Chapter 253


    Izabe was sitting in the waiting area, spacing out as she looked around at the unfamiliar


    surroundings. For the first time, she felt alone and helpless.


    When someone called her name, Izabe went over to get her gastroscopy report. It looked pretty


    normal to her.


    "If you don''t understand, ask your doctor."


    Izabe said "thanks" and went to her doctor with the gastroscopy report, asking him to help her


    check her stomach condition.


    While waiting, she was unavoidably scared, fearing that she might have caught some incurable


    disease by ident.


    The doctor looked through the report carefully, "All the indicators are fairly normal, but your


    stomach..." he paused for a moment.


    Izabe''s heart immediately jumped, "What''s wrong with my stomach?"


    Her biggest concern was her stomach, as it hurt like hell every day.


    "You have stomach ulcer, have you ever vomited blood? Apart from that, you have a history of


    gastrointestinal bleeding."


    "I know," Izabe asked, "So apart from these, there are no other major problems, right?"


    The doctor''s expression became serious, "Well, these are not small issues. If you don''t get them


    treated, they could develop into stomach cancer."


    Upon hearing the words "stomach cancer," Izabe''s fingertips couldn''t help but shrink. That strong


    sense of déjà vu was haunting her again.


    "As for your brain, you''ve been diagnosed with neurasthenia. Don''t be too nervous, just get some


    rest."


    Izabe nodded, taking the medical report. The doctor saw her standing there, not leaving. After


    hesitating, he carefully asked, "Do you want me to prescribe some medicine for you?"


    Izabe came back to her senses, "No need, I have some at home." With more medication, she


    might as well not eat at all.


    The doctor gave her some precautions and told her not to think too much before she left the room


    with her report.


    Unbeknownst to her, the doctor wiped cold sweat from his face with a tissue after she left.


    Izabe didn''t go home right away. She sat in the hospital corridor, staring at the report in her hand


    while J''s words kept reying in her head.


    She felt extremely uneasy, and her stomach started to hurt again.


    Izabe folded the report and put it in her bag. Looking up at the sign, her scattered gaze finally


    stopped at the ''Gynecology and Obstetrics'' section.


    Her phone, which was in her bag, rang at that moment. She found the phone and quickly answered


    when she saw it was Brett calling.


    "Hello?"


    "Honey, I heard from Tiara that you went out without eating lunch?"


    Izabe simply replied with a "yeah."


    Brett asked again on the phone, "Where are you? Have you had breakfast yet?"


    Since Izabe had alreadypleted her medical checkup, she didn''t n to hide it from Brett. As


    soon as he asked, she told him, "I''m at the hospital."


    "Are you feeling unwell?"


    "Nothing, just doing a check-up."


    Brett let out a sigh of relief, "If you''re not feeling well, you can call our family doctor, Stevenson."


    "I know."


    "Have you eaten yet?"


    Izabe immediately replied, "I''m going to eat right now."


    She went to get breakfast after hanging up the call. There were quite a few early-morning


    restaurants around the hospital. Izabe chose a oatmeal ce, ate half a bowl, then nced at the


    hospital and checked her phone. It was only 10 AM. For some reason, she went back inside and


    registered at the Gynecology and Obstetrics department. And she decided to get an ovtion shot.


    Ovtion shots had many side effects, such as abdominal pain, nausea, dizziness, etc., but no


    major harm. They mainly increased the chances of pregnancy.


    Izabe took a car back to the vi. As soon as she got home, she locked herself in the bathroom


    and vomited. She threw up all the porridge she''d eaten in the morning, thinking it was all her own


    fault.


    Izabe didn''t understand why she was acting this way, as if her body was being driven by some


    force. She had taken an ovtion shot subconsciously and checked her head and stomach.


    All of this stemmed from the words of a seemingly insignificant woman, as if she was trying to prove


    something.


    Izabe opened the second drawer of her bedside table, and fell into deep thought as she looked at


    the items inside. Brett had said that they couldn''t have children because of him, but he always took


    contraceptive measures.


    Although she found it strange, Izabe didn''t ask any further, in case she unwittingly hurt his self-


    esteem.


    Izabe borrowed a needle from Tiara, sensing that Brett was keeping something from her. Since


    he wouldn''t tell her, she decided to find out the truth by herself, believing that she would eventually


    find the answer she wanted.


    At four in the afternoon, Brett sent her a text message saying that he would be workingte, and


    she didn''t need to prepare dinner for him.


    Izabe replied with a simple "OK."


    With Brett not at home, Izabe had no mood to go out for a walk after dinner. After sitting on the


    couch for a while to digest her food, she went back to the bedroom to wash up.


    Shey in bed waiting until she heard the sound of car engineing from outside at 9 PM.


    The room was soundproof, so as soon as the door was closed, no noise from downstairs could be


    heard.


    Izabe opened the door and went downstairs. Brett had already entered the house. He was lying


    on the couch, his face looked exhausted, and his eyes were red.


    "Why are you so busytely?" Izabe walked over to see a half-smoked cigarette in his hand. As


    soon as Brett saw hering, he immediately put out the cigarette and waved the smoke away.


    "I''ll be fine after this busy period. Wait until next week, and I''ll take you out to rx. We can go


    wherever you want."


    "You can make some ns." Izabe handed him a cup of warm water, "Have you eaten?"


    Brett sat up straight, "I''ve eaten." After taking a few sips of water, he ced the cup on the coffee


    table.


    He looked up at her and then patted his thigh, gesturing her to sit on hisp.


    The living room was brightly lit, and Brett only wore a simple dress shirt. Usually, he would dress


    meticulously, buttoning his shirt all the way to the top and putting on a tie.


    This sense of restraint had be a habit, as well as a way for him to maintain a constant state of


    alertness, giving him no chance to catch his breath.


    Now, however, his tie had disappeared, three buttons on his shirt had been undone, revealing his


    corbone and faintly exposing his chest.


    This moreid-back and casual Brett seemed more enticing and different from his usual serious and


    inhibited demeanor.


    With practiced ease, Izabe hooked her arm around his neck and sat on hisp. Brett enjoyed her


    closeness, he often asked her to lean on him, sit on hisp and let him hold her.


    Brett wrapped his arms around her slender waist and rested his chin on her neck, a natural and


    affectionate move. Izabe ran her fingers through his hair, and as she breathed with him, she could


    smell the faint scent of alcohol on him.


    "You''ve been drinking?"


    "Yep." Brett''s voice was a bit husky, and he knew Izabe didn''t like him drinking or smoking, but


    now she''d not only caught him smoking but could also smell the alcohol on him.


    "Sorry, I had a drink." His voice waszy and maic, flowing like an electric current into Izabe''s


    ears.


    "Didn''t you say you were workingte?" Izabe questioned.


    "Yep, had to go schmoozing for some contracts." Climbing the businessdder in J City wasn''t easy,


    with most of it dominated by Patrick and some under Nathaniel''s control. Back in R City, people


    lined up to work with him, but now, every step took all his energy and he couldn''t afford to ck off.


    Izabe leaned on Brett''s chest, feeling his heartbeat and the sound of his breathing. "How did the


    contract talks go?"


    "It''s all good."


    "Is this what you''ve been busy withtely?"


    "Yep, not done yet."


    Feeling his exhaustion and weariness up close, she felt sorry for him and hated that she couldn''t


    help.


    "Did you get the medical report back?"


    "Yep, it''s in the bedroom."


    "I''ll take a lookter."


    Compared to his smell of smoke and alcohol, Izabe''s scent was a gentle fragrance, something


    like gardenia.


    He was addicted to her scent, holding her as they went upstairs to the bedroom.


    Izabe showed him the report from the tests she''d done that day.


    Brett skimmed it quickly, his face rxing as he said, "No biggie. Apart from these two things, you


    didn''t get checked for anything else?"


    "Nope, the doctor said I am fine, but I have to take my meds on time." Mention of taking meds


    caused Izabe to make a bitter face.


    "Then listen to the doctor."


    Izabe thought about the ovtion shot this morning, and as it was her fertile period, she didn''t


    want to miss any chance to find the truth.


    Once Brett went into the bathroom, she took off her clothes and wrapped herself in the nket.


    Ccontent ? exclusive by N?/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.


    He had no idea what was on her mind, and when he came out, he saw Izabe lying down with her


    back to him, thinking she was tired and wanted to sleep. But then she suddenly rolled over into his


    arms, and as he instinctively put his hand under the nket to hug her, his body went stiff.


    "Be?"


    Izabe seemed a bit shy, half her face was buried in the nket. She''d never been so forward


    before.


    Seeing Brett''s shock, she smiled, quickly stretched her neck and gave him a peck on the lips.


    This was the first time Izabe saw Brett like this, his eyes filled with anticipation, neck veins


    bulging, and his brows tinted with a light shadow. As he breathed, his lovely eyshes trembled.


    Shey sweaty and exhausted in Brett''s arms, unwilling to let go even though she could barely


    breathe from the heat.


    That night, she had a vivid nightmare - the worst she''d ever experienced. She dreamt she was


    alone in a clinic, receiving stacks of medical reports, and the doctor told her clearly, "You''re dying."


    The papers read in bold letters - terminal stomach cancer.


    Upon waking up, her face was damp with tears, and her heart ached as if pierced by a sharp de.


    For a moment, she felt her strength drained from her body, leaving her weak and anxious. Her head


    began to ache, and she felt an urge to jump out the window, thinking she might see the man from


    her dream.