This night was destined to be a sleepless night for all those in the hospital.
The blowing wind brought down the fallen leaves, covering the path to the hospital's garden. The tree branches in the garden rustled in the strong wind.
In the faint yellow light of the garden lamp, two men were seen standing. One of them had an athletic build, while the other was muscular and sturdy.
Leonard and Jean stood face to face, with a cigarette in their hands. For a few moments, the two of them just smoked in silence.
"Thank you very much," Leonard was the first to break the silence. "For helping us this time,"
Leonard looked at the cold and mature man before him. His gaze was filled with appreciation and admiration for Jean. Before this, he didn't know much about the Widjaya Family's fourth son. Leonard had only heard rumors regarding the man's arrogant and cold attitude, but he was never interested in finding out any further.
But after tonight, his opinion of Jean changed one hundred and eighty degrees. Indeed, Jean was an arrogant man with a cold upbringing. Even so, he had a kind heart behind it all. Jean had helped him a lot tonight, asking nothing in return.
Even though Jean might be doing this just for the sake of his wife, Leonard still appreciated the man's help.
Jean put the cigarette to his lips. After smoking his cigarette, Jean exhaled the white smoke and said in a cold tone, "No, I'm not helping you. I'm doing it for Lilia,"
Even though the man sounded cold, Leonard gave a small smile. He nodded with an understanding expression. "I know. But consider it a thank you from the Adler Family," Leonard said. "If there's anything I can do to repay your kindness, just tell me."
When he heard that, Jean raised his thick eyebrows. "Oh? I heard that in the Adler family, the wife of the heir had to be strictly screened. How confident are you that Mellisa can meet your family's criteria?"
Leonard was stunned by Jean's words. He didn't expect that the man before him would know about that. The information network belonging to the fourth son of the Widjaya family really couldn't be underestimated. He even knew of the Adler Family's requirements to choose a wife though they had disappeared from the public eye for a long time.
Leonard looked at the man closely. After a while, Leonard finally dropped his cigarette on the ground and stomped it off.
"I won't worry about that," Leonard replied casually. "Mellisa is an amazing woman, so she will be fine. Besides, if my family can't accept Mellisa, then they only need to change their heir,"
A chuckle escaped Jean's lips when he heard Leonard's answer. That's what Jean would do if he were in that man's position. It seemed the two of them could become close friends because of their similarity in character.
"Why are you asking that?" Leonard raised an eyebrow. "Are you worried that the Adler Family will make things difficult for Mellisa?"
After Leonard finished speaking, he saw the man shake his head gently. Then Jean turned his gaze towards the hospital building— to be precise, towards Mellisa's room.
"If Mellisa is sad, then my wife will be sad too," Jean said dryly. The man didn't notice, but the corner of his mouth lifted into a gentle smile as he talked about Lilia. "You said something about paying me back. You can do this by keeping Mellisa happy. Isn't that simple?"
Leonard stared at Jean in shock. He knew that this man was also protective of women, just like Leonard himself. But he didn't expect that Jean was more of an overprotective person than him!
The fourth son of the Widjaya Family anticipated everything and arranged so that nothing could interfere with Lilia's happiness. Leonard wondered if he too could go that far for Mellisa's sake.
The two of them exchanged a few more words before they decided to head back inside the hospital. Although they only had a brief conversation, the two men felt they could understand each other better.
When they arrived outside the ward, only Andrew was standing alone at the door. Leonard peeked into the ward through the glass door.
He saw Mellisa on the bed still closing her eyes as if she was fast asleep. Lilia and Claire stood to one side, while Mike sat on the chair beside the bed. Andrew's brother was seen linking his finger with Mellisa's while muttering to himself with red eyes.
Leonard couldn't hear what Mike was talking about from outside the door. But as a man, he could feel Mike's intense and obsessive love for Mellisa. For Mike, the woman must have been more than just a childhood friend who had long since disappeared from his life.
Andrew turned his head when he heard their footsteps. His gaze fell on his classmate and he immediately remembered the thing he had wanted to ask earlier.
"Leo, tell me the truth," Andrew stepped forward and grabbed the man's shoulders. His face was very serious, as if he was discussing something that could define a person's life. "Actually, what is it between you and Mellisa? What's your relationship?"
Leonard sighed. He got tense and thought that Andrew was going to ask something serious, but apparently his friend just wanted to talk about this.
"She is my woman," Leonard replied firmly in an indisputable tone.
"Wait a minute, what did you say?!" Andrew was shaking Leonard's shoulders. However, due to his body being smaller than Leonard's, that man was not moving at all. "You're kidding, right?! Tell me you are just kidding!"
"I'm very serious. One hundred percent serious," Leonard replied calmly.
"Screw you!" Andrew shrugged Leonard's shoulders and ran a finger through his hair in a frustrated expression. "When did it happen? Didn't you guys first meet at the police station not long ago? Then how come your relationship grows this fast?!" Demand Andrew.
He vaguely remembered that the two of them didn't even say anything back then. How long would it take for Leonard to make Mellisa officially become his wife?
"No, we met a long time before that," Leonard replied shortly.
Leonard didn't give too much explanation, but Andrew could see the seriousness in his friend's eyes. The man was not joking about his feelings for Mellisa.
Andrew didn't know what else to do so he automatically turned his head towards Jean. "Jean, have you known about this for a long time too?" He asked.
Jean looked at his brother-in-law calmly. "A few hours before you,"
Andrew automatically sighed when he heard that answer. At the very least, he wasn't the only one who didn't know about Leonard and Mellisa's relationship. However, this didn't change the fact that Andrew was in a very difficult position right now.
His best friend from college had fallen in love with the same woman who was also loved by his own younger brother. Who designed the plot of this cheap drama series?! Why did he have to be caught between those two men?!
Andrew sighed again and resisted the temptation to massage his aching head. He didn't know how else to deal with this! Was Andrew really destined to have such a dilemma that he had to choose between his friend and his own little brother?
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