Falling Petals, Light as a Dream

To buy Adam Walter time to escape, I endured three hours of torment, leaving half my body paralyzed. No one ever spoke of it again.

In front of the national media, Adam kissed my paralyzed left arm and asked,

“Aila, will you marry me?”

That night, I couldn’t sleep from excitement. But late into the night, I overheard him talking to his friends.

“Don’t you think she’s filthy and disgusting?” His voice was calm, each word piercing my heart.

“She became half-paralyzed because of other men and now I have to take care of her? What kind of sense does that make?”