Chapter 105
"Listen to me." My tone became firmer. "If you collapse, who's going to take care of your sister after the surgery? Let me go get you something to eat first."
I had just stood up when the red light above the operating room went out.
Then the door opened.
Conrad, wearing blue surgical scrubs, came out first. He removed his mask, his face showing deep exhaustion.
Sidney sprang from his chair like a spring, rushed over, opened his mouth, but was too nervous to make a sound.
He stared at Conrad.
I also walked over quickly, my heartbeat accelerating uncontrollably.
Conrad looked at us and slowly nodded, his voice somewhat hoarse from the long surgery. "The donor heart was a very good match, the transplant went smoothly, and the surgery was successful."
"The critical rejection period and recovery period are next, but as long as she's properly cared for, your sister's body should be fine."
Sidney froze in place, his eyes blank, as if he didn't understand, or as if he'd been stunned by overwhelming joy.
I breathed a sigh of relief, my long-suspended heart finally settling back down. I quickly thanked him, "Dr. Wall, thank you for all your hard work!"
Conrad waved his hand, his expression still serious. "Just doing my job. Besides, this was something James personally entrusted to me, so naturally I had to give it my all."
"The patient will be transferred to the ICU for observation shortly. You can't go in, but you can look from the outside. Once her vital signs are stable and everything's okay, she can be moved to a regular room."
After saying this, he gave some instructions to his assistant behind him and left.
Only then did Sidney suddenly snap back to reality, his legs going weak.
If I hadn't caught him in time, he would have nearly collapsed to the ground.
He covered his face with both hands, his shoulders shaking violently, broken sobs escaping through his fingers.
I didn't try to comfort him, just stood quietly as his support.
He'd been under pressure for so many years, and now he could finally breathe. He really needed to let it out.
After a long while, Sidney finally managed to calm down.
He roughly wiped his face with his sleeve, his eyes and nose red, and bowed deeply to me, not straightening up for a long time.
"Sophia, I don't even know how to repay you for your kindness."
"As long as you don't mind, I'll be at your service for the rest of my life, following your arrangements."
"Enough, don't say that." I patted his shoulder. "Go see your sister. Even though you can only see her through the glass, it's better than not seeing her at all."
Sidney nodded heavily, then rushed to the ICU observation window.
Through the glass, you could see that small figure on the hospital bed, tubes all over her body, monitoring equipment making regular sounds.
Sidney pressed his forehead against the cold glass, looking greedily.
He kept watch outside the ICU all night, refusing to leave, no matter how much I tried to persuade him.
He said he wanted to be the first person Eleanor saw when she opened her eyes.
The next morning, Eleanor's condition stabilized, and she was transferred from the ICU to a VIP room.
This was arranged by Conrad.
He said it was James's instruction.
Sidney looked at me, asking me to introduce him to James.
I shook my head. "He doesn't need your thanks. Don't overthink it, just take good care of your sister."
"How can that be okay?"
I chuckled. "If I say it's okay, it's okay."
Sidney pressed his lips together. "Sophia, saying thank you can't express how grateful I am."
"Then take good care of yourself and your sister. When your sister fully recovers, you can think about how to repay me."
Sidney nodded vigorously.
He looked at Eleanor on the bed, her face no longer pale, and his lips curved slightly upward, his tense nerves finally completely relaxing.
Once he relaxed, his body, which had been pushed for over forty hours, gave out.
He was about to say something to me when suddenly his vision went black, and he collapsed toward me.
"Sidney!" I cried out, quickly reaching out to catch him.
He leaned against me, very heavy, his breath hot.
I touched him—his forehead was burning. It must have been from exhaustion combined with extreme mental stress.
I struggled to support him, slowly lowering him into a nearby chair. His head tilted and rested on my shoulder as he lost consciousness.
"Nurse! Nurse!" I called out urgently.
A nearby nurse ran over. After checking, she said, "He's fine, just exhausted and weak, with a slight fever."
"Let him sleep and get some glucose and electrolytes. Help me get him to the family lounge inside."
With the nurse's help, I moved Sidney to the family lounge.
We laid him on the bed, and the nurse quickly brought a glucose IV bag.
When inserting the needle, Sidney woke up briefly, his eyes unfocused. Seeing it was me, he seemed to want to say something, but in the end, just moved his lips weakly and fell back asleep.
The nurse adjusted the IV drip rate, gave a few instructions, and went off to her duties.
Only Sidney and I were left in the family lounge.
His brow was furrowed, restless even in sleep.
I pulled over a chair and sat by the bed, watching the drops fall one by one, my mind blank.
Just then, I suddenly felt an intense gaze directed at me from the open doorway of the family lounge.
I looked up.
The doorway was empty.
But I was certain it wasn't my imagination just now.
Who was hiding and sneakily watching me?
Seeing no one, I returned to the family lounge. Sidney's breathing gradually became steady and deep, his fever seeming to have gone down a bit. A nurse came in midway to change the nutrient bag.
After about three hours, Sidney slowly woke up.
He first looked around in confusion, probably realizing where he was, then saw me sitting beside him.
He tried to get up.
"Don't move, watch out for backflow." I held him down.
"I'm sorry, Sophia, I... wasted your time." He was very embarrassed, somewhat incoherent.
"It's fine, you collapsed from exhaustion, it's not like you did it on purpose." I checked the time. "I ordered some porridge, it'll be delivered soon. Eat something and then sleep."
"I'll watch your sister for you. When you're better, you can take over."
"Sophia, I..." Sidney wanted to say something, but I glared at him, and he lay back down.
He looked at me, his eyes a bit red, and said softly, "Thank..."
"You've said thank you so many times already. Aren't you tired of it? My ears are getting calluses." I said helplessly.
"Just rest well, don't overthink things."
Sidney agreed.
After he fell asleep, I quietly got up and checked on his sister.
Eleanor was still sleeping, but her complexion looked even better than yesterday.
I hired a caregiver and gave them a few instructions. Then I left a note for Sidney before leaving the hospital.
That afternoon, I had just gotten back to my place and hadn't even had a sip of water when the doorbell rang.
Through the peephole, I saw James's grim face.
I actually wanted to pretend I wasn't home.
But James shouted at the door, "Sophia, open up. I know you're in there."
"If you don't open the door, don't blame me for breaking it down."
I cursed him under my breath.
To save my door from being smashed, I opened it. Before I could say anything, he stepped inside with one stride, bringing in the cold from outside and suppressed anger.
"What's your relationship with that guy?" he asked me directly, his voice cold as ice.