When There Is Nothing Left But Love

“Got it!” came the voice from above.

Soon, the dark pit was lit up by a beam of light. I remained still, not daring to move a muscle. I squinted against the brightness to see a figure looking down from above, seemingly belonging to a man.

Assuming that it was Armond, I called out in warning, “Armond, be careful. There’s a swamp here and the ground is soft. I’m worried that this area might sink at any moment. Please be careful!”

He didn’t respond, but tied a rope around his waist instead. With the flashlight in one hand, he used the light to find his footing while the other hand groped the soft walls of the pit as he walked in my direction.

The flashlight’s beam was aimed directly at me, so I couldn’t make out Armond’s features. Casting my gaze around, I spotted two slightly deeper pits a short distance away, probably left by my feet earlier.

There was also some muddied undergrowth all around the area, all of which were tea trees, which proved that my guess was right—the ground here had given way not too long ago.

The rain was getting heavier and my clothes were completely soaked by then. I wasn’t sure if the ground beneath my feet could hold my weight, but I had to try making my way forward. When Armond closed in on me, I called out again, “Be careful. Some of the areas are sinkholes!”

“Mm,” he responded just when he reached my side and I was taken aback to hear the familiar voice.

My head whipped up in surprise. “Ashton? What are you doing here?” For some reason, my nerves instantly loosened the moment I saw him and I breathed out an inaudible sigh of relief.

With his lips pressed into a straight line, he raised his brows in provocation. “What? Are you disappointed that it’s me?”

second, but ignored his sarcastic remark and urged, “Let’s

at the entrance of the pit. “I’ve found her. Tie the rope to a tree and make

answered from above, “Okay, got it. Be careful,

the other end of the rope on his body

and he reached out to hold my hand, but I instinctively drew away from him and protested,

glanced back at me with unreadable eyes, then withdrew his gaze and reminded, “Be

seven to eight meters above

the people above had to stand a distance

my arms weren’t strong enough. When I slipped down after a few tries, getting out of here started to

easily climbed up on his own, but it was much more

completely drenched with rainwater and a layer of mud coated his skin. Even his

on, neither of us is getting out

me a hard stare. “Would you

softly. “It’s not what you think it is. Our priority right now is to minimize the loss. We’re both going to end up getting injured if we stay

Disregarding my struggles, he pulled me up and continued

feat and I