Shelly was extremely embarrassed by Fergus's words and stole a glance at Hayden to see his expression darkening."What is happening? This is hell!" she thought."Have the two of you already gotten to the point where you are discussing marriage?" Hayden had not anticipated that they would be moving forward with their relationship so swiftly or that Shelly would be so desperate to get married."No, Fergus is just messing around!" Shelly said."Haha! Yeah. I'm pursuing Shelly, but she hasn't agreed to it." Seeing how Hayden seemed interested in the topic, Fergus continued, "Shelly and I come from the same hometown. It's a remote, underdeveloped town. She was the first person that I had met from there since moving to Avonsville. It felt like fate. Moreover, we're around the same age, and, most importantly, our mothers know each other."An unreadable look crossed Hayden's face, one that could be interpreted as displeasure, but Shelly felt like he had a similar expression on most of the
Fergus felt slightly disappointed. "All right, then! I respect your choice. Let's just be friends. If a day comes when you want to start a family with me, let me know.""Sure. I advise you to go and meet other women, though. You will definitely find a better partner out there," Shelly said. "I have a child, so most of my focus is going to be on my child. It's best that you marry a woman who hasn't given birth yet.""With that logic, are you going to look specifically for men who are divorced and have children of their own?" Fergus asked. "It's not the olden days anymore, and there are plenty of couples who live together without getting married so they are no different from married couples. Countless women have gone through abortions after moving in with their boyfriends, and, if you ask me, I think giving birth is a better option over abortion."Shelly was pleasantly stunned, as she had never imagined Fergus to be so open-minded."Fergus, let's not talk about this for now, and let
A while later, Fergus arrived at Shelly's apartment in his car.Shelly stepped outside of her room with Audrey and a bagful of her things.Shelly's mother heard the commotion and stepped out of her own room. "What's wrong, Shelly?""Mom, Audrey is burning up. I'm taking her to a hospital. Go back to sleep! I've called Fergus, and he is waiting downstairs." Shelly did not want her mother to stay up. "It's raining heavily, and I don't know if the hospital is packed. Don't worry. Fergus will help, and I can handle it.""I will walk you downstairs, then." Shelly's mother grabbed an umbrella and exited the apartment with her.Fergus was waiting outside the entrance of their building, and, as soon as he spotted Shelly and her mother, he hurried over to shield them with his umbrella."Aunty, go back and rest! A fever isn't a big deal. I will drive them home once the doctors have had a look at the baby," Fergus said as he helped Shelly into the backseat of his car.He then reentered the
The doctor issued another prescription to Shelly, saying, "Go and get a blood test. Come back here once the results are available.""Okay, Doctor. Should we give her the fever-reducing medicine first or take the blood test first?" Shelly asked, still concerned."Give her the fever-reducing medicine first. Then proceed with the blood test," the doctor instructed."All right, Doctor. My child was fine before. She has never been sick. I don't know why she suddenly got a fever," Shelly said, standing from the chair with her baby in her arms."How old is your child?""She's six months old.""That's normal. Newborns carry antibodies from the mother's body until they reach six months, so they generally don't get sick. After six months, you need to take better care of them," the doctor explained.Realization dawned on Shelly, and she thanked the doctor before leaving the examination room.Fergus took the fever-reducing medicine and checked its dosage."Shelly, go over there and sit do
After examining the test results, the doctor said, "It's a bacterial infection. I'll prescribe some medicine for you to give to your child.""Okay, Doctor. It's not a serious problem, is it?" Shelly asked."We'll see how the situation progresses after she's taken the medicine. If the coughing becomes more severe, you'll need to come back for further examination." The doctor began writing a new prescription.Shelly looked at her daughter, who had already regained her spirits, and silently prayed that the medicine would help her recover.Ten minutes later, Shelly and her child, under an umbrella carried by Fergus who also held onto the medication, walked out of the emergency building.The rain had subsided significantly.Once they got into the car, Shelly asked, "Fergus, how much did it cost in total? I'll transfer the money to you."Since she had been carrying her daughter the whole time, Fergus had handled all the payments."It was just a small amount—""Fergus, if you refuse,
"Is Audrey alright? What did the doctor say?" Shelly's mother asked.Shelly held the prescribed medicine in her hand and started preparing it for her daughter. "It's a bacterial infection. The doctor said to give her the medicine first and see how she responds. Mom, don't worry too much. The doctor mentioned that children under six months rely on their mother's antibodies, but now that she doesn't have them, she's a bit more susceptible to getting sick.""Yes, I've heard about that. It might be because I took her out for a walk this afternoon, and she caught a chill," Shelly's mother replied."Mom, the doctor said we shouldn't overdress her when she has a fever. It hampers heat dissipation. From now on, we'll dress her according to how much we're wearing ourselves without adding too many layers." Shelly brought the medicine over to her daughter and fed it to her.Although Audrey's fever had subsided, her cheeks still had a rosy tint. However, she looked energetic and had a constant
After hanging up, Hayden delegated the task of organizing the gathering to his assistant.Eliam was a clever man and immediately understood Hayden's intentions."Mr. Tate, should we specifically remind Fergus from the Administration Department to participate?" Eliam asked.Hayden gave his assistant a cold stare, and Eliam shut his mouth."All single employees can participate in this gathering," Hayden stated."What if married employees want to join?" Eliam inquired."So that they can look for extramarital affairs?" Hayden countered. "Married employees cannot participate.""They might just want to join in on the fun," Eliam explained with a smile. "Imagine a gathering where all the outstanding single men and women from three major companies took part. Even if I was married, I would want to participate."Hayden pondered this for a moment and said, "Married attendees will have to cover their own meal expenses. They will also be given 'married' labels."Eliam thought Hayden's idea
"Sir, can I invite a friend to join?" Fergus thought of Shelly.Fergus was no fool and knew that Shelly was not interested in him, but since they were from the same hometown, he genuinely hoped she would find a good match someday."I'm not sure. Are you planning on inviting single friends or married ones?" the manager asked."A single friend. If it's not allowed, then forget it. My friend might not want to come anyway." Fergus did not want to complicate things."I'll ask Eliam."The manager called Eliam and relayed Fergus's question. Eliam asked in return, "Did he mention who he wanted to bring?""He didn't. I don't know any of his friends either!"Eliam guessed that Fergus wanted to bring Shelly and said, "Tell him that, if he wants to bring someone, it can only be one friend. And keep it low-key. Otherwise, everyone will want to bring a friend, and the hotel banquet hall might not be able to accommodate us all."The manager conveyed Eliam's response to Fergus, and Fergus imme