Charlotte drove steadily.
She rembered when she first got her driver’s license, Robert Stephens had jokingly called her a "road nace." But sohow, over ti, her driving had beco more and more gentle.
A person’s character can be transford over ti.
Charlotte glanced at George sitting beside her, swinging his legs with an innocent and lively expression, and suddenly felt a fear of what he might beco in the future.
It took an entire hour to drive from the Stephens family ho to the hospital.
After verifying their identity with security at the door, she took George’s small hand and walked into the hospital.
This was a place she hadn’t been able to enter for three whole months. Now that she was finally allowed in, her heart no longer felt the anticipation it once did...
"Hello."
As they entered the inpatient departnt, a young male doctor in a white coat approached them.
He wore gold-rimd glasses and had a fair and kind face, polite and gentle. "Are you Miss Charlotte Smith?"
Charlotte nodded, her tone soft and light, "I am. And you are...?"
"I am Mr. Stephens’ current attending physician." The young man smiled warmly and extended his hand to her, "I’ve been waiting for you here for a long ti. Please follow upstairs now."
Charlotte responded and followed the young male doctor, unable to resist asking, "Doctor, how is our family’s Mr. Stephens’ health now?"
"We will do our utmost to prolong Mr. Stephens’ life." He replied ambiguously.
Charlotte knew she wouldn’t get any crucial information from him, so she stopped asking questions, holding George’s hand as they entered the elevator together.
The elevator was quiet, except for George cheerfully humming a children’s song; he was truly happy today.
Charlotte didn’t know why, but as she gradually approached that man, an increasing weight seed to press down on her heart, her fingertips turning cold...
"Mr. Stephens, I’ve brought Miss Smith and young George for you."
At the door of the hospital room, the doctor opened the door first and led them in.
Charlotte slightly tightened her grip on George’s hand, lifted her head, and couldn’t help but look into the room.
To her surprise, Robert Stephens wasn’t lying in bed. With a head full of white hair, he was sitting beside the bed, changing clothes with the help of the people around him, his features handso and outstanding as was characteristic of the Stephens family, making him appear strikingly radiant in the crowd.
He was wearing a black turtleneck sweater, and a nurse was fastening the brass buttons on his coat, head lowered, showing only his sharply defined profile.
Upon hearing the doctor’s words, the man slowly lifted his head and glanced at the doorway.
His cool, calm black eyes took Charlotte’s breath away for a mont. She stood at the door, puzzled as to why she couldn’t take a single step forward.
mories from many years ago rushed through her mind.
She suddenly rembered the first ti she t this man.
On a morning just like this, that incredibly handso and dazzling young man had worn a black sweater, and as he slowly turned around, he cast a lukewarm, distant glance at her.
On that occasion, he had singled her out among many girls to serve as his study companion.
Back then, she feared him.
And now, that fear had transford, through the passage of ti, into a tangled mix of love and hate.
If she had known that they would end up in such a relationship, she would have desperately tried to escape, never setting foot in the Stephens family ho again, even if it ant death.
...
"Sir."
She took a step into the room, gently calling out the na she had addressed for over ten years, those familiar words feeling as though they spanned a lifeti.
"Teacher!"
George broke free from her hand and excitedly rushed towards Robert Stephens. Before anyone could react, George had thrown himself into Robert’s arms.
"Teacher, teacher, teacher!"
He clung to Robert’s waist, as excited as a little puppy finding its owner, eager to roll around in his embrace.
"George! Let go, quickly!"
Charlotte was startled, instinctively raising her voice to scold him, only to hear Robert say calmly, "It’s alright."
The man raised his fair fingers and gently stroked the child’s soft short hair. George looked up, eyes full of stars.
The familiar and dependent look brought a pang of sadness to Charlotte’s heart.
Robert looked at his small face for a mont, then gave him a slight smile, his tone unchanged, "George, have you been doing your howork properly lately?"
"..." George rolled his large, clear eyes, remaining silent.
Having raised him since childhood, Robert knew his nature well. Seeing him like this, he understood that the boy might have been a handful during his absence.
"You..." He instinctively started to admonish him as he had in the past but then, for so reason, he paused, simply placing his hand on George’s head, stroking it repeatedly.
Charlotte ca over, taking over the nurse’s duties, just as in the past, serving Robert by his side, arranging his clothes neatly. When the wheelchair was brought over, she assisted Robert into it.
The man had lost a lot of weight, but his spirits were still strong. As she watched him, that unnaable fear in her heart finally dissipated.
She had misunderstood...
"Sir," she addressed him as she had in the past, with obedience and respect, "Are you going to be discharged today?"
Robert glanced at her, taking in her lowered lashes and pale lips, then replied in a calm voice, "I want to go out with George today, and you should co along too."
"Yes."
And so, they actually went out.
Charlotte pushed the wheelchair, leaving the hospital, and glanced back.
Not far away, there were two plainclothes policen following at a distance, presumably allowing Mr. Stephens to go out for so fresh air.
After walking a few steps, Charlotte lowered her head and softly asked, "Where does Sir want to go?"
Robert glanced at George walking beside him and inquired, "George, where do you want to go today?"
George said, "I want to go to the amusent park."
"George!" Charlotte couldn’t help but call his na.
Given Robert Stephens’ status, how could he possibly go to an amusent park?
But Robert said, "Then let’s go together."
"Sir, George is being childish," Charlotte whispered, "You shouldn’t..."
"It’s alright." His voice was gentle, and he tenderly watched George, speaking softly, "It’s okay to accompany him this once."
He still indulged him just as before.
Charlotte felt a mix of emotions watching Robert pull out his phone, make a call, and then smile at George, speaking warmly, "Let’s go now."
Before long, a car pulled up by the roadside. With the bodyguards’ assistance, Charlotte helped Robert into the back seat, and as she touched the man’s bony spine, her fingers trembled slightly. Robert noticed her trembling, lifted his head, and gave her a glance.
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