II

Floating on the surface water of the ocean are the big and little pieces of the Opeña Blanc cruise.

A man is seen, barely fit on top of a floating wooden plank, moving with the waves and griping the plank with his dear life.

Fighting with his negative feedback. Aziel was pale with his slightly flushed cheeks, little beads of water dropping from his wet sticky hair and face. Shivering violently, his teeth clenching, feeling painfully cold as if he was burning up.

From afar, you can see the horizon.

The sky was red mixed with the hue of orange and yellow. The sun was rising, giving light to the shallow water of the ocean, and everything that its light stretches to.

Its heat reached Aziel. He can feel its warm touch. A proof that He was alive. Living and breathing.

He survived.

Trying to open his eyes, that was getting heavier by the minutes, his vision getting blurrier.

Aziel reached up to the sky with his freezing hands trying to feel more heat, more warmth, that the sun usually gave so much heat, but to no avail, there was only coldness. He felt his body and his breathing getting hotter, he felt so exhausted, yet, he needed to get out of here.

"I-I can't die yet"

He found it in himself to whisper. To remind himself that he mustn't die.

"Gods above...if you really exist"

He only ever had faith in himself. Recalling everything that he went through, somehow tears began falling from his eyes.

"Save me... I- I don't want to die"

Begging in a weak sorrowful voice, yet it was genuine. He wanted to live.

His muscles started giving up, from all the injuries he sustained from the hours he endured, to stay floating and with force he attempted to get to the position he was.

His hand that tried to reach for the sun slowly gave up, his grip on the wooden plank started to loosen. his body weak, he closed his eyes, slowly losing consciousness.

.

.

.

The waters felt different, it was moving, unnaturally.

Being alerted of the change, his senses were alerted. His fight or flight was activated. His ear, clearer than before, were picking up a distant sound.

Forcing his eyes to open. His adrenaline overtook him and he was able to get up and dive underneath the waters, hidden by the scattered materials of the ocean, away from the eyes of possible people.

He needed to, but he was aware that even with all the adrenaline in his system, it was still going to wear off soon enough.

Swimming towards land was impossible.

He needed a miracle.

'Maybe this really is the end of my life.' As desperate as he was, he knew it was pathetic. He was pathetic. Daniel Spellman was right. He was pitiful.

If he gets blessed by the heavens, then those people would have an angelic heart, full of understanding of his sob story, and forgive him and allow him to rest in jail. Which was impossible.

But he knew his father's side of the family cared more about their reputation and standing more than an illegitimate child.

It would be just better for them if he died on the spot. That way they could just find a way to cut their ties with him and escape the public's convictions and go on with their lives as they had always. Nobody that is morally good wants to be related to a just turned terrorist.

To him 'It was just better to die right now', pessimistic, pitiful thinking overtook him, not because he was regretful of what he did, he loathed this world, especially powerful, corrupt people who believed they controlled everything.

He detested every single one of them. He despised them so much he couldn't even feel bad or guilt or regret.

Hearing the sound from the distance getting louder.

'A rescue ship?' the possibility came across him.

Later on, he realized that the rescue boat, or whatever it may possibly be, was just a little distance away from the spot he was on. 'Are they gonna save him?' he pondered. 'don't they know I'm the culprit. That I'm the reason why the ship even blew up at the first place' It was ironic if they saved him.

'In the end, at best I'll end up in prison maximum sentence, or A sudden death would be merciful.'

He was losing oxygen in his lungs. His body was starting to give up. Slowly he lost consciousness.

Aimlessly floating on the middle of nowhere, letting the water lead him to his fate.

"Miss, look! a passenger from the ship," A man who was wearing a rescue suit said to the Gorgeous Woman who was standing on the different side of the ship's railing, across him.

Removing her costume designer sunglasses, her stunning face was revealed. Being a normal man, the rescuer was, he was stunned, especially when he looked at her alluring, soft, gentle grey eyes. She was intimidating and untouchable.

She went to the rescue man's side and looked down to the spot where he had just spotted Aziels Azil's bobbing body on the top of the water. Surrounded by debris that could injure him.

After looking for a while and analyzing the situation on the waters below the ship, she tapped her nails on the railing.

"Hmm, So this is Him."

She turned to the rescuer.

"Call your men and get him here... Do it carefully. It looks like he has tons of injuries and wounds." she said somehow looking distressed seeing the state of the Man below them.

The captain of the rescue ship grew confused. Curious if the two personally knew each other. He found it odd that they were tasked by their main boss to accompany this strange spontaneous little lady into the middle of nowhere in the Pacific Ocean.

They were speechless. She wore her glasses, but they all knew the moment she stepped into this ship that this lady in full white jump suit, was gorgeous.

This wasn't even the place where they usually rescue. In his decades of being a Captain of a rescue ship, he has never been assigned to a task that is similar to this. So he was confused about how they were informed by their main boss to use every resource they got just to make her 'happy'. Even her entrance hours ago was an experience. She rode a military helicopter to their site.

She was definitely someone important. A VVIP.

Merely hours ago, like how they signed a confidential contract with their superiors and were tasked to get here first and way earlier than any other rescue ship. With all the companies' resources at their disposal.

She seemed spoilt to the rotten along with her indifferent attitude to the other rescue crew members.

Yet he knew and sensed that he must never offend this mysterious lady.

Signalizing his men right away, as the lady told him to. Giving the instructions for what to do, they quickly rushed to rescue the man, applying their training in handling this type of rescue situation.

Carrying him up the ship with a rescue bed, they began laying him gently on the floor.

The girl quickly rushed to his side. Her 3-inch heels. clicking loudly on the floor because of how she swiftly got there, bending down, she listened to Aziels unsteady breathing and feeling his weak pulse in her hands.

Looking even more worried at the feeling he was getting weaker as seconds passed, she looked at the rescue men and asked.

"Do you gentlemen have any comfortable bed in this ship?" Looking at them blinking her eyes questioningly.

'What does this girl think this boat is a luxury ship?' most of the men thought.

"I assume you have, since I asked Mr. Zenghuang to give me the biggest rescue ship he possessed. Which, I inferred you would have medical beds"

She said confidently. Looking at them with fearless eyes, in her unshakable posture. She personally knew Mr. Zenghuang, which itself say a lot of her possible influence.

They were all men here and she was the only woman, in the middle of nowhere. Isn't she scared of what they might do to her if she agitated at the slightest?

'Doesn't she know that no matter what, when it comes to death, money or status does not exclude anyone?' such thoughts ran through their mind.

It's not that she was not scared of death. She confidently knew that these men wouldn't risk it, losing their jobs and livelihood just to get rid of something that stepped slightly on their ego.

Before any of them could speak, the captain of the ship broke out into a laugh and said "Hahaha! Yes, of course, Miss, we have tons of medical beds to use. It might not be as comfortable as you say, but it will suffice."

He wanted to lighten up the atmosphere. The lady seemed very serious. He didn't want to offend her.

The men then lifted him and took him inside the room and lightly transferred him into one of the medical beds.

The lady followed them inside, and walked beside the bed Aziel was assigned too. Staring at Aziel's pale face. The man looked handsome, even with a few scratches on his face. His dark raven hair was messy and wet, his jaw was also perfectly defined. He fitted her type's description if asked.

Although he looked older than she knew he was.

She reached her hand to his wrist gently, careful not to alert him even in his state.

He was capable of a lot of things. Opeña Blancs remains is a strong proof of that.

"His pulse is getting weaker, we need to go now and fast. Dr.Ricafort will be meeting us halfway" She demanded the men who was staring at her and Aziel.

She came here to get him out, Alive. It would be a waste if he died right here and now.

The men confusingly exchanged looks with each other. The captain was shocked too. They are big rescue ship they expected to look around for more for victims to rescue. He never thought they came here just, spend time and resources for this Man.

'Maybe He was her lover...'

It was the only possibility that made sense to them, even if how she acted didn't fully scream like she loved him or hysterically cry when she saw him. People act differently in love. But generally they are willing to go through lengths of challenges for the one they love.

Although there were many questions they wanted to ask, they chose not to. It wasn't their place. They only needed to do their jobs.

They completely ignored the fact that the doctor they always had was not here. Another doctor she referred to was someone they have never heard of before in their careers.

Seeing that they were still standing there, she coughed softly, getting their full attention.

The captain also coughed and looked at his crew members, signalizing for them all to go out at once and give these two the privacy they might need.

Going out, they went onto a cruise ship's vessel. Leaving Aziel and the grey-eyed woman alone in the room.

Touching Aziels forehead, the grey-eyed girl felt him so much hotter than she was. He was burning up, fighting death.

In the blink of an eye, she felt a strong grip on her wrist.

Feeling a cold hand on his head, he naturally reacted and held the wrist of who touched him, trying to force his eyes open to see the intruder.

Seeing him opening his eyes, she forced out a gentle smile, in an attempt to comfort him. Make him less anxious and guarded.

A smile that meant to tell him that she got him.

That he was not alone. He should trust her.

Aziel is a cautious man with forest-like, stone strength like a wall that guard his heart. Growing up in a life where you can die anytime and be killed by anyone. He learned not to trust anyone. Because of that, he trained himself to be a light sleeper, sensitive to every sound and every foreign presence and every foreign touch. Like muscle memory.

With his vision still fuzzy, he saw a blurry black-haired woman in full white who seemed to be smiling at him

'An angel. was he dead? ill to the point of hallucination?'

"Hello there."

No, she was a miracle.

His Miracle.

His sole Rose.

It took so much strength to utter a single word, but he did.

"R-Rose?"