"Anne, are you alright?" Sam stepped forward and tried to grab her arm, but she avoided him.
"Mom, you should leave. Otherwise, don't even dream about seeing Charles again!" Kevin coldly
declared.
This was the first time that he had threatened his own mother for Anne's sake. Naturally, Selma was
furious, but she knew that there was nobody who could ever disobey her son's commands.
"Fine, I'll leave. If something happens to that child, I'll make sure you'll pay for it with your life, Anne!"
Selma picked up her bag and stormed out.
The room was quiet again, and Anne didn't say a word. She stood there, like an outcast that nobody
could understand; but she didn't need to be understood by anyone.
"Stop with this nonsense! Just tell me the worst that is going to happen to my child!" In her heart, she
had prepared to hear the worst.
Sam heaved a sigh. He never intended to tell her about this.
"The child's condition is unstable right now. If we don't find a suitable bone marrow soon, I'm afraid that
he won't even live to be seven years old," he said in a foreboding tone.
He figured that telling her about the situation would cause her to break down, but Anne handled it well.
"Kevin, would you please step outside with me?" Her voice was cold and unrelenting. There was not
even a tinge of warmth in her tone.
"Anne—" Sam shouted, he was worried that Anne would do something stupid.
"Stop! You don't need to come with us. This is between Kevin and I." She shifted her gaze away from
Sam, still carrying the same coldness in her voice.
Her words pierced his heart. He felt like his heart was frozen, but he had no choice but to accept the
truth.
Perhaps he and Anne were just a doctor and a patient, nothing more. Or she was Kevin's wife, and he
was her cousin.
As for the matter between them, it would be wise to let them handle it by themselves. If he meddled in,
it would only make things worse.
In front of the entrance to the hospital, rows of trees and lush greeneries gave comfort to the bleak
autumn.
The area's terrain was high. Anne looked down, feeling desperate.
She wore a white shirt and a high-waisted dress that complemented her slender waist. Looking at her
think figure made Kevin feel distressed.
"Anne, why did you ask me to step outside with you? If this is about our child, I'm sorry."
He sincerely admitted his mistake, but in Anne's heart, things would never be the same again.
She smiled, her face delicate like a solitude flower blooming on a branch. Every time she smiled, it felt
like a spring in the mountains; it was the peak of beauty. But whenever she wasn't smiling, it felt like a
cruel winter.
"You don't have to apologize, Kevin." Her words made him feel a sense of hope, but that hope was
short-lived.
"Because I will never forgive you."
Her sharp tongue pierced his heart. He felt as if a knife was lunged into his chest, and he was suffering
the consequences of his actions.
"Anne, I promise you that no matter what happens, I will do everything in my power to cure the child."
His voice lowered, as if he was humbled and pleading.
"Then let's have another child. We can be like how we used to be. I'm willing to have another child with
you, not because I love you, but I need this child to treat Charles."
Her words were the epitome of irony, and it reminded Kevin of what he had said to her before. He had
no love for her; he just wanted children.
Now, her every word felt like a challenge to his pride as a man, but he couldn't refuse because he loved
her, and he owed her so much for all the pain that he caused her.
"I see. It's a good plan," Kevin agreed without hesitation.
He stepped forward and gestured to embrace her, but she pushed him away.
She handed the things in her hand to him. "I'm giving this all back to you. I don't want anything else to
do with you except our children."
It was a bunch of keys that Kevin gave her. These were keys to the villa, and the keys to her car.
He held the keys firmly in his hands, and couldn't utter a word. Yes, she didn't need any of it, because
what she needed the most was his understanding. When she needed him, he hurt her, trampled on her
dignity, and blatantly allowed Cherry to show her animosity, and displayed his love for Cherry in front of
her.
His heart felt so heavy, but there was no reason to blame Anne. He had no right to blame her for
anything.
The cold air seemed unable to sway Anne's heart at all. She was already strong enough to bear
anything because her heart was already a winter wasteland.
Anne had left, but Kevin was still standing in the long corridor, surrounded by trees, lonely and pitiful.
Time passed by slowly.
The ward was warm. There was a luxurious chandelier, a TV, flowers, plants, and even a separate
kitchenette.
This hospital's facilities were so much better than an ordinary hospital's. In order for Anne to live
comfortably, all the best equipment were placed in Charles's room.
Kevin always visited the hospital, but he rarely entered the room.
"Charles, do you like it?" Anne gave Charles a shirt with a four-leaf clover printed on it. He smiled
brightly as he stretched out his hand to let her embrace him.
Her face softened as she hugged her child. Kevin had been watching her from outside, with a loving
expression painted on his face, but he didn't have the heart to enter the room.
"Mr. Kevin." A timid voice came from Emily.
Her fear of Kevin had grown deeper ever since he reassigned her to M Country.
But she mustered all the courage she had just to see Anne.
"Excuse me, Mr. Kevin, but you are in my way." After Emily finished speaking, she squeezed between
Kevin and the door.
"Anne." The familiar voice caught Anne off guard.
"Emily?" She was surprised to see Emily with tearful eyes before her.
"Anne!" Emily immediately enclosed Anne in her arms. She knew that her friend must've suffered so
much during her absence.
"Why are you here? Kevin allowed you to be here, right?" Anne said softly. Her eyes looked warm and
gentle.
Over the past twenty years, those who loved her had left her, and all she had gotten in exchange from
those she loved was pain.
But she never felt that she owed anyone, except for Emily. Only Emily stayed with her since the
beginning. She was even sent abroad for her sake.
"Anne, I'm fine! I came to see the baby. I haven't seen him, but I have a gift for him. No matter what
anyone says, I don't care! I will be the child's godmother." In order to make Anne happy, Emily changed
the subject.
The gifts she brought Charles were furry stuffed animals in the image of the twelve zodiac signs,
drawings for children to distinguish colors, and various toys suitable for children.
"Thank you." Anne's mood became a lot better. Looking at the toys, she thought that it would take so
much time and effort for people who had not taken care of a child, like Emily, to buy these things.
"I'm glad I didn't get the gifts wrong! I knew that Charles would love them," she said, placing a hand on
Charles's head. "Hi, Charles, I'm your godmother. Remember, whoever tries to bully your mother, just
tell me and I will beat the living daylights out of them!" Emily raised a fist in front of Charles like she
was a strong fighter.
Charles stared at her fist and emulated her gesture. He acted like he was trying to protect his mother.
Emily smiled and said, "God, Anne, Charles is a gifted child! He understood what I was trying to say."
With that said, Emily kissed Charles's forehead lightly. He also tried to kiss her forehead, but her head
was a bit high for him to reach. She lowered her head to let Charles kiss her forehead. He smiled from
ear to ear after he kissed her.
Kevin saw everything from outside, and he noticed that Anne's mood had improved. The corners of his
lips curled into a smile as he walked away from the door.
After a while, Emily remembered that Kevin was standing outside, but he had already left.
"Emily, did you suffer a lot when you were out there?" Anne asked seriously; she almost sounded like
an older sister.
But Emily had an optimistic and cheerful personality. She only mentioned the good things and never
the bad ones.
"Well, I'm highly skilled and I can solve any problem that comes my way without breaking a sweat. It's
just that I heard about what happened between you and Cherry. She is so bad and I think it's not
enough for her to end in jail. Even jail is too good for that bitch!" Emily snorted coldly as she talked
about Cherry.
Her hateful comment made Anne smile.
At this time, Sam entered and saw what was happening inside. He also noticed the smile on Anne's
face, and it made him smile too.
"Emily, you just got back yet you already made Anne laugh. You have done a good job!" Sam praised.
"That's just how capable I am!" Emily felt uneasy. She became inexplicably nervous when she heard
his voice.
"Sam, after you give Charles the medicine, you can go out with Emily. She has been away for a long
time. She must feel a little estranged after coming back." Anne knew that Emily liked Sam, and she
also knew that he was mildly interested in Emily. She thought that Emily was a lovely girl, and that
whoever would marry her would be a very lucky man.
"Sounds good." Sam didn't know what Anne was thinking, but he readily agreed.
"Anne, I don't want to go out, I'd rather stay here with you and Charles," said Emily. Even though she
was really looking forward to hanging out with Sam, she didn't want to leave Anne by herself.
"I'm fine! You can go out and help me take care of Charles after you come back, so I can rest for a few
days." Anne smiled at her.
"Okay then," said Emily.
In the downtown area of A City.
In a quiet western restaurant, a soothing music was playing.
There was a double-layered glass encasing flowers and plants. It had holes that would allow air to
enter inside for the plants to breathe. The refreshing atmosphere heightened the beauty of the
restaurant's ambiance.
Staring at Sam's face, Emily felt uneasy again, and her face turned beet red.
"Sam, is it really that difficult to cure Anne's child?" She didn't dare to ask Anne this question, so she
had to ask Sam.
"It will be challenge, but I will do everything I can. I know you have suffered a lot in M Country." Sam
frowned as he looked at her.
"How do you know what happened to me there?" asked Emily.
Nobody knew this, but Sam helped take care of Emily in secret. He was afraid that Anne would find out
that Emily was not living well abroad, and he felt uncomfortable with that thought.
"Don't forget, I am more than a doctor." He winked at her and raised his eyebrow.
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