Aoife was talking non-stop, but when Ethan held her in his warm embrace, her eyelids suddenly grew heavy.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered hoarsely, “Ethan, there’s a child in my belly. You said it’s a little girl. Seeing such a young girl in front of me in trouble, I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing…”
Ethan glanced at the monitoring room. The little girl still had her eyes closed, with low blood pressure, sleeping alone and hungry.
He remembered the girl, pale with blood all over her. Although she was weak, she still held onto Aoife’s finger, still wanting to survive.
Life was such a precious thing, Ethan fully understood why Aoife had to help.
“Why are you apologizing to me? You did a good deed. There’s a saying that good people won’t have a peaceful life. Helping others and doing good deeds builds merit for the child.”
They stayed outside, waiting. Even when it turned dark, the little girl’s family hadn’t arrived. The police were in charge of contacting them. Ethan ordered takeout for two, and after they finished eating, the girl’s parents finally showed up.
“Can we leave now?”
Ethan nodded, said a few words to the family, but suddenly, the girl’s parents grabbed Ethan’s hand and refused to let him go, their attitude extremely hostile.
Furrowing his brow, Ethan tried to explain, but they were clearly unreasonable.
Aoife listened to their conversation, translating each word to understand their meaning.
Basically, the girl’s parents accused Ethan of being the hit-and-run driver. They refused to pay for medical expenses, claiming he was running away after causing the accident.
Ethan explained that the situation was dangerous at the time, and if he hadn’t brought the child, she would have been in danger. The hit-and-run driver had fled, without any surveillance cameras on the road to identify them.
Moreover, after bringing the child to the hospital, he had paid a significant medical bill. He didn’t care about getting the money back, as long as he could take Aoife and leave.
However, the couple persisted, insisting that paying the medical bill was a sign of guilt, questioning why someone would be so kind.
Aoife, witnessing the scene, felt disheartened. She had once read a news story about an old lady whom she had helped across the road, only to be falsely accused and fined a large sum of money.
She never thought such an incident would happen to her, facing the ugly reality of being wronged so quickly.
Thinking about the girl who was still in danger inside, her parents had come but their focus was on accusations, rather than checking on their child. Their true, deceitful nature was laid bare without any pretense.
Caught in this turmoil, they couldn’t leave. The girl’s parents accused them of being responsible for the accident and demanded full payment of medical expenses, as well as compensation.
Of course, they couldn’t be convicted based solely on their words. The police would investigate the whole incident thoroughly.
Ethan and Aoife were temporarily detained at the police station for the night, needing to provide statements.
Red-eyed with anger, Aoife kept apologizing and taking the blame.
Ethan reassured her, “You’re not wrong. They are. This situation isn’t so simple. Think about how young that girl is, how did she end up on the road? And her parents arrived so late, didn’t even check on her, leaving her alone in the monitoring room. They seem well-versed in extorting money, clearly not their first time.”
Hearing this, Aoife’s fingers trembled. “Are you saying… the child’s accident was because of them?”
“Not necessarily, but it seems they wanted to get rid of the child.”
With a heavy heart, Aoife saw herself in the girl’s situation. If it had been her in the accident, she suspected her parents would have acted the same, selfishly leaving her in the hospital, uncaring of her fate.
They spent the night at the police station. Aoife’s morning sickness was especially severe, despite not eating much, causing her to vomit repeatedly, her face turning pale.
Looking at the dried bloodstains on Aoife’s body, Ethan suspected they were related to her morning sickness. He gave money to a police officer to buy clean clothes for them.
Seeing Aoife, a pregnant woman, the officer immediately bought the clothes without hesitation.
Ethan was also covered in blood; as the night grew cold, he took off his shirt to avoid getting sick. Thankfully, the officer quickly returned with the clothes in hand.
“Aoife, change your clothes.”
Covered in blood, her discomfort evident, Aoife obediently changed into clean clothes and felt much better.
They spent the night at the police station, but the officers were accommodating, providing toiletries, hot water, and a place to sleep.
Despite these comforts, Aoife couldn’t shake her unease in an unfamiliar place, but with Ethan by her side, she felt a sense of security.
The next morning, after eating breakfast prepared by the officers, they were taken separately for questioning.
Complaining, Aoife said, “The efficiency here is terrible. Can we go back today?”
Even Ethan wasn’t sure if they could return. Something felt off; he sensed the officers were intentionally prolonging their stay, making him increasingly uneasy.
The officers insisted on keeping them until the investigation was complete.
Mocking, Ethan said, “So, if you can’t solve it in a day, you’ll keep us here forever? Why should we bear the burden of your incompetence? Is this how society treats those who do good deeds? Who will dare to be a Good Samaritan in the future?”
Apologetic, the officer said, “I’m sorry, sir, but we have to follow procedure. Rest assured, we will have everything sorted out within a week.”
“My wife is pregnant. Can you guarantee her safety if something happens?”
“We can arrange for a place for you to stay.”
Realizing they were being monitored, Ethan had no choice but to accept their fate. With no substantial background or connections to help, it seemed they would be detained for a few days.
Despite Ethan’s presence, Aoife’s anxiety persisted. She had nightmares throughout the night.
Three days passed, the only good news being that the girl they had saved was out of danger.
What started as a simple act of kindness now involved the police, the media, making use of the rare opportunity to report on a “heroic” act. The girl, grateful for being saved, spoke the truth to the reporters, acknowledging the young woman and man who rescued her.