Chapter 18
Chapter 18
Sofia’s POV
What could I do? What was I supposed to say to that?
Sarah and the bodyguard exchanged a few more words together but I didn’t pay any more attention to
them as I got lost to some thoughts flowing around aimlessly in my head.
“Are you ready to leave, ma’am?” I blinked my eyes open and focused it in the direction in which the This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org - ©.
guard’s voice had come from.
“I’m sorry but what’s your name again?” I finally asked after staring long at him without saying anything
while trying to remember his name again.
“It’s Ryan, ma’am.” He replied without missing a beat and I slightly nodded my head as I pushed his
name around in my head, hoping I would remember it from now on and wouldn’t have to ask him for his
name again.
“Ryan.” I muttered absentmindedly, rolling the name around in my tongue.
“So are you ready to leave for the hospital now?”
“Where’s the other bodyguard? What’s his name again?” I inquired instead, because I was a bad
person who couldn’t for the life of hers, remember the people’s names who she had been introduced
to, some days ago.
“Oh, Ethan? He’s at the back of the house with the other guards. doing a survey. He’s currently bringing
the car over to the front of the house and would accompany us to the hospital.
“Oh, alright.” I replied, storing the other bodyguard’s name in a part of my mind and promising myself to
always remember both guards' names from now on. I shifted in my spot on the couch and winced as a
slight amount of pain washed over my shoulder blade.
Just how hurt was my right arm and shoulder?
“Ma’am, the hospital. Are you ready to go?” Ryan asked again after a few seconds and I hesitated for
long seconds before shaking my head slowly, wishing I could lift my legs onto the couch and curling
into myself… but I wouldn't be there because my wounded arm would most definitely be against that
move.
“But you have to go to the hospital, ma’am.” Ryan started to say but I only shook my head and shifted a
little on my seat. The living room was airily quiet and it felt like I could hear my own breaths eching
loudly in my own ears.
“I don’t want to. I’ll be fine.” I informed him, knowing fully well that I was being absurd but not wanting to
go to the hospital nevertheless.
I’ve always hated going to the hospital for reasons best known by me, and nobody was going to
understand.
“But you have to get checked up, scanned and given proper medications.” Ryan said again but I only
pursed my lips together without replying.
I wanted to ask him to leave me alone and mind his business but I know I couldn’t do that because that
would be so childish of me, an impact I never want to ever leave on him.
And so I remained silent and stared pointedly at the blank television and pretended as if I wasn’t feeling
his deep stare on me the whole time.
Sarah came back into the room and clapped her arms audibly.
“You’re still here? I thought you’d have left for the hospital already.” Sarah started to say as she made
her way into the living room and headed directly to where I was sitting. I remained silent and she turned
towards Ryan after a few seconds and demanded what the problem was, from him.
“Mrs Ricci is refusing to visit the hospital.” Ryan informed her and I pursed my lips even more, wiggling
my toes into the soft rugs on the ground.
“But you have to visit the hospital, Sofia. It’s for your own good.” Sarah started to say as she turned
towards me and I breathed out a long sigh without saying a thing.
“I don’t want to go.” I replied to her quietly, turning my head around and staring straight at the empty
couches on the other side of where I was seated.
“Is there a reason for you refusing to go?” Sarah asked with genuine concern brewing in her eyes and I
watched as she laid a hand on the couch, a few feet forward and that hand would be on mine.
I hesitated for a few seconds before shaking my head, knowing there was no way I could just speak to
her right now about something like that.
We were not close or anything, she’s just being nice to me because she’s paid and expected to.
“I think I should call Mr Ricci and inform him.” Ryan suddenly started to say and I whipped my eyes
towards him to watch him dig out his phone from his pocket and started to type away on it.
“No, no… don’t inform Luca.” I said to him before he could dial Luca’s number and both heads in the
room turn towards me instantly.
“I’ll go to the hospital.” I said and pushed myself to my feet with some difficulty. I winced a little at the
little jolt I encountered and stared at the both of them.
“I’ll need some…” I started to say but Sarah already magically knew about what I was going to say
before I could complete my sentence. She held up a finger and nodded her head instantly before
clarifying. “Footwears, right? Let me go get them right now, I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Yes please.” I clarified and she exited the living room in an instant, leaving me to Ryan in the living
room.
We remained silent and I shifted from foot to foot, wondering about if Ryan was probably looking at me
like I was a little, stubborn child.
I shoved the thought out of my head and focused on standing still without jolting my arm as I wanted for
Sarah to arrive.
“Good morning, Mrs Ricci.” An unexpected loud voice echoed from the doorway which made me jolt
unconsciously and let out a small, pained cry as pain shot into the bones in my right arm.
Matilda made her way into the living room and the bright smile fell off her face the moment she took in
my situation.
“What happened to you, Mrs Ricci?” She asked immediately she stopped some feet away from me with
wide blown eyes.
“I fell off the bed this morning and might have broken my arm, so now I have to visit the hospital.” I
informed her in a small, sad sigh and I watched as she clutched her heart dramatically for a few
moments before reaching for my cradled arm. I took a step away from her and shook my head
immediately.
“Don’t touch it, Matilda.” I said with a shake of my head, vividly aware of the bodyguard’s eyes watching
the cinematic exchange between the both of us.
“Why?” She asked, looking genuinely confused for a moment and I bit my lips before nodding at my
arm.
“It hurts.”
“Oh, my bad! I’m so sorry, Mrs Ricci.”
“It’s alright.” I paused for a few seconds before continuing. “Also, it’s Sofia and not Mrs Ricci.” I
reminded her, my teeth unconsciously tugging on the side of my lips.
“My bad, Mrs Ricci. I’m so sorry.” She started to apologize before trailing off on realizing her slip up
again. “I mean, Sofia. I’m so sorry, Sofia.”
“It’s fine, Matilda.” I reassured her with a tiny, forced smile.
I was feeling like crap at the moment but I didn’t want her to feel bad any longer.
Sarah chose that moment to arrive back in the room with a pair of white sandals in her hand. She
handed it to Ryan before I could reach for it and I stared in horror as he crouched down beside my legs
with a sandal held in his grip.
“I can wear my own sandals myself, thank you.” I started to say as I took a step away from him, feeling
color flood my cheeks at the amount of eyes that focused on my face the moment the words I said sank
into their heads.
“Your arm is currently injured, so you cannot wear it yourself for now. If you’d allow me, ma’am.” Ryan
answered smoothly and I didn’t know if there was a way I could grow redder than I already was.
He moved towards me and reached for my foot once again before wrapping his fingers around my leg
and slowly lifting it up.
“Ow.” I whispered as that move made my body shake and in the process, jolted my right hand around.
“I’m so sorry, Sofia. Once you get to the hospital, everything will be alright.” Sarah reassured me and I
nodded my head at her despite the fact that I knew she was just bluffing.
I wasn’t a dumb child. Everything doesn’t automatically become better once you get to the hospital.
Ryan inserted my left foot into the white sandal and buckled it up immediately and I did my best to
pretend like I wasn’t completely aware of him touching my feet and doing up my sandals like it was
suddenly a normal thing.
Or perhaps, it was a normal thing for him.
He moved towards my right foot and I bit my lips when he wrapped his fingers around it and slightly
raised it up. Feeling like I was suddenly about to lose my balance and fall down, my left hand found
itself on Ryan’s shoulder before I even realized it and I waited awkwardly with color flooding my cheeks
once again, as he did up my second sandals.
I lifted my hand off his shoulder once he was done and took a step back as he started to rise unto his
feet. He dug out his phone from his pocket and started tapping away on it in the next instant.
“Can you please get me a glass of water?” I turned towards Matilda who nodded her head immediately
– a little too enthusiastically before turning around on her heels and exiting the living room to go fetch
me a glass of water.
“How are you feeling now, Sofia?” Sarah came to stand beside me as she inquired.
“It hurts really bad.” I replied honestly and she shook her head sadly with a small smile that was almost
sympathetic.
“It’s going to be alright, Sofia. It’s going to be alright.” Was her reply just as Matilda returned back into
the room with a glass of water.
‘It wasn’t going to be alright, stop lying.’ I wanted to say in reply to Sarah immediately but I bit my
tongue and swallowed my words back down, what use would it be off anyway?
I collected the water from Matilda and expressed my gratitude before drinking the clear liquid. I was
grateful that the cold water was sliding smoothly into my throat and cooling down my insides almost
immediately.
“The car is outside the house already, we can leave for the hospital now.” Ryan suddenly spoke up and
we all glanced towards him. He was still staring at something on his phone for a few more seconds
before turning towards us and pocketing his phone instantly.
“Are you ready to go now, Mrs Ricci?”
I nodded my head without saying anything and handed my half filled glass of water back to Matilda
before patting the back of my shorts in search of my phone, only to find it empty.
I turned around and glanced at the spot on the couch where I had been sitting down before to find my
phone laying there.
I walked back towards it and picked it up and holding it in my hand this time. The shorts I had picked
out this morning was a blue colored one and it wasn’t all that long, it wasn’t all that short either. It
stopped a few inches down my thighs and that was it. The sleeveless white top I had on hand had tiny
hands which left both my arms bare.
I wouldn’t have been able to go out in something like this back at home, as it would seem like I was
revealing my future husband’s property to the public. I was only allowed to wear slightly revealing
dresses to some of the official gatherings since when I was sixteen and that was all.
But now that I am married, the majority of the new clothes which my mother and her sisters had packed
for me were a bunch of small, revealing stuff.