Elisa only knew that her gastric illness was severe, but she didn’t know it was gastric cancer.
Along with gastric cancer, she also had pharyngitis. Every time she took her medication, she couldn’t help but want to vomit. She endured the urge to retch, tears streaming down her face.
Taking medication became a torment for Elisa. She could only eat to a third of her capacity for lunch, reserving the rest for her medication.
“Why do I have to take medicine every day? Can’t I skip it?”
“No, you can’t,” Hamish directly vetoed. He could accommodate everything for her, except when it came to taking medication.
During Elisa’s hospitalization, due to the countless times her gastric cancer flared up, he was too afraid of losing her. He was also afraid that Elisa would remember something due to the flare-up of her gastric cancer.
Only by taking medication continuously could she suppress the cancer cells.
Even though she was so careful, Elisa still fell ill. Her stomach ached for a long time. She was someone accustomed to enduring pain, a trait she remembered even after losing her memory.
She bore the pain, holding a book while sitting half-squinted on the balcony. It was unclear whether she was sunbathing or using the book to distract herself from the stomach ache.
Hamish received a call; it was Tobias asking him work-related questions. He listened while searching for Elisa, finally seeing her curled up on the balcony.
She was sleeping in a soft chair, her posture lazy like a cat. Her perennial illness had left her complexion pale and under the sunlight, the faint purple veins on her neck were visible.
When Elisa heard the commotion, she glanced at him and continued reading.
She had grabbed a book at random from the bookshelf. The cover bore the title “The First Economics Book.” Its content was dry and abstruse, yet Elisa clearly found it familiar, as if she had read it before losing her memory.
She flipped through it quickly, turning half of it in no time. Hamish, hearing the rustling of the pages, thought she was just flipping through it for fun.
He walked over and sat next to Elisa, embracing her shoulders, drawing her closer. He played with her braid with his fingertips.
Elisa, in pain and being held by him, couldn’t focus on the book. She threw the book aside and nestled into Hamish’s embrace, listening to his phone call.
When dealing with work, Hamish never avoided Elisa. He spoke into the phone, “First, drop off the batch of goods at South Water Island. Someone has been watching… Find another location…”
There were more words from the other end of the call. Hamish replied with an “Hmm,” then hung up, holding Elisa in his arms.
Elisa, feeling uncomfortable from her stomach ache, furrowed her brow lightly, “Aren’t you going to work?”
“I’ll go tomorrow. Do you want to come with me?”
“No, you should focus on your work. I won’t disturb you.” In truth, she was somewhat curious about Hamish’s company. However, she thought that with Hamish taking care of her for these few months, there must be a lot of work piled up at his company. Her going would only be a bother. She could visit later when he was less busy.
Hamish didn’t insist, “I’m still worried about you. If you want to go for a walk, you can, but you must come back at noon to take your medication.”
“Can’t I take it outside?”
“I don’t believe you’ll obediently take your medication. When you come back, let Mrs. Rugger supervise you.”
Before Elisa could say anything else, her stomach suddenly cramped. She moaned softly, and Hamish immediately tensed, asking, “What’s wrong? Where does it hurt?”
“My stomach just cramped for a moment.”
Hamish immediately stood up, reaching out to hold her, “I’ll take you to the hospital.”
There was a hospital nearby, just a five-minute drive away, but Elisa didn’t want to go, “This is an old problem. It’ll stop hurting in a while.”
“No, we must go to the hospital. I’ll stay with you, and I won’t go to work tomorrow.”
Elisa was momentarily at a loss for words. It was just a stomach ache; it wouldn’t kill her. Why was Hamish so worried? He had just mentioned going to work tomorrow, and now he suddenly said he wouldn’t go. If his subordinates found out, they would surely criticize him behind his back for being irresponsible.
She touched her stomach, “I’m really fine. It’s probably just a reaction to the medication.”
Every time Elisa took her medicine, she experienced a stress reaction.
Hamish gradually calmed down. Seeing thatElisa’s complexion seemed normal, he no longer insisted on taking her to the hospital.
At five o’clock in the afternoon, Hamish received a text message from Lila. After glancing at it, he deleted the message.
“Your phone just rang. Was it a message from someone?” Elisa asked.
“Just spam. I’ve already deleted it.”
Elisa responded with an “Oh.” Hamish had just bought her a new phone and set up a new SIM card, yet she was already receiving annoying spam messages.
Elisa and Hamish didn’t sleep in separate rooms. They had gotten used to sharing a room during their time at the hospital. Moreover, they were “married.” When they shared a bed, Elisa always slept at the edge, maintaining a distance, but every morning, she would wake up snuggled in Hamish’s embrace.
In the morning, when Elisa got up, Hamish had already gone to the office. She changed into a different outfit, then went to the bathroom. The toothpaste had already been squeezed out as usual.
After a quick wash, she went downstairs for breakfast. It was a yolk bun with porridge. Mrs. Rugger had made it. Even though Elisa had little appetite, she couldn’t help but eat a whole bowl of porridge because of Mrs. Rugger’s excellent cooking.
“Mrs. Burns, are you going out today?” Mr. Clegg asked.
Elisa thought for a moment, “I won’t go out today.”