جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 270

“Is he a man?”“Don’t worry. Our nursing staff is professional, no matter their gender. It’s better to have a male nurse for your situation. They’re usually stronger, so if your legs cramp up, they can help you get in and out of bed. Pregnant women often have leg cramps, and as your belly gets bigger, it will happen more often.”Ms. Xavier made a good point. It made sense for them to assign me a male nurse.“But why doesn’t he talk?”Ms. Xavier lowered her voice. “This is Mr. Ganes. He has a speech impediment. But don’t worry. He’s skilled at caring for patients, and he’ll take good care of you.”A speech impediment? I had heard of that. It seemed to be more of a psychological issue than a physical one.I did not judge people with disabilities. After all, I could not see.I nodded at the white figure before me. “Sorry about that. Ever since I lost my sight, I’ve been a bit paranoid. I always feel like someone’s out to get me.”The figure did not respond. Ms. Xavier smiled and s

“There are still a few months to go. I haven’t thought of names yet.”I was bad at naming things. I named our pets, and if they could talk, they would probably complain about it for a long time.I figured that Eloise and the others had already chosen names for the babies anyway. After all, they would be taking care of the babies. So, I did not need to stress about it.After the vision therapy session, Mr. Ganes walked back with me.Just then, my phone beeped in my pocket. I took it out and saw a notification.A robotic voice said, “Hello, this is your reminder. Zach’s birthday is in one week. Is your gift ready?”I stared at my phone. In the past, I would be anxious about Zach’s birthday and prepare his gift days in advance.Most of my reminders were about him. I stood there and deleted them one by one.With each deletion, the voice asked, “Are you sure you want to delete the reminder for Zach’s birthday in three days?“Are you sure you want to delete the reminder to replace t

He typed on his phone. “Didn’t you ask me to see if your eyebrows moved?”I was at a loss for words.It was late, and the cold wind felt like it was creeping into my blankets. So, I sat up in the lounge chair and said, “I’m going to sleep. I’m tired.”While I was looking for my shoes, he suddenly bent down and picked me up.This was not his first time carrying me. Sometimes, he would carry me when it was inconvenient for me to walk.My face was pressed against his chest, and that strange feeling of familiarity returned.I could hear his heart pounding.Weirdly, my heart started to race a little too.I knew that I should not think this way, but he really reminded me of Zach.“You kind of look like someone I know,” I said.He set me down on the bed and typed on his phone. “Who?”I contemplated for a moment and did not answer.In the end, I just lay down. Mr. Ganes was in the room next to mine, and I had a call button. So, if I needed anything or shouted, he would hear me.Th

“I can see its color. My eyesight’s gotten a bit better these past few days. I can kind of see your face now.”“Am I pretty?”“You’re gorgeous.”Ms. Xavier laughed. “Your eyesight’s still not fully healed if you think that.”As I prepared to wash up, I asked, “My friend’s visiting today. If she stays late, can she spend the night?”“No one can stay, but for you? Sure.”My dad had shares in the rehabilitation center, so I could do whatever I wanted.Honestly, I was thinking about Mr. Ganes starting his shift at 6 p.m. If Sophie stayed, she might get to see him. For some reason, I just could not let it go.I trusted my intuition. After being with Zach and loving him for so long, I knew every little thing about him.While I walked by the lake after breakfast, Ms. Xavier came over. “Ms. Sophie Freeman is here.”From afar, I could hear Sophie yelling, “Cassia! Cassia!”She ran up to me with a bunch of bags and dropped them casually on the ground.“What did you bring?” I asked.

Sophie sighed and patted my shoulder. “You’ve loved Zach for so many years. It’s not easy to move on. I understand.”There was no way she could understand.We lay on my bed and stared at the ceiling. “So, what’s going on with you and Austin?” I asked.“What do you mean?”“I thought I told you to ask him if he likes you. If he doesn’t, just find someone else. Don’t drag it out. It’s not good for either of you.”“Whatever.” She snorted.I wanted to talk more, but Sophie had already fallen asleep.She could fall asleep anywhere, even better than me, a pregnant woman.At 7 p.m., Mr. Ganes came to take me to vision therapy.I rested my hand on his wrist as usual. Realizing that my suspicions were all in my head, walking beside him felt different.The hallway was long, and I smiled at him. “You know what? I almost mistook you for someone else.”He typed on his phone. “Who?”I did not answer, so he asked again, “Zach?”I laughed and said, “Yeah. He keeps coming back into my life.