Chapter 6

Lexie's voice was ice-cold. "Hendrick, stop making a habit of lying through your teeth. We all saw it with our own eyes."

It sounded as though she were reminding him that now was not the time to be stubborn but to apologize properly instead.

Hendrick let out a low laugh.

He looked over at Blake, who was sobbing while sneaking peek after peek in their direction. "Fine. Then I hit him."

It wasn't as if anyone would believe him anyway.

Furious, Adrian whipped his hand up to strike.

Lexie hurriedly pulled him back.

Hendrick knew full well she was only worried about damage to his heart.

Now that the surgery date was set, she couldn't afford to let anything go wrong with his body.

Lexie pushed the enraged Adrian out of the room, leaving only herself, Nina, and Hendrick inside.

She said coldly, "They were just a few pieces of paper. Why do you have to be so unreasonable? Was that really necessary?"

Hendrick felt his entire body shudder.

Just a few pieces of paper?

Those were his creations, his blood and tears, and the passion he lived for!

Yet out of Lexie's mouth, they were reduced to nothing more than just a few pieces of paper.

Hendrick suddenly found it hilarious. He laughed until tears began streaming down his face. Finally, he saw how utterly worthless he was in the eyes of these people.

He clutched his chest, feeling a sharp pain throbbing inside.

So it turned out that his heart really would ache when heartbreak reached its absolute limit.

When Lexie saw his reaction, her expression shifted slightly. She rushed over to support him. "What's wrong with you? Don't get worked up. Take deep breaths. It's just a trivial matter. Is it really worth getting this upset over? We can just drop it. Take a deep breath. I'm telling you to take deep breaths!"

Hendrick couldn't take it for another second. He shoved her away with everything he had and snapped, "Get out! Get the hell out, all of you!"

Not daring to provoke him any further, Lexie turned and left the room. Her face, however, remained grim.

That evening, after Hendrick calmed down, Lexie arrived with an official notice. "The surgery has been scheduled for ten days from now."

He didn't react.

She continued, "I originally wanted to wait until you fully recovered from your cold, but you're being far too uncooperative. Keeping you like this will only make you more unstable. Ten days from now is the optimal date."

Hendrick simply gave a calm nod as before, looking as though he had accepted everything.

Lexie's expression softened slightly. After a moment of silence, she said, "I'll be performing the surgery myself. Once the anesthesia kicks in, you won't feel a thing."

Hendrick caught the rare trace of consideration in her tone.

He lifted his head, revealing a deathly pale face. "Am I supposed to thank you?"

Lexie was left speechless.

Hendrick was painfully thin now, his cheeks sunken and his lips pale.

As he lay on the bed, a final flicker of unresigned bitterness lingered in his eyes. "Lexie, have you ever considered the possibility that I might actually die after the surgery?"

Lexie froze.

She stood still, experiencing a sudden surge of panic for the very first time.

Yet very quickly, Lexie regained her composure and said rationally, "The facts have already been proven. Until your mission is complete, you won't actually die, so stop trying to fool me."

The last trace of hope in Hendrick's eyes dissolved completely, fading into utter darkness.

That had been his very last attempt.

There was no fool in this world who would willingly hand over their heart while knowing full well their true feelings were being trampled on.

At least, he was not that fool.

From now on, the man named Hendrick Campbell would vanish from Lexie's life forever.

A heavy, suffocating silence filled the ward.

As Lexie looked at the glistening tear at the corner of his eye, a dense, prickly ache bloomed deep within her chest unexpectedly.

However, she quickly suppressed the pain. Her cold logic reminded her that this was only temporary.

Once the surgery was over, everything would pass, and she would make it all up to Hendrick.

They would go back to the way they were before, and Hendrick would return to her side once more.

He would come back to life, and they would still have another chance.