It felt like a slap in the face.
Vanessa, furious and humiliated, turned and stormed off, with Mackenzie rushing to catch up behind her. Rachel felt like she'd just watched a live drama.
As soon as she stepped out of the mall, she saw someone smashing a car, and it looked like it was Vanessa's car.
"What's going on? Did she piss someone off and now they're getting back at her?" Rachel muttered.
"Who knows," Jeffrey replied, his eyes flickering slightly. "Not our business anyway." Rachel pulled him along toward the bus stop.
Suddenly, Jeffrey stopped dead in his tracks. Rachel turned to look at him, noticing his pale face and that stunned look in his eyes.
He was staring straight at the bus stop.
"What's wrong?" she asked, a bit worried.
"Nothing," he answered quickly, his expression going back to normal. Just now… he must've been seeing things.
He thought he saw a woman getting on the bus that looked exactly like her.
But that woman, who abandoned him and their child, she couldn't possibly be here.
"Jeffrey, don't be like me. Even if you love someone, don't love them too completely."
"Love is the cheapest thing in this world. When she doesn't care about you, even if you kneel in front of her, it's useless."
"Jeffrey, maybe one day, when you really fall for someone, you'll understand. There's someone out there who can mess with all your emotions, someone who can make you feel like living or dying. But if you can… I hope you never have to go through that."
Who was saying these things?
"Stop talking! Don't stay here anymore! It's so cold… so cold… If you stay here, you'll freeze to death!"
"Jeffrey, I'm leaving. I don't want to hear your dad say he loves me if he can't give me the life I want! I've already done everything I could for him."
Who was that? Who was talking?
"Don't… go…" Who's saying that? Oh. It's him.
He's begging that woman. If she leaves, then his dad will—
Don't go! Don't go!
He desperately tries to grab her, but he can't. Everything around him is getting darker and darker, like he's being pulled under, like he's drowning and gasping for air.
His hands reach out frantically, trying to grab onto anything, anything at all, even just a piece of straw.
Suddenly, he feels something warm. And there's this soft voice, like it's floating from really far away—
"Jeffrey, Jeffrey, I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving. Don't be scared, don't be scared!"
That voice… it's Rachel. The one who told him to call her sister.
Jeffrey slowly opens his eyes. The first thing he sees is a delicate face, with dark almond-shaped eyes full of worry. Her soft pink lips are moving, saying something.
Yeah… she's telling him not to be afraid.
Seeing him finally wake up, Rachel breathes a sigh of relief. "Jeffrey, what happened? Did you have a nightmare?"
He exhales slowly. How long has it been since he had that dream?
The dream where that woman just left him and his dad like they were nothing… where his dad didn't stop her, just sat there with this bitter smile full of helplessness.
"Yeah, I had a nightmare," he said softly.
That's when he realized he was holding Rachel's hand, like it was the only thing keeping him alive.
In the dream, when he felt like he was drowning, that warmth he grabbed onto… was it her hand?
When did he start seeing someone else as his lifeline?
He suddenly let go. That warmth disappeared in an instant. His brows furrowed and his face slowly turned pale. Quietly, he curled up, clutching his stomach.
Seeing this, Rachel's brief relief vanished, replaced with concern. "Are you okay? Are you feeling sick?"
"It's nothing," he mumbled, voice low and tense from holding in the pain. "Just… stomach cramps. It'll pass."
Was it because of that nightmare?
When he was younger, he used to get stomach cramps from stress, but it hadn't happened in years.
Rachel watched his face grow even paler.
She brushed aside the hair on his forehead and saw sweat starting to form, dampening his bangs.
She poured a glass of warm water and helped Jeffrey sit up.
He managed to take a few sips, then pressed his lips tightly together, his teeth chattering a little, like he was trying to force himself through the pain.
Rachel looked at him, clearly worried, then suddenly stood up. "I'll be right back. Wait here!" Before leaving, she wrapped him in a blanket to keep him warm, scared the cold would make his pain worse.
The door shut with a soft thud, and her footsteps slowly faded down the hallway.
The room went completely quiet, leaving him alone again.
Jeffrey closed his eyes, just waiting for the pain to pass. Being alone… wasn't that always normal for him?
Just like after his dad died. Even when the Gray Family took him in, even with a grandpa and a bunch of servants around, it always felt like he was completely alone.
He didn't know how much time had passed when the door opened again.
Rachel's voice filled the small room, breathless like she had been running. "Jeffrey, I got the medicine. You'll feel better after you take it."
He opened his eyes and saw her. Her breath was visible in the cold air, her hair messy from rushing back, her eyes full of panic and care.
Her face, her little nose, her slightly red lips, he'd seen girls way prettier than her before, but right now, he just couldn't take his eyes off her.
It felt like, for once, he wasn't alone in this world.
Rachel came over with a glass of warm water, and following the instructions, she took out two pills.
She gently helped Jeffrey sit up and fed him the medicine.
Then she picked up a towel and carefully wiped away the sweat on his forehead and face, which had formed because of the pain.
"If you're still feeling bad, just close your eyes and try to sleep a bit," she said softly. "You can sleep on the bed tonight. I'll take the floor." As she spoke, she slowly helped him lie back down.
Just as she was about to get up, he suddenly grabbed her hand.
"What's wrong? Are you still in a lot of pain?" she asked, eyes full of concern.
He looked at her, kind of out of it. At that moment, he'd just reached out instinctively, like he didn't want her to leave.
"I… I want you to stay with me," he finally said after a long pause.