Annoyed, Jennifer questioned, “I'm talking to you right now, Sophie! Didn't you hear me?”
Sophie examined the woman in front of her in detail. Doesn't she know how ridiculous she looks right now?
“Don't you know you shouldn't speak nonsense like that, Ms. Whitley? What does your accident have to do with me? You and your awful character are to blame for what happened, not other people,” she spat.
“You!” At that moment, Jennifer wished she could tear Sophie apart.
“I know you've been envious of me, Ms. Whitley. However, I must remind you that jealousy is useless. There are some people who'll never belong to you no matter how hard you try.” Sophie was pretty confident in Tristan.
A furious smile formed on Jennifer's countenance. “Is that so? Do you think no one will know what you did, Sophie? Do you think Tristan will still like you if he finds out you have another lover other than him?”
“So what if other people know about it?” Sophie responded nonchalantly because she didn't think she had to refute or admit to anything she didn't do.
“You must be feeling very smug right now. Don't worry; one day, I'll kick you away from Tristan's side!” Jennifer paled greatly because she was getting too emotional while still unwell.
In response, Sophie ignored her and left.
When Jennifer's mother, Caylie, approached Jennifer and saw how she was doing, the older woman shook her head and chided, “Didn't I tell you not to run around since you're still hurt, Jennifer?”
“Mom, I want to call the police. I'm sure my accident must be because of Sophie! She did it because she doesn't like me.” Jennifer sounded confident.
Her mother shook her head. “What's the point of you doing that when you have no evidence, Jennifer?” Why is my daughter acting like this? She didn't use to be like this.
“Who else can it be but her, Mom?”
“There really isn't any evidence that points to who caused your accident, Jennifer,” Caylie reminded.
“Are you saying I deserve what I'm going through today?”
“Mind your attitude, Jennifer Whitley. Your recent performance has disappointed us a lot. We are your parents. You should be respecting us.”
Jennifer felt bitter when she heard that.
“Even though you're my parents, you two never stood up for me. I bet you two won't even give a damn if I was bullied or died during this accident.” At that moment, she wasn't willing to listen to what anyone was saying, nor was she able to control her emotions.
Caylie furrowed her eyebrows. Why did my daughter become like this?
Caylie furrowed her eyebrows. Why did my daughter become like this?
“I'm sorry, Mom. I shouldn't have said that. I was wrong.” When Jennifer saw the disappointment in her mother's eyes, she finally calmed down. Regardless of what happens or what I want to obtain, I'll do my best to get it myself. I shouldn't take my anger out on my family.
Jennifer was still Caylie's daughter and the only child of the Whitley family, so, of course, she felt awful about her daughter's situation. “All right, you haven't fully recovered yet, so you should rest in your ward. You still have your dad managing the company, so you don't need to worry about that. As for Tristan, I think you should give up on him.”
Even though she knew Tristan was very impressive, she was also aware he had no feelings for her daughter. There's nothing that can be done about it except for Jennifer to accept the reality of things.
While Jennifer didn't say anything, she obviously wasn't going to give up.
Meanwhile, Sophie had been waiting in Arius' office for him. Two hours had passed by the time he returned.
When he saw her sleeping on the couch, he approached her and attempted to cover her body with his coat.
However, just as he tried to do that, she woke up. “Is your surgery over?”
“Yep! After the director knew I was back, he assigned a few patients to me almost immediately. I can't say no to that crafty man, so I've been feeling rather exhausted lately.”
“Don't tire yourself out too much. It would be best if you declined to perform more operations like this and give yourself time to recover. Otherwise, you'll become fatigued.”
“I know! Anyway, you're back because of Old Mr. Tanner, right?”
“Mhm. You don't need to hide anything from me. I'm learning medicine, so I know a lot about it. It's just that there are still some things that need to be examined with the help of medical instruments.”
“In that case, you should keep him company more often if you have the time. You know how it is when people get old. Even a divine or prodigious doctor won't be able to save him forever.”
It was one thing for Sophie to be aware of her grandfather's mortality and another to hear it directly from a doctor's mouth.
Suddenly, she fell silent.
Arius' heart ached when he saw her like that. He knew how much she cared about her grandfather. If not for the old man, she probably wouldn't have returned to Jipsdale at all.
“Are you all right?” At that moment, he didn't know how to comfort her.
Sophie took in a deep breath. Regardless of the result, I must be willing to accept it. It's not like I'm unaware of Grandpa's current condition.
“There's no need for you to be sad. Just spend more time with him! Older folks tend to hope the people they care about will always be by their side,” Arius said.
“I understand. Just make sure he doesn't know that I'm aware of his condition when you deliver him his medicine.”
“Mhm.” It moves me to see how much this pair of grandfather and granddaughter cares about each other.
That night, when Tristan visited Sophie and saw her spacing out, he instantly knew something was wrong.
“What's the matter?” he asked.
She replied, “My grandfather's body isn't doing well. Even though the last operation was very successful, it still can't stop the inevitable...”
“I see.” He hugged her tightly. “Arius can't do anything about it?”
“Doctors can only treat illnesses, not the aging process or death. There's nothing he can do about it, and nothing can change that fact.”
Tristan's embrace grew tighter.
At that moment, there was no need for him to speak any further. He would rather just stay by her side like that because nothing he said would change Josiah's condition.
“I've been too busy lately that I haven't had the time to keep him company.” Sophie felt bad for not being able to stay by Josiah's side.
“How about you go spend some time with him, then?” Tristan was aware the person she cared about the most was her grandfather, so he was willing to let her do that.
“No, he doesn't want me to know about his condition! That's why I can't go back to him now. However, I do know his greatest wish is to entrust me to you personally. That's why I want to graduate as soon as possible so he can do that.”
It was why she had been working so hard lately. The sooner she graduated, the sooner she could marry Tristan.
“I won't let him down,” he assured. I know Old Mr. Tanner's greatest wish is to see Sophie happy. Now that Sophie and I have gotten together, I'll be responsible for her happiness.
Standing on her tiptoes, Sophie kissed Tristan on the lips.
It was an affectionate kiss. Gradually, the atmosphere became amorous as his large hands subconsciously unclasped her undergarment.
He had never done that before, yet he was a natural at it when the opportunity arose.
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