Hospital Corridor!!!
Hospital Corridor.
Selene Aurevale hurried towards Julian D’Aurelius’s hospital room.
The sterile white lights stretched endlessly above her, reflecting faintly against the polished floor as her heels struck in quick, urgent rhythm. Each step carried a quiet tension—controlled, but barely. Nurses moved aside instinctively, patients turned their heads, and conversations softened as she passed.
Because of her striking beauty, many people couldn’t help but glance at her as she passed by.
Her long black hair swayed behind her like a shadow trailing light, her blue eyes sharp and focused, cutting through the chaos of the hospital with a singular purpose. But beneath that composed exterior, sothing restless stirred—sothing she wasn’t used to feeling.
Concern.
Among the onlookers was a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing a neck brace, sitting stiffly on a bench. He had sprained his neck playing basketball and looked miserable enough already.
"Mister, you need to rest and avoid turning your neck too much in the coming days..."
The nurse beside him spoke patiently, her tone practiced, steady.
But before she could finish—
A sudden movent caught his eye - Selene gliding past made him twist fast. His gaze snapped toward her like tal pulled to a magnet.
"Ah - !"
Out of nowhere, a scream ripped loose when fire blazed up his neck.
A breath caught in her throat before slipping out slow. The pause hung like dust in sunlight.
"...This is exactly what I ant," she muttered under her breath.
Nothing caught Selene’s eye. She moved past it all without a glance.
Out of nowhere, she broke into a near-run, footsteps clashing with the quiet air. Not long before that mont, word ca through - Julian got caught in trouble inside so hidden gambling spot, then carried off to this place.
Right then, when the sound reached her ears, a shift happened deep within. A quiet pull, like thread drawn taut beneath the skin.
No hesitation.
No second thought.
She ca imdiately.
Why... does this feel so urgent?
She didn’t answer that question.
She simply kept walking.
—
When she finally found the room, she didn’t knock.
The door opened—
And she froze.
Charlotte Bonds—was blushing faintly as she helped Julian out of the bathroom.
Julian leaned heavily against her, his steps unsteady, his usual relaxed expression replaced by exhaustion.
The two won locked eyes.
And the air...
Shifted.
Why were they coming out of the bathroom together?
Silence hung between them for a brief mont.
Heavy.
Sharp.
Unspoken.
Charlotte reacted first.
"S-Selena, you’re here! Perfect timing, co help support him, he’s exhausted," she said quickly, her tone just a bit too fast, like soone improvising mid-crisis.
Selene blinked once.
Then nodded.
"Okay."
She stepped forward without hesitation.
Together, they supported Julian—one on each side—and guided him carefully back toward the bed.
Julian exhaled softly as he sank down, his body finally relaxing against the mattress.
For a brief mont, his eyes flickered between the two won.
Then he closed them halfway, like he didn’t want to get involved in whatever silent tension was forming.
Selene adjusted his position slightly, making sure he was comfortable.
Her movents were gentle.
Careful.
And then—
A thought struck her.
She froze for just a second.
Her gaze shifted subtly toward the bathroom door.
Julian had just been barely able to walk.
So what exactly...
Were they doing in there?
Her eyes flickered again.
Just once.
Toward Charlotte.
Then away.
When Charlotte turned to wash her hands, Selene’s expression beca... complicated.
Not angry.
Not exactly jealous.
But sothing was there.
Sothing new.
If I had known... I would have co sooner.
The thought slipped through her mind before she could stop it.
She didn’t dwell on it.
Instead, she turned back to Julian.
"Are you okay?" she asked softly.
Her voice was calm.
But her fingers—resting lightly on the edge of the bed—tightened just a little.
Julian opened one eye and gave a faint smile.
"Nothing much," he chuckled.
[How did she get here so fast?]
[Does she care about that much? She seems different from before.]
Selene paused.
That familiar voice.
Inside her mind.
She lowered her gaze slightly.
A faint, almost invisible bitterness passed through her expression.
He’s right.
She wasn’t the sa.
The old her...
Wouldn’t have rushed here like this.
Wouldn’t have felt this unease.
Wouldn’t have cared this much.
A quiet sigh escaped her, though she quickly hid it behind a neutral expression.
"...You should rest more," she said instead, her voice softening.
Julian watched her for a mont.
Then nodded lightly.
-----
"You guys chat, I’m going to take a nap. I’m exhausted from last night," Charlotte said, stretching slightly as she yawned.
She walked over to the other bed in the room, pulling the curtain halfway for privacy.
Before lying down, she glanced once—just once—toward Julian.
Then at Selene.
Sothing flickered in her teal eyes.
Unreadable.
Then she lay down.
She planned to rest for a bit before going back to the office to handle the casino incident.
Within minutes, her breathing slowed.
Soft.
Even.
And soon—
She was asleep.
A faint, almost cute snore followed.
The room fell quiet.
Too quiet.
----------
Julian and Selene remained.
Facing each other.
The distance between them wasn’t large.
But it felt... oddly significant.
Neither spoke at first.
Julian shifted slightly, wincing faintly.
Selene noticed imdiately.
"Still hurts?" she asked, her tone instinctively softer.
Julian shook his head.
"Just tired."
He hesitated.
Then added—
"...You didn’t have to rush here."
Selene looked at him.
Her eyes were steady.
"You got hurt."
A simple answer.
No decoration.
No denial.
Julian blinked.
Then smiled faintly.
"...Fair enough."
Another silence followed.
This one... heavier.
Selene glanced at his arm.
Then at his chest.
Then away again.
"Next ti... don’t do sothing that reckless," she said quietly.
Julian raised an eyebrow.
"That sounded like concern."
Selene didn’t respond imdiately.
Her gaze dropped slightly.
"...It is," she admitted, almost reluctantly.
That answer lingered.
Hung between them.
Julian looked at her more carefully this ti.
Like he was trying to understand sothing.
Sothing new.
Sothing different.
----
Behind the curtain—
Charlotte shifted slightly in her sleep.
Her brows furrowed faintly.
As if even in rest, her mind hadn’t fully let go of everything that happened.
----------
Back in the silence—
Julian cleared his throat.
"Hey... Selene."
"...Yes?"
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