Chapter 613

Chapter 613 Shawn Falls Unconscious

I returned to the boulder. Forty minutes later, Shawn came back. I noticed him trudging along. He had

been moving slowly, and I knew he was just holding on out of sheer will. After he sat, I asked, "Are you

hungry?"

I had been asking him the same question many times, but his answer was always the same. "No. Let's

get some rest early tonight."

I knew he hadn't eaten anything, but he wouldn't touch my food. I knew no amount of persuasion would

work on him, so I decided to wait. We'll run into some people tomorrow. If not, we'll…

A few minutes later, Shawn fell asleep in my embrace. Only after that did I have a sausage and some

biscuits. I looked at the time. I wonder when Anthony's coming. What's taking him so long?

Shawn had a fitful sleep. When I opened my eyes, I heard him talking in his sleep. "Your psychological

tricks won't work on me."

Psychological tricks? What does he mean? I touched his forehead. "He's having a fever."

I quickly took out a heat pack and put it on his torso, then I uncapped the milk and fed half of it to him.

After that, I tore the bread up and soaked it in the remaining milk, feeding him when it was soggy

enough. Before that, I flipped him around and tried to take his shirt off, but he frowned the moment I

touched him. He's in pain. So, I stopped. Shawn didn't wake up even after all the food I fed him. He

couldn't eat while he was unconscious, so I fed him mouth-to-mouth.

My worries kept me up the whole night. When Shawn woke the next day, he said, "You're early."

"Can't sleep."

He stared at the bottle of milk in silence. I got up and extended my hand. "Let's go."

Shawn paused for a moment before taking my hand. He was obviously in a bad condition as he was

moving even slower than before. I walked ahead of him, trying my best to pretend I didn't notice.

A few hours later, he said, "Ray."

I quickly turned around. "What is it?" And then he fell to his knees. Quickly, I held him in my arms. "Are

you tired? Let's get some rest. We'll continue once you gain enough strength."

Shawn shook his head and pressed his forehead against mine. Slowly, he said, "Yeah, I'm tired."

I teared up. "Let's get some rest."

"Ray, I don't have the strength to walk anymore. Find some help, alright? Just keep walking ahead and

you'll see a settlement. I'll be waiting."

I shook my head. "I'm going with you."

"You need to finish this journey alone, Ray. Be strong. When you find a settlement, get someone to

save me. I'll be waiting."

"I won't leave you behind. We're leaving together. Just get some rest."

He smiled. "Listen to me, alright?"

He spoke imperiously. I knew he was trying to chase me off, but I couldn't leave. "I can't leave you

alone."

"You're not. I'm telling you to get help."

Shawn was deathly pale, and his lips were cracked. I held him and realized that his back was oddly

wet. Sh*t. His wound. "Is it reopened?"

"Can't hide anything from you."

"Is it serious?"

"Yes. I can't go on for now."

"I-I…" I was already stammering.

"Ray, you need to get some help if you want to save me."

He kept telling me to leave, but a round trip would take two days, and he would not last that long. I said,

"At least let me bandage you up." Shawn bent over, refusing, and I held his shoulders. "I'm not leaving

until you let me do it." I wanted to cry, but I didn't. There was no way I would let him worry about me

more.

A long while later, Shawn said, "Okay."

I took his clothes off. The wounds on his back had reopened and were horrifying. I was shivering and at

a loss, but doing nothing was not going to help. So, I got over my fears. With trembling hands, I took off

one of my clothing items and tore it up with Shawn's knife, turning them into makeshift bandages.

Shawn let me bandage him up without resisting. When I was done, I noticed his pupils dilating. He's at

his limit.

"Go, Ray."

"Wait for me." He can't survive two days, but he wants me to leave, so… I left some sausages, bread,

and a bottle of water for him. "Wait for me."

"Go, Ray."

"Wait for me." He can't survive two days, but he wants me to leave, so… I left some sausages, bread,

and a bottle of water for him. "Wait for me."

"I will."

I hugged him and staggered away. After I walked about five hundred yards, I went around the woods

and hid behind a boulder. Shawn had his back turned to me and was staring into the distance. He

muttered, "Live on."

That message was for me. I cried again. Two minutes later, he fell like a sack of rocks, and I quickly

came out of my hiding place to hold him. Shawn was already unconscious.

He would die soon. No, I won't accept this. I quickly gathered some wood and tied them up with

clothing strips, making a rickety wooden bed. Then I placed him on the bed, avoiding his wounds. His

eyes were still closed.

"I'll save you."

My sorrow had overtaken everything within me, and I slid down a slope with him. I didn't care where I

was going. As long as I wasn't going north, there was a chance I would run into a settlement, and he

would be saved.

Two hours later, I felt his breathing grow weak, and I was at my limit. My morale lost, I fell to the ground

and stared at him peacefully. "It's a nice place here, Sunny. An endless prairie all around us. I see no

hope of getting out alive. This is as good a place to die as any." I buried my face in my hands. "What

should I do?" I had nothing but despair left.

"Didn't think I'd run into someone here."

Wait. Was that a voice? Am I hearing things? No, I'm not. It's a human! With great delight, I raised my

head and saw a masked man standing before me. Even so, he looked familiar.

"Colin!"

Colin flew into a rage. "How do you know it's me? Am I that bad at disguising myself? Or am I so

handsome, my mask can't even… mask it?"

The man beside Colin said, "No. It's because you're stupid."

"Why are you here, Colin?"