Chapter 209
After dinner, everyone headed back to their stations, and Leanne was bustling around as
usual.
Once she had sorted out the new patient, she made her way back to the office, with just over ten minutes to go until midnight.
Joy called her, keeping up with her tradition of ordering Leanne a birthday cake every year, and this year was no exception:
The birthday present had been delivered to Leanne earlier.
She went downstairs to collect it, wished the delivery guy, who had braved the late hour, a Merry Christmas, and carried the cake back upstairs.
“I wanna be the first to wish you a happy birthday! Don’t you dare hang up, okay? If you’re busy, just put the phone down for a bit.”
fishing
Lately, Joy had been spurred into action by Selina. “That little goofball Selina was fish around a few days ago, asking if your birthday was on Christmas Day. She definitely. planned to call you right on the dot, but she didn’t count on me being one step ahead, hehe!”
It was almost midnight, and usually, the hospital’s patients would be resting, leaving the building in a tranquil silence.
But today, with fewer people around, spirits were unexpectedly high. To Westerners magic of “Christmas Eve” alone is enough to lift spirits.
All worries, all sadness, it’s like they’re put on hold for this one day.
Even now, she could hear the sound of Christmas’ celebrations from the hospital room mixing with Joy’s infectious laughter.
“Thanks for your laugh, it’s like a wake-up call, was feeling sleepy, but now I’m wide.
awake.”
As she spoke, Leanne was almost back at her office. Phone in one hand and birthday cake in the other, she spotted a figure standing at the door from afar.
The man, clad in a black turtleneck sweater, exuded an air of elegance and calm, turning
to her with a gentle smile.
He too held a cake in his hands.
Leanne slowed her steps.
There were plenty of empty spaces in the parking lot as Curtis parked his car, picking up the custom-made cake from the passenger seat.
08.19
Chapter 209
It was a beautiful pink butterfly cake.
Tall in stature, the cake was adorned with layers of delicate pink waves, almost
translucent, with edges dusted in gold.
It resembled the tender petals of a blossom or the delicate wings of a butterfly.
As Curtis stepped out of the car, he checked his watch. He was early by half an hour, thinking that showing up now might annoy Leanne, interrupting her work.
So, Curtis decided to wait, leaning against his car and fishing out a pack of cigarettes. from his pocket.
He contemplated lighting one up but then hesitated, stuffing the cigarette back into the pack and tossing it back into the car.
His smoking habit hadn’t been severe before his time in Emberland Country, but it had picked up over the years.
Leanne had a keen sense of smell; once, after dining with colleagues, she ended up washing her hair three times to get rid of the smoke smell.
Leaning against the car door, Curtis gazed up at a specific floor of the building, reminiscing about three years ago, the same moment under a heavy snowfall, standing outside like a lovestruck fool from a drama series, waiting for her.
Three years
had passed, and he was still like a lovestruck; preferring the chill over the warmth of his car, he stood there, letting the cold wind slap his face.
He missed the snow this year, fondly remembering how he loved to see Leanne ru towards him through the snow, her eyes sparkling with joy.
With the last five minutes ticking away, Curtis picked up the cake and made his way towards the hospital building.
Up the stairs, into the elevator, and towards the ophthalmology office, he timed his arri perfectly.
Mid-conversation, Joy noticed the silence. “Got busy again?”
Then, a man’s voice emerged from the phone, calling out, “Leanne.”
“Jeremy?” Joy’s ears were sharp, followed by a chuckle, “He’s there for your birthday, huh? That’s thoughtful. I’ll leave you two be then, happy birthday in advance and Merry Christmas. Girl, you’ve made it through the darkest times, it’s only brightness ahead!”
Leanne humrned in agreement, “You too, Joy. Don’t look back at those who trouble you, just keep moving forward, I’m with you.”
Joy felt a lump in her throat. Every year, going back home meant dealing with her biased. parents, leaving her feeling agitated and suffocated.
2/2
Sᴇarch the FindNovel.net website on G𝘰𝘰gle to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report
