A Wall and A Bridge

After the unexpected encounter with Andrey, Denise went back to her normal, rather boring life at the hospital. She walked to the bathroom and took a bath to refresh herself. After that, she wore her hospital gown and sat down on her bed. She was about to lie down when she heard a knock from the door.

"Come in," she said in a quiet and husky voice, hoping it was loud enough for them to hear. When the door opened, she was shocked to see Andrey. He was standing at the door with a big smile on his face as he carried a basket. She quickly raised her eyebrow, not knowing his reason for coming here.

"Good morning, Denise, is it fine to come in?" he asked in a gentle voice. He still hadn't moved from his position, indicating that he was waiting for her response. She quickly shook off her thoughts and quickly nodded.

He smiled widely and walked inside her room. He placed the basket on the small table and sat down on the chair while facing her.

Denise couldn't fully process his presence here, so she just looked at him silently. Noticing her silence, he quickly apologized.
"Oh, am I creeping you out? I'm very sorry. You're probably wondering as to what I am doing here. I'll put it simply, I'm here to visit you."

"Why?" she asked quietly while raising her eyebrow.

"I felt something different when I saw you yesterday."

Hearing that, a wave of irritation washed over Denise. She could already feel the familiar bitterness rising within her.
"Different?" she whispered, her voice trembling slightly. “What do you mean by that? Is it because you feel sorry for me?”
Andrey’s smile faltered, and he opened his mouth to respond, but Denise cut him off.
“I don’t need your pity,” she snapped. “I’m not some charity case you can feel good about helping. I’m not looking for sympathy, Andrey.”

His eyes widened in surprise, the warmth she had felt from him just the day before now replaced by a look of confusion. “That’s not what I meant at all,” he said in a genuine tone. “I just—”

“No!” she interrupted, her emotions spilling over as tears formed in her eyes. “You don’t get it! I don’t want you here out of some misplaced sense of obligation. I’m tired of people looking at me with pity, like I’m some sad story they can’t wait to walk away from.”

Andrey opened his mouth again, but Denise couldn’t bear to hear him try to defend himself. “Just go,” she said, her voice breaking. “Please, just leave me alone.”

The hurt in his eyes cut deeper than she expected, and for a moment, Denise felt a sense of regret. But it was quickly overpowered by the anger and sadness that stirred inside her.

“Denise—” he started, but she pointed towards the door, her face painted with a mix of frustration and humiliation.
“Just go!” she shouted, her voice echoing in the small room.

Andrey stood up, his shoulders slumping slightly as he took a step back. “I’m sorry if I upset you. That wasn’t my intention,” he said quietly with a  voice filled with disappointment.

Denise turned away, unable to meet his gaze. She could hear the soft rustle of his movement as he walked to the door.
“Take care, Denise,” he said softly before closing the door behind him.

As silence filled the room, Denise sank back onto her bed. She had pushed him away, just like she had done with so many others. But deep down, she recognized that it wasn’t really him she was angry with—it was the situation, the unbearable weight of her illness, and the fear in her heart.

With a shaky breath, she buried her face in her hands, letting the tears flow freely.

Why did I react that way? Why couldn’t I just let someone in, even for a moment?

But the thought of being seen, of being vulnerable, felt too dangerous. And as much as she tried to convince herself that she didn’t need anyone, a small part of her—a part she desperately longed for connection, for understanding and for companionship.
But for now, all she could do was cry, feeling more alone than ever.

After that, Andrey never came back, and Denise was convinced that she fully pushed him away. Though, it was rude and cruel of her to do that to him, she knew it was better than to let him in and regret it in the end. After all, she was already crawling to death. It was pointless to build anything in this world.

She walked outside the hospital and sat on the bench in the garden. She gazed at the view there, and it still mesmerized her how there was so much positive energy while she was emitting negative ones.

"Oh, you're actually here after all," a familiar gentle voice spoke from behind, shocking her.

She turned back to look at the owner, and his smiling face greeted her. Confusion filled her mind, and she wasn't able to respond to him.

"Can I sit with you?" Andrey asked softly. She nodded, but she struggled to put her words together.

"Why..why are you here?" she managed to make out in a quiet voice.

Andrey sat down on the bench beside Denise, his presence both comforting and confusing. The tension from their last encounter lingered in the air, and Denise felt her heart racing, unsure of what to do in this situation.

“I wanted to see how you were doing,” he said gently. “I know things got a bit intense yesterday.”

Denise felt guilty. “I’m sorry for how I acted. I didn’t mean to push you away. I just don’t want anyone feeling sorry for me.”
Andrey looked at her earnestly. “I’m not here out of pity. I care about you. I thought we could talk and get to know each other better.”

His words hit something inside her. “But why? I’m just a patient here—sick and broken. You have no reason to spend time on me.”

“Because I see more than just a patient,” he replied. “You’re strong, and I can see that deep inside, you want to be happy. I felt that connection with you the other day."
Denise was scared of the idea of connection. “What if letting you in will make everything worse?

“Then we deal with it together,” he said simply. “You don’t have to go through this alone.”

She hesitated. This is new to her, and she doesn't know if she will be able to handle it. “I don’t know if I can do that. I’m scared of what it means to let someone in.”

“It’s okay to be scared,” he reassured her. “Sometimes, taking that risk can lead to something beautiful.”

Denise looked into his warm eyes and felt a flicker of hope reside in her. Maybe, just maybe she could allow herself to connect with someone again.

“Okay,” she finally said, her voice shaking. “I’ll try.”