Xi Qian didn't think much about her meeting with the man, as there was nothing unusual seeing a family member hoping for the patient to recover soon. In fact, she understood what he felt as she had once found herself in the same situation as him when her grandmother was hospitalized and losing her life three days after her admission.
Xi Qian regularly stopped by to visit the man and eventually, she became aware of his family's circumstances. It was said that his father was the Chairman of a huge corporation in Guangshang and had suffered a heart attack at work.
The nurses who were on duty during daytime had been talking about it, so it was impossible for Xi Qian not to catch wind of what was going on. As for the man she met on the roof deck, she found out that his name was Li Xiran, and he was the eldest son of his father. His parents were divorced just like hers. His father was remarried to another woman, leading to the birth of his younger half-brother.
However, unlike Xi Qian, Li Xiran's father seemed to still care about him as there were rumors about the older man trying to convince his eldest son to live with him, but Li Xiran would turn down his invitation every time.
"We always see him arguing with his younger brother and stepmother outside his father's room in the hallway, in low voices. I think that he's one of those children who couldn't accept that their parents were divorced and felt abandoned by them." Xi Qian heard one of her co-workers say one afternoon.
Xi Qian couldn't blame Li Xiran for doing so because she would have done the same thing if Xi Yang invited her to live with him along with Wang Peilan and her half-siblings. It was hard to see your own father happy with his new family, making her feel that she was a stranger who didn't belong to their family.
Perhaps it was a good thing that her grandmother decided to take her in instead, Xi Qian thought. Knowing Wang Peilan's personality and attitude, the woman would surely give her a hard time while living with them.
"Nurse Xi?"
Xi Qian turned her head and looked at Li Xiran in surprise. She wondered how he knew her surname, only to realize that he had been looking at her name plate that was pinned on her uniform.
"How is he? Would he be able to wake up anytime soon?" Li Xiran asked her, the worry still evident on his face. His complexion was a bit pale and his eye bags darkened due to lack of sleep these days.
Xi Qian gave him a sympathetic look, but couldn't assure him that things would be better. She couldn't make the same mistake she made during their second encounter. It had been five days since their first meeting on the roof deck of the hospital.
"I cannot tell," she said truthfully. "Although his condition is stable now, it's hard to tell when he will be able to wake up at this point."
The older man had just had an open-heart surgery and his life was still in danger. Even the doctors weren't certain if his father would be able to recover, given how serious his condition was.
Li Xiran didn't say anything in response and fell silent, his eyes never leaving his father's face. A flash of guilt and remorse could be seen in his eyes, and Xi Qian wondered if he regretted that he never had a good relationship with his father.
It seemed that he was the only one who would be looking after his father tonight, as his stepmother and younger brother weren't here to accompany him.
"Do you know, Nurse Xi, my father used to be my hero and my idol when I was younger. He was everything to me, and I wanted to be like him when I grew up." Li Xiran suddenly said out of the blue, which startled Xi Qian.
Xi Qian, who wasn't sure why he was telling her these, chose to remain silent and decided to become his tree hole for the meantime. Li Xiran must have been holding such thoughts inside ever since his father was admitted to the hospital.
"However, all of it changed when he and my mother divorced and when he married that woman. I don't understand why he left me and my mother, nor do I see what he saw in her to love such a woman who only cared about his status and wealth." Li Xiran paused for a moment, as if he was trying to find the right words to convey his thoughts.
Actually, his stepmother wasn't a commoner nor did she come from a poor family. She was born into a wealthy family who had lost their grandiose status several years before his father met her. She had been trying to earn his favor and blessing for as long as Li Xiran could remember, but he vehemently refused to acknowledge her.
For Li Xiran, his parents' divorce was his stepmother's fault in the first place, and he couldn't forgive her for that. Even now, he couldn't tolerate her presence and would rather be in a different place than to see her face.
However, given his father's grave condition, Li Xiran knew that he could only suck it up and ignore his stepmother's presence.
"It must be my father's way of tormenting me." He chuckled to himself.
"That's not it." Xi Qian frowned and looked at Li Xiran, then to his father. "Please don't say that. Despite the arguments and misunderstandings you have, I'm sure that your father cares about you. He would never harbor such ill thoughts towards you."
Li Xiran laughed at that, but his smile never reached his eyes.
"You sounded so sure about that, Nurse Xi." He replied.
Xi Qian shrugged and returned the patient's chart in its place.
"The fact that you're here tells me that he will never forget about you."
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