Chapter 3

After leaving the welcoming party, I immediately drove Noah to the hospital. After a prolonged emergency surgery, the doctor finally emerged from the ER, looking exhausted.

The doctor looked at me gravely, regretting, “I’m sorry, Mr. Reed. We did everything we could. The fragments of the bottle caused irreversible damage to his brain nerves. For the rest of his life, he’ll likely be in a vegetative state, lying in bed.”

The doctor’s words felt like an invisible magic, instantly draining all strength from my body. I collapsed helplessly at the door of the hospital room, staring at Noah, who lay in the bed, tubes everywhere. He was only eighteen years old! He had just gotten into his dream college! His life’s ambitions were yet to be realized, and now, because of me, this kind and sensible brother would be confined to a bed for the rest of his life!

In that moment, an overwhelming wave of guilt and self-reproach engulfed me. Tears of regret streamed from my eyes. At that moment, I wished it was *me* lying in that bed!

I didn't close my eyes that night, staying by Noah’s bedside until dawn. When the first rays of morning sunlight hit the room, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I had barely answered when Chloe’s impatient voice burst through.

“Lucas Reed, where the hell did you go?! Why aren’t you here to feed the baby and change his diapers?! Do you have any idea how much sleep we lost all night because you weren’t here to take care of him?!”

She had barely finished when Julian’s complaining voice came from the other end. “Chloe, hurry and get Lucas, that servant, back here. I’m exhausted from last night.” His tone was clearly suggestive. “Chloe, if I’m always working this hard at night, I’m afraid I’ll be too tired for… other things.”

Chloe replied coyly, “Oh, you!”

Listening to Chloe and Julian flirting, my hand gripping the phone trembled uncontrollably from anger. But then she spoke again, criticizing me with force. “Lucas Reed, you are such an irresponsible father! If you don’t start taking care of the baby, I swear I’ll make sure you never see him again.”

After the welcoming party, such threats had no effect on me. I said coldly, “Did you forget what you said at the party? Why would I take care of a child that isn't mine?”

Chloe snapped, “Lucas Reed, you are so petty! What I said yesterday at the party was just a dare I had to do after losing a game to Julian. It was just a joke! You, with your small mind, actually took it seriously!”

“Do you really think I’m that awful?! If you keep being so ridiculously jealous, I really will get the baby a different father!”

With that, Chloe angrily hung up.

I gripped the screen of my now-disconnected phone, my heart aching with torment. I looked at Noah, now lying in the hospital bed, kept alive by IV drips, and managed a bitter smile.

In that instant, I deeply regretted ever meeting Chloe. If I hadn't been so determined to be with her back then, Noah wouldn’t be in this state now.

Chloe and I met in college. Unlike me, an outsider, she became a campus celebrity the moment she enrolled. Beautiful, academically brilliant, and from a wealthy background, Chloe quickly became the target of pursuit for all the eligible men in the college. But at the same time, she was also targeted by many girls, who even intentionally locked her in a dusty storage room.

When I found her, she was crying so hard she was on the verge of fainting. She stumbled helplessly into my arms, begging me in a panic, “Lucas, please, don’t leave me!”

Looking at the crying beauty in my arms, my heart immediately stirred, and I fell uncontrollably in love with Chloe. Even though, as a small-town guy, I had absolutely no advantage among Chloe’s many suitors, I still actively pursued her. Finally, in our graduating year, I beat out all the other suitors and officially started dating Chloe. At the same time, respecting Chloe’s wishes, I decided to help her start her own company.

In the early stages of the startup, she was worried that news of our marriage would affect the company’s development, so she decided to keep our marriage a secret, asking me to join the company as a department director to assist her. Although I felt uncomfortable, I agreed to her proposal.

But five years later, my most cherished marriage lay in pieces, and my beloved wife colluded with an outsider to hurt my only brother. She even used the child to threaten me. I didn’t want this marriage anymore.