Chapter 705 Once You Recover
“Lia, you’re here.” When Eleanor woke up and saw Amelia sitting by the hospital bed, she broke into a surprised grin. “When did you arrive? Why didn’t you wake me up?”
She hurriedly sat up from the bed. Seeing that, Amelia quickly stood up and supported her. “Mom, be careful.”
Eleanor looked much better after she saw Amelia.
“I’m fine. I’ve just missed you too much. I didn’t want to tell you about my illness, but I was scared that I won’t see you again. So, I called you in secret.” As she spoke, Eleanor leaned against the pillow and fixed her gaze on Amelia. “I’m relieved to see that you’re doing well.”
Her words brought tears to Amelia’s eyes. The latter forced herself to smile, saying, “Mom, stop speaking nonsense. I don’t like hearing such negative things. When I got into a car accident while I was pregnant with Tony, I didn’t give up hope even when both of us were in critical condition. You should think positively, okay? I’m planning to give birth to another baby, so you can help raise the child. Didn’t you promise me that? You can’t go back on your word!”
Among the many things Amelia said, Eleanor focused only on one thing.
“You got into a car accident? Was it bad? Were there any aftereffects? How did it happen? Let me take a look at you. Gosh, this is so worrying,” she nagged. “Why didn’t you ever tell me about this? My poor child, why do these terrible things always happen to you?”
As she was overwhelmed with emotions, her head started to hurt. Pain and discomfort came crashing like waves, forcing her to clutch her head and slump against the bed.
“Oscar, call the doctor!” exclaimed Amelia in panic.
Oscar was just about to leave the ward when Eleanor spoke up while breathing heavily. “Oscar, there’s no need for that. I’m fine.”
Without a word, Oscar returned obediently.
After the pain subsided, Eleanor smiled at Amelia weakly. “Lia, don’t worry. I’m fine. In fact, I’m going to live a long life and take care of your children so you can pursue whatever you want. It took me so long to finally find you. How could I bear to leave you so soon?”
Amelia couldn’t understand how motherly love was powerful enough to make an elderly woman put her daughter first despite being diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.
However, she was moved. Among the many elders she knew, Eleanor was possibly the only one who loved her and cared for her purely and wholeheartedly.
If I were the one separated from my daughter for more than twenty years, I’m not sure if I could treat her the same way I treat my children who grew up with me.
Yet, it was clear that Eleanor favored her more. Perhaps, it was out of guilt for not being able to be by her side all these years.
In truth, Amelia didn’t think it was necessary for Eleanor to do that.
She coaxed, “Mom, if you want to take care of my child, you should get well soon. If I give birth to the baby before then, I won’t be able to handle so many things at once. You don’t want me to suffer, do you? I have just reunited with my mother, who truly loves me. Are you going to let me lose you again? I’m going to hate you if you do.”
“Okay, okay. I will cooperate with the treatment and get better as soon as possible so I can look after your child,” Eleanor agreed. Her eyes were full of gentle adoration as she looked at Amelia.
When Amelia Hutton and Sean came in, they were met with the sight of Eleanor watching Amelia Winters with a smile.
Immediately, a complex look fleeted across Amelia Hutton’s eyes.
She did not expect her mother to look for Amelia Winters in the end.
Mixed emotions filled her heart—it was a feeling one could only understand after experiencing these things personally. The Huttons were the ones who stayed with Eleanor while she went through her treatment, yet the one who could make her smile was her eldest daughter, who went missing for more than two decades.
Amelia Hutton believed she was not inferior to Amelia Winters, yet she was overshadowed by the latter.
Just then, Sean nudged her hand. When she looked over with confusion, he shook his head at her, signaling her not to cause any trouble.
In return, she could only squeeze out a smile.
Suppressing the complicated look on her face, she uttered, “Mom, I’m here. How do you feel today?”
Eleanor waved at her two children. “Amelia, Sean. Come over and greet your sister and brother-in-law. They came all the way from Tayhaven, so they must be tired. Buy some food for them. We can’t let them starve, especially Tony.”
“Okay, Mom. I’ll do that now,” answered Sean gently. Then, he turned to Amelia Winters and inquired, “Amy, Oscar, what do you guys feel like eating?”
“We’re fine with any. Tony is not a picky eater, so oatmeal will be fine,” responded Amelia Winters.
“I want two chicken drumsticks on top of that. The crispy, golden brown ones!” Tony added, his voice sweet and adorable.
Sean couldn’t help but chuckle and pat the boy’s head. “Call me Uncle Sean, and I’ll buy them for you right away.”
“Uncle Sean, you’re so handsome.” Even at a young age, Tony was an eloquent speaker.
His words pleased Sean very much. “What a good boy you are. I’ll head out right now to get them.”
With that, he left the ward. Meanwhile, Amelia Hutton seemed to be deliberately avoiding eye contact with Amelia Winters. Ever since she entered, she never once looked in the latter’s direction.
“Amelia, what’s wrong with you today? Why aren’t you talking to your sister?” Eleanor asked unhappily.
“Mom, I’m just worried about your illness. It’s not like I’m avoiding her on purpose,” Amelia Hutton explained.
“What’s there to worry about my illness? It is what it is. Amy and her family traveled all the way to Saspiuburg. You should take the opportunity to talk to them more.”
A fury burned within Amelia Hutton, but at the thought of Eleanor’s illness, she held herself back.
After all, she loved her mother.
Despite her annoyance, she put up a facade and turned to the couple. “Hello, Amy and Oscar. Thank you for coming all the way here to visit my mom.”
“Mom is sick. It is only right for us to visit her,” replied Amelia Winters.
In response, Amelia Hutton forced a smile. She couldn’t even be bothered to keep the conversation going.
In an instant, the atmosphere in the ward turned tense.
Fortunately, Sean returned at that moment with bags of food, lightening the mood.
Amelia Hutton then excused herself, claiming that she felt stuffed and needed to get some fresh air. Eleanor knew she was just finding an excuse to get out of there, but she allowed the woman to leave anyway.
After exiting the ward, Amelia Hutton strolled along the corridor mindlessly. When she reached its end, she saw her father standing in the corner, in front of the floor-to-ceiling window.
“Dad, why are you here?”
Benjamin finished his cigarette before turning around. “Is your mom awake?” he asked.
Seeing the cigarette butts littering the floor, Amelia knitted her brows. “Dad, why do you smoke so much?”
“Nothing. I just suddenly felt like it. Is your mom awake?” Benjamin repeated the question.
“Yes.” Amelia looked dejected as she went on, “Dad, Amelia Winters is here. Are you not going to make her leave?”
Benjamin turned to the window and looked out. There was an unreadable look in his hazy eyes.
When he spoke, his voice was laced with weariness. “I don’t want to make your mom angry anymore in her current state. After everything we’ve been through in the past thirty years, I didn’t think she would ever bear to leave me, but it seems that I’ve overestimated myself. When I saw her lying in the hospital bed and thought of the possibility of her leaving me in the near future, I realized how foolish I was before. Why did I suspect her of cheating on me? I even sent away my elder daughter because of that. If I wasn’t so obstinate back then, your mom and I could have been the model couple everybody looked up to.”
Yet, because of his terrible assumption, the two of them acted like strangers for more than twenty years. In their autumn years, their relationship went further downhill to the point where the divorce was brought up. He didn’t know what he was being so stubborn for.
“Dad, are you regretting it? Are you going to acknowledge Amy as your daughter?” Amelia questioned.
“As long as your mom is happy,” Benjamin stated.
Amelia pursed her lips, her expression a little glum.
“You should go back and accompany your mom,” urged Benjamin.
With a bitter smile, she responded, “Mom has Amy now, so she doesn’t need me. Dad, you haven’t seen how happy Mom is. It’s as if Amy is her only family.”
Benjamin’s face darkened at that.
The two of them stood in front of the window wordlessly, each occupied with their own thoughts.
They only returned to the ward after Amelia Winters and Oscar left the hospital with Tony.
Eleanor looked much more energetic than before. Her mood improved following Amelia Winters’ visit, so her attitude toward Benjamin softened a lot.
“How do you feel today?” Benjamin asked gently.
“Pretty good. My head doesn’t hurt anymore. I feel pumped up whenever I see Lia,” Eleanor answered.
Upon hearing that, Benjamin lowered his eyes, concealing the grimness in them.
“Benjamin, thank you for being nice to Lia today for my sake. I don’t know why you think she is another man’s child, but I’ve decided to let things go now that I don’t have much time left. Please just fulfill my dying wish and acknowledge her as your child. Lia really is your daughter. I don’t want to be accused of something I didn’t do,” requested Eleanor with sincerity as she looked at him intently.
Raising his head, Benjamin met her eyes. He let out a long sigh and started, “I will acknowledge her as long as you cooperate with treatment and recover well. Eleanor, I was wrong back then. I was jealous of your close relationship with Samuel. Coincidentally, you got pregnant at that time. Jealousy blinded me and made me think that the child was his. Even when the DNA test result proved otherwise, I was adamant about my own assumption. In the end, it was my stubbornness that ruined this home. You’ve suffered too much all these years.”
As Eleanor listened to him, she fell into a daze. If Benjamin hadn’t mentioned Samuel Lester, the latter would still be buried in the deepest part of her heart. That was what she did throughout the years—she would only remember him from time to time when she was alone in the silence of the night.
Samuel was her senior in university. They had common interests and goals, so they remained good friends even after they graduated and started working. However, their relationship was purely platonic. Never in her dreams did Eleanor imagine Benjamin would misunderstand them.
Samuel passed away from a hiking accident in his thirties. Back then, Eleanor was heartbroken to lose a friend she could talk to about everything. He remained in her heart all these years as a good memory, but she didn’t expect Benjamin to think of them that way.
Eleanor wasn’t sure if she should feel sad or angry. With a calm tone, she said, “There was nothing between Samuel and me, yet Lia and I were separated for more than twenty years just because of your baseless jealousy.”
Benjamin remained silent.
At that moment, Eleanor felt utterly exhausted. “You guys should leave. I want to be left alone.”
“Mom—”
“Leave.”
Left with no choice, Benjamin and Amelia Hutton walked out of the ward gloomily.
Eleanor lay still in bed, staring at the ceiling fixedly. No one knew if she was reminiscing the past or blaming Benjamin for his pettiness that caused her to spend two decades apart from her daughter.
