Annabelle, having finished saying everything and now looking at her brother, who was gazing back at her with that helpless expression - clearly having already given up - extended her hand and gently caressed his cheek, her thoughts swirling.
'Even though it seems like we're clashing against each other now, and the atmosphere feels tense, it still feels so much easier to breathe.'
And Christian, looking at his sister while feeling her soft hand on his cheek, had many complex thoughts swirling in his mind. From the "side sticking" she mentioned, where he believed he had firmly chosen the side of not telling her anything, to the countless other things. Still, he didn't want to argue with her anymore, and confirming through her silence that she had truly finished speaking, he finally took his hand out of his pocket, bracing himself for whatever might come next as he extended it toward her, all the while thinking,
'Screw the consequences.'
Had Christian stopped and thought things through more carefully, more thoroughly, he would have known that what she mentioned about living separately was actually an impossible thing for her to do, given that she was the one even more devoted to him than the other way around.
But maybe he subconsciously wanted to share what he was keeping inside, as he was that tired.
Something like staying two days without an ounce of sleep, facing as assassin, burying a corpse, then, discovering that the one who sent him was really from the side of the woman he has a feeling for, and on top of that, realizing that, that person might also be the one responsible for his parents' death.
So, there are many things on his mind, and if he couldn't voice them all, he at least hoped he had a shoulder to lean on.
The last thing he wanted was to quarrel with his sister on a day .
Then, there was Annabelle, who immediately zoned in her attention on his hand. She saw the badly warped bandages, around his hand, looking like a mess, so much so that it had now became nearly the size of ball. She found herself shifting her gaze between his face and his hand repeatedly, trying to make sense of the situation.
It was hard for her to imagine that he could be this bad at handling things .
"Where is the first aid kit?"
Annabelle simply asked, not bothering to comment on the casual way he had done it, ultimately hoping that he wouldn't get injured in the future. She also felt a sense of responsibility, wanting to always be there to care for him.
So, while wondering what kind of injury her brother had, Annabelle watched as he silently brought her the large first aid kit, one they rarely used, but she always kept prepared for "just in case" situations. She felt a little strange, noticing how he seemed even more docile and obedient than usual now.
Still, she shrugged it off, in the end, as now, holding his hand, she began to unwrap it, thinking that she would find the answer while treating him.
At first, she thought he might be exaggerating with the treatment, but as she unwrapped the bandage around his palm, and it became thinner and thinner. Its color actually started to change.
And Annabelle, noticing this, felt her hand begin to tremble as she feared what she would see once all the bandages were removed.
The more bandages she unwrapped, the more she piled to the side, the more horrifying her expression became.
'Just how much did he bleed?'
'How much was he enduring, not wanting me to worry?'
While a flood of questions raced through her mind, questions she couldn't voice, as she felt powerless in that moment, she continued unwrapping his hand. Till, finally, it became bare, and the wound, the cut on his palm, was revealed.
Seeing how even the bone was nearly visible, Annabelle's body began to shake. Her eyes welled up with tears as she thought about how much pain he must have endured.
A question like "Does it still hurt?" couldn't come out of her lips, as just looking at his face and seeing him clench his teeth, stifling his grunts after she unintentionally moved his hand a little roughly, gave her the answer.
Even more so, with it being this untreated, it became impossible for it not to still be painful for him.
Annabelle, absorbed in staring at the scene in front of her, was dazed for a couple of moments before finally snapping out of it and standing up.
"Let's go to the hospital immediately!"
She wanted to ask many questions, starting with, why this happened, how it happened, why did you endure it all day long, and waited until now. So many questions filled her mind.
Even more, if she had to choose the one question that weighed the most on her, it would be: who the son of bitch that did this to you?
Because, for her, it couldn't be more obvious that it was an injury from a very sharp blade, after all.
She felt devastated, her mind racing to think of who could have done this to her brother, and even with her eyes red and tears pouring down her face, there was still a dangerous gleam in her gaze, a gleam filled with the promise of retribution. But in the end, it faded, as her concern for his current state took precedence. All those other things could wait until he was treated properly.
"Why are you still sitting? Stand up, and let's go."
So, when she saw her brother still sitting there, staring at her with that same helpless expression, she couldn't help but urge him to get up.
"Or more like, I don't want to."
Christian, looking at the expression on his sister's face, felt his heart ache. It was for this reason, in the first place, that he didn't want to show her, and now, he started regretting his decision.
But then there was Annabelle, who, upon hearing him refuse in such a ridiculous way, couldn't help but shout hysterically, her voice breaking through with all its force.
"What the fuck do you mean, you don't want to?!"
It was an injury she had never seen her brother suffer before, one that clearly showed the actions of someone else, and Annabelle was already feeling frantic, her mind racing with all the possibilities and reasons behind it. So, his refusal in this moment snapped her like never before.
And Christian, taking a breath, tried to think of how to solve this problem, as his sister's reaction was even more severe and intense than he had anticipated.
"Sis, please, calm down for a moment."
"How about you just treat my palm for now, and tomorrow, we'll see if it really needs more? If it does, we can go to the hospital then."
Still, if he felt there was really no choice, maybe he could listen to her. With many thoughts swirling in his mind, Christian continued looking at his sister, who was still crying and had actually fallen silent.
When some time had passed and his sister continued standing there, crying silently, Christian felt like he couldn't hold on any longer, as seeing her was unbearable. At first, he thought it might be insensitive to try to console her, considering he was the reason for her to be , but seeing her state, her face drenched in tears, and feeling like he might break down too, ending up crying just the same, if this continued, he finally decided to stand up and pull her into a tight hug.
But before he could move, Annabelle suddenly dropped to her knees and rested her head on his thighs. Her arms wrapped tightly around his waist as she cried, this time with a loud, wailing sob that seemed to shake his heart and body with it.
For Annabelle, it was at that moment, that she realized her brother had stepped into a world she knew nothing about, and the thought of it was too much for her to bear.
It was at this moment, she also realized that she might no longer be able to help him like she did when he was younger, and the thought filled her with anguish, leaving her feeling miserable about how far she had come.
Her mind was a mess many of thoughts.
But she felt that even if she couldn't be of any use with what he was doing, she couldn't remain ignorant of it anymore, not like before.
After some time passed again, Annabelle finally came to her sense, and remembered that she still needed to properly treat his palm, as he had treated it quite casually before, and the wound seemed to have worsened.
So, she suppressed everything running through her mind, wiped her face with her hand, and finally returned to his side.