Chris got up from his chair and walked to the door. He had already said everything he needed to say, so he would not interfere with Jean's alone time any longer. When his hand touched the door, Chris suddenly remembered something.
"Hey." Chris turned to his friend, "Tomorrow is Sasha's birthday party. Did you forget?"
Jean's hand stopped from tapping on his cellphone for a moment. Then, the man answered in a flat tone, "Really? I'm going to have Kenny send her a gift."
Jean's voice sounded cold as ice. That man still remembered what Sasha said to Lilia on the day they got married. He also remembered that Lilia couldn't sleep thinking about those words— even though that wasn't the only thing that kept her from sleeping. Jean didn't want to make Lilia even more anxious by attending another woman's birthday party.
Chris raised his eyebrows in surprise, "You're not coming to the party?"
Jean and his friends had unwritten rules. They would always be present at each other's birthday parties. It had been their habit since childhood. Until now, they had always followed these unwritten rules. But it looked like Jean intended to break the rules this time.
Jean glared back at Chris. His expression showed that the man didn't want to repeat his words again. Only then did Chris understand what Jean meant. The man laughed out loud.
"Oh right, Lilia is hurting right now. You intend to accompany her until she recovers, right?" Chris said in a sarcastic tone.
Without waiting for Jean's reply, Chris slid the door open and left the room. He had heard the phrase 'love can change a person', but in Jean's case, it was too extreme!
Chris frowned as he smelled the typical hospital disinfectant smell. He walked towards the toilet where Merry was still hiding. One hand slipped in the pocket of his coat and touched the apple. Chris's mood improved a little when he imagined the woman's happy face.
*****
Not long after Chris left, Lilia came out of the bathroom. She looked around and was relieved to see that Chris wasn't there. Then her gaze fell on the figure of Jean who was in the middle of a call.
The man was sitting on the long sofa under the window. Jean leaned back and crossed his legs in a lazy manner. His left elbow rested on the arm of the sofa while talking on his phone. Jean's gaze was fixed on Lilia's figure as usual. Every time that man saw Lilia, he acted as if he had no one else in sight.
The window behind Jean revealed an evening sky that was getting cloudier and darker by the minute. The rain soaking the window panes made this hospital room feel even gloomy.
Lilia turned around and headed towards the light switch when she heard Jean's words.
"Buy me something and send it to the Hiroshi Family for me tomorrow. Anything is fine."
The woman quietly listened to her husband.
"You choose. I don't care." After saying that, Jean hung up the phone.
Lilia turned on the light in the room, then turned to her husband. The man was observing Lilia's appearance closely. She smiled and walked over to the sofa where Jean was sitting.
Just as Lilia was about to sit next to Jean, she heard the man's words, "Finally you came out of your hiding place." Jean teased her.
Lilia frowned and started moving towards the other sofa. But Jean immediately caught her waist, preventing Lilia from moving. The woman chuckled and sat beside Jean without fighting back.
"What do you mean? I just washed my face in there. I didn't take that long." Lilia replied.
"Hmm…" Jean muttered.
His gaze brushed Lilia's face, which was now clean without makeup. He raised his hand and touched her cheek. The woman's skin felt as smooth as a baby's, which showed how much effort Lilia put in to maintain her appearance. Lilia's face looked fresh and radiant.
"What do you use to clean your face?" Jean asked.
"Eh?" Lilia was surprised because Jean asked that. The man seemed indifferent to trivial matters, "Ah, Dylan gave me the facial cleanser. It's not the brand I usually use, but I have no other choice." Lilia explained.
She was suddenly sent to the hospital so she didn't have time to prepare anything. Lilia intended to ask Merry to bring her things tomorrow. Or, Lilia could also ask her doctor to let her go home as soon as possible. The wound wasn't that bad.
Meanwhile, Jean frowned at her answer. Hearing Dylan's name made his expression turn irritated. But Jean immediately hid that expression before Lilia could notice. The man tried to distract himself by paying attention to Lilia's left hand. Then he realized that the bandages looked wet.
"Did your left hand touch the water?" Jean asked while holding Lilia's injured hand.
Lilia looked away with a guilty expression, "I-I've been trying to keep my hands out of the water, like you said earlier." She explained.
"Then?" Jean raised an eyebrow.
Lilia lowered her head, "Washing my face with one hand… turned out to be more difficult than I thought. I lost my temper and…" The woman muttered in a small voice.
Then she immediately looked back u,. "But the bandage was only exposed to water for a short time, really! It's only a small wound after all, so it's fine!" Lilia hurriedly defended herself.
Jean sighed and let go of Lilia's hand. Then he stood up to get the medicine box that was stored in the room cupboard before coming back to Lilia.
"Whether it's a big or small wound, you still have to be careful." Jean said in a gentle tone, "If you don't comply, you can get an infection."
Lilia looked at Jean's figure walking closer. She nodded obediently upon seeing the man's sharp gaze. Even though Lilia had promised not to worry him, it seemed like she couldn't keep that promise.
Jean sat back next to Lilia and put the medicine box on the table, "Give me your hand." He ordered.
"Jean, I can get the nurse to do this." Lilia suggested. She wasn't sure that this young master from a conglomerate family could change her bandages.
Jean raised an eyebrow, "Don't you believe me? I can at least perform first aid in an accident. Now, where's your hand?" He insisted.
Lilia laughed shyly and stretched out her hand without any more complaints. Jean started removing Lilia's bandages with practiced movements. But his forehead immediately frowned when he saw the wound on the woman's palm.
"Small cut, you say?" Jean asked in a sarcastic tone.
The cut was wide enough to need to be covered with skin glue. Normal people would definitely call this a serious wound, but Lilia always emphasized that this was just a minor wound.
"Yes, true." Lilia nodded.
Jean could see that the woman wasn't saying it to make him feel calmer, but because Lilia really believed it. Jean wanted to know what would have allowed his wife to be so relaxed despite getting her hand injured this badly.
The man sighed and began to disinfect the area around the wound with a disinfectant before putting the bandage back on. His move was careful and gentle, as if he was caring for a fragile baby bird.
"Done." Jean turned Lilia's hand and kissed the back of her hand, "Listen carefully, don't let your wound get wet until it's completely covered."
"Alright." Lilia nodded.
She looked up and met Jean's eyes. The worry and concern that was reflected in his eyes made Lilia automatically hug the man tightly. Lilia's behavior made Jean chuckle. For a moment, the two of them didn't say a word. Lilia enjoyed the comfortable feeling when Jean's hand stroked her hair. She took a deep breath and smelled the man's distinctive scent of spring. At this time, Lilia was grateful that she had someone who cared about her like Jean.
*****
At around six in the evening, Sister Mei came to bring dinner. When that middle-aged woman came, she went straight to Lilia. Her round face was filled with worry.
"Mrs. Lilia, are you okay? I was so shocked when I saw the news on TV!" Sister Mei asked while observing Lilia closely.
Lilia smiled and nodded, "I'm fine, Sister Mei. Thank you for worrying about me. Ah, did you bring us dinner?" She asked when she saw the food boxes the woman brought.
"That's right, I cooked lots of healthy dishes so that you can recover quickly!" Sister Mei replied while setting the table.
As Lilia helped the woman with one hand, Jean got up from the sofa and headed for the door.
"Jean? Where are you going?" Lilia asked.
"I have some important business to do. Eat first." Jean replied briefly before leaving the room.
Lilia let out a sigh and returned to helping Sister Mei. In a moment, a healthy, appetizing dish filled the table. There was chicken soup, fine porridge, and vegetable salad. Then Lilia invited Sister Mei to sit with her and told her about the incident of Rina's attack.
The model studied Sister Mei's expression while telling the story. Anxiety and concern were clearly visible on the middle-aged woman's face. Seeing her made Lilia think of her own mother. Sylvia and Sister Mei were actually the same age, but different environments created different appearances.
Sylvia's appearance seemed much younger than her age thanks to the wealth of the Pangestu Family. This woman really cared about beauty and was diligent in maintaining her appearance so that she always looked youthful. On the other hand, Sister Mei's face was already showing wrinkled lines. She looked like a very kind woman and had a lot of life experience.
Lilia wondered if the mother figure in a normal family was like Sister Mei. The woman worried about her condition and cooked a healthy dinner for her. Although Lilia hadn't known Sister Mei for too long, the woman's kindness and caring moved her.
Meanwhile, Lilia's birth mother didn't care about her at all. Let alone visiting, Sylvia didn't even call or text her. Maybe her mother didn't hear the news about the incident, but Lilia had a feeling that Sylvia would still behave the same way even if she knew.
Lilia shook her head to get rid of that thought. She started eating while praising Sister Mei's cooking, which made the middle-aged woman cheer up again. Lilia felt a little lonely when she ate alone without Jean, but she knew that man had more important things than her.
Twenty minutes later, Lilia finished her dinner. She had just put down her chopsticks when the bedroom door slid open, revealing Jean's figure.
"Jean!"
Lilia looked at the man and was about to greet him, but her gaze was fixed on the two shopping bags in Jean's hand. Both shopping bags were black and there was a skincare brand logo that Lilia usually wore on it.
Lilia immediately stood up and approached her husband, "Jean, tell me, what important business did you take care of? Hmm?" She asked while putting her hands on her hips.
The man claimed he had 'some important business' and came back with shopping bags of a familiar brand.. Lilia could easily guess what kind of business Jean was referring to.
This chapter is updated by freew(e)bnovel.(c)om