Chapter 69
I fell silent, my face growing solemn. Seeing the look on my face, Fredrica’s heart sank. She already had a pretty good idea of what the answer might be.
“So, you really… donated your corneas?” Her voice quivered, and her bright eyes were filled with disbelief. Tears started to glisten in them.
In the next moment, she shoved me hard. “Have you lost your mind? Doing something like that?”
I caught her hand. “Fredrica…”
“Was it during that time? You made me cover for you, telling my dad you were staying at our house, and then you just vanished without a trace for two months.”
She couldn’t bring herself to say any more. The thought of cornea removal was something she’d only ever heard about happening to people who’d passed away. The idea of someone taking corneas from a living person like that… it was just too much to even think about!
“So, you gave your corneas to Ian, didn’t you?” She asked, her voice shaking with all kinds of emotions.
Then she shouted again, “You’re crazy for doing something so stupid for that jerk!”
“Sherry, you’re just out of your mind!”
Fredrica’s eyes were red as she kept pushing me, letting out all the anger that had been building up inside her. But her anger wasn’t really about the situation itself; it was because she cared about me so much and couldn’t stand to see me going through all this.
“Fredrica!”
Seeing how worked up she was, Lucas quickly came over and tried to hold her back. But Fredrica pushed him away, tears streaming down her face as she stared at me. “Sherry, you’re awful! Not only did you do something so terrible, but you also dragged me into it as an accomplice!”
I knew I was in the wrong. I just lowered my head quietly, letting Fredrica vent all her frustrations.
Fredrica’s anger wasn’t just about what had happened; she was also upset that I’d been so foolish and how much she
cared for me.
“I should’ve asked you more questions back then. You told me you were taking care of Ian, and I believed you. I’m
such an idiot!”
Lucas tried to calm her down, reminding her to keep it down since there were other neighbors around and that this
could reach her uncle.
Fredrica stopped crying when she heard that. I used a spare key to open the door and let them inside the house.
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Fredrica sat on a chair, still pretty shaken up. I wanted to get her some water, but there wasn’t any since I didn’t actually live there. Luckily. Lucas was thoughtful and brought two bottles of mineral water one for Fredrica and one for me.
After drinking the water, Fredrica finally started to calm down a bit. She looked at me with those feary eyes, took my hand, and gently rubbed my back with her fingers. “Sherry, if only I’d known what you were doing back then, 1 would’ve stopped you!”
Even though she wasn’t crying anymore, her eyes were still all swollen and red.
I knew Fredrica was doing all this because she cared about me. I held her hand and said softly. “It’s all in the past
now,”
“What do you mean it’s in the past? We can’t just pretend this didn’t happen? Your corneas are gone, and that scumbag lan is living it up with your corneas, being all lovey dovey with Cathy What’s the point of that?”
“You didn’t donate your corneas to him just so he could be with Cathy, nor did you sacrifice yourself for him for four years! You can’t just let this slide. I’m going to find that jerk right now?”
Fredrica was fuming and wanted to go give lan a piece of her mind. Lacas tried to stop her and told her to calm down.
Fredrica even got mad at Lucas, pushing him and yelling. “You men are all the same not a single good one among you!”
Lucas rubbed his nose, looking all wronged and helpless,
no
I knew that usually Lucas could handle Fredrica pretty well, but when she was this furious, there was just ne controlling her.
I rushed over and held Fredrica back. “Lan and I are already divorced. If you go after him now, he’ll just think regret the divorce and that I’m trying to use this to hold one to him?”
“Maybe he’ll even think better of me because of it, but so what? He doesnt love me, and that’s the truth.”
With a heavy sigh, I patted Fredrica’s shoulder. “I chose to donate my corneas on my 69, without anyone foreing me. I don’t want to use this to make him feel guilty and do what I want.”
“I want love to be given freely, not something that’s traded for favors. That wodd just make me seem so cheap
“Tredrica, I’ve been stupid once. I don’t want to do it again.”
My sincere explanation left Fredrica at a loss for words, and the tears just kept falling from her eyes, dripping an the ground.
I knew she was still worried sick about me.
“I’m okay,” I said softly, trying to reassure her.
Fredrica bugged me tightly, unable to say anything her sobs muffled “But you did his sworifice hece
Chapter 69
him. You gave away your corneas, and what did you get in return? It’s so unfair.”
She kept patting my back, and it was like she was hurting her own heart with each pat.
My eyes got a bit red too, and my nose felt stuffy, what with Fredrica’s concern and my own past naivety. My throat- felt all choked up.
I put my arms around Fredrica’s shoulders and hugged her back. “Back then, it was definitely because of love. Even though I didn’t get anything back, I don’t regret it. Sweetie, I did what I thought was right in that relationship, and that’s enough for me.”
“You…” Fredrica felt both heartbroken and sad, but she also understood what I was saying. She just held me even tighter, like holding me this way could somehow ease her pain.
They’d shown up so suddenly, and there was nowhere for Fredrica and me to stay. I had to arrange for them to stay
at a hotel in town since there wasn’t an extra bed in the house.
Fredrica insisted on driving me home. It wasn’t a long distance, and I didn’t say no. We sat in the car together, just like we used to, but this time, the feelings were so different.
“Sherry, you’re really silly,” Fredrica sighed softly, her heart still aching.
She looked at my left eye, which was noticeably grayer than the right one, and felt silly herself for not realizing that my left eye had been an issue for years.
I smiled and let out a small sigh. “Yeah, I was really foolish.”
Fredrica held my wrist. “If you’d known that things with Ian would end up like this, would you still have made that stupid decision?”
My mind went blank, and I just froze there, not knowing how to answer. As I got out of the car, the cool breeze blew against my face, welcoming me back to the place.
I waved goodbye, feeling the cool wind on my skin, and watched as the Bentley drove out of sight. Then I adjusted my clothes and walked up the steps to my house.
That night, as I lay in bed, my eyes were calm, the pupils black and white, clear as could be. Even though everything around me was peaceful, I couldn’t stop thinking about the question Fredrica had asked.
Would I have made that foolish decision if I could’ve seen the future?
Maybe I still would have.
Third–person perspective
Ian returned home late at night. It was almost eleven o’clock. The long journey had left traces of weariness on his face.
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Chapter 69
The living room was still brightly lit. Pamela was sitting on the sofa, wearing a silk nightgown, gracefully crossing her legs and flipping through something.
Seeing him, she stood up with a smiling face, “Ah, Ian, you’re back just in time. Mrs. Miller introduced a few socialites. Let’s take a look at their profiles.”
Ian’s cold and aloof face turned away. Folds formed between his eyebrows. “No need,” he said indifferently.
He walked upstairs.
Over the years, despite enduring his indifference, Pamela had stayed up until now, sacrificing her beauty sleep. Yet, she received this kind of response, which made her very unhappy.
Her tone couldn’t help but turn resentful. “Your whole life depends on this matter. Can’t you be a bit more considerate?”
“Since it’s my lifelong matter, you don’t need to meddle!” Ian straightened his tie, speaking plainly and impolitely.
Pamela’s well–maintained face twitched, looking even more unsightly. Her fingers curled up in her palm.
“I’m your mother, after all!”
“Is that so?”
He only responded with a calm question, with no change in expression or even a flicker in his eyes. However, she felt inexplicably embarrassed.
“Just because of… that matter?” After a long while, she trembled and asked softly.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.