Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

I freaked out and flailed my arms and legs to keep him from getting any closer.

"Don't mess with my leg," Faris muttered, frowning.

His reaction threw me off, making me think I hit his injury, so I froze.

Faris took the chance to press his whole body against mine. When I tried to push him off again, I was already losing.

"Faris, cut it out." I glared at him, feeling both embarrassed and pissed.

He gave me a cheeky grin. "No way."

He suddenly held up two fingers in front of my face. "How many fingers?"

"Are you nuts?" I snapped.

Faris was thick-skinned; no matter how much I cursed, he always smiled back. He even patted my head.

"Just checking if that bump messed with your brain."

I snorted. "You should worry about your leg."

He smirked. "I'm not worried. If I end up crippled, you'll have to take care of me forever."

"Keep dreaming." I rolled my eyes.

He suddenly gave me a puppy-dog look. "I got hurt saving you. Don't tell me you forgot already. That'd be cold."

It was exactly because Faris got hurt saving me that I was worried and came to see him. Otherwise, I'd be nuts to walk into the lion's den.

Suddenly, I heard a bunch of guys talking outside the door and recognized Richard's voice. If he saw me with Faris again, I'd be toast. I looked at Faris, panicking.

Faris stared at me, like he could read my mind, and smirked.

The voices got closer, and Faris suddenly yanked open the bathroom door, pulled me inside, and slammed it shut, locking it.

"Faris," they called out as they came in, one by one.

"Faris isn't here."

"His leg's messed up; where could he go?"

Faris pressed me against the cold bathroom tiles, and I was so nervous I could barely breathe.

"I'll call him." I heard Richard say, and my eyes went wide.

Faris frowned and quickly pulled out his phone. But before he could turn it off, it started ringing.

In the tiny bathroom, the ringtone was super loud.

"Faris is in the bathroom," someone said.

Soon, someone knocked on the bathroom door. "Faris, you taking a dump?"

The phone kept ringing, but Faris didn't answer.

If he admitted to being in the bathroom, they'd definitely wait outside.

Faris's eyes narrowed as he stared at me, like he was thinking hard.

After a moment, he slowly leaned his crutch against the wall, placed his hands on the wall behind me, and brought his head close to my ear, suddenly making that kind of sound. My mind went blank.

Laughter came from outside the door.

"Looks like we came at a bad time."

"We should go; don't want to interrupt. Faris has been stuck in bed for days; he needs to blow off some steam."

They all chimed in.

I prayed they'd leave quickly because I couldn't stand being in this situation with Faris any longer.

There were two knocks on the door, and I heard Richard say, "Faris, take it easy; watch your leg."

His words made the others laugh.

After a while, it got quiet outside; they seemed to have left.

I immediately pushed Faris away. He stumbled and steadied himself against the wall.

Though it was just an act, I could see a spark in his eyes.

Blushing, I nervously reached for the door, but Faris pulled me back and pressed me against the wall. He grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up. His eyes burned as he stared at my lips, his breath growing heavier as he leaned in. My heart raced. Just before he kissed me, I turned my head and broke free from his grip.

I heard him chuckle self-deprecatingly.

"I really want to kiss you."

His voice was like dry wood under the scorching summer sun, about to ignite.

I bit my lip, not saying a word, my body stiff with fear.

After about ten seconds of silent standoff, he slowly straightened up.

"Don't rush out. Those guys are sneaky; they might be hanging around to catch a show. If you don't want Richard to see you and then blab to Ethan, you should chill here a bit longer."

His voice was calm now. He cranked the faucet, letting the water blast, and splashed his face.

With water dripping from his face, he stared at himself in the mirror for a moment, then put down the toilet lid and sat on it.

He leisurely lit a cigarette and said, "Wait until I finish this smoke; maybe they'll be gone by then."

Sure enough, after a bit, I heard voices outside again.

"Still not done? Faris is something else."

"Let's bounce."

This time, it was completely quiet!

I stood against the wall, Faris sat on the toilet smoking, and the small space was filled with awkwardness.

Faris suddenly looked up, smiling at me through the thin layer of smoke.

"Why so tense? If I really wanted to do something, do you really think you could've escaped that night on the mountain?"

Remembering that night on the mountain and Richard's words, I felt like I couldn't breathe.

Faris grabbed his crutch and stood up, opened the toilet lid, and flushed the cigarette butt down.

"You can go now," he said with his back to me.

I immediately opened the door and bolted out.

After leaving the ward, I ran a few steps before stopping.

I touched my cheeks, not knowing what my face looked like now, but I could still feel the heat.

Back in Bella's ward, I paused at the door.

Ethan was there too; wasn't he supposed to be at the office?

Hearing footsteps, he looked up, staring straight at me.

"Where did you go?"

Feeling guilty, I avoided his gaze, afraid my face would give something away. I walked to Bella's bedside table, grabbed a disposable cup, and poured myself some water. After drinking the water, I felt calmer and looked at him. "Zachary asked me to take him grocery shopping. He said he didn't know what Bella likes to eat."

Briefly meeting Ethan's eyes made me nervous, so I looked at Bella. "Zachary said you haven't had much of an appetite and wanted to make something you like to eat." Ethan responded, "Oh."

He seemed to buy it.

But Bella looked at me suspiciously. She knew I was lying; we had already gone grocery shopping before I brought the fruit.

But Bella was smart; she didn't expose me in front of Ethan, though I knew she'd question me later.

After sitting with Ethan for a while, we left together.

Outside the hospital, I saw a familiar face-Michael.

Michael must have heard about my recent exploits. He looked at me several times, then walked over.

"Isn't this Emily?"

"Michael." I greeted weakly.

Michael laughed dryly, "You usually seem so timid, but you were quite brave when it mattered."

I looked down in embarrassment. "I'm sorry for embarrassing you."

Michael probably didn't want to scold me in front of Ethan, so he just sighed and smiled. "It's okay. Everyone does something stupid at least once in their life."

I couldn't even retort.

"But you can't give up halfway. You still need to get your driver's license." Michael added.

I nodded repeatedly, like a student being scolded by a teacher.

If Michael wasn't in a hurry to visit a hospitalized friend, he probably would have teased me more.

In the car, Ethan was still laughing.

I said gloomily, "I have a fear of driving now. I don't even want to get near a car, let alone get a license."

Ethan had already started the car but suddenly stopped.

He suddenly hooked his arm around my neck, and as he kissed me, his tongue slipped in.

His kiss had a mesmerizing power, quickly taking over my thoughts.

The kiss went from gentle and tender to hot and wild. The car's interior felt like it was on fire, and Ethan's heavy breathing was fanning the flames of our self-control.