Chapter 3 She Misunderstood Me All Along

When we arrived at the hospital, Dennis was rushed into the emergency room.

…

Twenty minutes later, the doctor came out and said, "The patient has lost a lot of blood. He has an open fracture of the left leg, along with a minor splenic rupture. His condition is unstable, so we advise moving him to the ICU for observation."

Then, he handed me a stack of forms.

"Please take care of the payment first. We need a deposit of five million."

I checked my bank balance, realizing I only had a million after combining all my accounts.

For the past two years, I had worked for Jessica without pay. I lived in company housing and ate in the cafeteria, so where was I supposed to find that kind of money?

Just then, the elevator at the end of the corridor opened. Jessica stepped out, with Matthew following behind her. He looked extremely frail.

Meanwhile, she comforted him gently. "Don't worry. The test results will be ready soon."

I hurried over to her and asked desperately, "Can you lend me some money? I'll pay you back next month—"

Jessica cut me off impatiently. "What makes you think you have the right to borrow money from me?"

Exhausted, I said, "My brother's life is at stake. I don't want to argue with you."

"No." She looked down at me arrogantly. "I already told you that I'd cover all the expenses if you let Matthew go to the hospital first. Since you insisted on putting your brother in the ambulance first, you can pay for everything yourself."

Hearing her words, I was furious. "My brother's injuries are obviously more serious!"

"Matthew has a concussion!" Jessica shouted even louder. "What if he has bleeding in his brain? Can you take responsibility for that?"

Matthew leaned against the wall while holding his forehead. "I'm fine, Ms. Homer."

Jessica's voice softened immediately when she spoke to him. "Don't just stand there. Sit down and rest."

Watching how fast her attitude changed, I felt another stabbing pain in my abdomen.

"Are you really not going to lend me money?"

Jessica sneered. "Yes. Since you are so capable, you can figure it out yourself. Besides, didn't you leave me for money back then? You blew through it, and now you want to come crawling back to me for more.

"Sorry, but I'm not falling for it. Did you think working for free would soften me up? Don't bother. Your schemes don't work on me."

Hearing her words, I didn't know what was going on.

I rushed to explain, "You've got it wrong. I left back then because someone threatened me, and I was afraid of dragging you into it."

I had thought telling her the truth would finally give me some relief. Instead, Jessica's reaction hurt even more.

She scoffed. "I can't believe you are still pretending."

Just then, Matthew chimed in, "Calum, you obviously left Ms. Homer because you found a sugar mama. Now that she's dumped you, you want Ms. Homer to take you back. Isn't that shameless?"

When I heard Matthew's words, it clicked that Jessica had misunderstood me all along.

Looking at Matthew's smug expression, I realized something else.

Just then, the ICU doors opened, and a nurse appeared.

"The patient's blood pressure is dropping. He needs surgery immediately. Have you paid the bill yet? If not, we can't proceed."

There was no time left, so I had no choice but to apply for a loan online.

After I completed the facial verification, the money arrived quickly, though the interest rate was outrageous.

After I went downstairs and paid the deposit, Dennis's treatment could finally move forward.

Perhaps I had been running on empty fuel for too long. My vision suddenly went black, and I collapsed onto the floor.

As I lost consciousness, I decided to cut ties with Jessica once and for all. After all, I owed her nothing.

…

When I opened my eyes again, the next day had come. I lay in a hospital bed with a dry throat. I asked the doctor and learned that Dennis was still in the ICU and not yet out of danger.

Jessica hadn't called me once. Meanwhile, Matthew posted a photo on social media of Jessica peeling fruit for him. The caption read, "Having such a wonderful boss means I'll never leave this company."

After seeing this, I immediately called HR and submitted my resignation. Since I hadn't signed an employment contract or received a paycheck in the past two years, there was no need for me to make a trip to the office.

Soon after I submitted my resignation, Jessica called. She demanded angrily, "Calum, you've been absent for half a day without even taking time off work. Do you have any respect for this company?"

"I've already resigned," I answered calmly.