The room was lit only by a dim bedside lamp; the surrounding darkness struggled with the weak light, constantly encroaching.
Charlotte Lane sat on the edge of the bed, staring at something on the computer. She looked cold and numb.
After a long time, her fingertips moved to close the page on the computer, then opened the appointment registration page for the First Hospital.
She booked an appointment for tomorrow morning and turned off the computer.
Charlotte lay in bed, closing her eyes.
If it wasnât her, the person who made Sophie Ortiz hide outside for three days without coming home, continuously going in and out of the hospital, crying red-eyed, and still having this kind of problem would be Olivia Lane.
But her mother had checked so many herbal ingredients.
So there was a more than ninety percent chance that the person was herself.
Only she was taking herbal medicine at home.
Long ago, Sophie had asked her what she drank every morning.
She said it was to regulate her body.
She indeed never thought about it in that way, she actually thought it was for regulating her menstrual period.
She didnât even know what medicines were in the medicine packet.
Sophie probably didnât trust her and thought she was deceiving them, so she took the leftover medicine to investigate.
Thinking back⦠she trusted Arthur North too much back then. She said she was on guard, but deep down she still believed him.
Arthur gave her the medicine, and she took it without even checking it.
If Arthur wasnât a good person and had poisoned her, she might have already gone through a Memorial Day.
â¦
The next day, Charlotte was sent to work at the Research Institute as usual by Andrew Lane.
Arthur North was also waiting for her at the entrance of the Research Institute as usual.
The two entered the Experimental Tower together, and Arthur sent her to the entrance of the Laboratory before going back to his own Laboratory.
After Charlotte entered the Laboratory, she checked the progress of the experiments, arranged some tasks, and left an hour later.
She went straight to the hospital.
After having her physical examination, she sat in the corridor of the Hospital for a while and then went to the Traditional Medicine Department.
She asked about the function of the herbal medicine packet.
Actually, Arthur had changed her medicine several times, but she didnât inquire about it. Arthur gave it to her, and she just took it.
She knew that the medicines were changed because sometimes the taste of the medicine was different.
As soon as it was past twelve noon, Arthur came out of his lab, went upstairs to find Charlotte for lunch.
But when he arrived at the lab, he found she wasnât there.
He walked downstairs, calling Charlotte on the phone.
âMiss, whereâd you go off to? How could you sneak out like that?â
Listening to his voice, Charlotte went quiet for a moment, and then said, âIâm at the First Hospital.â
The smile in Arthurâs eyes disappeared instantly, and his voice became tense and serious, âWhatâs wrong? Not feeling well?â
âItâs fine, donât worry.â Charlotte Lane had just left the hospital. She had consulted many treatment plans and lost track of time, realizing it was already late. âOr⦠come pick me up.â
âAlright, wait for me. Iâll be right there.â Kevin Clark couldnât detect any abnormalities in her voice, but he couldnât help but worry about her for some reason.
âAlright.â
After hanging up, Charlotte raised her head to look at the glaring sunlight, then walked to a little park in front of the hospital and found a spot with tree shade to sit down.
She took out her cell phone, found Robinson Scottâs WhatsApp, and opened their chat.
She replied to Robinsonâs message from last night: [Asked already. Itâs fine. Why are you still in the hospital?]
After a while, Robinson replied: [Allonzo Hobson is hospitalized. Iâm here to bring him meals every day.]
Charlotte Lane: [What happened to him?]
Robinson Scott: [Nothing serious. He just staged an accident by himself. I punched him, and his lower back hit the staircase. He insists on staying in the hospital, claiming he canât move. Luckily the hospital has enough beds; otherwise, I would have let him stay in the corridor. Iâd hire someone to watch him eat, drink, poop, and pee.]
Charlotte Lane laughed: [Why did you hit him?]
Robinson Scott sent a voice message with a fierce tone: âThe night we came back from the party at your place, he had a few drinks. He came back and kissed me! Just kissing wouldâve been fine, but he wouldnât stop, even kissing my legs until they went weak.â
Charlotte raised her brows after listening to it.
Then Robinson sent another voice message: âBrother Nine, Iâm kind of regretting it now. If I had known he was so shameless, I would have beaten him up more that night. Regardless of the outcome, I would have had to care for him anyway, so I might as well have made sure he really ended up lying in bed!â
After a while, Robinson sent another one: âBrother Nine- what should I do? How did I fall for him? I canât look at younger guys anymore, canât casually add their contact info, canât flirt with them anymore. How did I end up here today!! I deleted over a hundred contacts last night in tears. How can I give up an entire sea for one person? I canât figure it out-â
Charlotte listened to her excited, sad, and regretful mixed tone, and raised the corners of her mouth, then put away her phone.
She leaned back on the bench, listening to the cicadas chirping and watching the mottled sunlight filtering through the tree leaves.
âThis is a permanent damage, with a very, very low chance of recovery.â
The doctorâs words floated in her ear.
âIndeed, there are such cases where most people chose treatment, but⦠so far, none have been successful.â
âThis prescription is primarily for nourishing the body of people with infertility. Since infertility is caused by physical damage, these medications focus on regulating your body.â
âBut itâs not specifically for fertility. Itâs just for regulating and protecting your body from the effects of hormones and other factors.â
âThe purpose is to help you avoid potential problems that might arise as you age. The person who prepared the medicine chose a gentle approach to protect and strengthen your body in the long term.â
âFor traditional medicine, treating your condition⦠would involve fortifying the fundamentals and using specific medications. But the medicine might be strong, causing a series of medicinal reactions such as body pain, vomiting, loss of appetite, and each personâs body is different, so there might be some permanent side effects.â
Charlotteâs cold phoenix eyes gazed at the tree leaves, thinking about what the Chinese and Western doctors had said when suddenly a shadow enveloped her and blocked her sight.
First, she saw the black shirt on Kevin Clarkâs body, and his rising and falling chest. Then her gaze moved upward to his face.
Even though it was from a lower perspective, Kevin looked as stunning as ever, especially with tiny crystal-like beads of sweat on his forehead, translucent skin, long and narrow eyes, and deep red thin lips, making him appear even more enchanting.
Kevin looked down at her. After a moment, he squatted in front of her, and his gaze shifted from looking down to looking up: âAre you feeling unwell?â
His voice was soft, but worried and tense.
Charlotteâs gaze followed his face as he moved, not saying anything.
Seeing she didnât speak, Kevin glanced at her hand, and then at her side. He spotted a corner of a piece of paper sticking out of her pocket.
He took it out directly; it was the lab report results.
While opening it, Kevin could feel his hand trembling. But after reading, he breathed a sigh of relief.
His heart that had been lifted also dropped back down somewhat.