Chapter 17

"Ella, what's wrong?"

"Huh?" I turned towards Lana. "What?"

She looked at me with her large, bright blue eyes. "Are you thinking about that guy? He deserves you."

I nodded slightly, "Yeah... you're right." But that's not what I'm thinking about right now. I'm thinking about Mr. Shaw and what we just talked about. What if he's the one who killed him?

"I've contacted your office, Christine, and the others seem to be visiting you this afternoon."

"Thanks, Lana." I smiled at her, trying to divert my thoughts. "I just want to go home as soon as possible."

"Me too. I miss chatting with you late at night."

I smiled at her again, "Me too. Is your dad still in San Francisco?"

"He came back at 7 this morning." She replied quickly; Lana wasn't keen on talking about her father or her family much. "Ella? If... if you need a liver donor, you can use mine."

"Lana... you don't have to do that." I answered, touched by her offer. But I won't accept her offer. "There are still many other donors, if I really need one."

Lana returned my smile, "I'm serious. If you need it, you can use mine."

"Lana—"

"I want it, Ella. You have to promise that if you need it, I'm your first donor, okay?" There was a hint of sadness in her expression. My instincts kept telling me Lana was hiding a lot from me. But I knew I couldn't force her to tell me; Lana would tell me when she wanted to.

"Okay." I replied, though deep down, I knew I wouldn't do what she asked.

She smiled again, "So... what did Nicholas Shaw talk to you about?" She raised her eyebrows teasingly, trying to get information from me.

"He just asked about my well-being." I replied a bit shyly.

"Oh really? He came all the way from Manhattan just to ask about your well-being?" Lana chuckled and continued, "Did he also pay for your medical expenses?"

My smile quickly faded, "What?"

Lana stopped laughing when she saw my expression, "I visited the hospital's administration before coming to your room, but when I was about to take care of it for you, they said it had already been paid. So, I thought..."

"Oh..." He also paid for my medical expenses? I tried to calculate the total amount of money he spent to pay off my debts and hospital bills. It was not a small sum.

"He didn't tell you, huh?" Lana asked, raising her eyebrows.

I just shook my head in response.

"Maybe he forgot to tell you," she added softly. Our conversation was cut short when the doctor who was taking care of me entered the room along with Mr. Shaw and a nurse.

"Miss Heather." He greeted me, "Are you feeling better this morning?" he asked while checking my eyes and pulse. My breathing aid had been removed since this morning.

I shook my head. "I feel fine."

He nodded and checked the machines connected to my body, just like the nurse did earlier, furrowing his brow as he examined them.

Mr. Shaw stood with Lana at the edge of the room; they were talking quietly to avoid disturbing us.

"I need to do an ultrasound now if you don't mind," my doctor said suddenly.

"Of course." I replied. "Is... is my condition worsening?"

He smiled slightly, though the wrinkles on his forehead hadn't disappeared, "No. Quite the opposite."

Two hours later, I had been transferred to a regular room. The results of my blood tests and ultrasound were out, and the doctor said I didn't need surgery. He seemed a bit puzzled while reading my test results.

"Perhaps my colleague misdiagnosed last night." He muttered quietly to himself, "But your recent test results show that you're perfectly fine, Miss Heather. I think you can go home in another day."

"Okay, that's good." I replied with a smile. We were alone in this room, and Lana and Mr. Shaw were still outside.

"Well, I hope you can go home soon, Miss Heather. Your fiancé seems really worried about you." He said, checking my eyes and pulse again. "Are you having difficulty breathing?" he added. My breathing aid had been removed since this morning.

I shook my head. "I'm perfectly fine."

He just nodded and checked the machine connected to my body, similar to what the nurse did earlier. He furrowed his brow when he looked at it.

Mr. Shaw and Lana came in after he left. "Nicholas Shaw is talking to your doctor," she said as she approached my bed. They had removed all the tubes and cables that were previously attached to me, leaving only the IV tube. "What did the doctor say just now?"

"He said I can go home tomorrow."

A faint smile adorned her contrasting face after hearing my answer, "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning. Do you want me to cook something for you?"

I felt a slight frown on my forehead without realizing it. I might not be good at cooking, but Lana is worse than me. The last time she cooked casserole, the fire alarm in our entire apartment went off, causing panic among all our neighbors. "No, there's no need. We can order pizza and watch movies all day."

"Okay." She glanced at the clock on the wall briefly and then looked towards the door. "I talked to him earlier... Ella, it seems like he really likes you." She spoke in a softer voice than before.

"He just visited me."

"Nicholas Shaw is a busy person, Ella." Lana looked at me with her serious expression. "But he came straight from Manhattan just to check on you."

"That's because we were talking on the phone when that man attacked me." I mumbled. "He heard me scream."

Lana looked a bit surprised when she heard my answer, but only for a moment. "Ella, people like Nicholas Shaw don't waste their time just to visit their former employees. Do you think he came to San Francisco looking like that just to check on you? I bet he hasn't changed his clothes at all since he arrived here. He likes you."

"Lana, I can't—"

"Whoa. Wait a minute, are you going to reject him? Nicholas Shaw?" She looked at me as if I were crazy. If only Lana knew who Nicholas really was... maybe by now, she would have dragged me out of here. But Lana doesn't know.

"He... he's different from me, okay? Our worlds are different."

Lana sighed, pouting slightly, "I knew you would use that excuse." She muttered. "But at least, give him a chance."

Lana's last sentence echoed in my head until she left the apartment. Mr. Shaw hasn't visited me since then; maybe he's gone to rest. Probably, he hasn't slept since last night. But right now, I need some time alone to think.

What should I do? Mr. Shaw looked serious when he said he liked me, and we've kissed a few times. My cheeks warmed up quickly when I remembered our kisses.

I remembered the first time we met; he helped me when a car almost hit me. At that time, I was too busy pulling my stuck heel from the drain that I didn't notice his arrival. He's always been there to help me, even since our first encounter.

Sleepiness began to take over, but the sound of the door opening brought me back to reality. I wasn't sure how long I had been asleep, but the clock showed 7 PM.

Mr. Shaw paused when he saw me awake, "Did I wake you up?" He closed the door behind him quietly.

I shook my head, "You're still here."

"Of course, I'm still here." He replied, sitting on the sofa, taking out his phone briefly, and then putting it back. His clothes were the same as last night. "I had to attend to some work earlier. The doctor informed me that you can go home tomorrow."

"He seemed surprised by my test results."

"Of course," he muttered to himself.

"Of course? What do you mean?"

"It's nothing."

"Mr. Shaw, what do you mean by 'of course'?" I pressed with an uneasy feeling.

He pulled the corners of his mouth down, "Nicholas."

I exhaled and locked my gaze on his, "Nicholas."

His usually cold, blue eyes softened when he looked at me. "Say it again."

His gaze now made me more nervous; I tried to avert my eyes from his intense look, "Nicholas," I whispered.

He lifted one corner of his mouth a few millimeters, forming a faint smile. He looked genuinely handsome, even with his disheveled appearance. Mr. Shaw stood up from the sofa and walked towards me. "I just want to help you."

The tone of his voice again made me feel uneasy, "What... what are you doing?"

"I gave you my blood." There was no expression on his face as he said it. My hand instinctively moved to touch my neck, where Greg had bitten me.

"I didn't touch you, Eleanor." His voice deepened, "I administered it through your IV last night."

My response was an instinctual gasp. My mind raced with thoughts about the implications.

"They replaced it this morning." He added as if he could read my mind.

He gave me his blood? His blood flowed through my veins right now, panic momentarily taking over. What if...

"Eleanor—"

"Am I going to turn like you?" I asked with a choked voice.

He looked at me for a moment before bending down to look at my hands, one of which was gripping his with force. He didn't let go, and his gaze shifted slightly as he looked at me again. "You don't want to become like me?" he asked quietly.

I met his gaze with a panicked expression, "Maybe it's not too late, how do we get it out?" I didn't want to become a monster.

"Eleanor—"

"Maybe we can still remove it with a blood transfusion."

"Eleanor."

His voice made me snap out of my panic.

"You won't change. My blood only heals you. Volders have a much faster metabolism than humans; we don't have blood types, so our blood easily integrates with human blood."

I could only hear the first part. All my attention was focused on one thing: his expression now looked hurt, even though he tried to hide it behind a neutral face.

"Am I alone again, huh?" I murmured with a forced flat tone. I hadn't blinked since he came in because I knew if I did, my tears would fall. "Well..." I muttered with a slightly trembling voice, "Thank you for everything, Mr. Shaw. I'll pay off all my debts to you as soon as possible. Thank you for... thank you for..."

For what else? For that dinner that night? For his kisses? For his care for me? For all his help? I couldn't continue my sentence. I bit the inside of my cheek to prevent my tears from falling. The pain in my chest right now was worse than my physical injuries. Because I knew all my wounds would heal eventually, but my heart wouldn't. I had to piece it together bit by bit. Nicholas Shaw threw a sad smile at me for the last time before finally walking towards the door of my room.

"W—wait." The word came out of my mouth without my control. He stopped right in front of the door and froze. Slowly, he turned his body towards me, and I could see all the emotions in his eyes. No more masks to shield him.

"At least help me erase my memories." A tear that I had been holding back since before finally fell on my cheek. "Please."

He walked towards my bed and looked deeply into my eyes, gently cupping my cheek. I felt the warmth of his thumb moving slowly to wipe away the second tear. I couldn't look away from his blue eyes that would haunt me for the rest of my life. Then, very slowly and gently, he kissed me for the last time.