Rehabilitation Therapist for the Broken Warrior – Chapter 65

“If things end up this way, surely the teacher will…”

—

“Zion!”

I barely managed to grab the back handle of Zion’s wheelchair that was tumbling down under the waterfall.

Zion turned to look at me with a shocked expression. But then…

“Oh, no…!”

The wheelchair had just managed to stop, but Zion’s body was about to lurch forward and tumble out.

I quickly pulled on the edge of Zion’s cloak, and thankfully, her body fell not downward, but right in front of me.

Zion was thrown to the ground in a seated position.

As the rough tugging on the cloak loosened, the faint moonlight shone down, revealing the thin clothing she was wearing.

“Hop… Teacher?”

“Gasp, ah…”

When I noticed Zion had gone out at night, I decided to follow her, but I never imagined she would throw herself into a waterfall!

“Zion. What on earth happened?”

“W-well… I couldn’t see well ahead…”

“Don’t lie!!”

“Ahhh!!”

I never thought I would have to tell Zion not to lie.

On top of pulling such a reckless stunt, now she was trying to deceive me too?

I was completely baffled by the series of events unfolding.

How on earth were things turning out this way?

“I saw you looking down for a while. You did it on purpose, didn’t you? What on earth could possibly justify this? Do you even know how badly you could get hurt if you fell from here? If something happened to you…”

“Hop Teacher!!!!!!”

Zion screamed as if shaking the valley to its core.

Her overwhelmingly loud voice left me utterly speechless.

In that instant, a flowing silence enveloped us. The birds, startled, could be heard fluttering away from somewhere.

“Look at me… please… huuh…”

Zion’s face was instantly drenched in tears.

Tears streamed endlessly from her eyes as she stared at me without blinking.

“I didn’t… didn’t, did I…?”

What on earth was she talking about?

When did I not gaze at Zion?

“Ugh… I’m so embarrassed to be in such a weird outfit and… if it’s Hop Teacher, it felt like anything would’ve been fine…! Honestly, I was excited, but to think you did nothing at all. What am I…? I mean, am I truly Hop Teacher’s lover? Do you really… like me?”

Zion cried out while shedding tears. The things she was saying had to be related to what happened today.

Could it be that Zion had interpreted my attitude today in that way?

Of course, it was partly my fault for not clearly explaining myself and putting up walls, but could that really justify such a situation?

I needed to clear up Zion’s misunderstanding before thinking any further. I had to make it clear that it wasn’t because I didn’t like her that I didn’t act.

“Zion. You know what I…”

“It’s because you only like broken things.”

“?!”

What… what did she just say?

Zion clearly…

“What do you mean by that…?”

“I know. Hop Teacher only likes broken things. That’s why you liked me. I was completely broken, more pitiful than anyone in the world, suffering and crying and in pain!!!”

“…….”

Zion knew? Since when? And how?

No, that wasn’t what mattered right now. What was going to happen to me now?

I had just revealed one of the two things I wanted to hide most. How would Zion start to see me now?

“Zion, that…”

I tried to say something, but no words came out.

Even though I wanted to speak, I couldn’t find any words to say.

I was just staring blankly at Zion, praying she wouldn’t despise me like a defendant awaiting a judge’s verdict.

Eternity seemed to flow for me, but in reality, only a brief silence passed.

“Anyway, you see, Teacher…”

Zion began to speak again.

With tears still flowing freely, she was staring at my blank face.

“Since I’m getting better bit by bit and regaining my health to stand up, you don’t like me anymore, right?”

You don’t like me…?

Then does that mean Zion actually wanted me to like her?

“Gasp, gasp, ah…”

I finally regained my sense of self and was able to breathe again.

Thank goodness. I was relieved. It didn’t mean she hated me. I thought to myself once again that Zion actually…

“So, huuh… I thought if I broke again, maybe Hop Teacher would end up liking me again… huuaah~”

Finally managing to express what she wanted to say, Zion collapsed right there and began to sob uncontrollably.

So that was it. Because I only liked broken things, she thought she had to break herself.

– Thud.

Feeling the strength leaving my body, I ended up collapsing right in front of Zion too.

If it was revealed that I only liked broken things, and that the reason I liked Zion was because of that…

I had thought Zion would surely detest and loathe me.

Because it was really me who was broken.

How could she ever like someone who said they liked her for such a ridiculous reason?

But… but Zion didn’t feel that way.

No matter how strange or foolish I was, no matter for what reason I liked her, Zion accepted and liked me as I was.

It didn’t matter to her what kind of person I was.

Rather, it seemed that Zion was so afraid of me not liking her that she was willing to break herself.

But how, how could I…

“I can’t not like you because you’re not broken…”

I blurted out those words, but Zion was still crying out ‘huuaah~’, alternating between wiping her tears away with her arms, sobbing endlessly.

I needed to comfort Zion now. I had to get up…

“Gah.”

Having been seated without any strength, I couldn’t feel my legs properly, and when I moved them they felt electric, meaning I couldn’t get up.

But it was fine if I couldn’t get up.

I dragged my arms to where I could be close to Zion.

Then I wrapped my arm around the sobbing Zion and pulled her close.

“Uuugh?”

“You’re cold, Zion. Come closer.”

Given how little clothing Zion was wearing, it was midnight by the stream, and her cloak had slipped down to cover the ground, making her upper body completely drenched in her own tears, so obviously, she was freezing.

Although I halted her from getting hurt, I’d be in trouble if she caught a cold.

“Hop Teacher…?”

“I’m sorry, Zion. The reason I kept my distance today was that you were too beautiful and alluring… I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to control myself. I’m sorry I couldn’t express it properly.”

“Beautiful and alluring?!”

“Then what else would I say?”

“Ugh…”

I pulled Zion in closer, wanting her body to warm up faster.

I lifted the cloak on the ground to cover her.

When I mentioned she was cold, it seemed that she too realized it was cold, as she snuggled closer to me within the cloak.

“Zion. It’s true that I like broken things… and it’s also true that’s how I fell for you…”

While blocking the wind with the cloak, we felt each other’s warmth inside.

Just moments ago when I had held Zion, I was so excited and heated, but now I felt strangely calm and at peace.

It must be because I was sensing more of her heart than her body.

Zion had gone that far for me. I was so strange and foolish that I almost caused her serious harm.

So I had to convey my feelings properly.

So Zion could feel me just as I felt her. Clearly and simply put.

“But there is someone who is trying to fix the broken Zion. Who do you think that is?”

“…….”

I was holding Zion, so I couldn’t see her expression clearly, but she was probably making a sulky face again.

“Hop Teacher.”

“Zion. I do genuinely like broken things. That’s a part of my nature and disposition that I can’t help. However, the heart that also wants to help you heal is sincere. That means I… care about you…”

I quietly closed my eyes. I could feel the true thoughts I wanted to share with Zion.

Even if she wasn’t broken…

“I like you. I want the person I like to be healthy. Even though I seem strange and broken, I can still have ordinary feelings. So Zion, stop thinking that you have to break yourself for me to like you… don’t hold onto such twisted thoughts any longer.”

This was what it meant to have ‘feelings for someone’.

If liking something broken was ‘having feelings for something’, then right now feeling that I liked Zion was ‘having feelings for someone’.

I was finally realizing this precious, painful, sweet yet heavy feeling.

This heart was learned from Zion.

No matter what kind of person I was, Zion liked me.

So now, whether Zion was broken or not… that didn’t matter at all.

As long as Zion remained by my side as herself, that was all I needed.

“Zion, do you believe me?”

It was a line I hadn’t said in a while.

I sincerely hoped Zion wouldn’t entertain such unworthy thoughts anymore.

Should a time ever come when she wanted to break again because of me, I hoped she’d remember the words I just spoke to her.

“Yes, I believe you.”

Was she lucky to have understood? Maybe it was just me, but I could slowly feel a warm sensation enveloping me.

Thank goodness. I was relieved; I could no longer leave Zion out here in such attire.

“We should go back now, Zion. You must have a lot to discuss, but let’s get you somewhere warm first.”

Zion wrapped the cloak around herself, and I stepped back from her embrace for a moment.

I still felt a tingling in my legs, so I had to rest a little longer before getting up.

“Hop Teacher.”

With the cloak wrapped around her, Zion lowered her head and softly called my name.

Since I couldn’t rise at that moment, I could only watch her silently.

“If what you’re worried about is me having a child…”

Huh? What is Zion… trying to say?

“Please let me serve you as long as I don’t have a child. If you truly like me, don’t hesitate and be honest with me. If you let this go without confirming that you really like me, I might truly break down.”

She wanted to serve me, which means…

“What’s your answer?”

I was dazed, my mind in a whirl, when Zion pressed me for an answer.

Naturally, my answer was…

“Y-yes. I’ll do it. Please… let me.”

It was an undeniable, enormous YES.