The pain in her belly came and disappeared quickly.
The sharp pain in Estelle’s belly slowly receded, and she looked much better.
Then she replied, “Yes.”
“Although he has been dead, you will still love him for the rest of your life, right?” Cristofer asked again.
“Yes.”
“Then what about Tim?”
“I have told you that I have nothing to do with Mr. Roberts.”
“Then why did you choose to leave with him instead of staying with me that day? And why do you want to leave the car now? If you neither hold any affection nor resentment towards me, I should be as insignificant as Tim in your heart. If that’s the case, why did you treat us differently?” Cristofer asked.
Estelle moistened her lips and responded, “I left with him that day because his motorcycle is the same model as Mr. Mysterious’.”
“Just because of this?”
“Yes.” Estelle nodded.
“It turned out to be because of this…” Cristofer said as he shook his head with a bitter smile. “I had a hard time accepting that I’m less important than a dead person in your heart. But now you tell me that I can’t even compare it with a motorcycle… What a loser I am.”
Hearing this, Estelle, who had gradually calmed herself down, raised her head and looked at Cristofer’s face.
Cristofer was positioned in the driver’s seat, facing her while kneeling. Given his considerable height, he needed to bend slightly due to the cramped car.
In Estelle’s impression, he typically exuded a commanding aura. Yet, at this particular instant, he appeared flustered and dejected.
Seeing him frown slightly with his head lowered, Estelle thought, ‘Cristofer, you’re so similar to Mr. Mysterious when you show such an expression.’
“Star, are you looking at me?” Cristofer, who sensed her gaze, asked as he raised his head and looked into her eyes.
“Why are you looking at me with such a sad expression?”
Wrenching her mind back to the present, Estelle quickly looked away and said, “I’m not looking at you.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Feeling extremely frustrated, Cristofer slumped back into his seat, unlocked the door and said, “You can go now.”
The next second, Estelle immediately reached out to open the car door.
“Estelle,” Cristofer called her name and then paused for a few seconds. “I will try my best to help that child. Don’t worry. Thanks to you, Yohan and Yvonne can grow up healthily and live a happy life. If Grandpa sees them, he will be very happy, and maybe he will get better.”
“What’s wrong with Grandpa Gary?” Estelle quickly asked.
“He had a relapse after learning about our divorce. Now, he is confined to bed, and Uncle Luke is taking care of him. I’ve moved back to the Hans’ Residence, which is more convenient for me to take care of him after work. After all… Grandpa became like this because of me.”
Hearing his sadness, Estelle couldn’t help feeling distressed. “Grandpa Gary…”
“I’ll take the kids to visit him another day,” Estelle said softly.
Suddenly, Cristofer’s phone rang.
When he saw the caller ID, he frowned and immediately answered the phone.
“Hi, Uncle Luke.”
“Mr. Hans, Old Mr. Hans just saw the news that you were with a girl. He got angry and suffered a heart attack again!” Luke said anxiously on the other end of the line.
It was quiet in the car, and Estelle heard what Luke had mentioned clearly.
“Did you call an ambulance?” Cristofer asked.
“Yes, I did. Mr. Hans, you can go to the hospital directly!”
“Okay, I’ll be there soon.”
Just before ending the call, Luke let out a deep, audible sigh and added, “Mr. Hans, you’re aware that Old Mr. Hans only wishes for you to be with Estelle. Even if you choose not to obey his wishes, it’s crucial not to let him become aware of your involvement with another woman. Old Mr. Hans is bedridden at present. Watching news on TV serves as his only form of entertainment…”
Cristofer gritted his teeth and said with his face full of pain, “It’s all my fault. I know I was wrong, Uncle Luke.”
After hanging up the phone, Cristofer started the car at once. Grabbing the steering wheel tightly, he looked at Estelle from the rearview mirror and asked, “Do you still want to get out of the car?”
“…”
“If you don’t, we’ll go to the hospital,” he said.
With his heart in his throat, Cristofer closed his eyes and waited for her to make a choice.
He had thought he would hear Estelle pushing the door open. But to his surprise, Estelle said gently to him, “Let’s go.”
****
The hospital was near the stadium, while the Hans’ Residence was located in the suburbs.
When Cristofer and Estelle arrived at the hospital, the ambulance was still on the way.
Cristofer told the doctors about Gary’s condition in advance. Gary was taken to the emergency room as soon as the ambulance arrived.
Outside the emergency room, Luke slumped to the ground and said, “This is the second time that Old Mr. Hans has had a heart attack. The doctor said that if an elderly person like Old Mr. Hans has a heart attack for the third time, he will be very likely to die…”
Cristofer walked over and helped Luke stand up. “Uncle Luke…”
“Mr. Hans!” Luke gritted his teeth, cried bitterly, and held Cristofer’s hand tightly. “Why did you choose that woman? I saw her on TV. What’s so good about her? She can’t compare with Estelle at all.”
Taking a deep breath, Cristofer didn’t know what to say. “I…”
“Mr. Hans, you said that Estelle has started a new relationship. Is that true?” Luke inquired.
“Well, it’s a little complicated,” Cristofer didn’t answer his question directly.
“Is there any possibility of reconciling with Estelle? Mr. Hans, consider reuniting with her. Old Mr. Hans reminisces about Yohan and Yvonne each day, and he holds a constant desire for Estelle to return to your side. Please regard this as Old Mr. Hans’ final wish and honor it, will you?”
Upon hearing this, Cristofer offered a bitter smile and replied, “Uncle Luke, Estelle doesn’t even wish to lay eyes on me, let alone consider rekindling our relationship.”
“Uncle Luke,” a gentle voice suddenly emerged from nearby.
Hearing the familiar voice, Luke promptly turned around.
Upon seeing Estelle, he was taken aback and suspected he might be experiencing a hallucination.
He examined Estelle more closely, rubbed his eyes, and then looked at her once again.
Then he said in disbelief, “Estelle? You are back! You… Have you and Mr. Hans…”
Knowing what he wanted to ask, Estelle shook her head and interrupted him, “Uncle Luke, we are not…”
“Estelle!” Cristofer called her name and stopped her from talking. Then he quickly walked toward her, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her along.
When Estelle was about to struggle, she heard Cristofer whisper in a pleading tone, “Please, Estelle.”