Accomplice《Lilix》

PART 25: Aftermath

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Never in his life had he hated a clock so badly.

Felix leaned against the wall, the ticking minute hand still taunting him. He'd always been impatient, but the image of Lila in his head was enough reason for him to stay.

He had never seen blood like that. A red river slowly pouring out of her body, dyeing her green dress to the point you could barely tell its original color. It made him sick. He never knew she could be so defenseless. So vulnerable. It was a sight that he wasn't used to, and frankly, he didn't want to be used to it.

"Excuse me, is there something I can help you with?"

The question snapped him out of his memories. When he looked up, a female nurse was in front of him, clipboard in hand. Her eyebrows were furrowed as if she was suspicious.

It took him a moment to answer. "Just waiting for visiting hours," he said.

"Oh. Well, you've been standing here a while. Don't you think you should have just come by later?"

Felix hesitated. He totally could have come later. It just made sense. So what was he doing here? "She's--I mean, the person I'm looking for--someone important to me," he finally said.

The words didn't feel as strange as he thought they would.

The nurse nodded. "Can I get a name for who you're visiting?"

"Li--" Felix paused. "Lilianna Rossi."

She flipped through a folder, and when it seemed that she found what she was looking for, she gestured for him to follow her. She knocked on a door and stepped into a room. He waited as he tried to hear the voices on the other side of the door. After a few seconds, she walked out and stepped out of his pathway, allowing him inside.

He wasn't sure exactly sure what to expect, but he still couldn't stop the shock he felt when he saw Lila in that hospital bed. Her dark hair rested on her shoulders, covering part of her face. She hadn't looked up at the sound of his entering. When she did look up and register that it was him, her expression didn't waver. Her face-- freckled with band-aids--was just as intense as when they'd first met. When he had no idea who she was, or much he would grow to worry about her.

"Can we get a minute?" she asked quietly, keeping her eyes on him.

The nurse nodded, and closed the door behind her after stepping out.

She looked him up and down. "Hey."

"Hey."

A small smile formed on her face. "How long have I been out for?" she asked. Her voice was tired.

"They told me two days, maybe a little more than that," Felix said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You mostly slipped in and out."

"So, what's wrong?"

"Didn't the nurse tell you?"

"She did," Lila said. "But I wanna hear it from you, too. Just to be sure."

Felix raised an eyebrow at her. "You trust me more than someone with a license to practice medicine. Not smart." She gave him her "I don't care" look, and he sighed. "Lots of scratches," he told her. "The big thing is that you broke your ribs."