Early the next morning, I took a cab to Central City Hospital.
It was the day I was supposed to pick up my follow-up test results.
The hospital corridors smelled heavily of disinfectant. Wearing a mask, I sat quietly on a bench waiting for my number to be called.
"Daniel, slow down a little. My legs feel weak."
A soft, delicate voice drifted from the far end of the hallway.
I looked up and spotted Daniel immediately through the crowd.
He was carefully supporting Sophie by the arm.
She wore a loose knit sweater, her complexion rosy and healthy, without the slightest trace of weakness.
Daniel held a stack of paperwork in one hand while quietly comforting her.
I remained seated, watching them walk closer step by step.
Then Sophie's gaze swept over me by accident, and she abruptly stopped walking.
"Claire?" Sophie covered her mouth in feigned surprise.
Following her line of sight, Daniel looked over as well, and his expression darkened instantly.
"Claire?"
Instinctively, he let go of Sophie and took two steps toward me, his eyes quickly flicking over the registration slip in my hand.
But Sophie immediately tugged at his sleeve and called softly, "Daniel..."
His footsteps stopped.
"What are you doing here?" He looked at me warily, defensiveness already creeping into his tone. "Didn't I explain everything to you yesterday? Sophie wasn't feeling well."
I watched him press his lips together in irritation.
He didn't even have the patience to ask why I was at the hospital in the first place.
"I'm just here to pick up some medicine," I answered calmly. My gaze fell onto the gift box Sophie was carrying.
The pink diamond from the jewelry store yesterday.
Noticing where I was looking, Sophie immediately hid the box behind her back, though the triumphant smile on her face remained impossible to miss.
"Claire, don't blame Daniel. I was just really scared last night, so I begged him to stay with me."
She stepped closer and affectionately wrapped herself around Daniel's arm.
"Oh, and Daniel even bought me chestnut cakes from the south side of town this morning. He said they'd help nourish my health."
Sophie pulled a familiar paper bag from her purse and held it out toward me.
"Claire, do you want some? There are tons of crushed peanuts inside. They smell amazing."
I stared at the paper bag and suddenly found the whole thing absurd.
I was severely allergic to peanuts. Even the smallest amount would leave me covered in rashes, and in serious cases, could send me into anaphylactic shock.
Daniel frowned faintly, as though he had remembered something. His lips parted slightly, but in the end, he said nothing.
Instead, he only said flatly, "Sophie means well."
His brows knitted tighter before his tone softened a little. "Claire, don't take things so seriously with a younger girl."
I made no move to accept the bag.
Looking up into Daniel's eyes, I suddenly smiled.
"No thanks. You two can enjoy it yourselves."
I stood up, walked past them, and headed straight toward the chief physician's office.
Behind me, Daniel called out sharply, "Claire, stop right there."
But I neither turned around nor slowed my steps.
When I entered the consultation room, the doctor handed me the report.
"Ms. Parker, the cancer cells have fully spread. Given your current condition, it's possible that at any moment..."
The doctor trailed off, looking at me with quiet pity.
"I understand." I slipped the report into my bag. "Doctor, please prepare a treatment refusal consent form for me."
By the time I walked out of the hospital, the sunlight burned painfully against my eyes.
I pulled out my phone and called my lawyer, William Harris.
"Mr. Harris, I need you to draft a will for me. And I want to put the old house under my name up for sale."
Shock flashed through his voice on the other end of the line.
I gave no further explanation and calmly ended the call.
