“Do you happen to know someone named Amaya?”
Andy looked bewildered by the sudden question and reacted a beat later.
“Amaya?”
Andy muttered the unfamiliar name and tilted his head.
“Never heard of her. But why?”
“I heard she’s Nia’s client. I was wondering if you knew anything about her.”
Andy didn’t know why Nia’s name suddenly popped up out of the blue, but he replied positively.
“Should I look into it?”
“That would be great. I’ll leave it to you.”
Dylan patted Andy on the shoulder and said, “I’ll get going,” and left the nurse’s station.
He was a friend who rarely showed his emotions, but today Dylan’s back looked particularly sad and lonely, and Andy and Tadeo were uneasy.
Only after a while did they turn their attention to the nurse sitting at the nurse’s station.
“Excuse me, we have a question.”
What is it about today?
Only handsome men come to ask questions.
The nurses’ eyes seemed full of life as they looked at Andy and Tadeo.
The intern nurse smiled brightly and said routinely.
“Yes. How can I help you?”
“Was Lola badly injured?”
Lola must be happy. She’s getting a lot of attention, but who are these two?
The nurse wondered what their relationship was with Lola, whom she had seen a few times.
“Who are you?”
“We’re friends.”
Her friends are all handsome, too.
The nurse was so envious of Lola at that moment that she wanted to die.
Looking at the handsome men with their charming smiles, the nurse’s mouth opened involuntarily as if she were possessed.
“It could have been a disaster.”
Starting with that, the intern nurse began to ramble on about the events of the accident, recalling the memories of a few days ago.
“If the prosecutor hadn’t been there that day, Lola might have really been in trouble.”
“How badly was she hurt?”
Andy asked, swallowing hard with a serious expression. Tadeo’s expression darkened as well.
“Eight stitches on her shoulder and back…”
The nurse, who was continuing her explanation with gestures, suddenly stopped talking. She realized belatedly that she hadn’t been careful enough about the patient’s privacy.
“…”
“…”
Even though the nurse didn’t finish her sentence, Andy and Tadeo, who had already realized the seriousness of the situation, looked at each other and were speechless for a while.
After a long time, “Dylan must be devastated.”
Andy murmured quietly. Tadeo nodded beside him.
“Dylan doesn’t talk much, that’s the problem. He must be very upset right now.”
“Shouldn’t we comfort him?”
“How?”
The two pondered how to comfort their upset friend, resting their foreheads on their hands, before finally returning to Xavier’s room.
*****
Dylan said he would be a little late today, but Lola was no longer as anxious or uneasy as she used to be.
After being injured once, she knew very well how much he cherished her. Even though Amaya had escaped from the hospital, Lola was no longer worried.
She wasn’t afraid at all because Dylan, who protected her so strongly, was by her side.
-Don’t worry, and just trust me. Amaya can’t escape anywhere!
Lola looked at the text message Dylan had sent her several times, then turned on the lamp, lay down on the bed, and began to read a book.
Then, she fell asleep without realizing it, but a while later, she reflexively opened her eyes at the sound of footsteps as the bedroom door opened.
“Dylan.”
Lola sat up and leaned against the headboard. Dylan approached and asked.
“You’re not asleep yet?”
“No.”
“Were you waiting for me?”
“Yes.”
Lola smiled brightly as she looked at Dylan sitting on the bed. But she soon frowned and asked as if to confirm.
“Dear, have you been drinking?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah!”
Dylan asked Lola, who nodded slightly.
“But you’re not asking who I was drinking with at this hour?”
“You wouldn’t have been drinking with a woman, would you?”
Lola didn’t look worried at all. But when Dylan chuckled, Lola’s eyes instantly turned cold.
“Were you really drinking with a woman?”
She wondered if he would have done that, leaving a sick person alone at home, but she asked just in case.
“Well…”
Dylan deliberately dragged out the answer as if to tease her. Then Lola, who was getting annoyed, unknowingly began to squint.
“Was there a woman drinking with me?” Dylan tilted his head to one side, pretending to think hard.
Whenever he acted like this, Lola really wanted to punch him. Just as her breathing was starting to get a little rough, “Ah, ah. Here she is. I’ve had a few drinks with a woman who cries at the drop of a hat and never listens to me, who’s sitting in front of me right now.”
Dylan’s voice, filled with playfulness, came over.
Lola’s lips pouted as she looked at Dylan, who was pointing at her chest.
“I was drinking with friends. People you know well.”
After what happened to Lola, Dylan felt like he had aged rapidly in just a few days, burdened by the pent-up anger.
Originally, he wouldn’t have even considered drinking with friends, worried about Lola being alone at home. But on a day like today, he felt so heavy-hearted that he felt like he would burst into flames if he didn’t consume some alcohol.
So, he reluctantly gave in to his friends’ urging to comfort him and had a few drinks, but he felt a little sorry seeing Lola still awake and waiting for him.
“I didn’t ask you that far.” Lola was pleased to see Dylan confessing, even though he pretended not to care much. “That way, you won’t have any unnecessary thoughts.”
“I didn’t have any unnecessary thoughts.”
“Then that’s a relief.”
“Of course. It’s a real relief.”
Dylan’s lips slightly curved upward, finding her quick responses refreshing.
“Aren’t you going to take my clothes off? It would be even better if you kissed me too.”
Dylan stared at her for a while before making a suggestive request.
Lola, who was about to obediently reach out to take off his clothes, tilted her head as if contemplating something.
“But, Dear.”
“Yeah?”
“Should I take your clothes off first? Or kiss you first?”
“What?”
Her expression as she widened her eyes and asked seriously was so earnest that Dylan couldn’t immediately tell if she was joking or not.
“I think it’s better to kiss first.”
As if finally finishing her deliberation, a mumbling, like a soliloquy, escaped her lips.
“…….”
“Dear, come here. I’ll kiss you.”
“Haa! I’m going crazy.”
Seeing her smiling with her eyes and opening her arms, Dylan repeated the same words several times before approaching and sitting down. Lola, cupping his face with both hands, slowly pressed her lips against his.
The light seeping through the lamp softly illuminated the two men and women, mingling their breaths.
