7. Slept Very Well

My palm rushed to my stomach, holding that spot instinctively.

Shutting my eyes, I took in a deep breath to put up with the pain. However, it only intensified.

“Where do we go, Ma’am?” Asked the driver who's trying to peek at me through the rearview mirror.”

“The First Hospital, please,” I breathed out. 

This pain isn't caused by the uterus or other parts. The pain comes directly from my stomach, which is weird.

But, I've always been in good health and haven't experienced any digestive issues before. Is it because I've overworked my body recently?

Probably, I've accumulated quite a bit of negative emotions over the past few days, causing this sudden intense pain in my stomach. After all, the stomach is an emotional organ.

Maybe it's acute arthritis.

Leaning against the backseat’s chair, I keep holding my belly, wondering if this growing pain will ever stop. 

“Can you drive faster, please?” I urged the driver.

The ride was taking forever. When am I gonna arrive at the hospital?

The more this pain grew, the more scared I became that I might not make it. 

Finally, after several minutes, the tall hospital building came into view. 

When the driver pulled over at the gate, I can't recall how I got out or if I've even paid him. 

I held the metal gate, about to push it open, but the violent pain intensified overwhelming my mind. I lost grip on whatever I was holding onto and my vision went black. 

Beep! 

As if sucked inside a void, I woke up feeling empty, the sound of a machine inside the hospital ward the only thing accompanying me.

My stomach ache was gone, and for a few seconds, my mind was blank.

How did I get here?

What happened?

“Hope you're okay now, Dr. Olivia. You're finally awake. I gave you some glucose drips and painkillers. Just rest for another two hours. The test result has not come out yet.” 

I opened my sleepy eyes, and my colleague and old schoolmate, Dr. Ethan, came into sight. 

He gave me a warm smile, stopping in front of me to check out the fluid hanging from the IV stand and connected to my arm. 

I thought he was out of the country. 

When did he come back?

“What happened to me?” My voice is hoarse, I doubt if he can hear me. “How long have I been lying here?”

It was almost midnight when I left the mansion and asked the driver to bring me here.

What time is it now?

“You just fainted at the door of the hospital,” Ethan replied and sat on the chair beside my bed. “Luckily, I saw you in time and caught you. Recently, I heard from your department colleagues that you’ve been working so hard. No matter how busy you are, you must not forget to eat. You’ve had an acute gastric spasm.”

My palm subconsciously wandered to my stomach. 

My assumption has been right. Fortunately… ‘My baby,’ I gasped. 

Fortunately, it has nothing to do with my baby. 

“Thank you, Ethan.” I forced a smile, sighing inside. 

If he hadn't found me at the gates… If no staff had walked past, I can't help but imagine what would have happened to me. 

Ethan nodded. “I’ve contacted the servants at home to send some food. You eat first. When the examination report comes out, we'll do a proper diagnosis.”

Later on, the examination results came out. 

It revealed that an irregular mass had developed inside my stomach. To be sure, I'll need to wait until the mass becomes bigger for biopsy and diagnosis. 

Right now, nobody can conclude what it is. However, from the current CT scan, the mass is irregular in shape, and the probability of a malignant tumor is very high. 

As Ethan revealed the news to me, those two words floated in my head. 

‘An irregular mass.’

‘A tumor.’

“This might develop into gastric cancer.” Ethan sighed. “I suggest we keep a close examination and wait until the right time to remove it through surgery.”

I'm very aware of this kind of situation. 

We treat patients with similar conditions almost every day. 

But, surgery… what about my baby? 

If the diagnosis turns right and it's truly a malignant tumor, the surgery can definitely affect my baby-

No!

The thought of it had dread washing over me. It can't be true. It's a mere assumption. 

“Olivia, are you alright?” Ethan gave me a concerned look, probably sensing my dilemma. 

I smiled and nodded. “I'm fine.”

I can't be pessimistic yet. My fears might turn out for nothing, who knows?

Ethan kept me company for some time before he left. I spent the night at the hospital.

The next morning, I woke up early, and the first thing that greeted me was the notification sound coming from my phone.

“Ding.” The sound echoed inside the ward. 

I reached for my phone and stared at the screen, and in the next second, my blood ran cold. 

A photo of Theo and Jessica popped on the screen. Theo was asleep while Jessica held him, lying on the same bed. 

A text message accompanied the photo. [How are you today, Dr. Olivia? I slept very well because Theo slept with me last night.]

Seeing the provocative text message sent by Jessica, my fingers trembled, curling around my phone.

One photo contained Jessica naked on the bed with Theo. It appears to have been taken last night. 

And in the second photo, Jessica wore my pajamas, lying next to Theo who's still fast asleep. 

On the wall above the bed’s headboard hung my wedding photo frame with Theo, which means this is the master bedroom. Our wedding bedroom. 

I shouldn't feel this much pain when I've already predicted these events, but loving Theo has become a habit. 

Even though his reason for divorce must be to return to his old love, getting used to the recent happenings is more difficult than I'd imagined. 

Besides, it's wrong to do this when we're still married. Maybe I've overstayed my welcome. 

Swallowing down the hurt, I took a screenshot of the message and forwarded it to him, accompanying it with a text. 

[Mr. Wellington, you didn't have to have an affair so openly to destroy the reputation of our families? Want a divorce? Done. Enjoy your trashy little love story in the gutter.]