“Falling and giving yourself a concussion just from eating a meal–who else can you blame?” The nurse muttered under her breath, unable to hold back her frustration. People like Joseph, in her eyes, weren’t worth anyone’s help. She watched him ignore every instruction, showing no concern for his own health, and it made her angry. As a nurse, the kind of patients she disliked most were the ones who refused to listen. They worked hard to treat him, and yet he didn’t care at all.

Joseph heard her words, but it took a second for them to register. He reached up and touched the bandage on his head, mumbling, “You’re saying… I fell by myself?”

The nurse, who had just been about to leave, turned back and replied, “That’s right. You fell. The person who brought you in said that’s what happened. And based on your injury, it does look like it.”

Joseph slumped back onto the bed, his hand pressing to his chest as it rose and fell. He couldn’t understand–why? He vaguely remembered having a meal. Then what…? The moment he tried to think, a sharp pain stabbed through his head.

The nurse sighed and walked back over, speaking patiently. “I told you, you fell. Why is that so hard to believe? You’ve got a mild concussion. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but it’s not nothing either. You need to be careful and stop forcing yourself to remember.”

Joseph stared blankly, his mind still struggling to catch up. “But I was just having dinner…” The nurse rolled her eyes internally. People these days were unbelievable. She glanced at his dazed expression. He was actually quite good-looking. What a shame about the brain.

“Alright, let me reattach your IV. Don’t mess with the needle unless you want more trouble. As for everything else, let it come back slowly. You’ll remember, eventually. What you need now is rest.” The wild, arrogant man he had been was gone. His hair, once slicked back in defiance, now hung limp across his forehead. The nurse looked at Joseph, his expression dazed and unfocused, and for some reason, she felt a twinge of sympathy. She couldn’t help but think–someone this handsome couldn’t be all that bad, could he? Maybe she had misjudged him earlier. And now that he was lying there sick and helpless, he really did look a little pitiful. There was something about him that tugged at her heart.

Still, she stuck to her duty. “You should get some rest. I’ve got other patients to attend to. If you pull that IV again, it’s only going to make your recovery harder.”

Hearing that, Joseph held his head, hesitation creeping in. He and Aurora had been eating at Day Light Restaurant–what exactly happened after that? Could someone have attacked him? Either way, he didn’t believe for a second that he just fell down the stairs. He was fine one moment–how could he have tripped like that? Besides, he remembered clearly he hadn’t even eaten much. He’d only smoked a couple of cigars just to get under Aurora’s skin. The nurse’s claim that he’d fallen down a flight of stairs made no sense at all.

Joseph narrowed his eyes, deciding that rest was probably the smarter move for now. Whatever had happened, he’d remember it eventually. There was no point overthinking it now.