My Darling, My Dearest

Chapter 416 Everyone Is Worried

Before everything had happened, Rachel could barely remember Jack's goodness while he was still by her side. She could only think of the negatives, like how he had kept his entanglement with other women from her, as well as that woman who could have been her twin in terms of looks.

Now, something this unexpected had happened. She sat there outside of the operating room, and his many kindnesses flashed in her mind like a movie.

There were those days when she was in a rotten mood for no apparent reason; he had no qualms being her emotional punching bag and often tried to coax her out of her bad mood. Even when she was angry and didn't want to talk to him, he still sent her the weather forecast accompanied by his own reminder for her to be careful not to catch a cold.

People said, "You don't know what you've got until it's gone." Wasn't this particularly true in her case right now?

Her nose started smarting, and she raised a hand to wipe the tears that had started to well up in her eyes. She fervently prayed in her heart for his well-being. Rachel was so lost in her thoughts that she did not notice Tracy staring at her searchingly with a frown on her face. No one knew what she was thinking about.

"Rachel!" Suddenly, Tracy called her name and sat down beside her. "Had Jack been with you these past few days?" she asked.

Rachel gradually managed to calm down and nodded, "Yes."

"Then why did he go to the neighboring city?"

Rachel clearly saw the small flare of anger in Tracy's eyes. She pursed her lips and whispered, "I have no idea."

She suddenly heard the other woman exhale with a huff. Trembling with anger, Tracy stood up, pointed at her, and said in an agitated voice, "Rachel, back then, it was our fault and we owed you and the Shen family. But shouldn't all those years of carrying that burden of guilt be enough? Ask yourself, has the Fu family done you any wrong since you were a child?"

Suddenly, Jonathan came up to them, grabbed Tracy's arm, and said harshly, "That's enough! Jack is still in the operating room. Don't you think it's inappropriate of you to be saying these things under the circumstances?"

"Why not?"

Tracy raised her hand and angrily brushed away the tears that had sprung in her eyes. She growled, "I have to say it now because Jack is paying the price!" She again turned to face Rachel. "Jack gave you his heart and soul. He kept all of this from you because he was afraid that you would leave him once you found out. But you—you never gave him the chance to explain his side of the story after you heard it from your aunt! Do you have any idea how tortured Jack felt? You've never cared about him from the beginning up to now. As his mother, I tried to persuade him into forgetting you, but nothing worked. Now that you're back in his life, we would have let bygones be bygones if you were at least willing to try to make things work out between the two of you. But did you even try to get along with him? Austin told me that Jack didn't have to go on this business trip personally, but he volunteered to do so. I think you know the reason, don't you? Rachel, I want to ask you a single question: are you finally satisfied to see Jack suffer like this?"

Rachel's words were stuck in her throat, and her whole body trembled. She did not know how to answer Tracy's impassioned diatribe. Feeling sick, she stumbled a little, and it was a good thing that Julie quickly moved to support her.

Jonathan's face darkened. "Will you shut up?"

Tracy glared at him and huddled by herself in a corner, covering her mouth with her hands and weeping. She had thought it through. Although Rachel was carrying Jack's flesh and blood, what use would it be?

She only had one son, and she couldn't bear Jack's suffering. If anything else went wrong, she knew that she would collapse. As long as her son came out of this ordeal alive and well, she could still have other grandchildren in the future.

Rachel was sitting on the chair, shell-shocked. One question was stuck in her head —"Am I satisfied to see Jack suffer?" Was it true? If she hadn't lost her temper with him, would he have come to the neighboring city for the business trip? If so, could the car accident have been avoided?

At the sight of Rachel's pale face and trembling lips, Jonathan heaved a heavy sigh and patted her shoulder gently in an attempt to comfort her. "Rachel, go home and try to have a good rest. We'll be right here with Jack. It's all right."

However, she raised her hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes and insisted, "I won't leave until Jack's operation is over."

"Judging from Tracy's condition, I think it's not appropriate for you to stay here. I'll call you as soon as we get word about Jack's surgery. You can come back by then," Jonathan said.

Julie also tried to persuade her. After glancing for a moment at Tracy's trembling shoulders and the closed door of the operating room, Rachel stood up and said, "Okay, I'll go back now. Please call me as soon as Jack comes out."

The sunlight outside the hospital was so glaring bright that Rachel had a problem opening her eyes. Julie followed her outside to help, but the woman didn't know what to say.

The two of them walked down the street for an indeterminately long period, the silence stretching out between them. Rachel gradually regained her senses. She looked at Julie, whose legs were starting to give out on her because of the long walk. She said in a faint voice, "Let's go back to the hotel."

On the way to the city, they booked a hotel, which was located only about half a kilometer away from the hospital.

As soon as they entered the hotel lobby of the hotel, Rachel heard a familiar voice call her name.

She was walking with her head down, and her head snapped up when she heard the woman. Her eyes found Lea, who was jogging towards her. Three men —Michael, Marcus, and Henry-stood at the front desk with identically blank faces.

Lea opened her arms to hug Rachel and murmured reassuringly, "Rachel, don't be afraid. Everything will be all right."

Finally, Rachel lost her hold on her tenuous control and started tearing up at the sight of her friend. She buried her face against the other woman's shoulder and whispered, "It's all my fault, Lea."

Lea, who also lost control over her own tears, said fiercely, "Hush, my love, it's not your fault. How could it be?"

The two of them stood in the lobby, clutching at each other for support and weeping. People passing by stopped and stared at them.

Henry walked up to them, gently pulled Lea away, and held her in his arms. "Honey, let's go back to our room first, okay?" he said with a slight nod toward Rachel.

"Yes. Let's go upstairs first." The unfailingly cheerful Michael wore an uncharacteristically somber look on his face.

Inside the room, Rachel gradually calmed down. Listening to Lea's comforting words made her feel better, and her tears had stopped flowing. She tried to force out a smile and said, "Lea, I'm fine."

"How could you be fine? If you really were fine, then you wouldn't be saying that everything's your fault," Lea said in a choked-up voice, handing her a wad of facial tissues.

A slight smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, Rachel said, "Seriously, I'm fine. I was just thinking how if I didn't come back to Jack's life or quarrel with him before the accident, then none of this would have happened."

A few minutes after Rachel had left the hospital, Tracy gradually stopped crying, but her shoulders were still shaking. Looking at her, Jonathan raised his finger several times in an attempt to say something until finally, he lowered his head helplessly and stopped trying.

After some time, Tracy took out her mobile phone and searched for a number in her contacts. Immediately, Jonathan snatched the phone from her hand and asked, "Who are you calling?"

Tracy stretched out her hand and tried to snatch back the device. "I'm calling Scarlett," she said in a resolute tone.

Jonathan snapped, "Can you stop doing this? Rachel has already come back. Do you think it's appropriate for you to ask Scarlett to come at this point?"

"What's wrong with calling Scarlett? Let me tell you, Jonathan Fu. I will never allow Rachel to stay at Jack's side. I only have one son. I can't stand any more of this anxiety!" As she spoke, she pressed a fist against her mouth and started weeping again. "If anything happens to Jack, I don't think I can live anymore," she shouted hysterically.

Her words softened Jonathan's heart. He slowly held out the phone toward Tracy, who took it and stepped aside to make her call.

He stood up on his walking stick and walked towards the door of the operating room. Tears started to fall from his aged eyes. Since Rachel came back, he thought that this matter would gradually pass. But then, such an unimaginable thing happened.

Lying on that operating table, Jack remained unconscious, and a breathing tube as thick as a finger was inserted into his mouth and down his throat. He saw and felt nothing, and he had no idea about the tempest that happened outside of the operating room.

With the recollection of Lea's consoling words easing her pain, Rachel finally lay in the bed. The physical and emotional exhaustion of the day caught up with her, so she closed her eyes and slowly drifted off to asleep. Lea asked Julie to take good care of Rachel and to call her as soon as she woke up.

Henry had been waiting for Lea at the door of their room. When she emerged from Rachel's suite with swollen eyes, he felt sad and helpless. "I only let you accompany Rachel. Why were you crying?"

"I couldn't control myself. I pity Rachel so much. " At the thought, Lea clutched at his shirt and burst into tears again.

Even from an early age, Rachel had always been different from other children. They had parents; she didn't—she only had uncles who were not even related to her. Thus, she had to learn to be strong, rely on herself, and never bother others. Even if she cried alone in her bed most of the time, only she herself knew about it.

After several deep breaths, Lea wiped her tears and straightened up. She continued, "When we were young, we were taught to sing this song called 'Mom Is The Best In The World.' We were asked to take turns to sing on the stage. Rachel was a very good singer then, and everyone cheered for her. But a kid stood up, pointed at her, and yelled, 'Why is she singing this song? She doesn't even have a mother.' I haven't heard her sing ever since."

Henry said nothing and only patted her shoulder gently while listening to her story.

Author's note

Goose BBSS Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

Translator: Scarlett5555