It wasn’t until three days later that Rachel came off the ventilator, and during that time, she got more conscious by the day. Only when her condition had stabilized and the doctors were certain there wouldn’t be risks did they stop the ventilator.
“You have to tell me at once if you don’t feel comfortable. Alternatively, you can press the bell. Don’t fight it. You’ve inhaled a lot of smoke, and it’s pretty severe.” It was like Jolly and Rachel had switched overnight, with Jolly becoming the motherly one.
Gloria, however, didn’t buy her act. “Yeah, right. You pressed down on Rachel’s tube as soon as she woke up, nearly suffocating her. I can’t even begin to imagine what would happen to her under your care.”
“I’ve told you it was an accident! You’ve been on about this for three days. When are you going to stop?”
“Until the day I step into my grave!”
“Knock on wood!” Jolly hit the roof. “Can’t you watch your mouth?!”
Jolly wasn’t superstitious, but after Rachel was hospitalized, everyone in the gang did whatever they thought could help Rachel regain consciousness. If possible, they’d pray to every godly being in this world and do anything that would bring good luck.
Likewise, Gloria uttered the phrase ‘knock on wood’ at once and even tapped on the bedside table.
Rachel chuckled amusedly, leading her pallid face to be laced with a tinge of redness as she coughed.
Jolly hurriedly brought a glass of water to Rachel at that. “Have some water.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t waste your voice on useless words like this when your throat’s uncomfortable.”
After taking a sip of water, Rachel asked with a raspy voice. “How’s Justin?”
“Who?” Gloria and Jolly exchanged a glance.
“Oh, he’s recovering pretty well. He can even walk now. You should do your best too.”
“In that case, why hasn’t he come to see me?”
“Huh?” Stumped, Jolly started mumbling, “He, uh, he… The doctor advised him against walking too much. He still needs to recuperate, after all.”
Being a shrewd one and knowing Jolly like the back of her hand, Rachel instantly knew the former was lying upon seeing her behavior.
“How exactly is he doing?”
Overwhelmed by Rachel’s questioning, Jolly looked to Gloria for help.
However, Gloria was a terrible liar as well, not to mention when it was about Justin. Her eyes were already red-rimmed when she heard his name, and she even failed to hold back her tears, letting them roll down her cheeks like beads of a broken string. “He’s still in a coma.”
Rachel’s expression turned awful the second she heard Gloria’s sobs. “Take me to him.”
Jolly stopped her at once. “The doctor said you need to recuperate. You can’t run around just yet.”
“I said, take me to him—”
Having gotten worked up, Rachel started coughing violently.
“Don’t get agitated. Take a deep breath. Fine, we’ll take you to him.”
Jolly knew there was no stopping Rachel anymore and pushed a wheelchair over. With Gloria’s help, they helped Rachel out of bed and into the wheelchair, taking her to the ICU.
The second Rachel saw the man lying behind the window, her eyes turned red-rimmed with oncoming tears.
Like when she had just woken up, Justin needed the support of a ventilator too. Unlike her, he had a lot more tubes attached to him, and it was so complicated that she couldn’t even tell just how many there were.
“How is his condition?”
“The doctor said he inhaled too much smoke, and the carbon monoxide level in his blood was so high that it damaged his brain, triggering his old affliction from the car accident. H-He might never wake up.”
“That’s not possible.” Rachel was rendered stupefied. “Didn’t you guys tell me he ran out himself? Why is his condition more severe than mine? He was in much better health than I was! He could’ve certainly left.”
“He didn’t. He held you in his arms without moving an inch like he was ready to face death.” Jolly sighed at the mention of this. “When your dad rushed into the fire to save you guys, Justin probably thought you were on your last legs, and he wouldn’t let go of you no matter what. It was like he was ready to go with you.”
Jolly’s every word shot a sharp pang to Rachel’s heart, and she reflexively pressed her hand against the window, latching her eyes on the man in the bed as her body trembled.
Why were you so foolish? You could’ve escaped.
“Chris, there might still be hope. Don’t be too upset.”
Rachel sniffled at that, fighting back her tears. “He’ll definitely wake up.”
However, Gloria wasn’t as optimistic. “The doctor said his chances of waking up are low. Many cases like his almost always end up in a vegetative state.” She choked on her sobs.
“Can’t you be a little more optimistic?! He was the one who raised you!” Jolly snapped.
“It’s exactly because he raised me that I’m prepared for the worst. Even if he ends up being in a coma forever, I’ll take care of him until the end of time.”
“You don’t need to,” Rachel said weakly. “I’ll take care of him.”
Her words stumped Gloria.
“You guys can go back. I want to stay here with him for a little while longer.”
Rachel pressed her hand against the glass as though doing so could bring her closer to the man inside.
Jolly wanted to dissuade her, but Gloria shot glances at the former and dragged her away.
“What are you pulling me for? Chris is in such bad shape that she can’t stay out here for long. She has to go back to her ward.”
“Don’t you know being depressed is also lethal to recovery?” retorted Gloria. “Do you think she’ll be able to rest like this? Let her stay for a while.”
Jolly sighed at that. “Say, why do you think they can never come to a parallel line? It’s always a chasing game between the two; I love you, but you don’t love me, or you love me, but I don’t love you anymore. They can never seem to match each other’s pace. I’m even getting anxious for them.”
Gloria nodded in agreement. In fact, she was shocked when Rachel called out to Justin earlier.
One should know Rachel had never called Justin so sweetly before.
While the two were speaking, a figure approached their direction.
“Mr. Hudson.”
The person who had come was Lionel. He was in simple, casual clothing, and upon seeing the two, he smiled while acting gentlemanly. “Miss Carter, Miss Hochmann.”
“Are you doing better now, Mr. Hudson?” Gloria asked with concern.
“Much better. How’s Rachel doing today?”
“She’s doing pretty well too. She’s off the ventilator and can breathe on her own now. It’s just that…”
“What is it?”
“She found out that Justin is still in a coma and might never wake up again. She’s alone in the ICU right now. Do you want to go and take a look?”
With that, Lionel took a gander toward the ICU. “I’ll do that. Thank you, ladies.”
“No worries.”
“Chris’ luck comes later in her life, huh?” Jolly commented as she looked at Lionel’s back. “How is it that her birth father can be so suave? Mr. Hudson’s temperament is absolutely remarkable. No wonder the countess of Yatruinai forced him to stay.”
“How is it that you’re still in the mood to talk about him at this time?!”
“What else am I supposed to say, then? If Mr. Hudson hadn’t led the rescue and even went into the fire himself, there wouldn’t be anything left of Chris and Justin by now.”
As soon as Lionel learned that Rachel and Justin were stranded up in the mountain, he sent all his men to search the area and even gathered the locals to put out the fire. Before it had been put out, he already charged into the fire alone.
He was the one who carried Rachel out.
