Silly Bride

Chapter 254

out of gas all of a sudden.The look on her face was frozen in shock when the motorcycle came to a complete halt on the main road.What the… I don’t believe it! Why would this motorcycle fail me at such a crucial moment?Still in disbelief, Winnie repeatedly tried to start the motorcycle, but to no avail.Her sweat continued flowing down her cheeks and into the collar of her shirt.At that very moment, she couldn’t even bring herself to face Christopher.She didn’t want to tell him that he could’ve been rushed to a hospital but would end up dying because the motorcycle ran out of fuel.Suddenly, Winnie had flashbacks of the explosion, the firefight, Christopher sobbing about his comrades dying before him, and Xavier asking her to meet him at the rendezvous point.For some reason, she subconsciously glanced at the navigation device, only to realize that the blip representing Xavier’s car had been stationary for a long time.As though her brain had stopped working, all of her logic and reason went out the window in an instant.It wasn’t until Riley patted her on the shoulder that she snapped out of it.“I’m carrying him out of here! I don’t care how far it is—I need to get him to a hospital!” she yelled while preparing to help Christopher off the motorcycle.“But…” Riley was about to say something but held his tongue when he saw Winnie’s bloodshot eyes. “I would’ve carried him if it weren’t for my wounded leg.”“That won’t be necessary. You should worry more about yourself.” Winnie knew about Riley injuring his leg when they went down the sewer, so she wasn’t about to have a man with a broken leg help her out.She then grabbed both of Christopher’s arms and placed them over her shoulders. However, Christopher was much bigger and taller than her, so she was unable to carry him on her back. As such, Winnie had no choice but to wrap one of his arms around her shoulder and drag him forward.Because the position he was in put a lot of strain on his torso, the wound on his abdomen began to tear, sending a sharp pain through his body.The pain was so intense that it woke him up from his unconscious state. “W-Where are we?”Winnie stopped in her tracks and flashed him a relieved smile. “Oh, thank goodness you’re awake! The motorcycle ran out of fuel. I’m getting you to a hospital right now.”“A hospital?” Christopher blinked in confusion as he looked at the seemingly endless stretch of road ahead. “Where is the hospital?”“It’s just up ahead! We’re almost there, Christopher! You have to hang in there, okay? I know you can do it!” Winnie replied.Christopher’s face had turned deathly pale at that point. “You think I’m stupid or something? I know there isn’t a hospital nearby… Stop wasting your time trying to save me, or none of us will make it out alive… Just leave me in a nearby forest and go with Professor White,” he said with a wry smile.Winnie shot him a fierce glare. “No, I won’t leave you! We’re getting out of here together! We’ve come way too far to give up now! I can’t possibly leave you behind after dragging you all the way here!”Christopher flashed her a reluctant look as he replied, “You have to… Sometimes, you need to discard some dead weight in order to keep on going. Right now, I am that dead weight that’s slowing you down. Just leave me, Winnie.”“No! I didn’t risk my life rescuing you just so I could leave you behind in the forest! I saved your life, so you have no right to give up as long as I’m still trying!” Winnie snapped back at him firmly and tightened her grip on his arm.Christopher struggled and tried to break free, but he was too weak to do so.“Hey, you’re hurting my wound… I’ll bleed to death if you don’t stop dragging me along like this…” he mumbled with a sob.Winnie immediately let go of Christopher and turned around to check his wound.Sure enough, the wound had started bleeding again. “Why didn’t you say so sooner? Hold on; I’ll treat your wound right away.” Winnie was about to get the first aid kit from Riley when Christopher grabbed her by the wrist.“That won’t be necessary. All you have to do is avoid putting any more strain on my wound. Look, I really can’t move around right now. Just let me lie down somewhere safe while you go look for a vehicle. Who knows, I might still be alive when you come back for me,” he uttered with a pleading look in his eyes.Winnie was starting to tear up as well.“Don’t look at me like that! What will you do if I agree to that suggestion of yours? What if you end up dying here?” she sobbed.Christopher’s tears were the first to fall. “Then remember where you left me and try to come back for my corpse later on. If possible, that is.”Winnie shook her head. “We’re almost there, though. Can’t you hang in there just a little while longer?”Christopher sniffled and tried his best to force a smile at her. “I’ll try my best to, but I don’t have much time left. You need to go right now. Do not waste any more time, you hear? Please, I’m begging you.”Winnie opened her mouth, but the words were stuck in her throat. All she could do was stare at Christopher as her tears flowed down her cheeks.Christopher shot her one final glance before turning around and limping toward the forest.After a brief pause, Winnie ran after him and found him a clean and secluded spot to lie down.“I’ll leave this first aid kit with you. Wait here for me, okay? Don’t give up! Remember, humans are extremely resilient! There will be hope as long as you have the will to survive! I’ll definitely come back for you!” she sobbed out.With tears in his eyes, Christopher smiled and nodded at her. “Yeah, I believe you. I always have.”Christopher is right. I need to act fast if I am to get a car and come back for him! With that in mind, Winnie said, “Okay, I’ll be on my way now. I’ll come back for you as soon as I can, so make sure to hang in there!”As she stood up and got ready to leave, Christopher called out to her from behind, “Winnie, there’s something I need to tell you.”Winnie turned around immediately. “What is it?”Christopher stared at her with his teary eyes glistening in the sunlight. “I…”I want to tell her that I like her, but she’s already in a lot of guilt for what happened to me… Telling her that I like her will only add to that guilt of hers. A dying man like me mustn’t be so selfish. I should just keep my feelings for her to myself.“I want you to stay safe and live a happy life,” he continued after a brief moment of hesitation.“All right. We’ll continue this conversation next time, okay?” Winnie replied with a nod and ran off as quickly as her legs could carry.Christopher stared at her until she eventually disappeared from sight.He then slowly closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of the wildlife around him. He could even feel the insects crawling over his exposed skin from time to time.Man, the environment here sure is amazing… Why does a beautiful place like this have to be filled with such evil?Christopher let out a sigh as he opened his eyes and stared at the trees and sky above.It’s a shame I won’t be making it back alive. What will my family do without me? Sigh… Oh, well… Perhaps this is my fate. No, I have something great to look forward to in life! I can’t die just yet! I need to stay alive!About ten minutes later, a speeding car came to a sudden halt by the side of the main road.Two women quickly got out of the car and ran into the forest.Christopher was drifting in and out of consciousness when he felt someone tapping him on the shoulder.As his eyelids felt really heavy at the time, he wasn’t able to open his eyes fully.Although he couldn’t get a clear look at the two figures in front of him, he heard a familiar voice calling out to him, “I’m back, Christopher! Can you hear me?”Christopher knew that voice all too well. “Winnie? Is that you? You made it back in time…”Winnie breathed a huge sigh of relief when she saw that he was still conscious. “Yes, it’s me! I came back for you with a car like I promised, Christopher! There’s still hope for you!”Yulissa got worried when she didn’t hear from Winnie and Christopher, so she decided to look for them.Since Riley couldn’t walk very fast with a broken leg, Winnie hid him somewhere safe while she went searching for a car.To her surprise, she saw Yulissa’s car speeding toward her in the distance and quickly flagged her down.Winnie then explained the situation to Yulissa after the latter pulled over by the side of the road.Yulissa requested to prioritize rescuing her grandpa, but Winnie refused for fear of her pulling a fast one and driving off with Riley. Eventually, the two decided to rescue Christopher before going for Riley.“There, he’s safe now. How about honoring your end of the deal, Winnie?” Yulissa asked as soon as they got into the car.“Don’t worry; you’ll see your grandpa very soon. He’s injured too, so you need to get us to a hospital immediately after we pick him up,” Winnie replied solemnly.“Is my grandpa badly injured?” Yulissa asked.“Let’s just say he needs to be treated at a hospital.”“All right. Take me to him.”“Pull over next to the monument up ahead. I’ll bring him to you.”“Okay.” Yulissa gave Winnie her full cooperation out of concern for Riley’s safety. She quickly did as told and parked the car next to the monument.Winnie ran into the nearby forest and returned moments later with a wounded Riley.Yulissa got all worked up when she saw him. “Grandpa? Is that you? I’m so glad you’re all right! How have you been throughout all these years? Why are you wearing a helmet? Take it off so I can get a good look at you! It has been so many years since I last saw you, Grandpa! I spent every single day in the Horton family thinking about how I would rescue you! You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment!”“Um…” “Riley” hesitated when he saw how emotional Yulissa was. “I’m