When Evelyn Ford woke up again, she found Ronan Kendrick sitting by her bed, holding her hand tightly.
"You’re awake?"
Evelyn ached all over, especially her throat. It felt as if a thousand needles were lodged inside, and it hurt too much to speak.
Ronan poured her a glass of water and felt her forehead.
"You’ve been unconscious for a day. Are you feeling any discomfort?"
Evelyn nodded. The slightest movement made her feel like her bones were creaking. A flicker of panic crossed her eyes. ’Was I crippled by that lightning strike?’
Ronan could see her fear and quickly reassured her. "Don’t be scared. You’re not injured. I’ve already checked—your bones are fine, too."
Ronan recounted everything that had happened after she passed out, leaving no detail behind. "Everyone was terrified when you collapsed. Fortunately, your pulse, heartbeat, and breathing were all normal. I was worried more lightning would strike, so I told Quincy to drive away immediately. Then, I brought you into the dimension."
"We’re in the RV now. It’s eleven-thirty at night, and everyone else is asleep. We drove two hundred kilometers this afternoon, and now we’re parked in front of a Stone Forest."
Evelyn nodded. Ronan’s eyes were bloodshot, and her heart ached to see it. She mouthed that he shouldn’t worry, that she was fine now.
Ronan gently ruffled her hair. Evelyn suddenly remembered smelling her hair burning right before she passed out. She pointed to her hair, then mimed looking in a mirror. Ronan handed one to her. Staring at her jagged, uneven hair in the reflection, Evelyn fell silent.
’All that effort to grow my hair out, and one bolt of lightning ruined it all.’
Evelyn took a throat lozenge from the dimension and popped it in her mouth. Then, a thought struck her, and she pulled Ronan into the dimension with her.
They had to keep their voices down in the RV to avoid waking the others. Since Evelyn had questions for Ronan, her only option was to bring him into the dimension.
After taking the lozenge, Evelyn also took a highly effective pill. About ten minutes later, she could finally make a sound, though her voice was as raspy as a fifty-year chain smoker’s.
"How was the weather this afternoon?"
"The sun was out for a little bit, but then it got covered by dark clouds again. There was no thunder or rain this afternoon, but it was very windy."
Evelyn nodded. "Did anyone else get struck by lightning?"
Ronan’s gaze was full of sympathy. "No."
’So I’m the only one "blessed" by the God of Thunder? What sin did I commit? We were all standing together, but that lightning bolt came straight for my head like it had a GPS tracker.’
Evelyn was about to have a mental breakdown.
She had already checked after waking up; the dimension was unchanged. She’d hoped that getting struck by lightning might trigger some miracle, like unsealing the dimension’s fourth sector. But nothing had happened.
"Ronan, help me with my hair. Just cut off all the burnt ends."
The pill was incredibly effective. Within half an hour, the soreness in her body had eased considerably, and even her bones didn’t ache as much.
Evelyn looked at her new short haircut in the mirror and couldn’t help but sigh.
An hour flew by. By the time they left the dimension, Evelyn was mostly recovered.
She was still getting used to her suddenly short hair. Lying in bed, Evelyn tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see was the image of herself being struck by lightning, black smoke pouring from her mouth.
’How mortifying.’
Ronan gently patted her back, comforting her. "It’s alright. They wouldn’t dare laugh at you."
Evelyn gave him a reproachful look. "Did *you* laugh at me?"
Ronan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "Why would I ever laugh at you?"
"Really?" Evelyn reached out to pinch his cheek. But the moment her fingers touched Ronan’s hair, a jolt of electricity shot from her fingertips. The tingling shock made her grimace.
"What was that? Why am I electric?"
Ronan was stunned, too.
"It must be static electricity."
Evelyn cautiously raised her hand to touch him again, testing for another shock. Thankfully, she didn’t feel a current this time. However, as soon as she touched him, Ronan’s hair shot up, standing on end like the spines of a sea urchin.
Evelyn couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
"It must be a side effect of being struck by lightning."
A playful urge took over Evelyn. She ran a hand through her own hair. With a soft CRACKLE, her short hair stood on end too.
Seeing her like that, Ronan couldn’t help but smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
「The next day.」
Everyone was thrilled to learn that Evelyn was awake. But perhaps they couldn’t forget the sight of her being struck by lightning, because after the initial excitement wore off, Quincy was the first one to burst out laughing.
Then, the others started laughing too.
Evelyn looked dispirited, sitting on the sofa in silence. Seeing her expression, the others didn’t dare joke any further.
"Alright, stop laughing. What’s so funny about it?"
"Sorry, Evelyn. We weren’t making fun of you."
Evelyn waved her hand dismissively. "It’s fine. My bones just ache. And I’m full of static electricity, so don’t get too close or you might get shocked."
Seeing she wasn’t angry, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"There are bound to be aftereffects. You need to rest up for a while, so no more driving. Leave that to us."
Evelyn smiled. "I’ll be fine after resting for a couple of days. It’s not that serious."
After breakfast, Evelyn and Ronan got out of the RV to explore the Stone Forest. It was filled with bizarrely shaped rocks. Carved by the masterful hand of nature, each stone was as exquisite as a piece of art.
"These rocks are gorgeous. It must have taken thousands of years of wind and sun to shape them like this. They’re even more beautiful than man-made sculptures."
Seeing Evelyn’s eyes light up, Ronan knew exactly what she was thinking. "Why don’t we pick out a few to take back to the dimension? We can place them by the well and build a small rockery."
Evelyn nodded. "That’s exactly what I was thinking."
Evelyn reverted to her usual style: leaving nothing behind. Any rock that caught her eye was immediately stored away.
Wendy and Zoe ran over to help pick out rocks. When Evelyn accidentally brushed against Zoe, Zoe’s eyes rolled back and she twitched dramatically as her limp hair shot straight up.
"Evelyn, shock me! I want my hair to stand up too!"
Evelyn was exasperated. Meeting Wendy’s eager gaze, she placed a hand on her head. Soon, Wendy’s hair was standing on end as well.
After they finished moving the rocks and returned to the RV, Wendy and Zoe couldn’t wait to show off their new hairstyles to everyone.
"That’s so cool! You guys look like little hedgehogs! Evelyn, quick, zap me! I want to be a hedgehog too!"
’I can’t believe they all have such a weird quirk,’ Evelyn thought. Despite her reservations, she generously obliged them.
"Haha... We’re all hedgehogs now!"
"Not hedgehogs, we’re obviously sea urchins!"
"Seriously though, that jolt of electricity is a weirdly satisfying tingle... Oh man, I think I have to fart."
Everyone looked at Quincy with disgust, then silently scooted a little farther away from him.
Evelyn facepalmed in resignation. ’I’m the one who got struck by lightning,’ she thought, ’so why are they acting weirder than I am?’