Shattered Longings

Chapter 40 Without Reason

Bella stiffened, feeling the urge to cry. If only there had been a justifiable reason, she would’ve followed Dominic without a second thought, even if it meant never having a rightful place beside him. But there wasn’t a reason–not a single one.

Bella took a deep breath and smiled at him. “No, I won’t.”

was.

Dominic frowned and looked at her for a moment before leaving. At that moment, she was overwhelmed with the urge to chase after him, but she fought it down, her vision blurring with tears.

She didn’t find the strength to go outside until his car was long gone, a profound sense of loss flooding her heart.

She couldn’t wrap her head around why he would ask her to come with him. After all, he had clearly loathed her for so many years.

Why was he giving her false hope? She was too afraid to take another step forward, fearing she would fall back into the same endless pit of despair.

When she arrived at the hospital, her mind was elsewhere, the scene of Dominic asking her to leave with him replaying over and over in her head. The more she dwelled on it, the more unsettled she became.

out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a figure

nodded timidly but didn’t enter. Bella sighed.

the consultation room, accompanied by an indescribable odor–a combination of sweat, body odor, and a

couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose and silently put on a mask. As she did so, she noticed the man take two steps back, as if aware of their unpleasant odor and

man up. He appeared to be in his 20s. His clothes were so worn out and faded that their original color was almost impossible to make out, and they were

grimy, as if he hadn’t showered in days. Yet, he was a step above

barefoot, oozing pus and blood; it was probably too painful for him to

sit down. “How’d you hurt your foot?” she asked with a frown. The man’s eyes darted around nervously, like a child

he was mentally impaired. Out of a sense of

injury, not a skin disease. After cleaning it up and bandaging it, she breathed a sigh of relief. “Alright, you’re good to go. Go pay the

there, his eyes glued to her, watching her surreptitiously. It didn’t take long for Bella to realize that he had

Now, get out of here and

Chapter 40 Without Reason

using the disinfectant twice. The stench of the festering wound

man had already left. A moment later, an elderly woman walked in. “What’s that