The emergency room doors slammed open as doctors and nurses rushed Sebastian's bed inside.
Bright white lights flooded the hallway, making everything feel harsh and overwhelming.
"Stab wound to the abdomen," one of the paramedics said quickly. "Significant blood loss. Patient was found unconscious."
Lillian followed closely behind them, her heart pounding violently in her chest.
Her shoes squeaked slightly against the polished hospital floor as she tried to keep up.
"Sebastian," she called softly.
His eyes were half-open, unfocused.
A nurse immediately began cutting away the rest of his blood-soaked shirt.
"BP is dropping," another nurse said.
"Get fluids ready."
"Prepare the trauma team."
Lillian stood frozen near the doorway, watching everything happen at once.
There was blood everywhere.
The wound at his side looked worse under the bright lights.
One of the doctors pressed thick gauze against it, but it quickly soaked through.
Sebastian groaned quietly.
His head shifted slightly toward her voice.
"Lillian…?"
Her breath caught.
She hurried closer.
"I'm here," she said, grabbing his hand.
His fingers were cold.
But he weakly curled them around hers.
"You shouldn't… be here," he murmured.
Lillian shook her head immediately.
"Too bad," she replied softly. "I'm not going anywhere."
One of the doctors glanced between them before speaking.
"We need to take him into surgery right now."
Lillian's heart skipped.
"Surgery?"
"Yes," the doctor said calmly. "The wound is deep, and he's lost a lot of blood."
Sebastian let out a faint, tired breath.
He looked at Lillian again.
"See?" he muttered weakly. "Hospitals."
Despite the fear twisting inside her chest, Lillian almost laughed.
"You're unbelievable," she whispered.
A nurse gently stepped between them.
"I'm sorry, miss. You'll have to wait outside."
Lillian hesitated.
Sebastian's hand slipped from hers as the doctors began moving the bed again.
"Wait," she said quickly.
Sebastian turned his head slightly toward her.
Their eyes met.
"You better wake up," she said quietly.
He gave the faintest smirk.
"Bossy… as always."
Then the bed rolled away.
The operating room doors closed with a heavy thud.
And suddenly everything was silent.
The waiting room felt painfully empty.
Lillian sat in one of the stiff chairs, staring at her hands.
They were still stained with dried blood.
Sebastian's blood.
Her stomach twisted.
She could still see the bathroom floor in her mind.
The blood across the marble tiles.
The way he had looked barely conscious against the wall.
"God…" she whispered.
Her fingers trembled slightly.
She ran her hands through her hair, trying to steady her breathing.
What if she had arrived later?
What if she had ignored the news report?
The thought made her chest tighten painfully.
The doors to the waiting room suddenly opened.
"Lillian!"
She looked up quickly.
Chloe rushed toward her, breathless.
"Oh my god, there you are!"
Chloe pulled her into a tight hug.
"Are you okay?" she asked quickly. "You ran out of the apartment like your life depended on it."
Lillian hugged her back weakly.
"I'm okay," she said quietly.
Chloe stepped back and looked at her more carefully.
Then her eyes widened.
"Is that blood?"
Lillian looked down at her clothes.
"Yeah," she said softly. "Sebastian's."
Chloe blinked.
"Wow," she muttered. "That's… not a sentence I expected to hear today."
She sat down beside Lillian.
"What happened?"
Lillian took a deep breath.
"I found him at his mansion," she said.
Chloe frowned.
"What do you mean, found him?"
"He was in the bathroom," Lillian continued quietly. "On the floor."
Chloe's expression shifted immediately.
"Oh my god."
"There was blood everywhere," Lillian said.
"He tried to bandage himself."
Chloe stared at her in disbelief.
"That man is insane."
"I know," Lillian replied.
Chloe crossed her arms.
"He got stabbed and thought, 'You know what sounds good? Self-care.'"
Lillian let out a small tired laugh.
But the memory quickly sobered her.
"He was barely conscious," she said. "If I had gotten there later…"
Her voice trailed off.
Chloe gently squeezed her arm.
"But you didn't," Chloe said softly.
Lillian nodded slowly.
Then Chloe tilted her head slightly.
"Wait," she said.
Lillian looked at her.
"You skipped something."
"What?"
Chloe narrowed her eyes.
"You look like someone who just kissed a man who almost died."
Lillian blinked.
"How do you even—."
"Intuition," Chloe said smugly.
Lillian sighed.
"Yes."
Chloe's jaw dropped.
"You kissed him?!"
Lillian rubbed her face.
"It just… happened."
Chloe leaned back dramatically.
"I leave you alone for one morning and suddenly you're kissing the terrifying CEO of Sovereign Technologies."
"It wasn't like that," Lillian muttered.
"Oh please," Chloe said. "You've been emotionally spiraling around that man for weeks."
Lillian opened her mouth to argue.
Then closed it again.
Chloe smirked.
"Exactly."
A while later, two police officers entered the waiting room.
They approached slowly.
"Are you Lillian Parker?"
Lillian stood.
"Yes."
"We're investigating the attack on Mr. Wolfe," one officer said.
Chloe crossed her arms slightly.
"Any updates?"
The officer nodded.
"Ethan Bennett has been arrested."
Lillian felt a wave of relief rush through her.
"He has?" she asked.
"Yes," the officer replied. "The security guards restrained him."
"Good," Chloe muttered.
The officer glanced down at his notes.
"The knife used in the attack was also recovered."
Lillian's stomach twisted slightly.
"That man is insane," Chloe said again.
"He will likely face attempted murder charges," the officer added.
The words hung heavily in the air.
Attempted murder.
Sebastian really could have died.
After a few more questions, the officers eventually left.
The waiting continued.
Hours passed slowly.
The sun outside disappeared, replaced by darkness.
Chloe eventually stood.
"I'm getting coffee," she announced.
"Okay."
A few minutes later she returned with two cups.
She handed one to Lillian.
"Drink."
"I'm not really—."
"Drink," Chloe repeated.
Lillian sighed and took a sip.
The warmth helped slightly.
"You know," Chloe said, leaning back in her chair, "if he dies after you two finally kiss, I'm going to be extremely annoyed."
Lillian glared at her.
"He's not dying."
Chloe raised her hands.
"Just saying."
Suddenly the operating room doors opened.
Both of them stood instantly.
A doctor stepped out.
"Lillian Parker?"
"Yes," she said quickly.
The doctor removed his surgical mask.
"Mr. Wolfe lost a significant amount of blood," he said.
Lillian held her breath.
"But the surgery was successful."
Relief crashed over her.
Her shoulders sagged.
"He's stable," the doctor continued. "The wound was deep, but we were able to repair the internal damage."
"Can we see him?" Chloe asked.
"In a little while," the doctor replied.
Later that night, a nurse guided Lillian down a quiet hallway.
They stopped outside a private room.
"You can go in."
Lillian stepped inside slowly.
Sebastian lay in the hospital bed.
Pale.
Exhausted.
Bandages wrapped tightly around his side.
Machines beeped softly beside him.
He was still unconscious.
But he was breathing.
Lillian pulled a chair beside the bed.
She gently took his hand.
"You're really dramatic, you know that?" she whispered.
No response.
She smiled faintly.
"You scared me."
She rested her head beside his arm.
"I meant what I said," she murmured softly. "I'm not going anywhere."
After the long, terrifying day, exhaustion finally caught up with her.
Her eyes slowly closed.
And she fell asleep beside him.
Hours later—
Sebastian stirred.
Pain pulsed through his side as his eyes slowly opened.
He looked around the quiet hospital room.
Then he saw her.
Lillian.
Asleep beside the bed.
Still holding his hand.
Sebastian stared at her for a moment.
Then a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Stubborn woman," he murmured quietly.
But he didn't let go of her hand.
Not this time.
For the first time since the attack, Sebastian Wolfe felt completely safe.
And it had nothing to do with the hospital.