awkwardness, Georgina carefully asked.

“By the way, how did you meet your boyfriend?”

An upper-class man named Hayden Wyatt and an Asian woman of unknown identity were a common point of interest among the hospital staff. Rumors floated around that the woman was already on the island while the man was a flight passenger, but confirming it directly with the parties involved would be the most accurate way.

Since there were even staff members who had placed bets regarding their relationship, Georgina intended to find out the facts.

“Did you meet on the island?”

Isu, walking comfortably, came to a halt. The question was easy enough to answer, but she felt uneasy in her heart, worried that Graham might overhear from somewhere and harm Hayden.

Observing her complexion rapidly turning pale, Georgina said.

“Ah, I’ve asked a rude question. Ever since Ms. Eila was unconscious, Mr. Wyatt took such tender care of her that everyone was envious.”

“……”

“During that time, he wiped Ms. Eila down with a wet towel and even washed her hair with his own hands. He guarded the hospital room like that for a fortnight, pulling all-nighters right up until today before leaving for London.”

Isu looked around her surroundings like a hunted person. Then, suddenly chewing over Georgina’s words, she asked.

“He stayed up all night taking care of… that person did that for me?”

He seemed like the kind of person who would abhor a bothersome chore…. Furthermore, they weren’t even in such an affectionate relationship.

Isu pictured him nursing her right before her eyes. At that moment, his voice desperately echoed in the corners of her ears.

“Eila, when are you going to wake up?”

His body temperature, which had lingered on her cheek, slowly revived. The touch carefully caressing her face could be felt once more.

It was definitely a warm sensation, but strangely, her chest was dyed with a sense of yearning.

The reason was unknown. Suddenly, a person came to yearn so desperately within her heart. A person she could never meet again. Mourning for that person. That feeling welled up without her knowing and spilled past her teeth.

“Rayburn…”

She soon asked herself in return. Who was Rayburn? If he was the only living person within her charred memories, she wished he would appear right now without hesitating.

“Rayburn, Rayburn…”

She was just chewing over that name like someone out of their mind. Even so, Rayburn’s appearance didn’t vividly surface before her eyes, and only his desperate voice brushed the corners of her ears.

“Eila, I’m so scared right now. Please wake up.”

“……”

“Please…”

A flock of birds sitting on a tree branch fluttered up into the sky. Startled by the sound, she came to her senses and saw Georgina with a worried expression.

“Are… you okay?”

Georgina, who had been expecting to hear talk about Hayden, looked flustered. Wiping the cold sweat gathered on her forehead, Isu forced an awkward smile.

“I met him on the island. The wind has gotten chilly. Shall we head back in?”

Answering hastily, she walked away as if driven and entered the hospital. However, before she could even walk to the elevator, her legs gave out and she ended up sitting on a chair.

Fortunately, right next to them was the emergency room, so there were a lot of people.
Graham wouldn’t appear, ignoring the bustling crowd, would he? Isu leaned her powerless body against the wall, as if she had lost all the blood in her body.

Thanks to the cafeteria being next door, the quiet chatting voices sounded reassuring. Looking around, she saw people who looked like security guards standing everywhere.

“Are those people hospital staff?”

Georgina, sitting next to her, shook her head.

“No, they’re people deployed by Mr. Wyatt.”

He had promised to protect her even after leaving this island. Isu had dismissed it as sweet talk that would end the moment she turned her back, but it was surprising that he had actually kept that promise.

To think he had been sincere…

“It feels strange.”

It felt hazy, like walking through a dream. There was also an overwhelming feeling, as if waiting for an old friend. Comprehending these emotions that couldn’t be explained in words, she looked around her surroundings once more.

A group of people was standing in front of the elevator in the center of the corridor.

At that moment, the arrival chime of the elevator rang. Whether a lot of people were getting off from inside, the people standing in front of the elevator stepped aside.

People in black suits stepped out from inside. There were eight of them. Each of them had striking features, as if they had gathered models.

Isu stared at the man standing at the very front among them. The man, who looked to be well over 6 feet 3 inches (192 cm) tall, was walking smoothly with a confident stride. The pommed hairstyle with his grayish-brown hair swept to one side accentuated the man’s sleek face.

When her heart was shaken by that face, he made eye contact with her. A faint smile hovered over his sharp face, which was as piercing as a murderer’s.

Spellbound and out of it, Isu called out his name.

“Hayden…”

Hayden stopped right in front of her, buttoning his jacket with his thick-jointed fingers and adjusting the position of his tie.

As she tried to admire him from bottom to top, he instead knelt on one knee and lowered his line of sight to her shoulder height, asking.

“The hospital room was stuffy, so you were out people-watching?”

He asked with familiarity, just as he had on the island, but it felt rather a little unfamiliar. The man she had met on the island wasn’t a man neat like a germaphobe and exuding a faint fragrance of perfume, but a man savagely wearing only underwear.

Examining him, Isu awkwardly answered.

“Y-Yeah.”

Then, as he looked closely at her face, he smoothly retreated backward and said.

“What’s wrong? You look weak.”

She felt a hint of regret as the soft soap fragrance approached and then scattered into empty space. Isu naturally looked at his clean hands coming up to her knees and replied.

“A little cold.”

“Cold?”

Asking in a low voice, he slightly turned back and gave instructions.

“Chief, bring a blanket.”

For someone who had stayed up all night nursing a woman and then gone to handle business, there wasn’t a trace of fatigue on Hayden’s face. The chief, who must have shared time with him, answered with clear fatigue around his eyes.

“Yes, I understand. Everyone, see to your own tasks.”

At the chief’s words, the people scattered in their own directions. A moment later, Hayden rose after wrapping the blanket the chief had brought around her shoulders.

“Shall we take a walk together? Or should we head back to the hospital room?”

If Hayden had single-handedly taken charge of nursing her for a fortnight just as Georgina said, she would have thought he wanted to rest in her head. He had a caring side to him, enough to suggest a walk despite how tired he must be. Thinking that, she got up to follow him.