Contract agreement.

Blood.

Blood trickled down Charles' nose and seeped from the corner of his mouth, the bright red liquid stark against his pale skin.

'Gasped!'

Augustine's jaw dropped open, his breath hitching in his throat as he stared down at Charles' motionless body, a look of shock and disbelief contorting his features.

For a moment, he was immobile and he had no idea about what to do and how he would react.

"Charles… Ch-Charles?" Augustine stammered, his voice trembling with concern as he repeated the name, as if expecting Charles to suddenly spring back to life at the sound of his voice.

But Charles lifeless form remained silent, the only sound that of the wind rustling through the branches overhead.

Quickly, Augustine rose from his squatting position before turning on his phone screen, his fingers roaming across the contacts on his phone.

A few seconds later, he dialled the number of his secretary and on the first ring, his secretary picked up the phone call of Augustine.

"Good evening CEO Augustine." His secretary greeted him from the other end of the phone call with a warm smile plastered on his lips.

Augustine sighed, ignoring the greeting from his secretary because he was consumed by a sense of panic, his mind racing for a solution. "If a person is unconscious, what… what am I supposed to do?" he blurted, his voice a blend of fear and desperation.

The male figure from the other end of the phone call arched his brows, confused by the ridiculous question from the almighty Augustine Wales.

"Umm, If the person is in a serious condition, then you should take them to the hospital," the secretary replied, his voice coming through the phone, calm and collected. "But if the situation doesn't seem severe, you could try to revive them by pouring some warm water on their face and...?"

Before his secretary could complete his statement, Augustine hung up the call as he dived his phone into his trouser pocket.

Augustine sprang into action, lifting Charles' limp body with ease as if he weighed nothing at all.

With Charles cradled in his arms, he snatched the rose flower from the ground and sprinted towards his car, urgency and desperation propelling him forward.

Augustine quickly opened his car door, sliding Charles into the passenger seat.

He locked the door and quickly, he made his way to the driver's seat, accelerating the car engine as he drove off.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Augustine raced through the winding forest roads, desperate to reach his destination.

By the time he screeched to a halt at the gates of his private hospital, over an hour had passed since Charles had collapsed.

"Nurse!" Augustine yelled at the top of his lungs, stepping down from the driver's seat as he opened the passenger seat, carrying Charles who seemed lifeless.

Augustine sprinted towards the hospital entrance, his body trembling with a mix of fear and adrenaline.

He crashed through the doors, oblivious to the shocked gazes of the staff as he hurried through the lobby, his single-minded focus on saving Charles fueling his every step.

Augustine's voice echoed through the halls as he cried out, "Nurse! Doctor! I need your help!"

The voice of Augustus was a frantic plea which was met with the urgent whir of an empty gurney at breakneck speed.

"Lay him here," the female nurse commanded, her voice authoritative as she gestured towards the gurney.

The second nurse helped Augustine ease Charles onto the stretcher, their movements swift and practiced in the urgency of the moment.

He assisted the nurses to roll the gurney towards the emergency room.

"You have to wait here," a nurse said to Augustine, prompting the door of the emergency room to be shut right in front of him.

Baffled!

Augustine was baffled as he watched the closed door of the emergency room.

His eyes were wide open in fear as he held his breath for some moment, trying to properly compose himself.

Augustine stepped back from the flurry of activity, his focus shifting as he moved towards a long, vacant bench.

Sitting down heavily, he lowered his gaze to the ground, his hands gripping the edge of the seat as if to steady himself. 'What have I done?' Augustine questioned himself with a tone of regret.

With a muffled sigh, Augustine rested his forehead against his hands, his mind racing with fearful questions. "What if Charles dies?" he wondered, the thought evoking a sense of dread that twisted in his stomach.

He absent-mindedly bit down on his lower lip, the taste of blood mingling with his apprehension.

Augustine kept on lamenting within himself.

He had no idea of how long he had been seated on the bench until he felt the warm hands of a lady on his shoulder.

"CEO Augustine, your friend is awake." The female nurse stated.

Augustine's head snapped up as the nurse's words cut through his thoughts. "Charles is awake?" he repeated, disbelief tinging his voice.

"Yes, sir," the nurse confirmed. "He's asking to see you."

"Thank you," Augustine murmured, his relief palpable as he rose to his feet. "Where is he?" Augustine inquired with a tone of urgency.

"He's currently in your private hospital room." She sincerely replied.

Being among one of the wealthiest men in the entire country H, Augustine didn't only invest his money in his company, but instead, invested it in different fields, including building an hospital from scratch.

Following the statement of the young nurse, Augustine quickly hastened his steps, running over to the hospital's private room.

As Augustine entered the room, his eyes immediately fell on the bandages adorning Charles' body—the evidence of his fall and the injuries he had sustained.

Despite the medical team's expertise and their immediate response, it was clear that Charles had suffered.

The sight of those bandages stirred something within Augustine—a potent cocktail of relief and guilt, gratitude and responsibility, all swirling together in his chest.

Augustine felt his knees getting weak as he closed the distance between the both of them, bending over to the hospital bed. "I am… I am so sorry for what I did to you, Charles. I didn't mean to harm you and I wasn't thinking straight when I threatened you." Augustine stammered, grabbing Charles's hands which he entwined with his.

Charles gave a derisive snort, rolling his eyes at Augustine's behaviour. "I think I am ready to sign the contract of being your sex toy," Charles uttered with his raspy voice, his words surprising Augustine to the very core.

Augustine was taken aback, his mouth agape at Charles' unexpected proposal.

Was he truly offering himself up as a plaything in exchange for…what? Money? Safety? Access to power?