He Gave Me Hearing, Then Taught Me What Silence Really Means novel Chapter 109

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The luxury suite was impeccably clean, yet the atmosphere felt like a complete, shattered wreck.

Such a beautiful past, reduced to this absolute wreckage of a present.

He had poured his heart and soul into tutoring her, helping her rise above millions of other students.

She had promised to get out of that small town and see the world, only to ruin her own life and end up exactly where she started.

So wasn't it true? Hadn't she brought this on herself?

*Juniper, do those dreams you used to have even exist anymore?*

Nelson lowered his eyelashes, waiting for the piercing pain in his chest to subside before letting his hand drop. "What's the deal with that Audrey woman?"

He completely bypassed the topic of her dropping out, unwilling to dig any deeper.

Having just gotten out of the shower, Juniper had zero desire to speak to him.

She lay back on the bed and pulled the duvet tightly over her upper body.

Her injured leg lay exposed, still too stiff to bend.

Seeing her absolute refusal to communicate, Nelson swallowed down the restless irritation flaring in his chest.

He pulled out his phone, fired off a quick text, then dragged a chair over to the side of the bed and sat down.

Juniper's mind was a chaotic mess, and her body felt awful. She buried her face beneath the heavy covers, plunging herself into total darkness.

Nelson gave the duvet a sharp tug. "Are you trying to suffocate yourself?"

"Leave me alone."

Her voice was hoarse.

He couldn't tell if she was crying. In the short time since they had reunited, she seemed to cry an awful lot.

A moment later, a knock sounded at the door.

He got up to answer it. A doctor walked in.

Nelson's tone was exceptionally mild. "Check her leg. See if there's any sign of infection."

The doctor nodded, approached the bed, and carefully unwrapped the bandages. After inspecting the wound, he applied fresh medication. "An injury like this requires strict bed rest. The fact that the patient has been forcing herself to walk on it is dangerous. If she keeps this up, it could cause permanent damage, and she'll experience chronic pain every time the weather turns damp or cold."

Nelson stood with his arms crossed. Hearing the diagnosis instantly sparked his anger. He always felt like Juniper had a terrifying talent for torturing herself.

His voice was clipped. "Did you hear that? Keep moving around if you want to become a cripple."

Juniper didn't reply, though the cooling ointment did offer a wave of relief.

The doctor stayed for about ten minutes, leaving behind a bottle of medicinal spray before making his exit.

Nelson shut the door, walked back to the bed, and grabbed her foot.

She immediately tried to kick him away.

He slowly released his grip. "Since you're not asleep, let's talk."

She was about to lie back down when he stood up, sitting directly on the edge of her mattress. His voice was dead serious. "Juniper, you'll get your karma too."

Juniper locked eyes with him, seeing an emotion so dense and overwhelmingly dark it was impossible to decipher.

She gave a hollow laugh. He didn't need to curse her. She had been living her karma every single day for the past two years.

Nelson's tone was completely flat. "The scandal online has blown up completely. You can sleep with me, and I'll make it all disappear. Deal?"

"Fuck off!"

She spat the words with venom, freezing the second they left her mouth, before dropping her head in exhaustion.

This was what happened when a quiet person was pushed to the absolute edge.

Nelson paused, then broke into a completely uncontrollable smirk. "A new word. Good for you."

Leaving those parting words, he turned and walked out.

Juniper fell back onto the pillows, staring blankly at the ceiling. The heavy, suffocating emotions piled up in her chest were draining every ounce of her energy.

As she drifted into a restless sleep, she felt a soft, feather-light kiss press against her lips.

It was so impossibly gentle.

It had to be a dream. Nelson didn't kiss people like that.

Every time he forced himself on her, it was aggressive and infuriating, making her want to slap him. He would never sneak a kiss this tender.