To Be the Perfect Childhood Friend - Chapter 58

She looked up, realizing that it wasn’t her who required consolation at the moment. Rutger had a shard of glass stuck in his palm, possibly even piercing through. He might not be able to draw again. Meanwhile, Anita had come out without any harm, except for a minor bump on her tailbone from her earlier fall.

“I’m in pain.”

It was a tactic Rutger often used. Pretending to be hurt to garner sympathy, is a tactic she, too, employed to achieve my desired goals.

While the pain he experienced was genuine, having Anita by his side wouldn’t magically heal his wounds. Even so, Anita couldn’t refuse his words. His face, worn down by pain and exhaustion, softened her heart.

In the end, she cautiously sat beside him.

I should say thank you. If he hadn’t shown up in time, she would have already…

Shivering at the horrifying thought that flashed through her mind, Anita spoke hesitantly.

“Thank you.”

“For what? Because I’m in pain?”

A joke even in such a situation.

Anita tried to taunt him, but when she opened her mouth, a voice so shaky it was pitiful came out.

“I…”

She couldn’t finish her sentence.

If Charles Bennett had shown any strange signs and she had dealt with it properly, could this have been prevented?

She would have just stayed cooped up in the dorm like a mouse.

“It’s not your fault.”

“No, it is. Because of me, your hand…”

As Anita muttered self-blaming words, someone placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Well, let’s figure out whose fault it is later. First, we need to take care of this.”

“I’ll take care of it. I can handle it.”

“I hate to say this, Anita, but you’ve got somewhere urgent to go.”

Edmund scratched his cheek.

“Liliana, since the guests haven’t arrived yet, go and announce that there’s been a change in plans due to internal school matters.”

“When should I say it’s changed to?”

“…No, let’s just move it outdoors. Is the red carpet we used for the entrance ceremony still around?”

“Probably.”

After Liliana quickly disappeared, Edmund turned his head back to Anita.

“Sorry, it seems it’s going to be difficult for me to go.”

“What are you talking about?”

“For now, go after those guys.”

“What about the treatment?”

Anita couldn’t leave Rutger like this. Edmund, seeing that Anita seemed determined not to leave until she saw him get proper treatment, lifted his sleeves up to his elbows.

“I mentioned I’m from the medical department, didn’t I? I can handle simple treatments.”

He carefully removed Rutger’s outerwear that was entangled in his hand. Seeing Rutger’s wound, Anita furrowed her brow. The injury, caused by irregularly shaped glass rather than a knife, seemed worse than she had initially thought, possibly due to the glass fragment tearing through.

As Edmund removed Rutger’s outerwear, blood oozed from the wound once again. Examining Rutger’s wrist and slowly turning it, Edmund clicked his tongue.

“The bleeding is severe, but it’s not entirely hopeless.”

“…”

“If his hand or fingers were severed, treatment would be more challenging, but for now, it seems like a few stitches might be enough.”

After scrutinizing his hand for a while, Edmund looked up.

“I’ll manage somehow. You go.”

Where is he sending her like that?

Edmund called a student council member, instructing them to take Rutger and Charles to the hospital. Honestly, Anita didn’t wish for Charles to receive treatment. If he woke up fine, he might come back with more revenge or nonsense.

However, Anita’s thoughts changed just a few hours later.

***

Anita sat anxiously in the police station.

“All you need to do is fill out the information in the available sections.”

Annoyed and covered in dust, a lazy police officer handed Anita a paper and a pen before disappearing. Anita, left alone in a place where people in uniforms with batons came and went, idly fidgeted with the pen.

She thought she’d never be associated with a place like this in her lifetime, but somehow, she found herself in such a situation.

She absentmindedly stared ahead, and her eyes met those of a security guard. His gaze quickly narrowed. Remembering who he was, Anita desperately turned her head away. The guard, who once tried to catch her but tripped and fell, kept stroking his chin, mumbling, ‘Somewhere familiar?’ After a while, he lost interest in Anita and went back to his original duties.

Taking a sidelong glance to confirm what the guard was doing, Anita picked up the pen. She grimaced as she pierced through the paper that had been hole-punched excessively.

Details of the incident?

Anita couldn’t provide a detailed explanation of the incident, as she didn’t know why Charles had committed such an act.

Moreover, even if she mentioned the fact that Charles had been stalking her, it would be of no use without evidence, unless Charles admitted it himself.

Anita, contemplating for a while with the pen in her hand, finally started writing. Observing the events unfold, the police officers, who initially seemed interested, now showed no concern for her. This was fortunate for Anita because drawing attention from the police was the last thing she wanted.

Anita finished filling out the paper and put down the pen. For a moment, she gazed at the paper that she had filled. The police officers, initially intrigued, no longer seemed to care about her. This was a relief for Anita, as she didn’t want to attract attention from the police.

Anita couldn’t sit still and continued fiddling with the pen she had put down. She didn’t want to waste any more time like this. She needed to go and check on Rutger.

“Oh, I’ll do it. I can handle it.”

“I hate to say this, Anita, but you’ve got somewhere urgent to go.”

Edmund scratched his cheek.

“Liliana, since the guests haven’t arrived yet, go and announce that there’s been a change in plans due to internal school matters.”

“When should I say it’s changed to?”

“…No, let’s just move it outdoors. Is the red carpet we used for the entrance ceremony still around?”

“Probably.”

After Liliana quickly disappeared, Edmund turned his head back to Anita.

“Sorry, it seems it’s going to be difficult for me to go.”

“What are you talking about?”

“For now, go after those guys.”

“What about the treatment?”

Anita couldn’t leave Rutger like this. Edmund, seeing that Anita seemed determined not to leave until she saw him get proper treatment, lifted his sleeves up to his elbows.

“I mentioned I’m from the medical department, didn’t I? I can handle simple treatments.”

He carefully removed Rutger’s outerwear that was entangled in his hand. Seeing Rutger’s wound, Anita furrowed her brow. The injury, caused by irregularly shaped glass rather than a knife, seemed worse than she had initially thought, possibly due to the glass fragment tearing through.

As Edmund took off Rutger’s outer clothes, blood started to seep out from the wound once more. Examining Rutger’s wrist and slowly turning it, Edmund clicked his tongue.

“The bleeding is severe, but it’s not entirely hopeless.”

“…….”

“If his hand or fingers were severed, treatment would be more challenging, but for now, it seems like a few stitches might be enough.”

After scrutinizing his hand for a while, Edmund looked up.

“I’ll manage somehow. You go.”

Where on earth is he planning to send him like that…

Edmund called a student council member, instructing them to take Rutger and Charles to the hospital. Honestly, Anita didn’t wish for Charles to receive treatment. If he woke up fine, he might come back with more revenge or nonsense.

However, Anita’s thoughts changed just a few hours later.

***

Anita sat anxiously in the police station.

“All you need to do is fill out the information in the space provided here.”

A lazy police officer, clearly annoyed and covered in dust, handed Anita a paper and pen before disappearing. Anita found herself alone in a space where people in uniforms with batons came and went, idly fidgeting with the pen.

She thought she’d never be associated with a place like this in her lifetime, but somehow, she found herself in such a situation.

Absentmindedly gazing ahead, Anita’s eyes met those of a security guard, who quickly narrowed his gaze. Realizing his identity, Anita urgently turned her head away. The guard, who once tried to catch her but tripped and fell, kept stroking his chin, mumbling, ‘Somewhere familiar?’ After a while, he lost interest in Anita and went back to his original duties.

Casting a cautious look to see what the guard was up to, Anita grabbed the pen. She frowned as she pierced through the paper, which had been hole-punched excessively.

Details of the incident?

Anita couldn’t provide a detailed explanation of the incident, as she didn’t know why Charles had committed such an act.

Moreover, even if she mentioned the fact that Charles had been stalking her, it would be of no use without evidence, unless Charles admitted it himself.

Anita, contemplating for a while with the pen in her hand, finally started writing. Observing the events unfold, the police officers, who initially seemed interested, now showed no concern for her. This was fortunate for Anita, as she didn’t want to attract attention from the police.

Holding the pen for a while, Anita couldn’t sit still. She absentmindedly picked up the pen she had put down. She didn’t want to waste time like this. She needed to go check on Rutger and find out what had happened.

“Have you written everything?”

“Yes.”

She stood up as if she had been waiting, then handed the man the paper, getting so close that it almost touched his chin. Perhaps feeling uncomfortable, the man took a step back.