Next One Is a Babe

Cindy saw that Aurora was shaking. She was taking deep breaths, and her lips were tightly pursed. She seemed really nervous. Cindy turned sideways and whispered, “I wonder if Mr. Morgan will get nervous when he sees you.”

Aurora paused for a moment before answering, “I don’t care about him. I just know I’m not nervous.”

Cindy wanted to laugh, but she kept it in. “Yeah. I can see that as well.”

The elevator doors opened, and they went toward the ward. It wasn’t the time for another checkup, so nobody was in the corridor except for them.

Sean and Ian were walking ahead, while the ladies lagged behind. Cindy noticed that Aurora was slowing down stiffly, and she patted her shoulder. “Relax, Aurora.”

Aurora stubbornly said, “I am. I am very relaxed. Don’t worry about me. I’m more relaxed than I have ever been.”

They came to Bryce’s ward, and Sean knocked on the door. Bryce replied, “Come in. I’m up.”

Cindy saw Aurora stiffening up considerably.

Sean opened the door and went in, while Ian looked at his mother. “Let’s go.”

Aurora couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw Bryce. To her, Bryce was supposed to be a calm and collected man. Even if he wasn’t showing any emotions, seeing him had been enough to make her feel at ease. So who is this old man on the bed? Aurora stared at Bryce for a long while, and she furrowed her brow.

Bryce made small talk with his sons, then he looked at Aurora. Compared to Aurora, he handled the situation calmly enough, and he even smiled. “It’s been years, but you still look as lovely as ever.” He sighed melancholically. “But I have changed a lot. I got a lot older.”

A few moments later, Aurora replied, “Yes, you did. You gave me the shock of my life. I almost couldn’t recognize you.” Aurora sounded calm. If they didn’t know better, they would have thought Aurora and Bryce were friends who were reunited after a long time of estrangement.

Cindy held Aurora’s arm and led her into the ward. They sat down on the couch, but Aurora could not look away from Bryce. She was silent, but the shock was still lingering in her soul. She had given herself a lot of pep talk the day before when she knew she would be coming for a visit, but after seeing Bryce, she let go of all her anger.

She had seen Bryce’s photos on the news before, but all of them were photos of his younger self. Not a single photo of his recent condition was shown on any news lately. Even though Bryce was right in front of her, she couldn’t even imagine him as the same person she remembered. The person before her was too alien for her to even get angry at.

Whatever grudge she had against him, it was all gone after seeing him in this state. Aurora knew she had changed a lot as well, but Bryce’s change was more shocking than she could imagine.