It was unseasonably warm. The night breeze was both hot and dry. Errol was sitting quietly on a bench in the hospital yard, smoking a cigarette.He reached into the case to take another cigarette when the last one burned out. However, the case was already empty. The ashtray on top of the trashcan was already full of cigarette butts.Errol pulled his hair, frustrated. Then, someone offered him a cigarette. He stood up abruptly when he saw who it was and signed, “Greetings, Cedric.” “There’s something on your mind.” Cedric stood next to him and said firmly. He knew Cedric was not well-versed in sign language, so he took out his phone and started typing. “What made you say that?”“You know the answer,” Cedric said coldly. Errol took a sharp breath and typed, “No. I’ve nothing to say.”Cedric sneered. “So much for your love for Celia.”“What about your love for Maia? You hurt her so badly in the past! You know all too well how much pain she went through!”Cedric said sharply, “
Errol watched as Cedric left. Then, he stared at the pack of cigarettes on the bench and smiled. He had to admit that men shared an unspoken language sometimes. A pack of cigarettes would help alleviate his unease.Errol headed back to Celia’s ward once the reek of cigarettes on him had worn off. It was seven o’clock. Thanks to Maia’s soothing attitude, Celia was smiling and speaking now. He was a little surprised.“Have you eaten anything, Celia?” He smiled and signed. She nodded and said affectionately, “I have. Were you able to rest? Why do you look so worn out?” “I rested. I’m not tired at all. You’ll see. We’re going to count the stars on the moonlit sky tonight.” Celia turned and looked out the window, “I’m sure the moon is going to be brilliant and there‘s going to be a sea of stars tonight!”“Exactly.” Errol nodded. Maia smiled and rose. They were such a lovely couple. She was going to give them some privacy.She waved at Celia. “Get some rest. I’m going to leave now
Cedric lowered his head, looked at his beloved wife, and grinned lovingly. It was wonderful for him to have her as his wife. “Mmph…” Maia kicked her blanket away. She always did this in her sleep. He smiled and tucked her in again. This was going to happen many times throughout the night. She was just like a kid.He brushed her hair back behind her ear as his smile deepened. She’ll always be his little Maia.…Maia could hear her phone ringing the next morning. She had always had a habit of sleeping in. Today was no exception either. She kept her blanket on and rolled in her sleep, but the ringing never stopped.She was finally roused from her sleep and eventually grabbed her phone from the bedside table. It was Buck. She picked up the call, laid back down, and said drowsily, “Hello?”“We found Celia’s attackers, Ms. Maia!” Maia snapped wide awake and sat upright on her bed, “What did you say? We got them?”Buck answered instantly, “That’s right. Mr. Cedric lent his men to th
“Go on.” Cedric instructed coldly.The executive managers of different departments continued to brief Cedric with their daily reports. Baz stood aside and tried to hide his laughter. He could imagine how they felt as it was unusual for Cedric to smile so happily.When the meeting came to an end, Cedric looked at his staff members who were clearing up and ready to leave, “Are you married?”Everyone froze in their seats as the turned to him. One of the managers smiled at Cedric and replied, “Most of us are.” “What are the traits of a good husband?” Cedric asked as his question surprised everyone in the room. Why is someone who had the business industry at his beck and call asking them this question? Baz, who was standing in the corner, was also taken aback by Cedric’s question. He really was doing everything he could to win Maia back! Someone commented. “Ahem. First, a man needs to have enough money to support his family!” “I already have more than enough.”The person quic
“Ms. Maia.” Paige greeted her and continued to keep her head down.Maia acted like she did not know what was going on as she handed her the documents. “What’s wrong?” Paige just shook her head as she looked at her with red eyes, not daring to utter a word. “Why were these documents on the floor?” Maia questioned in a seemingly calm tone. In truth, she was restraining herself from throwing these files at Tess.Before Paige could reply, Tess interrupted eagerly. “Maia, you’re here. Why are you carrying a bag of food? Did you not have breakfast? If I’d known, I would’ve prepared your favorite food!” “Aunt Tess, what’s going on here?” Maia questioned as she glanced at Paige who was still organizing the documents on the floor. Maia could not believe how fast her aunt could change her behavior. “I was just upset that Paige couldn’t do her work properly, so I gave her a warning. However, she looked like she wasn’t listening, so I got slightly angry and gave her back these documents.
“Do you want her to remember everything?” Cedric asked as he stared straight at her.Tess was intimidated by his look as she struggled to regain her composure. “I don’t care. As long as Maia is happy and safe, that’s all that matters to me.”“Really? You’re such a loving aunt,” Cedric replied sarcastically. Maia struggled to hold back her laughter as she pulled the hem of his shirt. “How can you talk to her like that? She’s my aunt.” “It’s fine, Maia. This is how he is. I won’t be mad at his attitude.” Tess replied smugly as she was satisfied with how Maia was siding with her. “Look at how nice Aunt Tess is.” “If you say so.” Cedric only smiled in reply as he walked toward her and carried her from the couch.“What are you doing? Put me down!” Maia was embarrassed as her aunt was still in the room. She was also angry at Cedric taking advantage of her. Cedric knew from the shade of red on her face that she was embarrassed. He looked at Tess and demanded, “It's 5pm already. I’m takin
The next morning, when Maia got to the kitchen, a housekeeper greeted her politely and handed her a wooden meal box. Maia accepted it and opened it in surprise. They were Nester’s apple pies. “Where did you get them?”“Mr. Cedric told us to give this to you as soon as you came down for breakfast.” He remembered! Did he go to Nester personally to get them?“He bought them?”The housekeeper nodded and added, “I saw Mr. Cedric leaving the house at midnight as I was getting off work. When he came back at 7am this morning, he had the meal box with him.”Maia could not believe her ears. Why did he go through all the trouble just to do this?“Ms. Maia, what do you have in your hands? It’s such a pretty meal box!” One of the housekeepers who had just walked in on them asked curiously.“They’re apple pies!” “Ms. Maia, you must really love them! Are you hungry? Should we prepare breakfast for you?” The housekeepers smiled and asked. “It’s fine. I’ll just have this.” She waved the
“Maia, thank you for comforting me the other day. I’m truly grateful for what you’ve done for me. However, I’m not as strong as you are. Not everyone could overcome a bad experience, and sadly, I’m one of them. This is my way of ending all the suffering. I’m sorry that I’ve disappointed all of you. I love Errol very much, but I can’t stay with him forever. I’m sorry.” The letter was simply heartbreaking as Maia cried sadly. “Ms. Maia.”Maia heard someone addressing her as she scrambled to dry her tears and regain her composure. She turned toward the voice and saw a police officer walking toward her. “Ms. Maia, we’re done talking to Mr. Errol. For now, we can only assume that Ms. Celia had committed suicide. More and more fans of Ms. Celia are gathering at the hospital. “We hope that as her ex-boss, you could talk to her fans and the media about the news and to ask them not to crowd around the hospital.” Maia knew the severity of this issue. Those fans and media have been cau