Chapter 402: Chapter 402

Chapter 402 Are You Worried About Me “Winnie? What are you doing here?” Nate picked up his pace and walked toward Winnie when he saw her from a distance.

Winnie recognized his voice immediately, but Mary did not know who he was because he was wearing a hat and a mask.

Mary put her guard up and stepped forward to protect Winnie, asking, “Excuse me, sir, but who are you?

How can Mrs. Fairchild help you?”

When Nate realized Mary did not recognize him, he removed his mask and revealed himself. “It’s me, Nate.”

“Oh, Mr. Nate.” Mary dropped her guard and retreated, greeting him by saying, “No wonder Dr. Houghton said he saw someone who looked like you just now.”

At first, Nate looked collected, but as soon as Mary spoke, he pulled up his mask and quickly scanned his surroundings. It was as if he was afraid of being discovered.

Seeing how Nate suddenly became nervous, Mary grew concerned and asked, “I’m sorry, Mr. Nate, did I say something that made you uncomfortable?”

“Nope.” Nate glanced at Mary before asking Winnie, “You didn’t tell Josiah, did you?”

“Of course not.” Winnie frowned slightly. “I don’t really want to discuss your gossip with anyone. Besides, I promised you, didn’t I?”

Upon noticing the disdainful look on Winnie’s face, he quickly apologized to her, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to question you. It was just a reflexive reaction. There’s something I want to tell you. Can you ask Mary to wait outside? Just a little further from here will do.”

Winnie’s frown deepened. “What is there to talk about between us?”

Rendered speechless, Nate paused for several seconds before regaining his composure. “I-I just… I’m sorry for disturbing you. I’ll leave now.”

Winnie hummed in response but otherwise remained silent.

Nate let out a sigh.

Taking in the indifferent look on Winnie’s beautiful face, he felt bitter.

He had once sought revenge against her for Yulissa. Although she forgave him and moved on, they had since grown apart. What else can I expect from her? Do I expect her to comfort me because she’s the only one who knows about my heart condition?

In hindsight, he found himself ridiculous.

He took another glance at Winnie and decided to endure the pain alone.

When he was about to leave, a sharp pain struck his chest.

The pain was so intense that he could not withstand it and fell onto the ground, groaning.

Hearing his groan, Winnie knitted her brows.

The kind-hearted Mary immediately went over to help Nate up.

“What’s wrong, Mr. Nate? Are you okay? Since we’re now at the hospital, should we take you to the doctor?” Mary asked.

“No, thanks.” Nate sounded weak. “I just need to rest for a while.”

“Okay. I’ll help you up.” Mary carefully supported Nate and helped him sit on a chair opposite Winnie.

After settling him down, Mary finally had the chance to take a good look at Nate’s face.

She could not help but express her worry. “Mr. Nate, you don’t look good. Are you sure you don’t need to see a doctor?”

“Nope.” Nate leaned weakly against the back of the chair and told Mary, “You don’t need to worry about me. Just go and do your work.”

Winnie’s ears perked up at the sound of Nate’s weakened voice and how he refused Mary’s offer of assistance. Those words brought a frown to her face.

After a moment of silence, she asked Nate, “Do you have any medicine on you?”

“Yes,” Nate replied weakly. Despite his weakened state, he did not want Mary to know about his heart condition.

He turned his head with some difficulty to look at Mary. “I need water. Can you please help me get some?”

“Sure!” Mary instinctively agreed to his request as she felt Nate was about to collapse.

However, after agreeing, Mary realized something was amiss. She turned to Winnie for advice. “Mrs.

Fairchild, should I?”

Winnie responded right away, “Go ahead. I’ll stay here and won’t wander off.”

“Okay. I’ll be back soon,” Mary said before walking toward the other end of the corridor immediately.

In the dimly lit first-floor corridor, only Winnie and Nate remained.

With a pair of sunglasses on, Winnie turned to Nate. “What’s wrong? Can’t take your medicine without water?”

“I can.” Nate straightened his back and tried to sit up straight. “I just don’t want Mary to know what medicine I’m taking.”

Winnie frowned with a puzzled look. “Why do you want to keep it from your family? You should tell the Frasers instead of sneaking into the hospital alone for treatment.”

Nate did not expect she would ask about those things as he thought she would remain indifferent.

Suddenly, he felt the urge to confide in her.

It was ironic that Winnie learned about his health condition by chance, even though he deliberately hid it from everyone.

He fixed his gaze on Winnie, holding it for some time. The fact that she could not see him gave him the courage to keep staring.

“I want to handle it on my own first. I’ll tell them if I can’t do this alone. Sometimes, I think of it as my retribution. If I hadn’t done those awful things for Yulissa in the past, maybe I wouldn’t have had to go through this now. It seems like it’s all my own doing, so I don’t want to bother them. I don’t want anyone to know. I even wish I could pretend this illness doesn’t exist, but I can’t because of the intense pain it causes me.” Nate poured his heart out.

“I don’t think that’s the right mindset,” Winnie said with a frown. “It’s important to seek treatment when you’re not feeling well. The same goes for your mental health.”

Nate froze for a bit and asked in disbelief, “Y-You still care about me?”

Winnie was even more incredulous than Nate. “You’re overthinking. I should just keep my mouth shut.”

“No!” Nate quickly interjected. “I was just kidding. Please don’t ignore me. I feel like this illness is my punishment for all the hurtful things I’ve done. Talking to you will make me feel better.”

Winnie was left speechless. Initially, she had considered admonishing Nate by suggesting that his illness might be karma for his past misdeeds. However, upon reflection, she decided it wouldn’t be fair to be harsh to someone struggling to combat an illness.