Cordy suddenly said, "It's alright. You can take your time to consider it. I'm in no hurry."There was a smile on her face, even as she stubbornly restrained the tears in her eyes.She could wait—she wouldn’t mind waiting for a couple of days, as it was nothing compared to the years she waited. She understood John; anyone in his shoes would hesitate.Most importantly, Nana was no pushover; hell, she just might be smarter and more ruthless than Cordy’s sister Noel. Not to mention, Nana was better at manipulating a man's heart.It was only natural she had leverage against John.And with those words, Cordy prepared to turn and leave."Cordy." John suddenly stopped her.Cordy’s heart skipped a beat; suddenly, she was afraid to confront his response.After all, she was merely avoiding the problems when she said she could wait and could afford him time—now, she wasn’t completely confident John would choose her."I'm afraid I’d disappoint you again," John said, his voice clearly re
At that very moment, Cordy held on tighter to John by instinct, not willing to let him leave and go to Nana's side.John's fingers twitched in turn, naturally sensing the pressure in Cordy’s touch.However, he didn’t push her away.He could never do it."Lucas, we're getting married soon…" Nana's voice remained soft and feeble, as she calmly told them about reality with an expectant look in her eyes.Even so, John refused to go to her.He wanted to stay with Cordy, and love her and her alone for the rest of his life.Be it before and after his amnesia, or after he regained his memories, he only ever loved Cordy.All he felt towards Nana was only responsibility—but at a level that could crush him.Nana, upon seeing that John wasn’t coming over to her, and that he wasn’t pushing Cordy away and was holding her hand firmly, flashed her usual innocent smile; this time, it carried a hint of reluctance.She slowly walked towards John, saying, "It's fine. If you won't come back to me
Certainly, Cordy wouldn’t lay down her life for just about anyone.That was being irresponsible to her own life; plus, she wasn’t despicable enough to threaten someone with her own suicide. "In other words, your feelings for Lucas don't compare to mine!" Nana smiled even broadly, her scorn even more obvious."That's not love—that's selfish obsession. You have no idea what love is.""No! I love Lucas more than anyone else, and I can't live without him," Nana retorted, looking Cordy straight in the eye. "You can still live happily without Lucas, so don't try to take him from me, okay? Spare my life.""Your life is your own and has nothing to do with anyone else's. Don't try to threaten me with emotional blackmail," Cordy said coolly, immune to Nana’s pity party."But I'm not." Nana smiled faintly, turning back to Lucas. "We're just distant relatives and ultimately strangers—how could I threaten you? I'm just threatening Lucas."As John stayed dead silent, Nana pressed, "Let go of
Cordy opened her mouth to speak, but swallowed her words. What could she say to stop him anyway? She couldn’t threaten John with suicide, because she wasn’t that despicable. "Cordy."As John and Nana disappeared from sight, a familiar voice sounded beside her.Cordy had no idea when Patrick arrived, how long he had been there, or how much he had seen.She couldn’t say anything at that moment."I'm taking you back to your room," he told her, and wheeled her around.That was when Cordy saw Sean as well.They must have arrived together, staying behind and quietly watching her misery.She couldn’t control her tears, and kept crying despite the irony of it all.When they returned to her room, Patrick brought a box of tissues to wipe her tears for her, but she refused and took the box instead.She slowly calmed down, refusing to let Dicky see her being vulnerable.She always appeared invincible, and rarely showed how she truly felt to others.It was after a long time that she
The ward was suddenly dead silent, and even the air seemed to stagnate.Both Sean and Patrick were gaping at Cordy, wondering if they had misheard."Lucas Lynd is John Levine," Cordy repeated very slowly and clearly.Being the calmer one, Sean regained composure soon enough. "How did you know?""Paternity test," Dicky suddenly said, seemingly noticing that his mother was in a bad state as well.As Sean turned towards him, Dicky explained with logic and in no uncertain terms, "Lucas looks different from my father, but everything else about them was identical. I've been with Daddy since I was a kid, so I'd know that it really is him. I did one paternity test just to make sure, and Mommy eventually realized it too and did another. Both tests proved that he’s my daddy." Sean was silent for a while. "So that parental test… It's not you and Dicky? It's Dicky and Lucas?!""Yes." Cody nodded.Sean was ultimately stunned. "But shouldn't John be dead? I even made inquiries to certain p
Sean said, "Being able to enjoy yourself anytime is part of being alive. If you live too miserably, you'll regret it if you suddenly die.""Who the hell is dying?!" Patrick snapped in displeasure, pausing for a moment before adding, "Well, I guess you’re worried since you're not exactly young.” Sean was speechless—Patrick was no older than him, with the man being in the thirties and he himself just reaching forty.Nonetheless, Patrick took the beer and glass from Sean. While Sean stared at him, he said, "It's no big deal if you die, but I'd be blamed if you died near me. I won't be able to take the responsibility when your whole family comes for my head."With that, Patrick took a sip from Sean's glass, clearly refusing to let Sean drink.Sean didn’t fight back since he rarely drank, though he considered that any vice was fine in suitable doses.And now… Whatever. He didn’t want to argue with Patrick at the moment.Hence, Sean watched as the man started from sips until he event
After the care worker left, Sean pulled Patrick up to his feet and off the table.Patrick was already dizzy, and the motion almost knocked him out.He opened his dazed eyes at Sean, all the while feeling that his own body was being dragged along. Sean’s hand was so forceful that he could die from the pain at that very moment."Can't you be more gentle?" he snapped indignantly. "I'm never gentle.""Your wife must suffer a lot because of you.""Yeah, she does," Sean replied, and helped Patrick to the bed with considerable difficulty. He was just about to let Patrick down when Patrick grabbed his clothes, catching him off guard and pulling him down in bed.As Sean fell on top of Patrick, the atmosphere seemed to stiffen even though Patrick was smiling smugly. "You didn't expect that, didja?!""...You're incorrigible," Sean snapped coolly. "Let go.""No," Patrick retorted, and held on tighter to Sean."Patrick Stuart!""Threats won't work with me!" Patrick looked utterly daun
Nana was frustrated by John’s indifference towards her, but she bore with it since it wasn’t Cordy.In the very least, John chose her and not Cordy—that alone was enough for her to celebrate for a long while.-Outside the ward, John stood before Dicky, studying his much taller frame and asking, "Were you looking for me?""Yeah.""Is something the matter?""I don't want to stay here. Can we go to your room?" Dicky asked bluntly, his contempt towards Nana not disguised at all."Okay," John replied, and led Dicky to his ward.Once inside, he asked, "Want a drink? Or some fruits?""No," Dicky replied.John didn’t force the issue.Then, Dicky asked directly, "I heard you're marrying Nana. Is that true?""Yeah.""Don't you love Mommy?" Dicky was a little agitated—hearing it directly from his daddy hurt even more."Sometimes, adults can't make all their choices.""What are you talking about? Was that because you were dating Nana first? The truth is that you've been with Mommy
Soon, another nurse emerged from the delivery room with a small bundle. "Is the mother's family here?""Yes!" John exclaimed loudly."The delivery was successful," the nurse said. "The baby weighs eight pounds—""How is she?" John asked in agitation, not caring about the child."She's fine. The doctor is just helping her clean up and she'll be out soon," the nurse replied.As John breathed a sigh of relief, the nurse reminded him, "Aren't you the father? Here's your child."John took the baby off her arms, staring at her for a moment as the others flocked around him. "Oh, she's so fair!" Zoe could not help exclaiming. "That's the most beautiful baby I've ever seen.""Are you saying that your son's ugly?" Bob teased."To be honest, yeah," Zoe replied without thinking.Jay cleared his throat—even if it was a subjective opinion, it still hurt to have his own baby called ugly."Let me carry her," Zoe volunteered just then, and John did not hesitate to hand her his baby.As Zoe
"What?!" Zoe exclaimed in shock.Beside them, John's face fell despite being usually stoic.Still, even before anyone could react, he scooped Cordy up in his arms and left.Zoe did not hesitate to follow, but Jay reminded her, "We're the hosts, Zoe.""Don't care." Zoe was completely unconcerned. "Ask my mom and your sister to handle the guests. I'm going with Cordy!"Jay hesitated for a moment before deciding to follow since there was no reasoning with Zoe.Sam and Quinn also realized that something was out of place.As they pulled away reluctantly, Bob shouted from below, "If you're done kissing, we're going to the hospital! Cordy's going into labor!"Quinn hurried after them as soon as she hurt, but Sam caught her. "Slow down. We can catch up."In fact, most of the guests were leaving as well—it was as if the banquet for Zoe's son was actually intended for everyone else.The poor boy was certainly unlucky to have such unreliable parents!-As everyone rushed to the hospit
"I'm swelling from my pregnancy," Quinn explained. "It's not your fault."Sam was left staring at her for a while before asking, "So, what should I do?""I'll put it on when I slim down.""Oh." Sam was a little disappointed, since he had always dreamed of having her put on the ring he had custom made.But this was fine—they had all the time they needed, and the most important thing for him is that Quinn was marrying him!He rose to his feet just then, and everyone was cheering as soon as he did. "Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"Quinn blushed right then, and Sam could see that she was embarrassed.He did not want to make things awkward for her, even if he was quite eager at the moment.Heaven knows how much he missed that night's drunken fumble they had. In fact, during the times he remembered it in dreams, he had to wash his pants when he woke up.Still, just as he took Quinn's hand and started to leave, he felt a softness on his lips—Quinn was kissing him! Sam's heart pounded thunderous
Everyone waited patiently for the final outcome.Quinn's eyes were welling up with tears, threatening to gush if she so much as blinked.She did her best to hold back her tears—to be strong!Sam pursed his lips in turn, his Adam's apple bobbing.A long while passed, and it felt like a century for Quinn when she finally heard him say, "Yes."Quinn's tears started falling in happiness as Sam declared loudly, "I'll marry you, Quinn—it's what I've always wanted to do! I won't let you go even if you regret it eventually! You only get to be with me, and I'll never let any other man claim you! I'll become very overbearing… eventually!""I won't regret it," Quinn said, determined.She certainly would not regret marrying him!Zoe walked up to them with perfect timing just then, and Sam did a double take.He finally remembered that Zoe was the host of this luncheon and was going to leave with Quinn when Zoe whipped out a small red velvet box."You know what's in here, don't you?" Zoe a
However, Sam had already pushed Quinn away before she could tell him. But even if he did not love her or did not want to be with her, she would never stay with Ryan.She had been disappointed in Sam, wondering why he would give up so easily.Was she that unimportant to him?Therefore, if it were not for Zoe and Cordy showing her that video or telling her so much, she would never have known that he loved her for years…Sam's heart ached even as he looked into Quinn's tearful eyes.He reached out a hand, but soon withdrew it—would he not burden her?Even so, it hurt to restrain himself as he watched her, and he was actually getting the feeling that Quinn loved him…But she already had Ryan's child…Well, he was fine with that, as long as the child was Quinn's.But would she not mind?"I will marry you, Sam," Quinn said slowly and clearly then. "Not because you're a good man, not because you prepared so much for me, and not because of how much you prepared for me, but because I
Everyone in the hall was staring at Sam and Quinn, while Quinn took center stage, staring fixedly at Sam.He stood in the middle of the crowd, watching her silently.She in turn felt fear that he would turn and leave, just as she did not know if she had the courage to stand before him again and to declare her feelings for him in front of so many others.Nonetheless, amid the deafening silence, Sam suddenly walked toward the stage.His pace was slow as if his feet were made of lead, but he was also unusually determined.Quinn's heart raced uncontrollably right then!Everyone else was watching them nervously, especially Cordy and Zoe, with the latter being especially concerned that the cowardly Sam would bail.Fortunately, he was a man who showed responsibility. He would not leave Quinn alone and embarrassed.Hence, as everyone looked on, Sam stood before Quinn, his gaze flickering as their eyes met.He gulped ever so slightly, his emotions clearly ruffled even as he did his bes
The guests were encouraging, loudly asking, "Why?!""Because of a woman," Sam's recording replied."Who is it?""Quinn Summer," the Sam on the screen said slowly and clearly, leaving the Sam who was in the hall stunned.What the hell?! That was the proposal video he prepared before! Why did it show up here? Did Zoe make a mistake?!He knew it—leave anything to Zoe, and she would mess it up!He started striding toward the stage, intent on stopping the recording, when John and Bob intercepted him with a look of utter guilt while the recording continued. "Quinn is my wife, and we've been married for years, but I've never really loved her—not because I don't, but because I'm afraid to. I feel too insignificant in comparison to the one she loves, so I'd always hurt her… painfully and childishly. I regret that so much now, Quinn. How could I have abandoned you for so long because of my own jealousy? I'd rather hold you in my sleep every night, but my damned pride denied me that for y
At the banquet hall, Jay and Zoe were thanking their guests with their children in their arms.Then, Zoe announced excitedly, "Please give my best friend, who is also my son's godmother, a warm applause as she comes on stage!"Sam stood at a corner of the hall, watching as Quinn walked up the stage, only realizing just then that her belly was clearly swelling despite her baggy clothes.Time flies—he had not left that long ago, but she and Ryan already had a child.She was not worried about giving him a stroke, was she?He watched as Quinn took the mic and looked around below searching, seemingly searching.After a while, he thought she was looking at him, but by the time he looked up, she had already turned away.Maybe she was looking for Ryan before remembering that Ryan was not there?Nonetheless, Quinn spoke into the mic, saying, "I'm honored to be chosen as the godmother to Zoe's son, and she's been saying he'd be engaged to my child if it's a girl. I already love my godson
As their eyes met, Sam turned frantic and averted his. "Of course.""Really?" Quinn asked."Would I lie to you?" Sam asked a little grumpily."And you didn't bring her back?" Quinn asked."I'm on a schedule, and it'd be taxing for her if I bought her along," Sam said, making things up as he went along. "I'll bring her along when things are less busy.""Is she pretty?" Quinn pressed."What, have I ever picked an ugly one?" Sam snorted smugly. "You know I prefer curvaceous types, and there are plenty of those abroad.""Do you have a photo?"Sam was silent for a while and eventually said, "Yeah.""Can I see it?""What, does she have to pass your assessment?""Just curious about the girl who can tempt you to settle down," Quinn replied. "You'd be humbled." Sam hastily came up with an excuse."I won't," Quinn said, determined."You'll see her when I bring her home." Sam refused nonetheless."I would like to see a photo now.""No, she's not that photogenic. It'd be slander a