Credence didn’t answer Dorothy. Instead, he pulled out two sheets of paper from his package and flipped it over to the last column. He showed it to her and said, “Honey, after reading this, promise me, you won’t get too agitated. No matter what happens, I’m here for you!”
Credence’s solemn tone made Dorothy very anxious. She felt an inexplicable fear well up in her heart. “Credence, what do you mean by that? Tell me, is the baby’s blood a match or not? Belle passed out this morning. Her condition is getting worse. I need to know the results to see we can save her life!”
Credence handed her the report with the results page on top. She only needed to lower her head to see everything clearly.
But Dorothy dared not look at the words on the paper.
She had been looking forward to the results for such a long time. But unfortunately, they weren’t what she had hoped for. It was completely opposite to what she had hoped for. She could not accept it, she really couldn’t.
Credence was silent as he looked at her dark eyes. He did not know how to tell her about the conclusion they had arrived at. His heart throbbed with pain.
Perhaps she only had the will to live on despite him hurting her repeatedly because she had hoped that the baby in her womb would be able to cure Belle.
But now, the results of the amniotic fluid test were here, and it wasn’t a match. The higher her expectations, the more disappointed she would be. How was he supposed to tell her the truth?
Dorothy took a deep breath and wiped away her tears. She dared not look at the results. She looked up at him, her face pale. She couldn’t conceal the despair in her eyes. “Credence, I don’t want to look at it. I want you to tell me the results.”
“Alright, I’ll tell you!”
Credence clenched the report in his hands. His grip was so tense that the back of his hand turned white.
He bent down and tightly held Dorothy in his arms. He closed his eyes and felt absolutely helpless.
He put his lips close to her ear and spoke slowly. “Honey, it was only a 20 percent match. If the operation is to be a success, it has to at least be a 60 percent match. So the baby in your womb and Belle’s bone marrow… aren’t a match.”
It was difficult for him to tell her this. It was a huge blow to her, a fatal one!
Even if he was able to hide the truth, he would not be able to hide it forever. No matter how difficult it was, Credence still needed to tell her the truth.
“It failed?! How, how could this be?!”
There was a flurry of panic on Dorothy’s face, her heart was in so much pain, it felt like it had broken. Her body temperature plummeted and her breathing became shallow.
She reached out and grabbed Credence’s arm, shaking her head violently. “Impossible, you’re lying, aren’t you? Belle and the child in my womb are so closely related, how could it not be a match?”
“There must be something wrong, there has to be something wrong! I don’t believe it, I won’t believe it. Credence, I’ve been recovering so well these past few days. I even gained two whole pounds. Get a doctor, the most skilled doctor, and have me take another amniotic fluid test. Let’s do it one more time, alright?”
Her fingernails pierced deeply into Credence’s muscles. She grabbed his arm with all her strength. Her heart was in so much pain, she couldn’t bear it any longer. “This is so cruel, I can’t accept it, I just can’t!”
“Credence, do you know that Belle is much worse than she was yesterday? She’s losing more hair too, did you know that? But she’s never cried or made a fuss about it. She’s just so happy being able to touch my belly and says that when her little brother comes out, she will take him to the playground and they’ll ride a roller coaster together. She also said that she’d take him to school to study… She is only six and a half years old. She’s so innocent and lovely. But because of this illness, she will never be able to ride a roller coaster. If something really happens to Belle, I won’t be able to live either! Credence, you have to think of a way to save Belle, save our precious daughter, okay?”
“Belle, I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault! Ah!”
The more she spoke, the more anxious she got. By the time she was done speaking, her voice had become severely hoarse. She let out a sharp and painful sound from her trembling lips. Every time she sobbed she would gasp for air and choke from the effort. She was completely caught in a vortex of grief, no exit to be found.
Her miserable wailing was like countless daggers piercing through Credence’s heart, causing him excruciating pain. The pain wouldn’t stop, it was bad he turned numb.
He was worried that her anxiety would be harmful to her and the unborn baby. Regardless of the pain in his arms, he continued to tightly hold her body. She was trembling terribly and her pupils were blood-shot red.
“Honey, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, it’s all my fault, it’s all my fault!”
“Honey, don’t cry!”
“Dorothy…”
Credence softly called out to her, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not rouse her. She was so overwhelmed with guilt and grief. He watched helplessly as her hands fell limp. Her face was covered in tears and her eyes were filled with sadness. “Credence, what should I do? Belle’s is only going to get worse. There might not be enough time to find a suitable donor for her bone marrow. Tell me, what should I do?”
“It hurts. My stomach hurts a lot…”
She hissed in pain as her lips trembled. Her fingers slowly moved to one side of her bulging belly. As her breathing became more uneven, her stomach began to twitch. Cold sweat trickled down her forehead like raindrops. Her body could not support itself and she fell backward onto the ground.
Her sweat landed on his palms as he was holding her. It burned his skin, the pain from them reached all the way to his heart.
“Honey, what happened to you?”
In the ward, Credence suddenly let out an earth-shaking roar. He held Dorothy in his arms, she was in a very weak state. He suddenly turned around and rushed to the door.
“Doctor, save her. Hurry up and f*cking save her!”
In an instant, a fierce wind swept throught the spacious corridor.
…
Marvin knew and remembered that Dorothy’s amniotic fluid test results would be out today. He had been thinking about it and decided to call Credence, but no one answered his call.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get through at all.
After trying a few more times, he decided to call Dorothy instead. Sure enough, even though the call connected, no one answered it either.
Marvin was worried something had happened. He rushed to the hospital.
As soon as he stepped out of the elevator, he saw Credence holding on to Dorothy. She was unconscious on the floor. He ran towards them while shouting for help.
They had been friends for decades, Marvin had never seen Credence lose his composure like this. His heart skipped a beat. He quickly walked over to him. “Credence, what happened?”
“The blood from the child in her belly doesn’t match with Belle’s. Dorothy got upset and fainted from the pain. It’s all my fault. I deserve to die…”
Credence screamed. He could feel Dorothy’s body temperature dropping as he held her in his arms. He was so shocked that his eyes started to tear up.
Despite his hazy vision, he squinted his eyes and slowly regained his senses. “I’m taking Dorothy to the operating room. Marvin, you stay here and keep an eye on her. Call me as soon as you hear of any updates. I have to find Jonathan right away to call up every organ storehouse to see if they have any bone marrow that matches Belle’s.”
If anything bad happened to Belle, Dorothy probably wouldn’t have the will to live anymore.
They were the two most important people in his life. If he lost them both, what was the point of him staying alive? He’d be like a zombie, shambling through a pointless existence.
Seeing the grief on his face, Marvin’s eyes turned red as well. He nodded solemnly. “Alright, Credence, leave this to me. Hurry up and take care of it.”
After making such a ruckus, the doctors and nurses received the news and rushed to the operating room. They were ready to rescue Dorothy, who had fallen into a coma and there were signs of a potential miscarriage.
Credence turned around and looked at Dorothy. She was about to be sent into the operating room. Her face was pale and still. Credence closed his eyes, turned around, and left.
As he left the hospital, he jumped into his car, stepped on the gas pedal, and sped off towards the city’s main hospital.