Chapter 580 She is His Whole World
Patricia's tears and pouting made her look like a wronged child, and it tugged at James' heartstrings, his resolve melting away like ice in the sun.
With a sigh, James turned to Alan, both of them soaked. "You guys need to get changed. Come upstairs, I've got clothes."
Alan started to protest, "I'll just head back, it's fine."
But James wasn't having it. His voice took on a firm edge, "Upstairs. Now."
Alan hesitated but then relented, nodding in agreement.
Patricia seemed to sense James' presence and quieted down, letting him lead the way without any fuss.
Back at James' apartment, he set Patricia on the couch and fetched some dry clothes for Alan. Alan was a bit slimmer, so James' clothes hung loose on him. James didn't have any women's clothing, but he managed to find a white T-shirt for Patricia.
Alan, noticing Patricia's state, offered, "I'll take her to the room. It's not right for her to change out here."
James just nodded, and Alan attempted to lift Patricia, who suddenly became a whirlwind of resistance. "No, don't! I just want to sleep... My head's spinning... I'm burning up... No, I'm freezing..."
Alan looked bewildered, ready to give up on the spot if it were anyone but Patricia.
James sighed again, taking over from Alan. The moment Patricia was in James' arms, she settled down, as if by magic.
Alan was dumbfounded. If he didn't know any better, he'd think Patricia was putting on an act.
Once in the room, James, still holding Patricia, pondered over the T-shirt in his other hand. "Can you change into this?"
But Patricia wasn't in any state to respond, let alone change her clothes.
James resigned himself to the task, awkwardly trying to dress her with one hand while she clung to him, her body too weak to support herself.
Dressing someone one-handed was a challenge, and Patricia wasn't helping, her hands wandering as James struggled with the T-shirt.
"You're so skinny," she said with a giggle, her fingers exploring, causing James' heart to race.
His breathing became erratic, his pulse quickening with her every touch.
What was meant to be a simple change of clothes was suddenly charged with tension.
Patricia, oblivious to the effect she was having, paused her explorations on his chest, looking up at him curiously. "What's this?"
James took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. He gently extracted her hand, removed his shirt, and reassured her, "It's nothing."
Patricia wouldn't give up. She clearly felt something, so how could it be nothing? She stood up abruptly.
At this point, she was only wearing underwear, almost completely naked. After standing up, she entered James's line of sight.
His previously stabilized breath instantly became chaotic. His heart pounded as if it was going to jump out of his chest. He quickly swallowed a mouthful of saliva and shifted his gaze away.
However, Patricia remained oblivious. She forcefully removed the t-shirt hanging on her neck and was about to take off James's clothes. "Let me see!"
James refused, dodging her hand, trying to pull off his shirt. "It really is nothing!"
Patricia pushed his hand away angrily, saying, "I know I felt something, so don't lie. Let me see it!"
James, struggling to keep her at bay, suddenly broke into a fit of coughing, unable to catch his breath.
Seizing the moment, Patricia lifted his shirt, and the sight that met her eyes left her speechless, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. She reached out tentatively, her fingers lightly tracing the scars that marred his skin.
"How... How did you get all these?"
His chest was covered in wounds of various sizes, the most prominent ones being the ones on his chest and lower abdomen. The one on his chest was at least ten centimeters long. The one on his lower abdomen was slightly smaller but still measured seven to eight centimeters. There were also wounds in other places. Although the colors had faded, the scars remained.
James wanted to explain, but it only resulted in a violent coughing fit. After a moment, he felt a warmth on his lower abdomen. When he lowered his gaze, he saw Patricia gently kissing his wounds and then move away.
This stirred up a maelstrom of emotions in James' heart, leaving him bitter, heartbroken, sad, and in pain. Tears had welled up in the corners of his eyes.
After kissing all of his scars, Patricia's delicate fingers traced his wounds. "It must have hurt a lot, didn't it?"
For some reason, when she saw these scars, scenes of Martin's fatal accident involuntarily surfaced in her mind. If Martin had survived, he would definitely have been covered in wounds, just like James.
"It's not painful anymore," James managed to say, his voice coming out rough, like he was holding back something deep inside.
Patricia gently blew on the scar across his abdomen, her action tender and caring.
"I'll blow on it, just like I do for my daughter when she gets hurt. It always makes her feel better right away. Works like a charm."
Seeing her there, so earnest and a bit silly, James couldn't help but let out a laugh, despite the tears in his eyes and the mix of sadness and resignation in his smile.
He reached out, almost without thinking, and gently tousled her hair.
Patricia looked back up at him, squinting through a playful, goofy grin that, for some reason, seemed to make all the darkness in his world just a little bit lighter.
She was his whole world.
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