The Rise of the White Lotus

When the dawn came...

Slowly, Morris Liu moved, however with that slight movement, he felt a weight beside him which his instincts discerned the familiarity. In an instant, he opened his eyes and turned to his left. 

To his surprise, Churu was sleeping peacefully beside him. As he came to his senses, he felt her slender arms over his abdomen, her legs over his, and she slightly moved her head closer to his chest. 

"You..." Lost of words, Morris Liu's eyes glinted with rage. As if he recovered his strength, he immediately pulled his arm, causing her to wake up abruptly. 

"Ow..." Still sleepy, Churu frowned and slowly opened her weary eyes. "Morning..." rubbing her eyes, Churu looked up at the pair of blazing eyes. 

To her, the fire in his eyes were rather new. After all, Morris Liu always bore those cold chilly pair of eyes, but now, a blazing fire was burning within it. 

"How did you — !" Gritting his teeth, Morris Liu turned his head to the buzzer where he could summon a nurse. However, the button wasn't there anymore. 

What was in there was nothing... she unplugged it! The nerve! 

Upon that realization, Morris Liu's blood pressure slowly shot up as he glared daggers at the woman beside him. Alas, as his gaze unconsciously traveled down, he closed his eyes and looked away in great distress. 

By the looks of it, Churu wasn't wearing anything decent again. He could tell, with the thin strap over her shoulders, that the sheet failed to cover. 

"You're so energetic, aren't you?" Watching his emotions go all over the place, Churu shook her head as if he was hopeless. "I guess my therapy is working." Churu sighed in relief. 

"How did you get in?" Morris Liu tried to calm his rattled mind. He was certain that he left a note to the attending nurses that he didn't want this woman in his room again.

He even phoned the medical director about his request. Therefore, he was confident that he would rest easy. 

So, how did she snuck in last night?

"Do you really think that door is the only way I can enter?" Slowly, Churu rose and sat up, not forgetting to use the sheet to cover her bust. Still, for someone who accused him as a pervert, Churu was rather relaxed this time. 

"There's no way you can go through the window." Meant as sarcasm, Morris Liu still didn't set his eyes on her, afraid he would be accused again. Little did he know, his sarcasm actually hit the bulls' eyes. 

"Well, that's where you're wrong because I came here through the window, so..." In a matter-of-fact tone, Churu gave him a knowing look as she innocently blinked her eyes. 

"If you don't believe me then, I can show you how!" As if a bright idea struck across her mind, Churu clapped her hands together. "Don't take a peek!" She warned before hopping out the bed and picked up the dress she wore yesterday. 

"Alright, I'm all dressed up!" After a while, Churu snapped her finger as she tried to catch his attention. 

"No more lies — go out." Yet, Morris Liu had got more displeased by her easygoing personality and what was coming out from her mouth now. 

How could she enter through the window if they were several floors up from the ground floor? Even if she would use other professional tools, she needed to start from the rooftop and then carefully travel down like a building window cleaner. 

To do that, Churu still needed to enter the hospital premises. How could she enter if they banned her from entering until they discharged Morris Liu?

"Hai hai~" Nodding her head, Churu sang her answer as she trudged towards the window. "I'm going out~" she said as she opened the window. 

A sudden gust of wind then kissed her face and brushed her hair. "Brr... cold," she complained under her shivering breath. 

Seeing this made his brows creased. "What are you doing?" 

"Going out, obviously." Churu responded as she peeked her head out of the window, checking if there were people that she might give a scare. Leaning further, Churu now has half of her body to have a broader sight around the area. 

"Hey, you'll fall!" Seeing her recklessly shooting half of her body out of the window, Morris Liu warned. However, just as he did, the time slowed down as he witnessed her fall out of the window in a slow motion pace. 

"Hey—!" His eyes slowly widened in disbelief as his heart pounded harder and harder. Did he just witness a suicide attempt? But...

Morris Liu's mind seemed not to take this data inside his mind. Just seconds ago, he was telling her to go out of this room. But this wasn't the kind of exit he wanted. 

He didn't ask her to die, right...? Was he too harsh and insensitive without knowing the personal struggle Churu was experiencing? 

Did he caused her death? If he didn't ask her to leave, if he controlled his emotions, Churu wouldn't have to take her lies further, right? 

So, it was partially his fault...

For some reason, this triggered the emotions he freshly could feel from way back. The frightening emotions upon hearing the news of Lexi's suicide attempt. 

Just the thought of this, his heart felt like someone was clenching it tightly. It was as if a hand was stopping his pounding heart from beating — it was painful. 

Grasping on his chest, Morris Liu's breath turned heavier by the second. His heart was in too much pain and yet, the thought of calling a nurse over didn't cross his mind. 

The pain of the past and the cause of how it resurfaced was too overwhelming that he gave up on life for a moment. In his mind, Morris Liu accepted that he's truly a despicable, cursed man. 

Just as he struggled to breathe, he heard Churu's familiar voice assailed his ears. "See, I told you — wha — what's happening!?" As Churu climbed over the window, she was instantly alarmed upon hearing the abnormal heartbeat resounding across the room and Morris Liu struggling to breathe.