Chapter 236
Maxine froze for a split second at those words. Immediately, the world began to spin around her.
Micah’s voice echoed persistently in her ears. “Go back. Someone is waiting for you. Keep moving forward.”
A sudden wave of weightlessness washed over Maxine as she lurched backward. It felt as if the floor beneath her had become a bottomless abyss. Resigned to her fate, she closed her eyes.
Lying in the hospital bed, Maxine slowly opened her eyes. The lingering effects of the medication made her vision blurry, and she instinctively squinted against the discomfort.
“Sebastian…” Maxine murmured weakly.
Sebastian immediately leaned in, his voice thick with concern. “How are you feeling? Any discomfort? Is the pain still bad?”
Before Maxine could respond, Brian popped up from the side.“Mom! How are you feeling?” he asked, leaning in close, his face filled with genuine
concern.
Sebastian frowned, displeased that Brian was getting too close to Maxine. He nudged the boy’s head aside. “Give your mom some space so she can rest.”
Brian grumbled under his breath but obediently shuffled aside.
Maxine parted her lips to speak, but her throat was so parched that only a hoarse whisper escaped.
Sebastian poured her a cup of water to soothe her throat and handed it to her. “Here, have some water first,” he said softly, “The doctor said we’ll have to see how your stomach is doing before you can eat anything.“Sebastian Mason
Maxine tried to push herself up in bed, but her entire body felt like lead, completely drained of strength.
Sebastian helped her raise the hospital bed, his tone gentle with concern. “Your ankle is seriously injured. You probably fractured it when you jumped off the wall, yet you still kept running on it for so long.”
Maxine froze for a moment, subconsciously glancing at her feet. She’d barely registered the pain when she jumped down, and later, the cold nearly made her pass out. Never would she have imagined her injuries would be this severe.
Maxine let out a weary sigh.
Sebastian pressed the call button by the hospital bed. Soon, the doctor arrived with a nurse for a follow–up examination. After assessing Maxine’s condition, the doctor recommended starting with a liquid diet for recovery.
With Sebastian downstairs getting her some food, Maxine lay back in her hospital bed, scrolling through work messages on her phone. Brian shuffled awkwardly over to her bedside, his face a mix of guilt and embarrassment. He leaned in and said, “Mom, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have acted so impulsively.”
Maxine tilted her head slightly toward him, her voice soft and a bit weary, “What?”
Brian’s head drooped lower and lower as he spoke, his voice thick with emotion by the end. “And about what happened before… I shouldn’t have so willful and sided with an outsider.”
Maxine looked at him for a long moment, then sighed softly. “Go do your homework,” she said.
Maxine had indeed risked her own safety to save Brian. Whether it was pure instinct or just a mother’s reflex to keep him out of harm’s way, thinking back to everything she herself had gone through, she couldn’t just brush it off and say, “It’s okay.”
Maxine closed her eyes and leaned back against the pillow. “I need to rest for a while,” she said wearily.
Brian pressed his lips together, then said in a low, earnest voice, “Mom, I promise I’ll take good care of you from now on!”
05 Sat, 28 Jun;
Chapter 236
No sooner had he finished speaking than Sebastian walked in carrying a bowl of oatmeal. “Eat something first,” he said gently, “Once you’re feeling better in a few days, I’ll have someone prepare some nutritious meals for you.”
Sebastian walked in, considerately setting up the tray table over Maxine’s bed and adjusting the head of the bed to make her comfortable. He got a spoon ready for her and, with a gentle smile, urged, “Go on, eat up before the oatmeal gets cold.”
Maxine whispered, “Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” Sebastian paused briefly, then said with a soft chuckle. “This is the least I can do.”
All the things Maxine had done, all the sacrifices she’d made, Sebastian knew those should have been his to bear. Yet he had failed to be there for her, leaving her to endure so much suffering on her own.
Whether it was what happened to Kathleen back then or Brian’s current trouble, he bore unshirkable responsibility for both.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
