Elisa was trapped in excruciating pain, her jaw almost dislocated. She half-closed her eyes, tears uncontrollably streaming down her face. The iron chain in her hand not only didn’t loosen but tightened even more, as if she wanted to crush it into pieces.
Hamish frowned and released his grip on her hand. “Why are you crying? If you wanted to kill me, why would you be afraid of this? If you’re so scared, why did you let yourself be moved?” he asked.
Elisa slumped on the bed, unable to control her tears. She hated her own powerlessness, unable to even harm the person who hurt her.
When she cried, it wasn’t a pretty sight. She bit her lips and stifled her sobs. When she cried intensely, she would start to choke, which made it difficult for others to bear.
Hamish reached out and pried Elisa’s hand off the iron chain, then tucked her into the blanket.
Elisa continued crying, feeling like the recent events were a nightmare.
Seeing her cry broke Hamish’s heart. He turned on the light and carefully wiped her face with a tissue.
He was as timid as a cat, daring to go around people but not daring to admit it. He said he wouldn’t blame her, but she was still crying.
Her face was pale, and her eyes were especially bloodshot. Hamish lifted her chin and gently kissed her colorless lips, a gentle and swift gesture, devoid of any ambiguity, just pure comfort.
“Elisa, do you really hate me this much?” Hamish’s mouth twisted into a bitter smile. “To the point where you wake up in the middle of the night wanting to strangle me with a chain? With your strength, can you really kill someone like that? You’re just a typical innocent fool. Stupid and fearless.”
Elisa looked at Hamish, opened her mouth, but her throat felt like it was choked with cotton, swollen and unable to swallow or spit it out.
Although she didn’t say it, her eyes held an immeasurable hatred, and Hamish understood better than anyone how much Elisa hated him.
The contents of her eyes seemed more like corrosive blood than tears.
That fierce gaze seemed to want to kill him.
Hamish felt a slight pang in his heart. He reached out and covered Elisa’s eyes, blocking the overwhelming hatred in her eyes.
“Elisa, let me ask you, if it weren’t for sixteen years ago, would you have married me?” Hamish finally asked the question he had wanted to ask all along.
Elisa’s body tensed up, unable to see Hamish’s anxious expression with her eyes covered.
After a long while, she murmured, “No, if I could, I wouldn’t have wanted to meet you.”
If she had met the young man who saved her sixteen years ago, he would have remained radiant in her heart forever, instead of dragging her into an abyss like he was doing now.
Elisa pressed her forehead against Hamish’s warm hand. “Hamish, you asked me if I hate you, yes… I hate you. I hate you as much as I once loved you. I wanted to strangle you, peel your skin off, taste your flesh and blood, and open your chest to see what kind of heart you have inside!”
A tear silently slid down her cheek, wetting the man’s hand.
Elisa choked, “Why did you change? You weren’t like this in the beginning.”
“I hate you for eroding my self-esteem and pride, hate you for making me lose everything. I hate you for losing the Hamish who saved me sixteen years ago…” she said.
Listening to Elisa’s words, Hamish felt a tightness in his chest, as if a hand had grasped it. It wasn’t that he had changed, but the person from sixteen years ago was never him to begin with.
From the very beginning, their relationship was a mistake. Elisa hated him, and he couldn’t deny it.
Elisa, why should your love for me be because of another person?