Chapter 31

When Stella and Ethan arrived at the hospital, Thomas had already been rushed into the ICU. Dean sat on a chair outside the ICU, his face tense, his expression somewhat grave. Meanwhile, Avery sat silently on the other side, not sitting with her father Dean. They were seated far apart, and there was a strange atmosphere between them. Wyatt looked solemn, with deep furrows between his eyebrows, leaning against the wall alone. Upon seeing the two, Wyatt walked over, patting Stella's shoulder and whispered, "The doctor said he doesn't look good." Thomas's body was already weak, and it had been particularly evident recently. Now, he had collapsed due to a sudden heart attack. The doctor had warned the family to prepare themselves emotionally before he was taken into the ICU. Stella trembled slightly at the news, and Ethan reached out to support her. After a moment, she looked up at Wyatt and asked, "How did my Grandpa suddenly collapse?" Wyatt remained silent, pursing his lips, and handed Stella a document. He sighed, "He asked me to investigate. He had suspicions and insisted on me finding out the truth." Stella took the document folder from him and, upon opening it, found information about a mother and her son. When she saw the paternity test results on the last page, she clenched her fists lightly and furrowed her brows. Dean had been hiding an illegitimate child—a boy only nine years younger than Avery, who had been secretly kept abroad and was now attending high school. Based on the age calculation, the woman must have been pregnant about two months before Melinda's death. At that time, Melinda was lingering on her sickbed, unaware that her beloved husband had secretly kept a female college student by his side. And when she passed away, the other woman was already pregnant. When Melinda passed away, Dean was only in his thirties. Thomas had also advised him to remarry, but Dean had refused. If Dean had only had this son after Melinda's death, Thomas wouldn't have been so enraged. But this child was now fifteen years old, unmistakably the evidence of Dean's betrayal to his daughter all those years ago. As a father, Thomas realized the injustices his daughter suffered before her death. How could he remain calm? Dean had behaved affectionately towards Melinda over the years, so much so that even Stella thought he harbored feelings for her. But he had deceived everyone around him and was now on the verge of ruining everything at the last moment. No wonder Avery now had such an attitude. The shares that Melinda left to Avery had always been managed by Dean, and the term of the management agreement seemed to be quite long. Dean had only had this daughter before, and now suddenly had an almost adult son. And Thomas, who had always loved her, was now in the ICU. As for why Dean looked so nervous, it was probably because he was worried that after Thomas recovered, he would revise the will and affect his interests. He had been playing the role of a good son-in-law for so many years and certainly didn't want to end up with nothing. Stella glanced at the changing atmosphere between Dean and Avery and couldn't decide whether to blame Wyatt for handing over the documents to Thomas at such a time. Since Thomas had already discovered clues and insisted on seeking the truth, it wouldn't necessarily be good for Wyatt to deceive him. After all, it was Dean who had done wrong in the first place. And Thomas probably didn't want to be deceived in the end. Returning the documents to Wyatt, Stella felt a mix of emotions and silently sat down with Ethan on the side. The atmosphere was solemn, and time passed by second by second. Outside the ICU, everyone had their own thoughts, and no one spoke again. They had just hurried to the hospital without even reaching the villa, and neither Stella nor Ethan had eaten dinner. Ethan was afraid Stella wouldn't be able to hold up physically, so he had Isaac bring some food halfway through, but Stella really had no appetite. After some time passed, the lights in the ICU finally went out. Dr. Kwort, whom everyone was somewhat familiar with, came out wearing light blue surgical scrubs. His face was grim and the meaning in his eyes was clear without words. "I mentioned last time that it's very difficult for Mr. Thomas Carlson to make it through another two months in this condition. He has made it this far due to the good care you've provided him during these last days. I am sorry." After the doctor finished speaking, Dean seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Avery covered her face and turned away, her faint sobbing audible. The most clear-headed one was Wyatt. Although he had moved out of the Carlson family's villa a long time ago, he was still legally adopted by Thomas. In name, he was still Thomas's son, and he had just signed the surgery form. After the doctor finished speaking, Wyatt silently followed him downstairs to issue Thomas's death certificate. The crescent moon hung high, and it was already midnight. After issuing the death certificate, they still needed to wait until tomorrow to complete the funeral procedures before they could take Thomas's body from the hospital morgue. After Wyatt returned, he simply said, "You can leave now." In the long corridor, what followed was the intense argument between Avery and Dean. Stella watched the scene in front of her expressionlessly, tightly gripping Ethan's hand, still feeling lost and bewildered by the doctor's final words. When she had just seen Thomas being wheeled out of the operating room covered in a white sheet, she only stood there, her eyes hollow, holding onto Ethan. She didn't want to and didn't dare to lift that white sheet, but she heard her own voice, unnervingly calm. "Ethan, I've lost my grandfather." Just a few hours ago, Thomas was still smiling and telling her to take care of herself, not to overwork. Everything happened too quickly, and she had never imagined that this moment would come in this form. She couldn't even bid farewell to her grandfather. The slight tremble in her palm betrayed the emotions deep within her. Ethan looked at her reddened eyes and murmured softly, "Stella, if you feel like crying, you don't have to hold it back." The argument in the hallway continued. Upon hearing his words, Stella shook her head blankly and said, "No, Ethan, I just really want to go home." Although she knew she shouldn't run away, she couldn't stay calm here anymore. She didn't want to witness the arguments between Dean and Avery, nor did she want to see the death certificate brought by Wyatt. She just wanted to go home, even if it seemed a bit childish. "Okay, then let's go home," Ethan's words were without hesitation. He knew Stella couldn't relax in this environment. So, he held her hand tighter, soothingly adding, "Don't worry, Isaac is here. Wyatt will take care of everything, I'll accompany you home." The Bentley drove fast. Along the way, Stella didn't speak again, as if she hadn't fully recovered from her daze. Half an hour later, the two returned to the villa, dragging their hungry and weary bodies. Ethan pressed the fingerprint lock, pushed the door, and entered the living room, surrounded by a silent darkness. He instinctively reached for the switch of the hall lamp but was stopped by Stella's voice. "Ethan, don't turn on the lights," her voice choked. Finally, she couldn't hold back her emotions anymore. Ethan sighed and pulled her into his arms, feeling Stella's slight, trembling shoulders and the warmth of her tears on his neck. In the dimly lit living room, Stella buried herself in the man's embrace, unaware of how long she had been crying. She knew she must look quite disheveled now. She had been holding back her emotions at the hospital, but returning to a familiar environment made it impossible to hold back any longer. The doctors had repeatedly warned her, and Stella knew this day would come soon. However, losing her only family member in the most regrettable way made her feel like a part of her heart had suddenly been hollowed out. Ethan tightened his arms around her, gently patting her back as her sobs gradually subsided. He lowered his voice and said, "But you still have me, right? Stella, we are family now too." Stella paused at his words, seemingly surprised that he would define their relationship as "family." After a long silence, her voice sounded muffled, "Am I being selfish?" "Why do you say that?" Ethan asked. 'My Grandpa has been really good to me these past few years, but I've always been very polite to him." Stella paused for a long time before finding the words to describe the distance between her and Thomas. Perhaps, Thomas felt regret too. Stella was not unaware of Thomas's kindness towards her, but Thomas wasn't only good to her; he also showed much love to Avery, his other granddaughter. And in that kind of environment, she didn't know how to let go of her burdens and face Thomas. Thomas felt sorry for her experience of getting lost when she was young, so he showed her a bit more favoritism after she returned home, which even caused dissatisfaction from Avery. Stella cared about Thomas, but she still couldn't act as carefree as Avery, intentionally or unintentionally expressing her unhappiness with Thomas's favoritism towards her. Perhaps, this was a flaw in her personality. She was too selfish, so she was unwilling to open up to others completely, fearing the possibility of getting hurt. "Don't think like that. You've already done very well," Ethan said, his gaze deep, as he gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with the warmth of his fingertips, illuminated by the faint moonlight outside. "You don't want Thomas to worry, you don't want him to be in a difficult position for you, so you've been keeping things from the Fletcher family. That's not selfish." With that said, he raised his eyebrows slightly and patted her head. "But, there's one thing you did wrong, and you need to change it in the future." Stella was puzzled for a moment, then followed up with his question, "What is it?" "Don't worry so much. You should think about how to make yourself happy," Ethan replied softly. The last sentence was spoken too softly, and Stella couldn't discern the emotions swirling in his eyes. She had just barely managed to calm herself down from the intense emotions, unable to let herself dwell on his words. She furrowed her brow, retrieving some composure from the earlier out-of-control emotions. "Ethan--" she tried to say something. "I've already said, don't thank me anymore," Ethan interrupted her, pausing for a moment before sighing again. "Have you ever heard of a saying?" Stella looked up and asked, "What saying?" "The true death of a person is not when their life disappears, but when they are forgotten by everyone. Thomas wouldn't want to see you sad because of his departure. As long as you remember him, he hasn't left you," Ethan replied in a gentle tone. Stella rarely heard Ethan speak to her in such a tone, but she also knew that he was saying these things to comfort her. In fact, the doctors had hinted to them many times during this period that Thomas could pass away at any time. She was not unprepared for this. She was just very regretful that she couldn't say a proper goodbye to her grandfather in the end. Thinking of this, Stella lowered her swollen eyes and asked softly, "What did Thomas say to you last time you went to the Carlson family's villa?" What did he say? Ethan looked down at her, knowing what she wanted to ask: whether Thomas had mentioned her. After a pause, he replied gently, "Yes, he said he hopes Stella will always be happy." Thomas might also have regrets, but selfishly, he didn't want her to bear that burden. As for his instructions regarding her, Ethan would also promise to fulfill them. But those things should be done by him.