Curse

Sunny paid no heed to it and grabbed his arm with her hands, wanting to assist him to walk. That touch, though, triggered the man's cautiousness and slapped her hands away. Afterwards, he crawled and dragged his body with difficulty to a nearby tree and rested his back on it.

"Hey! I'm just trying to help you," she reasoned, with an obvious irritation pointing at the rude man. She touched her hand that got slapped with a grudge, bravely stepping forward to scold the stranger. "What should I do if you pass out because of your wounds? It's not like I can carry you home if that happens."

No response.

"Is your silence an implication that I should leave you alone?" Sunny scrutinized the man with her hands on her waist. "Yes, I can do that. But if I find your corpse here tomorrow, I don't think I can sleep after that." She sighed as she looked at the guarded air around the man, despite his incapacitated appearance. "I meant no harm. I just want to help you by saving me. For starters, what can a weak kid like me do to a strong adult like you? At least let me treat your wounds."

Again, the young man didn't say anything, but his body relaxed a bit. Sunny took it as a sign of silent agreement. Hastily, she removed her backpack from her back and sat on her knees as she scuttled her things inside. From the first aid kit, she took a disinfectant, cotton balls, a kidney basin, gauze, and a bandage.

"Can you remove your clothes so that I can see the wound?" she asked. She was a bit hesitant to do that because, even though she was a kid, she had the mindset of an adult who fantasized about beautiful men. And this defenseless young man in front of her had the most stunning face she had ever seen, despite those marks.

It took a few minutes before the young man submitted himself to his dire situation. He loosened his belt, revealing his smooth-hardened chest and muscle-toned broad shoulders beneath the robe that covered his chest area. Deng, what a nice view. Sunny almost whistled as she gawked at his body. With this young man's thin stature, you can't even tell that he has those fine muscles underneath his clothes. 

Trying her best to focus on the treatment, Sunny tore her gaze away from that beautiful body unwillingly. 

The wound on his chest is not that big, but it's deep. As she wiped away the blood, she became certain that the wound was caused by an arrow. Luckily, it didn't damage his heart. 

"I can only patch you up for now," she said casually as she applied disinfectant to the wound. "This needs stitches, so you have to come with me to the log house. I have no equipment here and this place isn't safe to do a minor operation." 

Sunny covered the wound with gauze, then she skillfully secured it with a bandage. When she was done, the young man put his clothes on without a word.

Curious, she tilted her head as she stared at the young man. "You're not talking at all. Are you also mute?"

The young man slowly shook his head. "Touching me is not good. But you're not afraid at all. Why?" The voice that came from him was whole, emotionless, but gentle.

Sunny knitted her brows, a bit startled by hearing the young man speak for the first time. "Huh? Why can't I touch you? Are you a clean freak?" 

"This curse doesn't bother you at all?"

"Curse?" Her eyes automatically darted to the marks on his face. "Are you talking about those marks on your face and on your body? Is that caused by a curse? " For Sunny, those marks just looked like cool tattoos. 

He nodded once, then turned his face away deliberately. "If you don't know anything, it's best to let me be. Or else misfortune will also fall on you."

Sunny chuckled. "I don't believe in things such as curses or misfortune. And even if one falls on me, I won't blame others for it. If those things stop me from doing what I want, then it's not called living." She gathered her things and put them all inside her backpack. "Right now, I want to help you to show my gratitude. So please cooperate and let me live with my words." Standing up, she offered her hand to him, and it took a while before he accepted it.

"I'm Sunny, by the way. How about you? What's your name?" she asked when he stood up.

"Jun Liang," he answered straightly, taking his hand back away from her grip, still being cautious.

"Jun Liang," she repeated, not minding his rude behavior.

"What's a kid like you doing in this forest alone, anyway? Where are your parents?"

Sunny scratched her nape, scrunching up her nose. "Ah, it's hard to explain it here. Before anything else, have some water and food first. Just eat while we walk back to the log house. Can you walk on your own, though? Do you need me to assist you?"

"No. I can walk on my own. Thank you."

Sunny shrugged her shoulders and handed her water canteen and two power bars to him.