"Don't leave... don't leave me..."
"I'm not leaving, I'm just helping you take off your clothes."
"Don't go..."
The man always held her tightly in his arms, murmuring these three words repeatedly.
Propping up on her arms, Vera spoke gently as if soothing a child.
"I promise I won't leave. Let me wipe your face, take off your clothes, so you can sleep more comfortably, okay?"
He just held her tighter.
"I won't let you go! Never...ever..."
She stopped struggling, simply reaching over to pull the quilt piled aside, covering both of them, and gently soothing his back with her palm.
"Alright, I won't leave, won't leave... always stay with you... you be a good boy and sleep..."
The man's breathing gradually steadied and softened, and she stopped moving, gazing at his face.
His face was slightly flushed from alcohol, his pretty brows furrowed into small knots.
Vera raised her hand and gently smoothed out the furrows in his brow.
