Web Fic
Chapter 183
Marie and the rest of the domestic staff were nowhere to be found as Estrella, overwhelmed by despair and helplessness, wept inconsolably.
“Bryce,” No one came out of the house. Feeling waves of intense pain in her stomach, Estrella burst into tears.
Today, she shouldn’t have trusted Jason to pick her up, gone back to Sandalwood Oasis with Drew, and waited for Jason at home.
If only she had returned to Waterfall Acres, she wouldn’t have had that nasty encounter with that stray cat, and taken this terrible fall.
“Ella.” Just as Estrella was about to muster the strength to get up, Bryce’s voice suddenly filled the air behind her. Bryce went pale when he saw Estrella crumpled on the ground. He rushed to her side, dropping to his knees and steadying her. “Ella, what happened?”
His gaze settled on Estrella’s face, red-nosed and tear-streaked, and his heart shattered into pieces. In all the years he’d known Estrella, she’d rarely ever cried, let alone appeared so disheveled and helpless.
Bryce was there, and to Estrella, he was a lifeline. She clutched at his collar desperately, “Bryce, the hospital. Take me to the hospital.”
Bryce, trembling, lifted Estrella off the ground and made a beeline for the hospital. On the way, Bryce’s shaking didn’t cease. His lips turned a worrying shade of blue.
He had never been so anxious and frightened in his 23 years of life, especially seeing Estrella’s face drained of color. A mix of tenderness and rage boiled inside him.
Estrella had to divorce Jason no matter what.
Outside the operating room, when the nurse handed Estrella’s down jacket to him, Bryce only then noticed blood on the clothes. Back at Sandalwood Oasis, Estrella’s layers had concealed the blood, and the waterproof jacket hadn’t let it seep through. Now, gazing at Estrella’s stained clothes, Bryce felt as if his heart had been ripped out.
If he had known it would come to this, he would have risked everything all those years ago to prevent Estrella from marrying Jason.
Sandalwood Oasis. Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.
When Marie noticed Estrella hadn’t come in for quite some time, she ventured out into the yard to look for her and found no trace of her, just her cell phone buried under a fresh blanket of snow.
Marie searched the house top to bottom, sighing helplessly when she found no sign of
08:35
Estrella sleeping or otherwise. Mr. Jason had really dropped the ball not picking up Ms. Estrella, and she had waited at home for hours for nothing. If Marie were in Estrella’s shoes, she’d be livid too, not wanting to see him either.
Ever since Holly’s return, with Jason starting to stay out, Marie had been worried sick about the young couple’s marriage. She couldn’t help but feel a tinge of resentment towards Holly.
“If you’re going to play dead, at least do it convincingly! What sense does it make to suddenly come back to life?” Marie thought to herself.
Meanwhile, in the hospital room.
After the doctors had done their work, Holly was awake. Lying in the hospital bed, she gazed out at the heavy snowfall and then at Jason, sitting beside her. It had been so long since she’d felt this content.
Watching the snow, Holly said softly, “Jason, it’s been ages since Ravenwood has seen such a heavy snow. It’s as if the snow is welcoming me back.”
Jason remained silent. Even without words, just having him by her side made Holly feel like she had the whole world to herself.
After a long while of staring silently outside, Holly spoke again, her voice tinged with nostalgia. “Jason, wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could turn back time, if we…” Noticing Jason’s mood, Holly tactfully let the sentence trail off. Whatever the case, having him close was all that mattered.
After three grueling hours, Estrella was finally wheeled out of the operating room.
“Ella.”
Bryce and Jesse hurried over, each taking one of her hands in theirs. It was just the two of them by her side now.
Before entering the operating room, Estrella had confided in Bryce that aside from the two of them and her father, no one knew of her pregnancy. She’d asked not to tell her mother, fearing her mother might cry her eyes out. So Bryce kept it to himself, only telling Jesse that Estrella was in the hospital, prompting Jesse to rush over in a panic.
“Estrella, Estrella,” Jesse called out to her several times, but when she didn’t respond, Jesse simply held her hand tighter.
Before long, Estrella was settled in her hospital room, still unconscious. Bryce was silent, his breaths measured, while Jesse sat quietly by her side. They stayed through the night. The snow finally ceased after seven or eight hours, layering the world in about a foot of white. The world outside was alive with festive joy, but Estrella remained enveloped in slumber.
Jesse finally broke the silence. “She’s been out for so long now.”
08:35
“Doctor said she’ll be alright,” Bryce assured her, though his voice was hollow.
Jesse sighed, “Back then, maybe we should have tried harder to persuade Estrella.”
Bryce remained silent. The past was the past; there was no use dwelling on it. The important thing was to minimize the damage now.
On the hospital bed, Estrella had heard their conversation. In fact, she had been awake for a while, but feeling unsure of what to say or how to face them, she kept her eyes closed, seeking a moment of peace within herself.
She drifted in and out of consciousness until the next morning, when the outside bustle and the nurses’ chatter about Christmas finally prompted her to open her eyes.
“Ella.”
Bryce and Jesse had stood vigil by Estrella’s side all night, and when she opened her eyes and came to, they eagerly grasped her hands.
Bryce appeared disheveled with stubble, and Jesse’s face was etched with fatigue. Estrella smiled at them and said, “I’m alright.’
Estrella, are you hungry or thirsty? Anything you’re craving?” Jesse asked with concern.
With a chuckle, Estrella replied, “I could eat a whole cow.” Estrella’s mood was hard to pinpoint, but she didn’t want to worry Jesse and Bryce.
Bryce let out a soft chuckle and gently caressed her cheek with his right hand. Yesterday/ when he went to pick her up at Sandalwood Oasis, she looked deathly pale, with tears streaming down her face. She sat on the ground crying, and it almost scared the life out
of him.
Estrella tenderly held the hand Bryce rested on her cheek, “Bryce, thank you.” Bryce squeezed her hand in return, a gentle pinch to offer solace.
With Estrella awake, both Jesse and Bryce could breathe a sigh of relief.
When Estrella was rushed to the hospital the day before, Jesse had sat with her for a bit before heading back to Waterfall Acres to pack her things. Bryce, on the other hand, had stayed in the room to keep her company.
As the doctors examined Estrella, Bryce was on the phone trying to reach Jason, but just getting his voicemail. After the doctors left the room, Bryce, in a fit of frustration, hurled his phone against the floor.