The doc came by to check on Jeffery. When he found out Josephine and Liam were also doctors, he didn't have much more to say.
After sorting out the hospital paperwork, Liam carried the sleeping Jeffery upstairs.
Stuart was super jealous and worried about Jeffery's health. Even though he still had some beef with Jeffery, he wanted him to get better fast because he knew it would make Josephine happy.
Weirdly enough, when Stuart first saw Jeffery with those purple eyes, he couldn't bring himself to hate the kid. But he had nothing but bad vibes for Jeffery's dad, Roy.
Deep down, Stuart believed that rejecting Jeffrey would diminish his chances with Josephine, so he didn't truly harbor animosity towards Jeffrey. And if he ever got back with Josephine, he'd definitely treat Jeffery right.
After Jeffery was settled in his room, Stuart and the other two guys hung out outside the ward.
Josephine told Laura, "Laura, this isn't working. You should take Steven and go. Jeffery's stable now, and the meds will do the trick. You guys should head back."
Liam chimed in, "I'm not leaving. If something happens, you need someone here to help."
Laura said, "Fine, I'll go, and you stay. Don't worry, I'll handle those three outside."
No one knew what Laura said to them, but when Josephine checked again, the three guys were gone.
Jeffery's fever had gone down, but he was still out cold.
Liam whispered to Josephine, "This can't go on. Sooner or later, Stuart's gonna figure out Jeffery's eyes are brown."
Josephine stayed quiet.
Liam went on, "We should've never let Jeffery wear those colored contacts. If Stuart finds out the eye color is fake, it's like telling him the kid's related to him."
Josephine said, "I didn't think about that at the time. I thought if he knew I had a kid, he'd stay out of my life. Who knew..."
Liam said, "You can tell he genuinely likes you, not just pretending."
"Liam, are you actually defending him?"
Liam laughed, "What can I do if you like him? Even if a brother isn't a fan of his sister's boyfriend, he's gotta have his back for her happiness."
There was a saying that there was no real friendship between a man and a woman unless one pretended to be a fool and the other never spoke up.
Josephine knew Liam cared for her, but she never dared to talk about feelings with him because she felt she had nothing to offer. She always saw Liam as family and cherished that bond. She was lucky Liam never brought it up either.
Maybe it was selfish, but she didn't want to lose the bond they had from growing up together.
Deep down, she was very grateful to Liam but also felt sorry for him.
People thought Liam had high standards, which was why he was still single. Yet Josephine never broached the topic, fearing Liam might rush into a relationship to ease her concerns, while silently wishing for him to find a genuine and caring partner in the future. She was sure it would happen because Liam was such a great guy.
Now, hearing Liam say this, Josephine felt her emotions well up, and she almost cried.
Seeing this, Liam quickly said, "Don't cry. What am I gonna do with a sister like you?"
The more he said that, the more upset Josephine got. She couldn't help but hug Liam's arm, her tears soaking his sleeve. "Liam, you're totally wrong. I don't like him at all!"
Liam sighed and patted her head. "Alright, alright, we're not fans of the guy. If he wasn't putting in real effort to impress you, we wouldn't even give him the time of day!"
Josephine wiped her tears and looked at him. "Maybe I should take Jeffery abroad."
"What's that all about?" Liam interjected. "Even if he catches wind of it, who cares? He can't snatch Jeffery away from you."
"I don't know," Josephine said. "And then there's Mr. Andrew Haustia..."
"Plenty of people get divorced even after having kids," Liam said. "At worst, just let Jeffery spend one day a week with Mr. Andrew Haustia."
"I hope we can keep it from him a bit longer. I haven't figured out how to handle this situation yet."
"Don't worry, he won't find out for now. Once Jeffery gets better, we'll go back. He has to go to the company, and after the Starlight Festival, Jeffery will start kindergarten, so they'll have fewer chances to meet."
Liam comforted her a bit more, and Josephine finally relaxed. But she didn't expect that day to come so quickly.
Dinner was delivered by someone Laura had called. After eating, Josephine told Liam to go back.
Liam said, "You go back. I'll stay here with Jeffery."
Jeffery had woken up and was in good spirits. When Liam came earlier, Josephine had asked him to bring the colored contacts.
Josephine didn't want him to wear them while he was sick, so she hadn't given them to him.
But Jeffery asked, "Mommy, where are my contacts?"
Josephine said, "You don't need to wear them."
Jeffery asked, "Will I never wear them again?"
Looking at her son's beautiful brown eyes, Josephine felt a pang of heartache. She also felt sorry for him.
She hugged him, "If you don't want to wear them, then you don't have to."
"I can wear them," Jeffery said. "Mommy, you don't have to worry. They don't feel uncomfortable."
At that moment, Josephine really wanted to be willful for once. So what if Stuart found out? Jeffery was her son, and no one could take him away.
In the end, Josephine still sent Liam back. She would stay the night, and Liam would come to replace her the next day. Only then did Liam leave.
Around eleven o'clock, Jeffery fell asleep. Josephine touched his forehead again. It was warm, and he didn't have a fever anymore.
Some of the medication needed to be administered in two doses. Seeing that the IV was almost done, she didn't press the call button, fearing it would wake Jeffery. So she got up and left the ward.
But as soon as she opened the door, she was startled.
Stuart was standing against the wall opposite. Hearing the noise, he looked up, and their eyes met.
Josephine was stunned for a few seconds and asked him, "You didn't leave?"
Stuart said, "I left, but I was worried, so I came back."
"There's nothing to worry about," Josephine said. "It's late. You should go back."
"Did Jeffery's fever go down?"
"It did," Josephine said, starting to walk away. "I'm going to call the nurse."
She took a few steps and then turned back. "Don't go in. He's asleep."
Stuart nodded. "Okay."
The nurse came quickly and took care of everything. Jeffery was still asleep.
Josephine followed the nurse out, thanked her, and then looked at Stuart. "You should go back. You can't stand here all night."
Stuart asked, "Can I go in? I promise to be very quiet and not make a sound."
"There's really no need," Josephine said. "Thank you, but you should go back."
After saying that, Josephine turned to go back in, but Stuart grabbed her arm.
Josephine pulled away. "What are you doing?"
Stuart said, "Look."
Josephine scanned the ward, unsure of what he wanted her to notice, before her gaze settled on Stuart. "What's wrong?"
"All the kids here are accompanied by both their parents."
This was the pediatric ward, and indeed, most of the children were accompanied by both their parents.
"It doesn't matter," Josephine said. "Jeffery don't need that many people to take care of him."
"I want to stay," Stuart said. "I can stay outside. You don't have to worry about me."
"You really don't need to do this," Josephine said. "By the way, I need to tell you something. Jeffery might have to stay in the hospital for a few days. I was planning to visit Andrew after the Starlight Festival, but now I can't."
Stuart understood and nodded. "I told him."
"I'll circle back and give my grandpa a call to express my apologies," Josephine said. "You should go back. Thank you."
"Josephine," Stuart grabbed her hand again. "come on, just let me prove I care. If you're here by yourself, I'll be fretting about you."