Chapter 37 Powerless


    The next morning, William drove Mary to another house, far from the hustle and bustle of the city.


    He was going to pick up Lucas. When she looked around, she saw the area was full of vis.


    "That''s where I live," said William. He pointed at a vi and said, "Lucas and his family moved out of


    the country. He is currently living in my house."


    "Oh, I see." Mary looked out of the window and followed his finger to the home he pointed at.


    It had a red brown roof and white walls, surrounded by green trees. He had what looked like a


    swing on the porch. It was her husband''s home, but she could only see it from a distance. Mary''s


    heart hurt to think of it.


    Lucas came out of the vi in high spirits and said to William, "You got here early."


    "Cut the crap. Get in the car."


    "You''re not in a good mood. Got up on the wrong side of the bed?" Lucas teased. Seeing Mary


    sitting quietly in the back seat, he quickly smiled and said, "I want to sit with Mary."


    "Sit up here."


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    "No," said Lucas. "And what I do is none of your business!" Lucas smiled defiantly and opened the


    back door.


    Mary moved over to let him in.


    Along the way, Lucas kept talking. He was a regr chatterbox.


    "Hey Mary. Where''d you go to college?"


    "Oh, Z University."


    "Wow! One of the top universities. I''m jealous," Lucas said with a smile. "No wonder you''re so


    graceful."


    "Thank you." Mary smiled. She knew that Lucas was ttering her. He was in sses with William,


    and how could William''s college be ordinary?


    "William was quite thedies'' man in college." Lucas began to talk about their university life, "Or he


    would have been, if he hadn''t turned down girls left and right."


    Hearing that, Mary raised her eyebrows. She could almost imagine William refusing other girls,


    arms crossed, stony faced.


    "You''re one to talk. You''d have to keep a spreadsheet to keep track of all your romantic encounters,"


    said William sarcastically.


    "What romantic encounters?" Lucas said, "All the girls I hung out with were just friends. I''m pure and


    innocent." "Fuck off!" That was meant to shut Lucas up, but he wasn''t done.


    "Girls were afraid of him," Lucas ignored him and continued. "He''s never been in love, ha ha!"


    Mary could scarcely believe it. "Really?" she asked.


    "It''s sad, but true." Lucas covered his stomach andughed. "Would I lie to you?"


    William''s face darkened. "Shut up!" he said with a hint of warning.


    "You''re not bad-looking. You must have had men lining up to date you. Am I right?" Lucas asked


    with a cunning smile. Hearing this, William was a little curious and could not help but prick up his


    ears.


    "No... Not really." Mary felt a little embarrassed.


    "You are very modest." Lucas smiled. "Have you ever been in love?"


    Mary couldn''t help but nce at William and said, "I had a boyfriend before, just one."


    "Oh, I see." Lucas was a little embarrassed. Seeing the angry expression on William''s face he


    quickly changed the subject. "When we were in college, William liked to clean everything."


    Mary nodded, ''I know. He''s a real neat freak.''


    "But sometimes he was toozy. He was like a young master. If he didn''t want to clean, he just let


    me do it," Lucas said indignantly. "But I didn''t want to clean, either, so we fought a lot."


    Hearing that, Mary raised her eyebrows. ''How could William be so mercurial?''


    "I didn''t know until we fought," said Lucas with a disdainful look on his face, "that this man has a


    ck belt in taekwondo! He beat me so bad I almost ended up in the hospital!"


    Mary smiled and pictured Lucas getting his butt kicked by William.


    "So!" Lucas said with high fighting spirit, "I really wanted to be a doctor back then!"


    Sweat broke out on Mary''s forehead. ''He wished he could be a doctor after being beaten. What is


    this? A case of physician, cure thyself?''


    "Don''t be ridiculous," said William. "Didn''t your father force you to go into the medical field? You


    didn''t want to learn medicine at all back then, but now you''re all gung-ho about it?" Lucas became


    indignant.


    "You! How could you betray me like this?" Lucas gave William a fierce re.


    Sitting next to him, Mary wanted tough, but afterughing, she felt sad.


    When the car arrived at the hospital, the president, vice president and directors were there, which


    scared Mary. They all stood next to each other in a neat row.


    The three of them got out of the car. Lucas greeted the president of the hospital in a familiar way.


    "Ah, Uncle Zhao, long time no see."


    "Lucas, it''s been too long. How''s your father?"


    "He''s fine. Thank you for your concern."


    "You''re still the same nice boy." The president of the hospital asked with a smile, "Are these two


    friends of yours?"


    "Yes, they are."


    After Lucas introduced everyone, they entered the hospital.


    Then Mary and William went to the intensive care unit first. Mary''s mom looked good.


    "Mom." Mary walked in with a smile.


    "Herees Mary." Mary''s mom turned and said in surprise, "William''s also here."


    "Hello, Aunt."


    "Well," Mary''s mom answered with a smile. "How have you been, William?"


    "Can''tin," replied William. "How are you feeling?"


    "I''m the same. Everything still works." Mary''s mom held William''s hand and said, "Did my Mary


    cause any drama?"


    "No, she''s been doing everything right," said William with a smile, stealing a nce at Mary.


    "That''s good, very good." Mary''s mom continued, "William, I heard you found a friend to examine


    me. I only have a few days left, I think. I feel so sick-"


    "Mom," Mary interrupted. "Don''t say that. If there''s a glimmer of hope, we have to pounce on it.


    Don''t say something messed up like that. I don''t want to live alone."


    "You naughty girl," said Mary''s mom. "Anyway, I can''t hang around you for the rest of your life. You


    already have William, remember?"


    Looking at each other, both Mary and William felt guilty. When they were about to speak, Mary''s


    mom grabbed both of their hands.


    Holding her hand, William stared at Mary''s mom and said, "Aunt, don''t worry. I''ll take good care of


    Mary."


    My God! There was a moment when Mary''s ears were ringing. The warm touch of his hand made


    her heart beat so fast. ''Are you crazy, William? You''re trying to flirt with me, aren''t you? Aren''t you?''


    Mary''s mom was moved by what William said.


    Her eyes started to shimmer with tears. "I don''t know if I can live until your wedding day." Hearing


    this, Mary felt more and more guilty. Tears welled in her eyes and her voice was choked with sobs.


    "Don''t worry. You''ll live to see that day. I promise."


    While they were talking, Lucas and the president came to the ward.


    After putting on his white coat, Lucas looked much more like a doctor. He led the way in and began


    to examine Mary''s mom after saying hi.


    Mary and William couldn''t stay here anymore.


    In the corridor, Mary was quiet, sitting on a cold bench, praying silently.


    William moved to stand next to her. He suddenly said, "Do you want to tell your mom that we have


    the marriage certificate?"


    After a while, Mary raised her head and said, "Let''s talk about itter."


    Now all she wanted to know was whether Lucas could help her mother or not. She was in no mood


    to think about anything else.


    William wasn''t having any cravings, but he still wanted a cigarette right now.


    Mary appeared helpless and dispirited. She looked really miserable. All he could do was pray that


    Lucas would bring them some good news. When Lucas came out, he looked more than a little


    confused.


    "How is she?" Mary came over in a hurry and looked at Lucas hopefully.


    "Mary," Lucas sighed. "I... I''m sorry."


    Although Mary had prepared for this moment mentally, when she heard this, she still felt that her


    world was broken.


    Tears fell like rain.


    They fell and stained her clothing. Teardrops formed and blurred her vision. Mary forced a smile and


    said, "Thank you. Thank you."


    "Oh, Mary, don''t cry." Lucas panicked. "You... I. .. I couldn''t help. I feel so guilty."


    "I''m very grateful to you, really," said Mary. "Can I ask you one more question?" she continued.


    "Go ahead."


    "My mom," Mary asked, wiping her tears, "how long will shest?"


    She wanted to ask the doctor more than once, but she didn''t have the courage. Now there was no


    hope in her heart, so she could finally ask.


    "About 6 months, give or take."


    "Okay, I see. Thank you," Mary said calmly. Standing off to the side, William didn''t say anything. He


    didn''t know what to say or how tofort her.


    It suddenly urred to him that on the day of Sansa''s death, he was pretty much the same way. He


    didn''t want to do or care about anything. He felt empty and alone in the world. He could only try his


    best to push his feelings away. The thought that he would never see Sansa again made him feel like


    his heart had been ripped out.


    Mary was the same now. It was useless to say anything to her.


    "William," said Mary with swollen eyes. "Tell her. Tell my mother that we''re married, okay?"


    "Yeah. I can do that," William nodded.


    "I want to show her our wedding photos after they get developed."


    "Okay. Hey, don''t be too sad," said William after a pause.


    "Yeah," said Mary with a faint smile. "I still have a few months left. I can make the most of the time


    she has. I''ll visit her every day."


    Because she had to face the fact that her mother would die in the end, Mary was not in a good


    mood these days, but she was still calm in front of other people. Looking at Mary, William also felt


    ufortable. Mary visited the hospital almost every day. Her mother knew that she was weak and


    powerless, so she was worried about her daughter.


    When Mary''s mother woke up, she asked, "William proposed to me. Mom, do you think I should say


    yes?"


    Mary''s mom held her hand and nodded slightly. "I was hoping this day would finallye. And now


    it has. I''m happy for you, Mary."


    "As long as you''re happy, Mom." Maryid her head on her mother''s chest, tears pouring from her


    eyes. "Do you still hate my father?"


    "Of course. Why wouldn''t I? But if he still hung around, we''d both be sad. I''ll just forget him," Mary''s


    mom said, fondling her hair.


    Mary''s heart twitched when she heard this. Her father had given up their rtionship for more than


    20 years, but her mother was able to boil things down to a few words. Then, what was this so-called


    love?