Chapter 19
Olivia woke up early, before the sun had risen above the horizon. Her husband was still sound asleep beside her. She quietly slipped out of bed so as not to wake him and tiptoed into the kitchen to start her day.
Clayton would wake up soon, and she wanted to surprise him with a nice breakfast before he had to leave for work. She moved around the kitchen with ease, humming to a song she played on her phone.
Moments later, she finished cooking and set everything out on the table. As if on cue, Clayton walked downstairs in his neat military uniform. His hair was still wet, and he ran his fingers through it to smooth down the messy strands.
“I made you breakfast,” she greeted him.
Clayton eyed the food before glancing at his watch. He then looked at her apologetically. “I'm in a hurry. I don't have time to eat.”
The words made her heart sink. The look in his eyes told her he was genuinely sorry. In fact, she felt it too. Yet it didn't stop her from hurting, thinking that he couldn't even spare a few minutes of his time to be with her.
“Make sure to eat at work,” she told him while trying to muster a smile to hide her disappointment.
Clayton swiftly crossed the distance between them. Using his thumb and forefinger, he gently tilted her face toward him.
“I’m sorry, Liv,” he mumbled under his breath, his eyes conveying an earnestness that made her heart ache a little less. “I really appreciate you making breakfast for me, and how I wish I could stay but I have to go now.”
He leaned down, pressing a soft kiss on her forehead. It was a gesture he never forgot each time he left for work. With one last lingering look at her face, he turned and headed for the door.
His footsteps faded in the distance. Only when she heard the familiar click of the closing door did she move.
She should have asked him to stay, Olivia thought, but reminded herself that his job was demanding, and time was always against him. She had to put up with that.
With a subtle sigh, she ate breakfast alone. The silence of the house closing in on her.
Olivia missed the days when he could join her on the breakfast table to enjoy the food she prepared especially for him.
She pushed aside the sadness and regained her focus. After finishing her plate, she washed the dishes then walked upstairs to prepare for work.
—
Arriving at the hospital, the first thing Olivia did was check on her patient, Bea Perez, who had just undergone a successful operation yesterday. Although her condition was stable, she still hadn't opened her eyes.
Olivia looked at the fragile girl on the bed, wondering when she would wake up. She had done her best saving the child, but it was up to her now to survive the ordeal.
She gently took Bea’s hand in hers, hoping that her warmth could somehow reach the girl, even in her unconscious state. “You can fight through this, princess. Don't make your twin wait any longer. You have to wake up so Lea won't be lonely anymore.”
Soon, she left the room to check on her other patients.
There was Mrs. Chen, an elderly woman who had devoted her life to running a local orphanage and caring for children who had no one else. But now that she had been fighting for her life, it seemed that everyone had forgotten her.
Olivia often thought about how lonely the old woman must have felt. The world had turned its back on her when she needed support the most.
Mrs. Chen was asleep when Olivia entered her room. She didn't want to disturb her rest, so after checking on her, she walked to the next room to check on one of her top-priority patients.
Mr. David was an old, grumpy man who often complained about the food and the noise. He had a sharp tongue that often made interns burst into frustrated tears. The nurses avoided him at all costs, while the previous doctor assigned to him gave up in defeat.
But Olivia had seen glimpses of a softer side of him. He would often sing when he was alone, when he thought no one was listening. It was a small moment, but it revealed a part of him that he kept hidden.
Olivia always talked to him whenever she had the chance. He was just a lonely man. His children rarely visited him, and when they did, they were only interested in the inheritance that would come after his death.
“Hello, Mr. David,” she said cheerfully upon entering his room. She found him holding a pen and paper. A couple of crumpled sheets were thrown on the side of the room. “How are we feeling today?”
“Nothing has changed.” He grunted.
Olivia pulled up a chair beside the bed and settled in for a chat. She often found that talking to him made the time pass quickly, both for her and for him.
“It’s a beautiful day outside,” she glanced out the window. “The weather is just right for a lovely stroll in the garden.”
“I’m not really interested,” Mr. David replied. Then he frowned and asked bluntly, “Can’t you see that I’m pushing you away? Why do you keep coming back?”
“Because I care about you, Sir,” she answered earnestly.
“You’ve got a big heart.” Mr David spoke after a long silence. Olivia smiled, feeling like the old man was finally opening up to her. But his next words wiped the smile off her lips. “But you’re too kind. No wonder you're lonely.”
She blinked, taken aback by his unfiltered honesty.
“I’m not.”
“You wear that smile like a mask, but I can see past it.” Mr. David’s gray eyes searched hers with an intensity that made her uncomfortable. “You give so much of yourself to others. But who’s there for you?”
She opened her lips, but no words emerged. Mr. David took the chance to continue.
“If you’re not careful, your kindness will wear you down. You can’t keep giving a part of yourself to others without taking care of yourself too. You need to be a little selfish sometimes.”
He had hit the nail on the head. She couldn’t deny the truth anymore. She was lonely.
His remark lingered in her mind long after she left his room. It echoed through her thoughts. Haunted her that night as she tried to sleep.
That was the last time she ever saw Mr. David.
The next morning, he was found dead in his room. He had left the world with a serene smile, as if he had welcomed death with open arms.
He left a note that read, "I WISH YOU'D BEEN MY DAUGHTER."
Olivia didn't cry. But she still let the words out as if he were there to hear her.
“I wish you had been my father. Perhaps we would have been a little less lonely.”
—
Olivia had her lunch although it was really late. She actually had no appetite but forced herself to take some nourishment for her child's sake.
She had just finished her food when the intercom buzzed to life.
“Attention. Doctor Hilton please report to the ER immediately.”
She got up and rushed to the ER.
The hustle and bustle of the emergency staff greeted her when she entered.
Olivia found a middle-aged woman bleeding from a head injury.
“Ma’am, can you hear me?”
The woman lifted her head. Her eyes seemed clouded with confusion as though she had no idea what was happening around her.
“Where am I?”
“You’re in the hospital. Can you tell me your name?”
She struggled to respond, but she still managed to say her name in broken syllables. “Ca-ri-na. Ca-ri-na Tan.”
“Can you tell me what happened?” Olivia asked calmly. The sight of blood seeping down the patient's white shirt like spilled wine didn’t disturb her in the slightest. She had encountered far worse injuries through the years.
“I… I think I fell down the stairs.”
Olivia noticed the bruises on her face. They were dark purple. Her arms were littered with bruises too. They didn’t look like the type of injuries you would get from simply falling down a set of stairs.
“Mrs. Tan, please be honest. Did someone hurt you?”
“No… no, it was an accident.” She insisted.
A nurse came to help clean and bandage Mrs. Tan's wounds. Olivia moved to finish the examination and conduct some necessary tests.
Moments later, the patient was transferred to a private room.
Olivia turned to the nurse who was assigned to monitor Mrs. Tan. "In case someone comes to visit her, please report to me first before letting them in.”
The nurse nodded.
Olivia returned to her office. She was reading patients' charts when the door burst open.
The nurse assigned to Mrs. Tan walked in, her face drained of color.
"Mrs. Tan’s husband came. He insists on seeing the patient."
Olivia stood up and practically half-ran her way to the patient's room. She saw a burly man pacing back and forth in front of the door. He looked agitated.
The first thing Olivia noticed when she surveyed him from head to toe was the large metal ring on his middle finger. Then it clicked in her head; she realized where Mrs. Tan had gotten her injuries.
She discreetly signaled the nurse to call the security.
The man turned to Olivia. “Are you the doctor? I'm here to see my wife.”
“The patient needs rest,” Olivia explained firmly. “For now, we can’t allow anyone to disturb her—even you, her husband.” She emphasized the last words.
He didn't seem to hear a word she said. Olivia was rudely shoved aside with little effort. She stumbled but quickly regained her balance but he had already entered the patient's room.
A scream pierced the air. It was Mrs. Tan. Her face was ghostly pale, and her eyes were wide with terror. She was hyperventilating, gasping for breath as if she might faint from the overwhelming panic.
“We’re going home, Carina.”
He attempted to grab Mrs. Tan's arms, but Olivia swiftly intercepted, slapping his hand away just inches before it could make contact with the patient.
The man let out a frustrated growl. He swung his fists toward her, and Olivia braced herself, ready to take the hit to protect her patient. But the blow she anticipated never landed.
The sound of a body hitting the floor reached her ears before it fully registered in her mind. In an instant, the man lay unconscious on the ground, taken down by a punch he never saw coming. Clayton stood beside him, exuding an intense energy, like a man possessed.