NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9: Jealousy
Starley couldn't say anything when she saw Sabrina in front of her. She was still shocked, realizing that Sabrina was the doctor Raul had called. Her whole body suddenly felt weak.
Sabrina blinked, confused, as she saw Starley just standing there, staring at her. Then, not long after, Starley heard Raul's voice from behind her.
"Sabrina, you came," Starley said, taking a deep breath, trying to control her mixed emotions.
"Hello, long time no see, Sabrina," Starley replied with a small, forced smile.
"Nice to see you again," Sabrina exclaimed with a warm, sincere smile. Then she looked at Raul, who was still wearing his torn black shirt.
"What injury is this now, Raul?" Sabrina asked with a sigh, then entered the room past Starley while carrying her doctor's bag. The servant who had escorted Sabrina had already left.
Meanwhile, Starley stood at the door for a few seconds. From Sabrina's words, Sabrina had been the one taking care of Raul's wounds all this time.
"A knife," Raul answered briefly.
"You know, you could delegate dangerous missions to your subordinates. You're the owner of B.I.A. What will happen to B.I.A if you die?" Sabrina exclaimed.
"I've written a will. I'll give it to Damien," Raul replied. Damien Blackwell was Raul and Lucian's younger brother, the third son of the Blackwell family.
"Damien? The Damien who's always disappearing? He can't even stay in one city for a month. How could he possibly take over B.I.A, Raul?" Sabrina responded.
"If it comes to that, he has no other choice," Raul said casually. Sabrina shook her head as if she couldn't believe it.
Raul then sat on the bed, removed his shirt, and Sabrina started to unwrap the bandage on Raul's shoulder. Starley closed the door and walked over to the sofa not far from Raul's bed.
"Oh my, this wound is pretty deep," Sabrina exclaimed. Then Sabrina began treating Raul's wound. But Raul didn't say anything; he seemed very calm.
"You just healed from the wound on your leg, and now you have a new one," Sabrina commented while treating his wound.
"Isn't it the more I get hurt, the more money you make?" Raul replied. Sabrina stared at Raul in disbelief. "Really?"
After that, they both chatted for a few minutes, completely forgetting about Starley. They talked as if Starley wasn't there. Starley once again felt like an outsider. She didn't feel like joining their conversation anyway. She opened her phone and tried to ignore them. She just wanted to leave the room quickly. Sabrina seemed to remember Starley's presence suddenly.
"Oh, Starley, I saw you're all over the news," Sabrina said curiously. Starley looked at Sabrina, and Raul remained silent, not looking at Starley.
"Yeah, that's true," Starley answered.
"So, you're a hacker? Wow, you're really amazing, Starley," Sabrina praised with exaggerated enthusiasm. Well, in Starley's eyes, it was excessive because she didn't like the woman in front of her. Starley just gave a fake smile without saying thank you.
"So, is Raul done with his treatment?" Starley finally asked. This question piqued Raul's interest as he finally turned to look at Starley.
"Not yet, why?" Sabrina asked, confused.
"But it'll be done soon, right?" Starley asked.
"Yeah, almost," Sabrina replied, still confused.
"Well then, I'll take my leave," Starley said. She couldn't stand being in this cursed room with these two cursed people anymore.
"You can't leave," Raul immediately said, his tone firm. Starley looked at Raul in disbelief and surprise.
"Can't leave? Who are you to tell me where I can or can't go?" Starley replied sharply. Her gaze was cold.
"My treatment isn't finished," Raul said.
"My presence here isn't really needed, and I still have work to do," Starley answered. Did Raul think unemployed people had no work? Oh, the jobless were busier than those who had jobs; they had missions to figure out what to do and a lot of plans for the future.
After Starley said that, there was an awkward silence for quite a while. Sabrina finally chose to remain silent and continued treating Raul.
"Wait a minute, Starley. There's something I need to talk to you about after this," Raul finally said. Starley frowned and sighed, reluctantly returning to the sofa.
After a few minutes of silence, Sabrina finally finished treating Raul's wound. She told him he would need to change the bandages every day. She also gave him painkillers and other medications.
Not long after, Sabrina's phone rang, but it was just a missed call. Before she could answer it, the ringing had already stopped.
"I have to go back to the hospital, my lunch break is over, and my patient needs me," Sabrina said. When Starley heard this, she felt a great sense of relief.
"Okay, thanks, Sabrina," Raul said.
"See you guys," Sabrina said and immediately left the room, leaving only Raul and Starley. Starley got up from the sofa and broke the silence first.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" Starley asked bluntly. Now, she felt her head was clearer after Sabrina left. Raul also got up from his bed and walked toward Starley.
"Why did you suddenly get angry?" Raul asked. Starley raised an eyebrow when she heard Raul's question.
"Angry? What do you mean angry?" Starley asked, confused.
"Forget it, what were you going to talk about?" Starley asked again.
"That's what I want to talk about. Why did you suddenly get angry?"
Starley stared at Raul in disbelief and said, "What kind of question is that? I thought you wanted to talk about something serious, Raul."
"I'm serious," Raul replied calmly.
"I don't understand your question. When was I angry?" Starley asked.
"A few minutes ago, when you suddenly wanted to leave and said you weren't needed here," Raul answered. Starley held her breath. Was her emotion really that easy to read? But Starley wasn't angry earlier; she just felt her mood completely ruined.
"I wasn't angry," Starley replied. Technically, she wasn't lying. Besides, Raul would never know—this guy in front of her was never perceptive. Raul didn't respond to Starley's words. He just stood there, watching Starley's face.
"If there's nothing else you want to say, I'll leave," Starley said. Without waiting for Raul's response, Starley walked past him.
At that moment, Raul stopped her by grabbing her left hand and halting her steps. Starley turned to look at him.
But in the next second, Raul pulled her by the waist, trapping her with his strong arms. Their bodies were now very close.
"Raul, what are you—" Starley's words were cut off when Raul suddenly leaned close to her ear.
"Want to know something? You look so sweet when you're jealous, cupcake," Raul whispered.
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