Ever since the breakup, I hadn't even glanced at Conrad, let alone stood this close to him., But there he was, right in front of me, badly injured., The memory of the car flipping over played in my mind, how he had shielded me with his body, taking the brunt of the impact to protect me.,

"Conrad, say something,

" I urged him., I knew talking was futile; it would only make him want to sleep more.,

"What should I say?

" he murmured weakly.,

"Anything. Tell me what you've been thinking since we split, talk about Haley Perez if you must. And where did you go recently?

" I blurted out, a flood of bottled-up questions pouring out., He remained silent. I thought he had fallen asleep, but just as I was about to call out to him again, he spoke,

"Felicia, I truly love you.

", My breath caught at his words, his pale face from loss of blood making it hard for me to respond.,

"You're the only girl I've ever really liked. After meeting you... other women just seem like regular people to me, I can't even distinguish their gender...

",

"Over the years, a lot of women have shown interest in me... there were even those who stripped and lay in my bed while I was away on trips... But I never told you because I know you're sensitive and I didn't want you to overthink...

",

"I've always been faithful, my thoughts pure. Sure, there were times I had to entertain clients and call girls were involved, but I never touched them. I always felt they were tainted... If I did, it would be like sullying you too.

",

"As for Haley, I don't know how I got caught up in her scheme. I guess she just wore a really convincing mask, maybe it was fate trying to mess with us...

" He struggled to open his eyes as he said this, looking at me., The Conrad I knew was always strong, assertive, never looking anything less than confident. I had never seen him this vulnerable.,

"Maybe it's just that our destinies aren't aligned, or our love wasn't strong enough, nothing else would matter otherwise,

" I played along with his train of thought., Conrad looked at me briefly and then shut his eyes.

"Yeah, guess it's my own fault.

",

"Why bring this up now?

" My palm felt sticky; his blood had seeped through my clothes., If he kept bleeding like this, he really would die from blood loss., I glanced outside, but could see nothing beyond the tangled branches and rocks., Had Ernest sent for help?, Conrad had told me to reach out to him; he must have known Ernest would be able to rescue us., But with my phone gone, I had no way to contact him.,

"Felicia, I don't believe you truly love Ernest know he's a great guy and you're with him because he moved you, right?

" Conrad mumbled , As I was pondering over our rescue, I absentmindedly hummed in agreement, but then I realized what he was implying and was about to clarify when the sound of a, helicopter filled the air., My nerves tensed up again, fearing it was Club Q's scouts coming back for us., I gestured for Conrad to be quiet, whispering,

"Shh.

", Conrad obediently remained silent, and I held my breath, watching the helicopter from inside the wrecked car., The helicopter hovered for a few, е, seconds before ascending, and then we heard a voice from it,

"Is anyone, in the car? Felicia, are you there? If so, please respond.

", Hearing my name, a lump formed in my throat because I knew we were safe; Ernest's people had come., If it were our pursuers, they wouldn't know my name., I frantically tapped on the car window, signaling to the helicopter outside. It turned out to be a tracking device, a small transmitter., Then the voice from the helicopter announced,

"We've located the trapped individuals. Rescue operations will commence immediately.

" Overwhelmed with relief, I turned to Conrad,

"Help is on the way, you'll be okay soon.

", Conrad, however, looked serene, struggling to open his eyes again, his lips trembling,

"Felicia... hold me, I'm so cold...

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