The Girl Hunter – part 2

The Girl Hunter
a short fiction by Khmerbird

Part 2

I finished the last article related to Nuon Chea’s arrest before I went to see Collie at Calmet hospital. It was raining all day long … It was properly the influence from the Typhoon Wipha that recently hit the eastern China. I put the raincoat and left the office. It wasn’t too much amazing to ride a bicycle under the rain. I was lucky enough that it was not a heavy rain that allowed me to stop at the flower’s shop and bought some roses.

Collie was sleeping under the white blanket … there were few women in the room. One of them gave me a sit.

- I bring some flowers… (I said to the old woman. I guess she would be the mother of Collie. I used to see some pictures on her blog.)

I gave the flowers to Collie’s mother. She brought and put them on the table next to the bed. I just sat there and look at Collie.

- Don’t worry Son! It’s not a very serious injury. It’s just a small wound at the right of her stomach. She would be fine in a couple of day. Don’t worry!
- Oh really?

I felt release after her mother told me about her situation. If anything happened to her, I was the one to be blamed. I was the one who insisted her to go for a walk on that day. It was the only way, anyway, between me and her to be together: being in the public place and always accompanied by her friend or her nephew or her niece. She never let herself being alone with me. She never accepted my date. If I was about to bring her to the cinema or concert, I need to buy more than two tickets and she never sit close to me, not even at the same range as mine. Most of the time she sat one range behind me.

- You study at IFL too son? (Collie’s mother asked me since she doesn’t want to keep her special visitor in silence. Sometime it’s a way to be polite to the guest.)
- No… I … am… I am not the student anymore.
- Do you work? What kind of work you do son?
- I am a reporter.
- Oh…

Collie was wake up… maybe due to our conversation.

- Hi,
- Hi, (she smiled at me)
- I was looking for you. I don’t know where you both disappeared.
- I run, I run and hided in a house. I didn’t know I was shot. Sophie saw the blood coming and she shouted. The owner of the house kept us, until the ambulance arrived.
- I see, so how you feel right now?
- I am good. I got time to sleep all day…
- Well I guess you had a good sleep.
- Don’t be like that! it’s not your fault. Don’t blame yourself! Ok?
- I’m fine. I’m good. I am glad that you are fine…Well I will come back later,

I said goodbye to her mother and everybody.

- Thank for the flowers

Collie said to me before I left. I just smiled at her and left the room.

To be continued.