Swoosh! Lionel pushed him down to the bed. Rhodes's eyes widened as the other person covered his mouth with theirs. Within a second, Rhodes's flight or fight response kicked in again. He started fighting Lionel, not even holding back his strength. He might still be weak, but there was no way that man would stay on top of him.
It was just that… Lionel was far too powerful for him. The doctor pinned him down and growled against his ear. "Rhodes, Rhodes, you already lost this game. Don't fight me. You can't win over me like this. Joan is gone—why are you still using her to hide from me?"
"I'm beginning to think that accident was your fault…" Rhodes gritted his teeth. However, he winced at the pain around his head. The pressure might have pulled open some of his stitches. "Get off of me!"
"Give up, Rhodes! I already told you… you're mine!" Lionel tried to hold Rhodes's wrists down with just one hand. However, his breath suddenly turned into a white cloud before them. Even Rhodes's breath grew visible. The temperature in the room suddenly dipped so low it made Lionel burr.
He released the patient and sat up to look around. The lights from the hallway outside had gone dark. He could only notice the darkness peeking from the blinds. It made the room exceptionally brighter than earlier. "What the hell? Shit, what's going on—?"
Whizz! The light bulb above them whirred loudly. Lionel glanced at it before ducking over Rhodes again. The bulb exploded in an instant, and the shards rained on the bed and floor.
The doctor lifted his head and looked around. Rhodes's room was suddenly submerged in darkness. Due to the strong light from earlier, he could barely see anything in the room.
"Rhodes? Are you okay?" Lionel felt blind. He looked under him, but he could barely make out a figure. "Don't worry… I'll protect you! I'm sorry… I didn't mean to scare you…"
He used a hand to rub the face of the figure underneath him. "Shhh… don't cry. I'm here… I'm here… Eh… your tears are so sticky… Is this sweat instead?"
His voice was soft, but Rhodes couldn't help but shudder at its haunting sound within the room. He could only stare at Lionel… at Lionel's back. When the bulb exploded, he quickly slipped off the side of the bed. He didn't know why Lionel acted like he was still there. The delusional man was even speaking about something sticky on his face.
Rhodes groped the walls and slowly crawled away from the bed. He carefully bypassed the middle floor where the shards were. However, the door slowly swung open before he could reach it. The patient's hand was in mid-air for the knob, and he watched another white hand hold his fingers. His skin was seared as if he was touching the metal bed left in the morgue.
"…please help me…" A lady's voice spoke from outside the door. "I don't want to stay there. I don't want to stay here…"
Snap! Lionel's entire person flinched when he heard the voice. That was also when the room regained its bright appearance. It was as if whatever happened didn't happen. They only knew it did because Lionel was on his hands and knees on the bed while Rhodes was by the open door.
It didn't help that a nurse was actually standing before Rhodes. She didn't know why these people seemed frozen for a moment. She looked at Lionel, who looked around like he was on a different planet. "…Dr. Perch? Did you draw the blinds? Please don't do that again. I'm here to check Dr. Huxley one last time before discharge. Can you leave the room for me?"
Lionel moved to get off the bed, checking his hands awkwardly. "I… uh, sure… Please make sure Rhodes is fit to leave…"
The nurse stepped to the side, letting Lionel get out. She looked down at the patient on the floor. Her smile had already formed but quickly turned into a scream. After all, blood flowed from Rhodes's hair to his brows. "Dr. Huxley! Your stitches! What did you do?"
…
Sleepy eyes almost closed along the ride. However, Rhodes couldn't let his guard down anymore. Because of what happened last night, his stitches reopened. He had to stay in the hospital longer than planned and got discharged before noon. Right now, he just ate lunch at a diner. Perhaps his body remembered his healthy power naps. His eyes couldn't help but close on his way to the hotel.
The wedding would start at three in the afternoon. Everyone was expected to be there thirty minutes earlier. Lionel's phone kept blowing up with text messages and chats. Its occasional ringtone would wake Rhodes from time to time.
If there was an award for ridiculous trust, Rhodes might add it to his list of medals. Even if Lionel dared last night, Rhodes was still unafraid to share a long-haul trip with him.
"…we're almost there," Lionel murmured as they exited the highway. His luxury SUV drove into a wide asphalt road leading toward the coastal counties. He glanced at Rhodes. "…Rhodes… are you okay? I'm sorry about last night. I just don't understand what you're doing…"
"I'm trying not to get late for my wedding…" Rhodes yawned and reached out to grab Lionel's phone on the dashboard. He simply unlocked the complicated pattern code and looked up the hotel they were headed to. His thumb moved so fast that Rhodes forgot to think about his movements. How many times had he opened this phone that the amnesiac version of him could open it?
"You can't marry a dead person. I won't sign the papers. You'll get my license retracted." Lionel clicked his tongue and glanced at the other person. He would stare at Rhodes's captivating profile if he could keep his eyes off the road.
That man had no memories. Still, he freely tilted his head and lifted his chin as if he were still the hospital king, Dr. Huxley. His downcast eyes were so deep that one might drown in them. When his lips were not smiling, they would be left slightly parted. Even his strangely relaxed leaning stance against the car's seat made someone thirsty.
Outside his doctor's uniform. Rhodes looked more like a movie star.
Lionel's grip on the steering wheel tightened. It was getting hard for him to think Rhodes had amnesia. How could someone who had no memories appear and react too calmly? Lionel would probably be jumpier than a cat landing on foil paper if he lost his memories.
Rhodes listened to Lionel, but the words didn't register in his mind. He was more focused on checking the photos supplied by the Internet. His brows slightly frowned. "Did I ever mention planning with them? This Ring Garden Hotel is hideous…"
"…Joan planned the wedding with her mother." Lionel gave up and glanced at the passing arch. It was old, and the paint peeled.
It read, 'Welcome to Menorosa. May the sun and sea capture your free spirits.'