CHAPTER 87: CHAPTER 87: PAST EVENTS

Leon Sterling tried hard to keep his eyes wide open to look at her, and in a daze, he seemed to see Ruby Sullivan as a child, grinning at him with a gap-toothed smile that was so endearing.

As the beeping sounds continued, Leon Sterling’s electrocardiogram finally returned to normal, but Honey’s heart rate became increasingly unstable.

The smell of disinfectant and blood in the operating room mixed together, causing Ruby Sullivan to feel intense panic. The subtle sounds of the surgical knife felt magnified several times, with each sound tugging at her heart, while the assistant doctor continuously reported the conditions shown on the two people’s electrocardiograms.

Ruby Sullivan couldn’t understand a word, feeling like her head was about to explode. She desperately wanted to ask the doctor why they hadn’t started the blood transfusion yet; just a little would suffice. The director had already contacted other hospitals, but procuring blood bags required procedures. As long as Leon Sterling’s blood could support Honey until the blood bag arrived, it would be enough. If they didn’t start soon, her Honey couldn’t hold on!

But she knew that at this moment, she couldn’t say a word. She bit her lower lip tightly and held Leon Sterling’s hand firmly. Apart from trusting the doctor’s judgment, there was nothing she could do, and she could only choose to believe.

Suddenly, a weak Leon Sterling spoke up, requesting the doctor to start the infusion immediately.

Zane Lawson glanced at the status on the electrocardiogram and decisively refused, "No, forcing a transfusion would put you at risk."

Leon Sterling frowned, "I’ve signed a risk commitment, and I’m willing to bear all consequences."

At this point, the assistant doctor beside them reminded, "The heart rate has stabilized and reached the transfusion criteria."

Zane Lawson continued to hesitate, but suddenly an alarm sounded from Honey’s machine, and the assistant doctor urgently said, "The patient’s blood pressure is continuously dropping; without a transfusion, it might affect the blood supply to the brain."

Zane Lawson frowned but finally relented, "Start the transfusion immediately."

Ruby Sullivan subconsciously exhaled deeply, meeting Leon Sterling’s smiling eyes, and was stunned for a moment, before bowing her head in shame.

She couldn’t deny that, just now, she hadn’t considered Leon Sterling’s safety at all. She even thought about risking his life for Honey’s transfusion.

Leon Sterling seemed to see through her thoughts, his fingers moved slightly, and he reversed his grip on her hand.

Outside the operating room, Ethan Sterling stood against the wall, expressionless.

Despite being anxious, he was powerless, and he hated this feeling the most. If he could have told Ruby Sullivan the truth earlier, would there not have been so many twists and turns? He could have watched his daughter grow up beside him. Even if she was ill, she could have started treatment earlier.

Rachel Lawson, who came along with Leon Sterling, looked at her son with some discomfort, raised her hand and patted his shoulder lightly, "That child has a lucky face; she’ll be fine."

Ethan Sterling stared at the wall opposite and asked with difficulty, "Mom, do you regret giving birth to me?"

Rachel Lawson laughed; this question was something she had thought about many years ago.

"The only thing I regret in my life is leaving you in a fit of anger all those years ago, taking Leon and Cindy away. If I had just persisted a little more, you wouldn’t have grown up without a mother, wouldn’t have..." lived like a machine.

Still, the latter words, Rachel Lawson couldn’t bear to say.

Ethan Sterling had already been through so much; it would be too cruel for his own mother to label him as a machine.

Thinking of the past, her eyes became slightly moist.

"Actually... I hated Grandma, but soon, I realized that if I kept hating her, I wouldn’t have any relatives left." He pressed his lips, "Grandma went to Crestfall, actually... I forced her away. My dislike for Ruby Sullivan was partly misdirected anger. But now that I think about it, Grandma probably had her own hardships too."

Rachel Lawson’s face turned black when she heard about her mother-in-law; even if the deceased were to be respected, it couldn’t erase her disgust for that old lady, "Your grandma was spoiled rotten!"

The elder Mrs. Sterling was born into a wealthy family and had never suffered hardships even during turbulent times. After marrying the elder Mr. Sterling, she lived a comfortable life; Mr. Sterling’s illness was her only concern.

Since it was confirmed that her genes were the cause of her son’s illness, she was worried that the Sterling Family would lose its continuation because of her, so she pressured her son to get married and have children.

Unexpectedly, Ethan Sterling inherited the same illness, as if cursed.

At that time, Rachel Lawson was young, and apart from her drawing expertise, she was indecisive about everything else. When the elder Mrs. Sterling heard about special institutions abroad that could perform IVF, ensuring a newborn could provide bone marrow, she began pressuring her son and daughter-in-law.

So, Leon Sterling came to be as a son born as medicine.

From a young age, he started undergoing various tests and treatments; despite being healthy, he was subjected to numerous tubes and wires, lying in the hospital bed, coupled with insufficient parental care, planting a psychological trigger for Leon Sterling’s distortion.

Rachel Lawson gathered her thoughts, sighed, "Well, blaming others is the most incompetent display; your mom, I’ve never been such a person."

She took Ethan Sterling’s arm, slowly leaning against him, showing her need for him and also offering him warmth.

Now, she’s back; that old lady went to eternal bliss, just like the ruthless words she left when she departed: she would outlive her, and when she died, she would return.

So, after receiving her son’s call, she came back.

Not to see her off, but to make her know that the daughter-in-law she hated the most lived particularly well.

However, she would never say these things out loud, just she feared the elder son would be upset; after all, the bond nurtured by growing up under her care, others wouldn’t understand.

Finally, the blood bag transferred from another hospital was personally delivered by the director. After greeting Ethan Sterling and noticing his grim expression, he stayed nearby, not daring to speak further.

Soon, Leon Sterling was wheeled out of the operating room, followed by Ruby Sullivan.

"How’s Honey?" Ethan Sterling asked anxiously.

Ruby Sullivan shook her head, "It’s tense inside." She removed her mask, having calmed down, "Let’s leave it to fate."

"Don’t worry, Honey will be fine." Leon Sterling comforted them before being pushed to the ward to rest.

Rachel Lawson, unable to ease her concern for her son, followed him to the ward.

"Rest assured, Dr. Lawson is our best surgeon." The director took the opportunity to boost his presence.

Only then did Ethan Sterling remember his presence, "Thanks today, you can head back."

The director dared not go home, "Then I’ll head to the office; notify me immediately if anything comes up." He left after speaking.

Standing side by side with Ethan Sterling, Ruby Sullivan kicked the edge of his shoe, "Actually, I’ve been mentally prepared for this."

Ethan Sterling tilted his head to glance at her, frowned, turned and pulled her arm, pulling her closer, tightly hugging her in his arms, "No matter what happens, I’ll face it with you."

The scent on him was comforting, easing her nose greatly tortured in the operating room. But now, she really wanted to curse him, curse him for being insincere, curse him for his earlier absence, curse him for being a jerk, yet she didn’t want him to leave.

She took a deep breath and bit his chest fiercely, using all her strength, wanting to tear off his flesh to vent her anger.