Chapter 4

A week went by. When Matt realized I wasn't reaching out to him, he began to lose his patience.

When we fought in the past, I would try to make things right within three days. But now, a whole week had passed, and I hadn't reached out once.

He started posting frequently on Instagram, sharing pictures of himself and Claudia. Yet, I didn't react.

He didn't know that I had blocked him on Instagram. Besides, I didn't even have time to check his page.

I was buried in work after officially taking over Brightside Hospital's bid. As the lead designer, I needed to visit the hospital personally to conduct site inspections and surveys.

Of all people, I had to run into Matt and Claudia at the hospital construction site.

Claudia represented another design firm, one of our competitors. She spotted me standing by the scaffolding, wearing a hard hat and holding a surveying tool while covered in dust and grime.

Claudia, who had her arm linked through Matt's, exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, isn't this Sienna? Why are you out here doing this kind of manual labor?"

She heaved a pitying sigh, but her eyes betrayed her smugness. "A woman needs to be independent instead of trying to marry into wealth."

Matt stood beside her without speaking, a conflicted look in his eyes.

I ignored them and focused on the file in my hands.

"Excuse me." With the tape measure in hand, I tried to bypass them to measure the wall.

But Claudia stepped in front of me, blocking my path. "Sienna, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"

The back of my hand accidentally grazed the rusty wire fence nearby. A sharp, stinging pain shot through me, and blood instantly gushed out.

Matt's face fell, and he instinctively stepped forward. But before he could reach me, a whimper came from beside him.

Claudia complained, "Matt, I think I sprained my ankle. It hurts…"

Matt hesitated, torn between my bleeding hand and the sobbing Claudia.

Just then, a cool voice rang out, "Move aside."

Daniel, in his white coat, squeezed through the crowd and took my wrist. He frowned at the sight of my bleeding wound. "Have you had a tetanus shot?"

The throbbing pain made me feel a bit dazed. I shook my head at Daniel's question.

"Come with me." He pulled me toward the direction of the emergency room.

Only then did Matt regain his senses. His face instantly clouded over. He demanded, "Daniel, where are you taking her?"

Matt wanted to follow, but Daniel shot him a frosty look that locked him in place.

"Since you're so worried about that woman, then don't add to the trouble. I'll take care of my patient."

When we got to the emergency room, Daniel personally cleaned my wound, his eyes cast down in focused attention.

To break the awkward silence, I asked quietly, "Dr. Ziegler, what brings you here?"

"I work here as a cardiothoracic surgeon, and I'm also the medical consultant for this expansion project," Matt replied, not lifting his head as he skilfully bandaged my wound. "Besides, we're schoolmates."

I paused. "Schoolmates?"

"Yeah, I was a year ahead of you." Daniel finally lifted his head, fixing his gaze on me. There was an inexplicable emotion in his eyes.

He hesitated before finally taking a deep breath, saying, "Actually, I've been…"

The door to the emergency room was flung open violently.

When Matt noticed Daniel holding my hand, his face darkened with rage. He charged over and pointed at me accusingly. "What the hell? You've already moved on to the next man just because I gave you the cold shoulder? Do you think he's such a good man?"

His outburst ignited the fury inside me.

I retorted, "Matt, have you lost your mind? Dr. Ziegler was just treating my wound! Besides, why should I answer to you? Who are you to me?"

Matt sneered. He pointed at Daniel, who remained seated with an air of composure. "Well, I'll tell you why! This hypocrite has had a crush on you since college. His dorm room was filled with your photos! He stalked you like some kind of creep for four whole years!"