CHAPTER 5

CHARLOTTE'S POV

I opened my eyes slowly as I tried to process my surroundings. Am I in heaven already? I looked around and realized that I was in a hospital, with an IV drip connected to my veins.

So… I didn't die? I tried to sit up but the pain in my chest prevented me from moving so I laid back down. Why am I in a hospital? I thought I ascended…

I kicked my feet in frustration, wincing at the pain it brought me when the door was pushed open. A man walked in and he looked surprised to see me awake.

“You're awake? How do you feel?” He asked as he sat next to me, with guilt and worry written all over his face. I suppose he was the one who hit me with his car.

“It was you who hit me right?” I asked slowly, my brain still feeling foggy. Probably the effect of the drip.

He nodded slowly and opened his mouth to speak but I beat him to it. “Then why didn't you leave me to die? You should have driven away and left me behind. Why did you save me!?”

I yelled at him as I sat up, ignoring the pain as I hoped it would kill me instead. He was shocked and confused at my outburst and it only irritated me more. I know I shouldn't let out my anger on a stranger who tried to save my life but I couldn't control it. I was hurting badly.

“You should have just left me to die! You ruined everything! I should be in that ocean right now drowning. But you just had to ruin everything! I didn't need your help! I didn't need your saving! Why didn't you just drive away? WHY!?” I yelled louder, my chest hurting from every syllable that came out of my mouth.

Tears kept flowing freely from my eyes and he just stared at me, dumbfounded. After a moment of silence, he spoke, his eyes staring at me coldly. It scared me because a minute ago, he was looking so vulnerable and scared.

“Is this how you appreciate someone who helps you? You were the one who crossed the road recklessly, and now you're blaming me for saving you? It was so stupid of me to be worried about you. You can decide to die after you leave here as long as it has nothing to do with me! How ungrateful!”

He said and walked out of the room angrily, slamming the door hard to prove how angry he was. I stared at the door after he left and burst into tears. I didn't mean to be rude, I just wanted to die.

A nurse walked in and she gave me a look of pity and sympathy which absolutely confused me. She came to my side with a tray of injections and medicines and I felt the urge to kick her out of the room.

“You must have gone through hell.” She started and I looked at her in confusion. She noticed my confusion and sighed as she sat beside me. “Your husband beats you up, doesn't he? He seems like the violent type and the marks on your body confirm everything. He must have beaten you up so much and then brought you here to be treated. Such cruelty.”

I wanted to laugh at her wrong judgment but I was too weak to say anything. Her assumptions were so out of line, it amused me but I stayed silent and let her do her work so she could leave quickly. She talked a lot and I had to lay down and cover my ears before she got the message and finally left.

I stared at the white ceiling above me as I thought of what to do. The thought of suicide had completely evaded my mind because this felt like a second chance to live.

My eyes slowly drifted close as I prayed to the heavens to help me out. I heard the door open but I was already falling unconscious so I didn't know who came in.

When I woke up, it was getting dark. I immediately got up, ignoring the pain all over my body, and made my way outside. A nurse immediately stopped me but I pushed past her and walked to the reception.

“Can I please be discharged? I need to go home right now.” I begged, but the nurse didn't agree with me. “You need to rest more ma'am, we can't discharge you until you're fully recovered.”

“But I am fully recovered! Look at me, I can walk well and I don't feel any pain.” The crazy throbbing in my head and chest protested and I tried to keep a straight face.

She tried to argue with me and I knew I had to use the stranger that brought me here earlier. “Listen… If I don't go home now to cook for my husband, he'll beat me up again and you wouldn't want that to happen to me right? I'm sure he's sorted out the bills. So please, if you really care about my health, let me go.” I looked at her with pleading eyes, my hands clasped together and she finally agreed.

I was asked to sign a dischargement form and I was given some drugs before I was allowed to go home. I thanked the nurses continuously as I left the hospital and walked home. The pain in my chest increased at every step I took but I kept going until I finally arrived home.

When I got in, I stopped in my tracks as I took a look at my house. It had been turned upside down and so many things had been broken. This was definitely Mr Sam's doing. I locked the door and lay down on the bed as I burst into tears, the pain and agony washing over me like a flood.

My body shook with emotions as I cried my heart out. I had no idea when I fell asleep but all of a sudden, it was morning and I woke up to a banging on the door. My heart immediately rose to my throat as I tried to run out through the back door.

My heart dropped when I saw two men waiting for me at the back. I stumbled back inside as the front door was pushed open and Mr Sam walked in with a dubious smirk on his face.

“Is my pretty face going somewhere? Or are you trying to run away from me? But I've missed you so so much.” He walked closer to me but I moved away from him, frantically looking around for anything to use for defense.

I tried to make it to the door, but one of the huge men grabbed me and threw me on the bed and I yelped in pain. I refused to cry, I would not give him the pleasure of seeing me in pain.

He walked over to the bed and pulled my hair hard and as I tried to pull it out of his grip, he gripped it harder. I knew what he wanted, he liked to see me broken and begging for my life.

When I didn't budge, he got very angry and smacked my face very hard causing me to spit out blood. “You're trying to be strong now, aren't you? Let's see how long you can hold.”

He raised his hand and was about to hit me again when someone pushed the door open and everyone immediately turned to look at who walked in.

“What's happening here?”