Finn still shudders to this day, with scenes of Aoife slicing her face with glass flashing every time he closes his eyes, causing a piercing pain in his chest. Cold sweat covers his back, like needles pricking his spine.
Finn never imagined Aoife could be so wild, especially after hearing what she said.
-“Finn, do you see anything on me that you still like? If you even glance at me, I’ll destroy something.”
The fact that Aoife could utter such words made him fear what crazier things she might do in the future.
Finn didn’t know what to do. Before, he thought he could control Aoife’s freedom using Ethan, but now, with Aoife acting like a mad woman, his plans seemed useless.
She even went as far as saying that if he tried to touch Ethan, he would have to go over her dead body.
This woman had already figured out that he cared about her and didn’t want her to die, which is why she dared to say such things.
Finn found himself backed into a corner, with no way out.
Torture each other… Fine, let’s torture each other.
He had become the useless person Old Burns mentioned, letting emotions take over, acknowledging his true feelings. He cared for Aoife, evident in his tireless search for her during her 150+ days of absence, and his intense protectiveness over her unborn child.
Previously… the ache in his heart, the jealousy that clawed at him every night, made him feel restless and resentful!
After waiting for over an hour, Finn finally saw the doctor coming out. Standing up, he wanted to approach, but his body froze, his mind cluttered with too many questions yet unable to voice any.
The doctor approached, hesitated for a moment, then delivered the somewhat good news to Finn.
“Mr. Snearl, Miss Powell’s temporary blindness is due to brain stimulation, compounded by tears causing retinal infection…”
It turns out, crying excessively can indeed lead to temporary blindness.
Aoife couldn’t afford to cry anymore; it could truly blind her.
After a moment of silence, Finn’s throat felt tight as he asked, “What about her face?”
The doctor’s face paled. “It’s disfigured… the wound is deep, even with modern cosmetic surgery, it will likely leave a scar…”
Finn stared at him coldly, his voice low. “I’ve already made it clear. If a scar remains on her face, this hospital won’t stay open!”
The hospital was a high investment by the Burns family, with a significant stake. Closing it wasn’t out of the question.
Taking a deep breath, the doctor suppressed his nervousness and panic.
“Mr. Snearl, you should know Miss Powell’s situation better than I do. Why has she become like this, destroying her own appearance? Who do you think is responsible?” The doctor’s voice shook, his face reddened with intensity, momentarily forgetting his fear of Finn. He had rediscovered his sense of duty as a doctor.
Why become a doctor in the first place? There isn’t much to it, just to save lives. However, as time goes by and people are tempted by the outside world, caught up in the world of money and the hustle of life, they gradually forget their youthful ideals.
“I’ve warned you before not to upset Miss Powell. Her mental state is fragile, and her physical health weak, but you wouldn’t listen. And now? Her eyes are affected, her face is damaged, and you blame the hospital’s responsibility.”
“Why can’t her facial scar heal? Isn’t it just a normal scar? How come it can’t disappear over time?” Thinking about the scar he caused on Aoife’s back, so big, which disappeared after laser surgery. How can a normal facial scar be considered disfiguring?
The doctor’s eyes were full of chilly mockery. “Then come inside and take a good look at her.”
He took a few steps, noticing Finn still rooted in place, eyebrows furrowed, eyes dark.
The doctor noticed Finn’s hands, tightly clenched and trembling on his thighs.
Though Finn tried to appear indifferent, his subtle movements betrayed his inner panic. Fearful and hesitant, like a child facing the outside world for the first time, hesitant to step out into the unknown.
And this step, would lead him to irreversible consequences.
“Come on, Mr. Snearl, are you scared?”
How could he be scared? Finn loosened his grip, following the doctor inside. Aoife lay there quietly, with bandages covering her eyes, a long crimson scar on her right cheek. Despite being stitched up, it was still shocking, resembling a twisted centipede.
She lay there peacefully, a mere two to three steps away from Finn, seeming close but feeling distant. It was as if all his strength had been drained, unable to reach her despite overcoming great obstacles, unable to see the world she saw in her eyes.
This sense of alienation made him feel estranged from Aoife.
Is the person lying there really Aoife, or someone else?
Finn felt a jolt of fear, his heart seemingly pricked by something.
Gazing at the scar on Aoife’s face, the doctor suddenly asked, “Do you know how many stitches were used to close Miss Powell’s facial wound? Over seventy stitches to sew up a seven-centimeter scar.”
What does that mean? A stitch for every millimeter. Facial wounds require delicate sutures to minimize scarring, yet even with these precautions, it’s difficult to completely remove the scar.
Finn’s breath hitched for a moment. “Over seventy stitches?”
The doctor, with a hint of guilt, self-mockingly said, “Do you think that’s the end of it? Facial wounds hardly allow for anesthesia; can you imagine how we sewed those seventy stitches? Why do you think we had to restrain her here? It’s because she was in pain! We couldn’t use too much anesthesia, so we had to sew the stitches onto her face without much numbing.”
Finn stared at the doctor with red eyes, imagining the pain… just a slight imagination sent chills down his spine. Frozen in place, even though the wounds were not on him, he could feel the pain. How much pain must Aoife have felt?
His throat felt constricted, unable to speak. His pounding heart seemed to stop at that moment.
“Why do you think her facial scar won’t heal?” The doctor pointed to the disinfectant wipes on the medicine trolley, translucent glass shards, and blood still clinging to the surgical forceps.
“Look at this. All these are fragments picked from her facial scar, glass cuts can be worse than knives, more forceful and caused that deep wound. Aoife destructed her appearance in front of you, what does that signify? If she could destroy herself once, she could do it a second time. Cosmetic surgery can’t completely erase this scar; even if the physical wound disappears, the emotional scar will remain forever.”