Chapter 27 Testing

Chapter 27 Testing

The butler's voice came through the phone, urgent and brisk. "Sir, your grandfather heard about the accident in City A. He's about to send people over. How are you?"

"I'm fine," Sebastian said flatly, as if it were someone else's problem. "Minor incident. Already handled. Tell him not to worry."

He didn't need to guess where the old man had heard it from.

George hadn't gotten what he wanted here, so now he was trying to stir up trouble back home. It was pathetic.

"Tell my grandfather I'll handle the City A project. Make sure he takes his medication on time. Don't let him get worked up over something this small." Sebastian rattled off a few more instructions and hung up.

Family ties in wealthy circles were tissue-thin.

He had gotten used to it a long time ago.

But today, after the deliberate crash and seeing Sophie fall apart like that, something had shifted. A hairline crack in the ice around his chest.

Sophie dumped the trash into the recycling bin at the end of the hospital corridor. Her legs felt weak. She leaned against the cold wall just to stay upright.

The delayed shock and emotional whiplash were catching up to her. Her stomach churned again.

She covered her mouth and forced the nausea down. Her thoughts were in chaos.

Then her phone buzzed in her pocket.

She pulled it out. The name on the screen made her freeze.

Emma.

Sophie's eyes narrowed. Her first instinct was to decline the call.

Ever since that night at the hospital—when Emma had seen her with Sebastian—the friendship between them had cracked wide open. What was left was a hollow shell.

She hesitated, then answered.

"Hello."

"Sophie, it's me." Emma's voice was soft and sweet, with that familiar note of concern. "It's been so long. How are you? I heard you fainted at the celebration dinner. Are you okay? I've been wanting to call, but I didn't want to bother you."

Every word was perfectly considerate, as if they were still best friends who told each other everything.

A few months ago, Sophie might have believed it.

Now, it just sounded hollow.

"I'm fine. Thanks for asking." Sophie's voice was cool and distant, like she was talking to a client she didn't care about.

Emma didn't seem to notice. She kept going, her probing tone barely disguised. "That's good. You need to take care of yourself. Mr. Carter only has you. If you collapsed, what would he do?"

Then she shifted gears. Her real agenda surfaced.

"You're in City A now, right? I heard Aiden mention it. Are you… are you alone? Is Mr. Carter not with you?"

The careful, eager way she asked made Sophie's stomach turn.

She was checking up on Sebastian.

A wave of disgust and sadness hit her all at once. After all these years, this was what their friendship had come to. Emma saw her as nothing more than a source of information.

Sophie's gaze drifted to the gray sky outside the corridor window. A faint, cold smile touched her lips.

She didn't answer Emma's question. Instead, she asked her own.

"I'm doing fine. What about you? Have you found a new job since you left the company?"

Emma faltered on the other end.

Sophie didn't let up. Her tone stayed calm, but every word was a blade.

"How's that rich boyfriend of yours treating you? Has he introduced you to his family yet?"

The questions landed like slaps.

"I… I have something to take care of. We can talk about work another time." Emma's voice wavered. She scrambled for an excuse. "I won't keep you. Take care of yourself."

She hung up before Sophie could say anything else.

Sophie stared at the phone in her hand. The line went dead.

On the other end, Emma gripped her phone so hard her knuckles went white. She was shaking with rage.

Sophie's casual questions had torn through every lie she'd carefully built.

The rich boyfriend. Meeting his family. All of it was fake.

She was trapped in Sebastian's apartment. He gave her money, but nothing else. Meanwhile, Sophie got to stay by his side as his secretary. She had even been the first one at the hospital after his accident.

Jealousy coiled around Emma's chest like a snake coiling tighter.

She couldn't just sit here and do nothing.

The car accident was an opportunity. A perfect one.

A calculating gleam flickered in Emma's eyes. She stood up and dug through her closet. She pulled out the plainest, most worn-looking outfit she owned and changed into it. Then she grabbed her phone and called Aiden without hesitation.

She was going to City A. She was going to show up in front of Sebastian and play the role of the devoted girlfriend who had rushed to his side.

That was the only way to pull attention away from Sophie.

Night settled over the hospital. The corridors grew quiet.

In the private room, only a dim wall lamp was on. The soft light barely reached the corners.

Sebastian couldn't sleep. The crash earlier that day, George's smug face, the way everything had spiraled—it all kept his mind sharp and restless.

He finished replying to a few urgent emails. Then his gaze drifted, almost without meaning to, toward the couch across the room.

Sophie was curled up on it, fast asleep.

She hadn't even asked for a blanket. She had just draped her jacket over herself and tucked her knees up to her chest. She looked small and fragile.

Her face wasn't peaceful. Her brow was furrowed. Her long lashes fluttered now and then, as if even in sleep, the weight of it all pressed down on her.

Sebastian stared at her. That vague irritation in his chest flared up again.

He looked away, forcing himself not to care. But his ears still caught every small sound in the room.

Minutes passed. Maybe longer.

Then a soft mumble drifted over from the couch.

"…capitalist exploiter…"

Sebastian froze. He turned his head.

Sophie had rolled over. Her lips were still moving, muttering something under her breath.

He caught the words clearly this time. A flicker of amusement crossed his cold features. Almost a smile.

So that was what she called him behind his back.

He should have been annoyed. But instead, something else stirred in his chest. Something more complicated.

This was more real than that polished, professional smile she always wore.

He was about to look away when her voice broke into a whimper.

"…don't… please don't…" Her hand reached out into empty air, grasping at nothing. "…the car… it was going so fast… Sebastian, you can't… you can't die…"

The broken pleading in her voice hit him like a blow to the chest.

The faint smile vanished from his face.

She was worried about him. Even in her dreams.