Chapter 83 Protect Him

Chapter 83 Protect Him
Chapter 83: Protect Him

Dianna.

I had not seen my grandmother awake in days.

Ever since I regained consciousness, every hour had felt unbearably heavy with worry. Even while Theodore stayed beside me and reassured me again and again that Grandma was stable, I still could not fully relax.

Stable was not the same as awake.

Stable was not the same as hearing her voice again.

There were moments during the night when I would suddenly wake up in panic, terrified that I would lose her before I could even properly apologize. Every time that happened, Theodore would calm me down and remind me that the doctors were monitoring her carefully.

But fear did not disappear that easily.

Especially not after almost losing both her and my baby.

So when the nurse rushed into my hospital room that afternoon with a smile on her face, my heart nearly stopped.

“Ms. Dianna,” she said excitedly. “Your grandmother is awake.”

For a second, I just stared at her blankly.

Then my eyes immediately filled with tears.

“Really?” I asked weakly.

The nurse nodded quickly. “She regained consciousness a few minutes ago.”

I almost cried right there.

Relief crashed into me so suddenly that I had to grip the side of the bed just to steady myself. My chest hurt from how hard my heart was beating.

Grandma was awake.

Thank God.

I immediately looked around the room instinctively for Theodore, wanting to tell him first, but he was not there.

He had stepped out earlier this afternoon after receiving a phone call, though he refused to tell me where he was going. He only kissed my forehead and promised he would return soon.

I pulled my phone toward me quickly and sent him a message.

"I miss you. Come back already."

A small smile formed on my lips afterward.

I wanted to surprise him myself.

I wanted him to see Grandma awake with his own eyes.

A nurse carefully helped me out of bed afterward despite my insistence that I could walk on my own. My body still felt weak from everything that happened, and Theodore had already frightened half the hospital staff into watching me too closely after nearly losing his mind during my emergency.

By the time we reached Grandma’s room, my chest already felt tight again.

I stood frozen outside the doorway for a moment.

Then slowly, I stepped inside.

The moment Grandma saw me, her eyes immediately filled with tears.

“My dear…” she cried weakly.

My own tears fell instantly.

“Grandma…”

I hurried toward her carefully, ignoring the ache in my body as I leaned down beside her bed. The moment she touched my face, I broke completely.

“Theodore really brought you back to me,” she whispered tearfully. “I thought… I thought I would not see you anymore before I died.”

“Don’t say that,” I said quickly, crying harder as I kissed her forehead repeatedly. “Please don’t say things like that.”

Her frail fingers brushed shakily through my hair the same way they used to whenever I cried as a child.

And somehow, that simple touch almost destroyed me.

“I am so sorry,” I whispered brokenly. “I am so sorry for leaving you those past months. I should have stayed with you. I should not have run away…”

Grandma immediately shook her head weakly.

“No,” she whispered. “No, my child.”

“But you got sick because of me,” I cried softly. “You had to handle everything alone while I selfishly disappeared.”

“My dear…” Grandma sighed weakly before gently wiping my tears away. “Do not blame yourself for everything.”

“But...”

“You were hurting too.”

Her words silenced me immediately.

I looked down at her trembling hands while guilt tightened painfully inside my chest.

For so long, I kept thinking I had failed everyone around me.

Grandma.

Theodore.

My child.

Even myself.

And yet somehow, Grandma still looked at me like I was someone worth protecting.

“You know,” she said softly after a moment, “when Theodore came looking for you… I finally realized something.”

I slowly looked back at her.

“That man truly loves you.”

My chest tightened unexpectedly.

A weak laugh escaped me. “He really does.”

Grandma smiled faintly.

“I have never seen someone search for another person the way he searched for you,” she admitted quietly. “Even while angry… even while heartbroken… he still chose you.”

I lowered my eyes slowly.

Thinking about Theodore now felt different compared to before.

Before, I used to feel uncertain whenever it came to him. Everything between us had started from circumstances neither of us wanted.

But somewhere along the way, he quietly became my home.

Even now, despite everything that happened, Theodore still stayed beside me.

He forgave me.

He protected me.

He loved me in ways I still did not fully understand.

My fingers tightened slightly around Grandma’s hand before I finally spoke again.

“Grandma…” I began quietly. “I think I met Dad while I was unconscious.”

Grandma stilled.

I looked down briefly, trying to organize my thoughts properly because even now, remembering it made my chest ache.

“It didn’t feel like a dream,” I admitted softly. “Everything felt so real.”

Grandma watched me silently.

“There was this huge field full of white flowers,” I continued. “And Dad was there waiting for me.”

The moment I said that, Grandma’s eyes slowly began filling with tears.

I swallowed hard before continuing.

“He talked to me,” I whispered. “He told me I couldn’t stay yet because there were still people waiting for me.”

Grandma’s lips trembled faintly.

I smiled weakly through the ache building inside my chest.

“He looked exactly the same,” I admitted softly. “The same smile. The same voice.”

Then quietly, almost shyly, I added...

“He called me dumpling.”

Grandma suddenly covered her mouth as tears rolled down her cheeks.

My chest tightened at her reaction.

“That…” she whispered brokenly. “That was what your father always called you.”

I nodded slowly.

Fresh tears blurred my vision again.

“He told me Theodore needed me,” I whispered.

At those words, Grandma’s expression shifted slightly.

Like she understood something immediately.

“He told me to save him,” I admitted softly. “Before he became someone he couldn’t return from.”

Grandma slowly reached for my hand again and held it tightly despite how weak she still looked.

“What do you think he meant, Grandma?” I asked quietly.

Grandma did not answer immediately.

Her eyes lowered for a moment, almost thoughtful, while her frail fingers continued brushing gently against mine.

Then she sighed softly.

“Your father…” she began carefully, “was a kind man. But he was too kind for his own good.”

“He loved with his whole heart,” she continued quietly. “And because of that, he ignored things he should have seen earlier.”

My chest tightened.

Grandma slowly looked back at me again.

“Here is what I am going to tell you, dear,” she said softly while tightening her hold on my hand.

“Whatever Theodore does… protect him the same way he protects you. That man is willing to give his life for you." she whispered.