Chapter 1453

At that moment, Adriana also walked in, earnestly advising him, “Jean, I know you’re deeply concerned about Neera, and so are we. But before she wakes up, we also need to take care of ourselves. It wouldn’t be good if we finally see Neera awake, only to collapse ourselves, right? She has painstakingly nurtured you back to health, pouring so much effort into curing you. You know better than anyone how much she cares for and worries about your health. If you don’t cherish yourself, she won’t be pleased. Even if she wakes up and sees you in this state, she will only worry, and might even get angry. Do you really want her to wake up and be upset because of you?”

The words had an effect. Jean finally responded softly, “I understand.” He then stood up from beside Neera’s bed.

However, before he left the ward, he lifted his gaze to see a figure at the entrance of the room.

In that instant, he shot a cold and piercing look at that person.

“What are you here for?” His thin lips parted slightly as he asked in a hostile tone.

Avery glanced at him, then at the person on the bed before shifting his gaze to Chad and Adriana. He gave a slight nod.

“Mr. Gordon, Mrs. Gordon.”

After greeting them, he turned his gaze back to Jean, his voice deep as he said, “I heard Neera had an accident, so I came to see her.”

Upon hearing this, Jean sneered, “There’s no need. You should know better than anyone why things have gone wrong. You’re not welcome here. Get lost.”

This was the first time he had spoken so rudely to Avery.

Even Chad and Adriana were taken aback. They looked at each other and simultaneously let out a sigh.

“Jean, Avery just wants to show his concern. At the end of the day, you can’t really blame him for this.

You should talk things out calmly instead of making things awkward.”

Chad then continued, “We’ll go out first. After you finish chatting, don’t forget to eat. Then we’ll come to relieve you, and you can take a break.”

In the end, Jean didn’t want to embarrass them. His lips were pressed into a straight line, and he didn’t say anything else.

Soon, Chad and Adriana stepped out.

In the hospital room, apart from Neera who was still unconscious, Avery and Jean stood facing each other.

One with a cold and stern face, the other wearing a look of guilt amidst his complicated emotions.

Watching the pale Neera lying unconscious on the hospital béd, Avery felt as if his heart was being stabbed slowly, each cut causing him unbearable pain to the point of suffocating him.

His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he spoke in a raspy voice. “I’m sorry. I didn’t expect Phoebe to act like this.”

Jean sniggered. “You didn’t expect this? It’s precisely because of your incompetence that Neera was harmed to this extent. You’re apologizing now, but don’t you think it’s too late?”

Avery caught his breath, as the pain in his chest gutted him.

He took a deep breath and said, “I know that the damage has been done, and anything I say now won’t help. But I still want to express my apologies. The secret passage was built jointly by the Gordon family and the Cox family because of their good relations. The Cox family has a similar one. Albert knew about this, so he must have told Phoebe, who then leaked it to Bartitsu Guild.”

Jean cut him off, “Enough, there’s no point in saying all this. Now that you’ve seen Neera, you should go.”

Avery knew he was in the wrong. He moved his lips slightly, but in the end, he didn’t have the courage to ask for permission to stay.

“Alright. I’ll come to see her another day.”

Jean didn’t respond, neither agreeing nor opposing. He just stood there indifferently, his face full of exasperation.

Suddenly, a faint sound was heard.

Jean was momentarily stunned but quickly realized that the sound was made by Neera.

He spun around abruptly, striding toward the bedside with an anxious expression. His eyes were filled with hope.

“Neera, Neera? Are you awake?”

Even Avery couldn’t bring himself to leave. After a moment of hesitation, he came over.

At that moment, all of Jean’s attention was focused on Neera. He had no time to care whether Avery was leaving or not.

He saw Neera’s eyelashes flutter twice, her eyebrows twitching as if she was struggling in her dream.

After a few seconds, she slowly lifted his eyelids.

In an instant, an unprecedented elation broke out across Jean’s face.

He grabbed Neera’s hand, clutching it tightly as he called her name, “Neera, you’re awake. You’re finally awake!”

Neera’s mind remained mired in a state of chaos. When she opened her eyes, what met her gaze was an unfamiliar white ceiling that felt jarring in the sunlight.

She furrowed her brows, instinctively wanting to raise her hand to shield her eyes, only to realize that one of her hands was hooked up to an IV drip through a needle pierced into the back of her hand.

Jean quickly pressed it down. “Don’t move. You’re still on an IV drip.”

Neera closed her eyes halfway and gathered herself before opening them again. She was utterly confused and somewhat unclear about the situation she was in.

“Where am I… Is this a hospital… How did I end up here?”

Upon hearing her hoarse voice, Jean’s heart pounded uncontrollably. The excitement of regaining someone precious stirred his emotions, making it difficult for him to calm down.

His Adam’s apple bobbed, his voice raspy as he said, “Don’t you remember? You were seriously injured, and you had a persistent fever. We had no choice but to hospitalize you. You’ve been asleep for a whole day. Thank goodness… thank goodness you’re awake now.”

Otherwise, he might really end up going mad.

His words helped Neera recall what had happened before she passed out.

Suddenly, an instinctive fear gripped her heart, causing her to tremble uncontrollably. She looked as if she was grimacing in pain.

“Jean, Jean… I’m so scared. They… They…”

Hearing her hoarse and fearful voice and seeing her trembling with fear, Jean felt as if his heart was being torn apart. The pain was so intense that he could hardly breathe.

Suddenly, he lowered his head, planting a kiss on her forehead. Then, he moved to the side of her face, and finally, his lips landed upon hers. Over and over again, he comforted her with his kisses.

“Don’t be afraid. I’m here. No one will harm you. Please, don’t be scared. You’re safe now. From now on, I’ll never leave your side. I’ll never leave you alone again. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have left you to face it all by yourself…”