Novel Full Chapter 159: Will it happen?
Chapter 159: Will it happen?
Blake wiped the sweat from his forehead for what felt like the tenth time that morning.
Today was finally the day.
Discharge day.
The nurse had already removed his IV earlier, and all that remained was signing a few papers, collecting his medication, and listening to one last lecture about taking it easy for the next month and a half.
His ribs still throbbed with every movement. Even putting on his jacket had been a challenge, forcing him to pause halfway through because stretching his arm pulled painfully at his chest.
"...Almost done."
He reached for his phone while carefully adjusting the strap of his backpack.
The screen lit up.
It was Myles
Will our training sessions stop now?
Blake stared at the message for several long seconds before scratching the back of his head.
"Seriously?"
Yesterday, he’d simply texted Myles that he wouldn’t be able to attend training for a while.
Instead of asking whether he was alright...
Or what had happened, this was the first thing he asked?
Not that he could complain about it, anyway.
"Gosh..."
Blake sighed, quickly typing back.
I’ll have to take a break for a while.
He barely had time to lock his phone before another vibration followed.
Where are you?
"..."
Blake groaned aloud.
"He really doesn’t give up..."
The worst part wasn’t even that Myles was asking.
It was that Blake couldn’t answer honestly.
Lying to Myles had become second nature lately, yet it somehow felt harder every single time.
He slipped the phone into his pocket anyway and slowly made his way out of the room.
His discharge went surprisingly smoothly.
At the reception desk, the nurse handed him a neatly organized folder.
"These are all your discharge papers."
She pointed toward several highlighted pages.
"Your follow-up appointments are already scheduled. There are six in total over the next six weeks, and we’ll monitor both your ribs and your lung."
Blake nodded.
"I’ll be here."
She smiled.
"And remember, no running, no lifting anything heavy and no contact sports. If you suddenly develop chest pain or difficulty breathing again, don’t wait, come straight back."
"I understand."
After thanking everyone who had looked after him, Blake finally stepped outside the hospital.
The cool morning air brushed against his face.
"...Freedom."
He smiled faintly.
Being outside felt strangely refreshing after spending two days surrounded by white walls and antiseptic.
Ring.
His smile disappeared.
"...No way."
He pulled out his phone.
Myles Calling...
Blake stared at the screen as if it had personally offended him.
"You couldn’t even wait five minutes?"
He genuinely considered declining the call.
Actually, he considered turning his phone off altogether.
But, that would only make Myles more suspicious.
With a defeated sigh, Blake walked over to a bench near the hospital entrance before answering.
"...Hello? What is it?"
Myles’ voice came through almost immediately.
"Where are you?"
Blake glanced toward the hospital behind him.
"I’m... I just came out for a walk."
Before Myles could continue, Blake quickly changed the subject.
"What about you? What are you doing?"
"I’m outside."
Myles answered.
"I’m also walking."
Blake’s eyebrow twitched.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Where?"
"I’m walking around."
"..."
Blake blinked twice.
"...That’s not an answer."
"It is."
"No. It really isn’t."
"You asked what I was doing. I’m walking."
Blake pinched the bridge of his nose.
’...He’s definitely doing this on purpose.’
Anyone overhearing the conversation would probably think Myles sounded completely genuine.
His voice remained calm, almost emotionless, as always.
But Blake knew him well enough to realize he was intentionally avoiding the question.
Just like Blake had done moments earlier.
"...Childsih."
Blake muttered under his breath.
"What?"
"Nothing."
He coughed softly.
"...Love Tracker."
A translucent interface immediately appeared before his eyes.
The familiar map unfolded.
A single red dot blinked quietly.
Myles.
Blake leaned forward.
"...Huh."
The dot wasn’t anywhere close.
In fact...
It wasn’t even inside the city.
He was somewhere beyond the outskirts.
Far enough away that there was no chance of accidentally running into him.
Blake let out such a relieved sigh that he almost laughed.
"...Thank goodness."
"What was that?"
Myles suddenly asked.
Blake jumped slightly.
"N-Nothing. I just..."
Before he could finish...
"Code Red!"
Several nurses suddenly burst through the hospital entrance.
"Move!"
"Clear the way!"
An ambulance screeched to a stop outside the emergency department.
Doctors rushed forward with a stretcher while shouting instructions to one another.
The entire entrance became chaotic within seconds.
Blake froze.
"..."
The noise had undoubtedly traveled through the phone.
Silence lingered for only a moment.
Then Myles asked,
"...Are you at the hospital?"
Blake’s heart nearly stopped.
"Haha..."
His laugh sounded painfully forced.
"No, I’m just... close by."
"The hospital? It’s nowhere near your apartment, and there isn’t anything around it. So why are you there?"
Blake coughed awkwardly.
"Well... I just felt like walking, it seemed nice, so I kept walking all the way here."
He immediately added,
"Besides, why are you interrogating me? What does it have to do with you?"
Silence.
A heavy one.
Blake slowly swallowed.
’Dang. Maybe... I am being too defensive.’
Maybe he should’ve laughed it off instead.
Then Myles finally spoke.
"If you got hurt again, I won’t let it go."
Blake frowned.
"...What?"
"If you got hurt again, I won’t let it go."
"..."
Blake blinked.
"Ehhh, whaaat?"
He let out a bewildered laugh.
"Even if I was hurt, why would you be angry?"
"If you like getting hurt that much, then I’ll show you how dangerous it is."
Something inside Blake snapped.
Stress.
Fear.
Pain.
Everything that had happened over the past week crashed together at once.
"Oh, seriously?"
His voice rose before he could stop it.
"I’ve been under enough pressure already!"
He stood up too quickly, immediately regretting it as pain shot through his ribs.
He ignored it.
"I practically spend every day worrying about one thing after another! And instead of asking whether I’m okay, you’re threatening me? What the hell is wrong with you?!"
His breathing became uneven.
"You don’t even know what’s going on! And you’re acting like this? Even if I was hurt, what would be the use of telling you, since you can only react like this?"
He tightened his grip on the phone.
"...Go screw yourself!"
Click.
The call ended, and silence returned.
Blake stared blankly at the now-dark screen.
"...Ah, I’m doomed."
He slowly sat back down on the bench, rubbing his forehead.
"Why do we keep fighting lately?"
Just a week ago, conversations with Myles had felt effortless.
Now it seemed every exchange somehow turned into an argument.
He sighed deeply.
"Idiot, I shouldn’t have lost my temper."
Myles wasn’t exactly good at expressing himself.
Maybe, that hadn’t even been a threat.
Maybe it was just Myles’s bizarre way of saying he didn’t want Blake getting hurt anymore.
"...Still, you could’ve worded it better."
***
Several kilometers away, a faint crack echoed through the empty roadside.
Myles slowly lowered his hand.
His phone screen had splintered beneath his grip, tiny fractures spreading across the glass like a spider’s web.
He hadn’t even realized how hard he’d been squeezing it.
His expression remained perfectly calm.
Only the ruined phone suggested anything was wrong.
"..."
Why?
Why did Blake keep getting hurt?
Again.
And again.
And again.
Every time Myles finally convinced himself Blake was safe, and not in any shady business... something happened.
His thoughts drifted back to the impossible suspicion he’d been trying to suppress.
’If Blake really is a spy...’
His fingers tightened unconsciously.
’...then I’ll break his legs. I’ll keep him somewhere safe, even if he hates me for it.’
The thought made him frown.
Not because it was impossible, really, but because, in that moment, it genuinely felt like the safest solution.
"..."
His broken phone suddenly vibrated.
Ding.
Myles looked down.
It was a message, from Blake.
Sorry.
I shouldn’t have raised my voice.
Another one appeared almost immediately.
And don’t worry, you haven’t lost your speaking privileges.
Myles stared at the words for a long time.
The tightness in his chest slowly faded.
Without meaning to, he remembered Blake laughing at something he’d said.
Remembered Blake teasing him.
Smiling.
Calling him hopeless.
"..."
No, he didn’t want to hurt Blake, not even a little.
Last time he did, it didn’t end up well. Nobody ever once dared to scream at him like that, it was certainly a new experience and...
He felt absolutely viscid inside.
Right then, he understood that whatever strange thoughts crossed his mind, they disappeared the moment he imagined Blake looking genuinely angry at him.
That alone made his stomach feel weird.
He always questions himself, why does he care about him so much? Was it really some specific reason?
Was it really that easy, to destabilize him?
Was he always this weak?
All the things Blake said moved him so easily.
He had promised himself long ago.
No matter what happened.
No matter what Blake was hiding.
No matter who Blake really turned out to be.
"...I won’t, I’ll never hurt you."