What Separates Me and You

Sophia forced a smile and replied, "No, I'm an only child in my family."

"An only child?"

"Yes. What makes you bring up this question, Chairman Alvarez?"

"Just curious. After all, you always maintain an air of mystery," Lewis remarked as he swiftly signed the last document and handed it back to Sophia.

She kept smiling and said, "I came from an ordinary family. There's nothing mysterious about me."

Lewis' lips curved into a faint smile. "Alright, you can go back to work now."

Confused, Sophia nodded slightly and glanced at him before hurrying away with the documents.

As she reached the corner of the corridor, she turned back to look at Lewis, only to find that he had already pushed open the door to the ward and entered the room. Frowning slightly, Sophia stepped into the elevator in deep thought.

Josephine was sitting on the bed inside the ward. With a tablet before her, she seemed bored.

When she heard someone approaching, she looked up toward the door, and her face brightened when she saw who it was. She quickly sat up straight.

Lewis came over and sat down beside her. "How's your day?"

He habitually looked at her fingers, but she had both hands hidden under the blanket. Josephine's clear voice rang in his ear.

"What do you mean, how's my day?"

Lewis paused briefly, then shifted his gaze to her face. "I mean, how are you feeling?"

Josephine let out an "oh" and extended her hands before looking at him aggrievedly. "I don't want to get jabbed anymore. When can I get discharged?"

The backs of her hands were covered in needle marks, a testament to the repeated needle insertions she had undergone recently.

Lewis held her hands and studied them, his fingers lightly tracing the puncture marks. He then said calmly, "You have to ask the doctor." Thinking about the doctor's words earlier, Josephine pouted in frustration. "The doctor said I have to wait a few more days."

"Then wait a few more days."

Frowning, Josephine continued, "Can I stop getting jabbed?"

"How can you recover without the IV drips?"

Helpless, Josephine leaned back against the bed. Tilting her head, she looked at Lewis resentfully.

Lewis glanced at Mrs. Larson, who had barely rested for the past few days. She looked pale.

He said, "You should go rest now. Come back early tomorrow morning."

Mrs. Larson hesitated briefly. "Are you staying here tonight, Mr. Alvarez?"

"Yes, I'll be here tonight."

"Alright then, I'll come early tomorrow morning." After all, Mrs. Larson needed to rest to take better care of Josephine, so she didn't refuse. She tidied up before leaving the ward. After her departure, Josephine and Lewis were alone in the room. Josephine stared at Lewis, and he stared back at her.

Josephine blinked and asked, "What have you been doing during the day?"

"I was busy."

"Why is everyone so busy? Nobody is here to keep me company." She puffed her cheeks, feeling a bit unhappy.

"I'm here with you now, aren't I?"

"You're so boring. You're no fun at all."

Lewis frowned slightly. "I'm no fun? Then who is fun? Alex?"

Josephine couldn't catch the underlying meaning in his words. She pouted. "He didn't come to visit me."

Lewis' eyes darkened, and he responded meaningfully. "Perhaps he can't come?"

"Why not?"

Lewis seemed lost in thought momentarily while Josephine was still waiting for his answer. To her surprise, he got up and went to the window to smoke.

Josephine watched his back for a while, then lifted the blanket and got out of bed before walking to his side.

She was about to ask him a question, but when she caught a whiff of smoke from his cigarette, her throat started to itch uncontrollably, and she immediately began to cough. Stunned, Lewis cast her a sideways glance.

Seeing her covering her mouth and coughing uncontrollably, he immediately threw the cigarette out the window.

He held her trembling shoulders with both hands, and with furrowed brows, he asked, "What's wrong?" Josephine was coughing violently. Her face contorted in discomfort. She had no time to pay attention to him. Due to the coughing, her pale face gradually turned red.

Feeling something about to come up from her throat, she rushed into the bathroom.

After closing the bathroom door, she couldn't hold back the liquid in her throat and vomited into the sink.

The sink was splattered with patches of fresh blood which looked like bright red plum blossoms blooming in the snow. It was extremely striking. Outside, Lewis knocked on the door.

In a panic, Josephine turned on the tap and washed away the blood. She then wiped her lips and frantically cleaned up the remaining bloodstains.

She couldn't let anyone know, or she wouldn't be allowed to leave the hospital.

Suddenly, the bathroom door got pushed open. Josephine was startled.

She nervously looked at Lewis as his gaze swept around the bathroom before finally resting on her face.

"Why did you close the door?"

Clutching the sink, Josephine stuttered. "I needed to use the bathroom."

Lewis' gaze wandered on her face, seemingly trying to see through her.

Josephine tensed up, afraid of what he might ask.

However, he didn't say much. Lewis withdrew his gaze and closed the bathroom door.

Josephine patted her chest and let out a long sigh of relief.

Right now, all she wanted was to be discharged from the hospital, go back home, and see her parents. Once she saw them, she would willingly undergo any treatment.

Each time she drifted into slumber, her dreams would transport her back to that fateful conflagration, where she visualized her mother carrying her, frantically navigating through the engulfing flames. Josephine looked at herself in the mirror, and her determination grew stronger.

She wanted to go home.

After spending some time in the bathroom, she finally pulled open the door and stepped out.

Lewis was waiting for her outside the door. "Feeling better now?"

Josephine nodded, but as she raised her eyes, she saw several doctors entering the room. She instinctively grabbed her clothes.

The doctors were about to examine her, and Josephine instinctively resisted.

This time, it wasn't a simple check like monitoring her heartbeat. They wanted to take her out for a comprehensive examination.

Lewis squeezed her hand, reassuring her, "It will be over soon. It won't hurt."

Josephine looked up at Lewis and asked, "When can I be discharged?"

"Didn't the doctors say they still need to observe you for a few days?"

Josephine lowered her head and silently followed the doctors into the CT room. After coming out, she underwent several more tests and had her blood drawn.

She had never experienced such grievances before. These past two days, the doctors would be here to prick her whenever she opened her eyes. Now, she was afraid of even the sight of those needles. After her blood was drawn, she sat on a stool and began tearing up.

Lewis pressed the cotton ball on her arm in one hand and used his other hand to wipe away her tears.

"It's okay. Don't cry. When you get better, I'll bring you to eat something delicious."

Josephine bit her lip and stared at him with her teary eyes. "I miss my mom."

Lewis was slightly taken aback. He bent down and gazed at Josephine with unreadable emotions.

Moments later, he continued wiping her tears and said softly, "You'll be able to see her once you get discharged. But if you don't cooperate with the doctors and can't get out of the hospital, you won't be able to see them."

Hearing this, Josephine cried even harder.

The nearby doctors were secretly astounded. Despite Josephine being a grown-up, her delicate visage and pained expression seemed incongruous with the demeanor typically associated with adults.

A sense of pity welled up within those present. Even the doctor, who was administering the injection, felt a pang of remorse. He berated himself for being too harsh and cursed himself for it. Thankfully, there weren't many people around now, so they let Josephine stay in the room.

Lewis comforted her for about ten minutes before she gradually stopped crying. Her eyes were red. It was as if she had just suffered immense grievances.

"When will the result come out?" Lewis asked.