"Be careful!" Gu Xijue pulled Xi Haitang, who was standing aside, into his arms, protected her with his body, and then hugged her and hid in a relatively safe corner.
Suddenly, all the lights in the room went out, and the house shook several times, but I was glad that no greater disaster occurred.
Gu Xijue secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but felt that the person in his arms was shaking.
"Begonia?!" He looked down at the woman who was clutching his shirt tightly, her face was pale and she was crying.
"Don't let me go! I'm... so scared... so scary... so scary..." She was like a drowning person, and he was her only driftwood.
Gu Xijue was slightly stunned. Is this really the woman who yelled at her just now and even kicked his ankle?
He stretched out his hand stiffly, caressed her trembling back, and comforted her, "It's okay."
The unexpected disaster slowly calmed down his previous anger, and this unfamiliar, weak, helpless, and lovable woman in his arms touched something deep in his heart, and his voice softened unconsciously, "I'm here."
,It's fine."
He hugged her, his broad and steady embrace silently providing her with stability and warmth.
After a long time, her trembling slowly subsided, and her hand still did not let go of him, but she no longer held it so tightly, and her teeth were still chattering slightly, "I'm afraid... I was separated from my family because of the earthquake when I was five years old...
...I cried loudly in the ruins, calling for daddy...but...I couldn't find him..." She shuddered and could no longer speak.
He tightened his arms, wanting to comfort the little girl who was crying helplessly in the ruins, but he could do nothing but hug this little woman who looked strong on the outside but had a huge dark shadow inside.
"Don't be afraid, I will protect you...don't be afraid..." He comforted her over and over again until her sobbing gradually stopped.
In the darkness, they hugged each other quietly.
◎◎◎
The chaos gradually calmed down, ambulance crews kept shuttling back and forth, power was restored, and the nightmare disappeared.
Xi Haitang suddenly woke up and immediately broke away from Gu Xijue's embrace.
"It's okay." He let go, losing her body heat, but felt lost.
She wiped away her tears and straightened her back, trying to find what little dignity she had left in front of him.
Real-time news came from the building's radio, "At 9:45, an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale occurred in City S, 280 kilometers away from City T. The earthquake was strongly felt in our city. The number of injured has not yet been counted, but many buildings were damaged.
, the most severely damaged is Yingrui Primary School located on Shanglin Road, Xicheng District, our city..."
Hearing the sound, Gu Xijue's heart trembled, Yun Hen...
At the same time, Xi Haitang's eyes were filled with fear, Xiaochen...