Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

By the time I realized what was happening, the table was already flipped.

Oliver, Frank, and their friends rushed over, grabbing beer bottles and starting to fight without a word.

Ethan's hand was bleeding, but he stayed calm, his eyes steady and confident.

Other patrons screamed and fled, leaving the bar empty.

Connie, still holding her guitar on stage, stared at the fight, looking scared.

The fight was intense.

Seeing Ethan's hand bleeding, I stood on the side, almost in tears. More than fear, I felt worried. "Ethan! Stop, stop fighting."

But my voice was drowned out by the loud curses. A beer bottle shattered on Oliver's shoulder, and blood quickly seeped through his plaid shirt.

Oliver turned around and punched the guy. "Fuck, I'll kill you!" They fought fiercely, both injured, with neither gaining the upper hand.

At some point, Bella joined in. She was a black belt in Taekwondo, and her moves were impressive. She quickly took down several guys. Zachary Murphy stood on the side, watching Bella with interest. "You can fight?"

"Shut up." Bella kicked at him, but Zachary dodged it.

Bella started fighting him, but I noticed that Zachary mostly dodged and didn't fight back.

I kept looking back and forth between Bella and Ethan, worried about both.

Ethan was currently fighting a long-faced guy named Stephen Bell. Ethan had taken a few punches to the face, and his mouth was bruised.

Stephen looked even scarier, with blood streaming down his face, yet he kept swinging his fists.

I couldn't quite understand why men brawl; when tempers flare, they resort to fists.

Ethan was focused on Stephen, so he didn't notice another guy raising a beer bottle to hit him from behind.

Without thinking, I lunged at Ethan's back. He sensed something, pulling me forward. The next second, the beer bottle smashed on his head, splashing beer and glass shards onto my hair and face.

I saw blood flowing from Ethan's hair, and I was so scared I could hardly think, my voice trembling. "Ethan, are you okay? Don't scare me!"

Ethan held me, still managing to smile. He gently brushed the glass shards from my hair and whispered, "Silly girl."

Luckily, the police arrived just in time. Everyone was injured to some degree, so they were taken to the hospital first.

I watched as the doctor cleaned Ethan's wound, using tweezers to pull glass shards from his scalp. It hurt me just to see it. Ethan stayed silent, his face calm like the wound wasn't even his. His white shirt was stained with blood, looking gruesome.

Bella's hand was also cut, and the doctor treated it quickly.

Oliver sat there, annoyed as the doctor worked on him. He suddenly grabbed Bella's hand, staring at her injury. "Are you crazy? It was dangerous. Why did you get involved?"

Bella pulled her hand back, looking uncomfortable. "I can handle myself. Without me, you'd be in worse shape."

Oliver seemed at a loss for words and angrily kicked over a stool.

After their injuries were treated, they were taken to the police station for questioning. I waited outside alone, every second feeling like torture.

I couldn't even think about why Ethan started the fight; I was just worried about him. I didn't know how serious this was, but I knew he was mainly responsible.

Bella was the first to come out. She sat next to me. "It won't be serious. Don't worry, Emmy. They just asked about what happened."

I

She tried to comfort me. "Emmy, Ethan is so capable. He'll find a way out of this. Trust me, if he couldn't, he wouldn't have started the fight."

I wasn't so optimistic. No matter how capable Ethan was, the law wouldn't show mercy.

Bella and I waited for an hour, which felt like forever. When Ethan finally walked out, I stared at him, stunned.

The bandage on his head and the blood on his shirt still looked shocking, but he walked with one hand in his pocket, the other bandaged hand holding a cigarette, looking composed.

Ethan looked like he was coming from a card game, not an interrogation. I approached him. "Are you okay?"

Ethan lightly placed his cigarette-holding hand on my shoulder, a tired smile on his face. "I'm fine."

Soon, the others came out too. At the police station, they didn't look at each other, but as soon as they stepped out, Oliver, unable to hold back, pointed warningly at the others. "Don't let me see you again." Instinctively, I glanced at those guys, hoping they wouldn't start fighting again right outside the police station.

Probably knowing this wasn't the place for a fight, Zachary just raised an eyebrow and said, "Don't be too arrogant, we'll meet again."

Then Zachary turned to Bella, smiling playfully. "Miss, your Taekwondo is pretty good. I like you."

My heart sank, knowing this was bad.

Sure enough, Oliver threw his half-smoked cigarette to the ground, cursed "fuck," and was about to charge over, but Ethan grabbed him.

Seeing Oliver's reaction, Zachary smirked. "Is she your girlfriend?"

Oliver's chest heaved, gritting his teeth. "She's my girlfriend. Try touching her, I dare you."

Zachary, clearly a seasoned brawler, wasn't intimidated. He casually looked at Bella. "Is that so? Now I'm even more interested. Miss, remember, my name is Zachary Murphy."

"Get lost," Bella snapped, showing no respect. Zachary wasn't angry. He glanced at Bella's injured hand and smiled insincerely. "My friends hurt you. I'll make sure to teach them a lesson." Bella repeated, "Didn't you hear me? I said get lost."

Oliver seemed at his limit. If Zachary kept talking, another fight would break out.

Fortunately, Zachary finally left with his gang.

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Bella glared at Oliver, referring to him calling her his girlfriend.

Oliver, irritated, lit another cigarette. "You better be careful. Zachary is just a thug."

Bella didn't look at Oliver, her tone calm. "I don't need your reminder."

At that moment, the female singer who had been harassed earlier, Connie, walked out of the police station.

I had a nagging feeling that Ethan fought for Connie, so I instinctively scrutinized her.

Earlier in the bar, I had only noticed her singing. Now, looking at her, she actually seemed quite innocent, with medium-length brown hair that was a bit frizzy.

Seeing the guitar on Connie's back, I immediately thought of the guitar in Ethan's room and his unusual behavior that day. I was even more convinced that Ethan fought today for her.

Connie walked straight to Ethan, and I instinctively tensed up. She stood in front of him, nervously fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "Ethy, for female singers like us performing in bars, dealing with stuff like today is common. People judge us unfairly. If we resist harassment, we're called pretentious. I'm used to it; it's not worth you making a big deal out of it."

The term "Ethy" reminded me of the night Ethan left in the rain, the voice on the phone calling him "Ethy." Could that person be Connie? I looked at Ethan, hoping for an answer.

Ethan took a deep drag on his cigarette, looking at Connie and saying calmly, "Just keep singing. There will be people who genuinely appreciate your voice."

Oliver walked over and patted Connie on the shoulder. "Connie, go back. Don't worry, as long as the bar is mine, I won't let my employees be mistreated."

She seemed quite moved, nodding gratefully. "Thank you. I'll be going now."

Connie turned and walked into the night with her guitar.

Watching her leave, I felt emotional. 'Every profession has its difficulties, and everyone fights with all their might to live.'

Later, everyone dispersed. Bella called her dad's driver to pick her up, and we took a cab back to the villa.

Ethan lay back on the bed with his eyes closed, one hand resting on his forehead. I was a bit worried and asked, "Are you okay?" "I'm feeling a little dizzy," he said without moving.

Hearing that, I got even more worried. "Could it be something serious? Do you need to go to the hospital for a check-up?"

Ethan removed his hand and looked at me with a smile. "I'm dizzy from hunger."

Realizing that, I quickly said, "I'll go make oatmeal."

Ethan nodded in agreement.

As I went downstairs, Oliver and Frank arrived. I pointed upstairs, and they nodded and headed up.

After making oatmeal, I served a bowl and brought it upstairs.

At the door, I heard voices inside. For some reason, I instinctively lightened my steps.

"Ethan, it's been eight years. You should forget what needs to be forgotten." That was Oliver's voice.

My hand holding the bowl tightened.

"I already have," Ethan said.

"Then why did you do this today? Others think you stood up for Connie, but you didn't. And with so many women lining up to be with you, why did you marry a woman who has been married before?" I stood frozen at the door, both expectant and afraid of how Ethan would respond.NôvelDrama.Org © content.