Chapter 3
It was Liam!
His eyes were filled only with me, his anxious voice trembling.
“Didn’t I tell you to go home? Why did you come back up here to try and die again? I told you I’d cure you, don’t do anything reckless!”
My voice trembled. “It wasn’t me, it was Chlo—”
Chloe suddenly burst into loud sobs. “Sister Aria, I don’t know why she invited me to the rooftop, but when I saw her, she was already at the edge. She forced me to jump, saying why should I be able to run around happily, and if I didn’t jump, she’d throw herself down again! I had no choice but to jump, but I didn’t expect her to lose her balance and fall too!”
Liam’s gaze instantly turned cold.
“Aria, when did you become so malicious?!”
“No! I didn’t…”
Chloe continued to wail, “Liam, you can’t hold both of us by yourself! Sister Aria is already like this, if she falls again, she’ll die!”
“Let go of me, save Sister Aria!”
Liam looked at me, then at Chloe. After only a few seconds of hesitation, I felt the hand holding me slowly loosen.
“Aria, you already have fractures. Another fall won’t make things much worse. But Chloe isn’t injured yet, and I simply can’t bear for both of you to be stuck in bed.”
“Besides, this time it’s your own doing, consider it a lesson learned. I won’t hold it against you after this.”
He pursed his lips and sighed. “Aria, protect your head, okay?”
“Close your eyes if you’re scared, the pain will pass quickly. I’ll come right down to get you.”
With that, he released my hand.
I kept my eyes wide open. Liam’s expression showed sadness, anger, worry—I couldn’t read it.
Perhaps, in all these years, I had never truly understood him.
The hospital was only four stories high. I was momentarily caught by a crooked tree in mid-air, and when I hit the ground, I didn’t even lose consciousness.
But it hurt so much, like my entire body had been shattered into countless pieces, scattered across the ground.
This time, Liam hadn’t lied to me.
Before the concrete beneath me had even warmed, he arrived, holding Chloe in his arms.
About fifteen meters away, Chloe struggled out of Liam’s embrace with a look of worry, then jogged towards me.
She knelt on the ground and helped me up, crying loudly, but not a single tear fell from her face.
Instead, she smiled mockingly.
“Aria, what do you have to fight me with?”
“Whether I’m right or wrong, Liam will always be on my side!”
My body was flooded with adrenaline, and I instantly felt no pain.
Gathering all my strength, I raised my left hand and slapped Chloe hard.
“Aria! What are you doing?!”
The warmth on Liam’s face froze, and he roared, rushing over to scoop Chloe up and shield her behind him.
My head suddenly lost its support and hit the ground.
Everything went black, and the sounds around me grew fainter.
“I thought this would be enough to make you reflect, but I didn’t expect you to be so stubborn. I’ve been too soft on you!”
He coldly dialed a number, telling the doctor not to bother coming.
“I was worried you fell badly, but looking at how you just hit someone, you’re full of energy! You can just lie here yourself!”
With that, he took Chloe’s hand and turned to leave.
Chloe wasn’t satisfied. “Liam, are we just going to leave like this?”
“Sister Aria clearly hasn’t realized her mistake. If we don’t punish her, what if she threatens me again next time?”
Liam frowned slightly. “She’s unconscious. Isn’t leaving her for a day and a night enough?”
Chloe deliberately showed him the side of her face that I had slapped red, looking wronged.
“She framed me. Shouldn’t I decide how to teach her a lesson? Let me give her one more dare. Tell her that you have enemies looking for revenge, and the only way they’ll let you go is if she pleases a dozen men. Can we do that?”