Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

I was freakin' out and grabbed Ethan's arm.

"You good? Don't scare me like that."

Ethan slumped over the steering wheel, but he reached out and grabbed my hand. "I'm fine. Chill."

He looked like he was about to pass out, but he said he was fine? Just as I was about to lose it, someone knocked on the window. A traffic cop was there, telling us we couldn't park and had to move. I begged him for help. A few traffic cops helped Ethan out, but he couldn't even stand up straight and started puking blood. I was so freaked out that I don't even remember how we got into the cop's car and rushed to Grace Hospital.

Turns out, it was acute gastric bleeding. The doc said it was a good thing we got him there in time; any later, and he could've bled out. When they brought Ethan back to the ward, he was awake but pale as a ghost, hooked up to an IV.

I'd never seen him so weak. I just stood there, frozen by the bed, scared out of my mind.

He looked at me and reached out. "Come here."

I walked over, and he pulled me to sit by the bed, placing my hand on his chest. "I'm really okay."

My eyes were stinging, probably red too. "The doc said your stomach didn't get messed up overnight. You must've been ignoring it for ages."

Ethan looked at me and gave a weak smile. "I'm a guy. If I made a fuss over every little pain, wouldn't that make me seem weak?"

"Illness doesn't care if you're a guy. Can you stop being so dumb?" I was still in shock, and his casual tone was driving me nuts. He gave me a weak, goofy smile.

"You're still smiling?" I glared at him.

Ethan pulled me to lean on his chest, his deep voice rumbling.

"Emily, I can tell you're worried about me. That makes my day!"

I was really scared. Even now, thinking about it makes my heart race.

What if he had been too weak to hit the brakes? What if he had been alone and no one noticed?

Too many what-ifs, and I didn't want to think about them.

Ethan held my shoulders and made me look up, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Come here, let me make you feel better." He cupped the back of my head and pulled me in, our lips meeting. Maybe 'cause he was weak, his kiss was super gentle. I kissed back even softer, pouring all my worry into it.

We only pulled apart when we heard a light cough.

Standing at the door was Jason, wearing a lab coat.

Ethan didn't seem to care, but I felt my face heat up as I got up to pour some water.

Jason strolled in, hands in his pockets, giving Ethan a look. "Thought you were invincible, huh? Now look at you."

Ethan tried to sit up, so I adjusted the bed and handed him a cup of warm water.

Ethan chuckled and cursed, "Can't you cut me some slack? I'm still a patient here."

From their chat, I pieced together why Ethan's stomach was so messed up.

Jason said Ethan often skipped breakfast. When he was younger, Martin could still keep him in check, but as Ethan got older and stronger, Martin couldn't anymore.

When Ethan got mad, he'd skip meals for days, using almost self-destructive ways to cope. He started drinking to numb the pain in his teens. When he was upset, he'd disappear, hide somewhere, and drink, often on an empty stomach. Even an iron stomach couldn't handle that.

"Alright, can you stop airing my dirty laundry in front of my wife?" Ethan smiled helplessly.

Hearing about his past, my heart ached a bit.

Lacking love when he needed it most, Ethan must've drowned all his sadness and grievances in alcohol.

I pushed down my sadness and forced a smile. "So you were that childish too."

Ethan looked at me and grinned. "Who wasn't?"

After a bit, Lacey and Ethan's assistant showed up, giving updates on the company's situation by the bedside.

Ethan sat up, flipping through documents and signing them.

When he was working, he was all business, like he had this impenetrable mask on, not letting anyone see his soft side or pain. Lacey left at the end of the workday.

Half-jokingly, Lacey said to Jason, "I didn't drive here. Mind giving me a lift?"

Jason, who had been leaning against the window, stood up straight, took off his lab coat, and draped it over his arm, smiling smoothly. "Sure thing."

After they left, I stood by the window and soon saw them walking side by side downstairs, chatting and laughing as they left.

"What are you looking at?" Ethan's voice suddenly came from behind me.

I jumped and turned to see Ethan still looking handsome in his hospital gown. "Why'd you get out of bed?"

He hugged me from behind. "It's just a stomach thing, I'm not crippled."

I asked, "Don't you think they make a good pair?"

Ethan looked at the two figures disappearing downstairs. "What? You trying to play matchmaker?"

I turned my head and looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "Why not?"

Ethan kissed my hair, his voice low and smooth.

"Sure, but feelings are all about chemistry. If there's a spark, they don't need a matchmaker. If not, even if you tie 'em together, they'll eventually split."

I got that. With my woman's intuition, I felt like Lacey had a thing for Jason.

I said, "Sometimes, people can't see their own feelings clearly and need a little nudge."

Ethan smirked. "Good luck with that!"

For dinner, I grabbed some oatmeal. After Ethan ate, he crashed.

Feeling bored, I decided to step out for some fresh air. Passing by the water room, I saw someone who looked kinda familiar.

He filled a hot water bottle and walked down the hallway without noticing me.

I couldn't help but follow him to a ward.

The door was open, and I could see everything inside.

The guy who fetched the water helped a woman in bed sit up, opened a lunch box, and fed her spoonful by spoonful.

"Emily?" After a few bites, the elderly woman finally noticed me standing at the door.

Only then did I realize I had been standing there, lost in thought.

The people in the ward were Arthur's parents.

Emma being sick was true, and now she was at Grace Hospital, which meant things had gotten worse.

I walked in, and Chase put down the lunch box and sat to the side, smoking silently.

Emma kept her eyes on me, her gaze gentle.

"Emily, come sit."

I didn't know why I walked in, maybe because they were people I had once called Mom and Dad.

I sat on the stool by the bed and asked, "How's it going?"

Emma sighed. "Just taking it one day at a time."

Thinking about the mess between Arthur and me, a chill ran up my spine.

Arthur and I, once so close, had become enemies.

And Arthur's parents had become the most tragic figures in this almost bloody marriage.

In their old age, bedridden, they could only rely on each other. It was truly sad.

"Does Arthur know you're here?" I asked.

Emma said, "Arthur called a while ago, saying he got an opportunity to go abroad, so he couldn't come back often. Maybe the phone bills are too expensive; he doesn't call much. I didn't want him to worry, so I didn't tell him about my condition."

How ridiculous!

Emma suddenly grabbed my hand. "I know you and Arthur are divorced. If you hadn't left suddenly that night, I wouldn't have known how long he planned to hide it from us. Emily, you're a good girl; it's Arthur who wasn't lucky enough." "Emily, he's doing well now. He gave us a lot of money last time. Otherwise, how could we afford to transfer to such a big hospital? Emily, I've scolded him. If he did anything wrong, I think he knows it now. Can you forgive him and give him another chance? We won't cause you any trouble. You just need to live your own lives well, okay?"

If Arthur knew he was wrong, he wouldn't have done all those things to hurt me later.

I slowly pulled my hand away from Emma's, smiling faintly.

"Taking care of your health is the most important thing right now."

I remembered something and asked, "Did you change your phone number?"

Emma nodded. "Arthur changed it. He said the old number wasn't good, so he got me a new one."

"By the way, why are you here? Visiting someone?" she asked.

I paused for a few seconds, then smiled and nodded. "Yeah, my husband has a stomach issue and is also in this hospital." Disappointment flashed in Emma's eyes, and she nodded lightly.

As I left, I looked back at the door. Chase continued feeding Emma the unfinished meal, which was probably cold by now. Although I hated Arthur, seeing the two elderly people relying on each other made me feel uneasy.

This was life! You couldn't sum up whether it was happiness or sorrow, regret or fulfillment, until the day you died.

When I got back to the ward, I didn't turn on the light. I walked quietly to the other bed, ready to sleep.

"Come here." In the darkness, Ethan's voice suddenly sounded.

So he was awake!

I didn't hesitate and walked over, lifting the blanket and slipping in.

He extended his arm and pulled me into his embrace.

The ward was filled with the smell of disinfectant. Embracing each other in such an environment felt a bit strange.

In the hallway outside, footsteps occasionally came and went, sounding particularly clear in the quiet night.

Ethan was probably really tired or very weak; he fell asleep quickly, his breathing even and long.

But I couldn't sleep. Touching his cheek and staring at his sickly sleeping face, I felt a silent heartache.

We were once two people who lacked love, but now we had become each other's cherished halves, no longer healing our wounds alone. We slowly became essential to each other's lives.

I couldn't help but hold him tighter, feeling his heartbeat and breathing. A sense of shared destiny and deep connection surged through me.

Moonlight spilled onto the windowsill; I had no idea what time it was.

His phone rang twice on the nightstand. At first, I didn't move. But when it rang twice more, I slowly got up and, without disturbing him, picked it up.

I hadn't even opened the message yet; just seeing the sender's name made my scalp tingle, and the phone slipped from my hand.