Upon hearing the employee’s words, Erin ran straight to where Aiden was without caring about her own appearance or even the fact that she was barefoot. When she arrived at the room in a hurry, Aiden was lying there with his eyes closed. At first glance, it seemed as if he were asleep, but upon closer inspection, Erin could tell that he was unwell. His complexion was pale, and he was sweating profusely. Erin had never seen him like this before, and her heart sank.
“Aiden…!” Erin gasped in disbelief at the sight before her. Her heart was racing. Aiden had never collapsed before; the only health issues he had ever faced were related to childhood trauma. Other than that, he had always been healthy… which was why his current weakened state was so shocking.
Erin immediately turned to the employee. “What happened? Where is the doctor? Has he arrived yet?”
“I’m on my way. I was called a little while ago,” the employee replied quickly, but Erin couldn’t hide her anxious feelings. She naturally took a place by Aiden’s head, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead and closely examining his face.
His complexion was pale, and his lips were chapped. Erin’s brow furrowed involuntarily. Frustrated, she turned to the employees and asked, “What happened? Of all times, why did this happen when we didn’t pay attention to Aiden for a few days… It’s so frustrating. I raised him to be healthy, but who said he could just collapse like this? It’s really upsetting.
What happened exactly?” She couldn’t just wait for the doctor to arrive; there had to be a reason for his sudden illness.
“Could it be that he was injured somewhere?” Erin wondered aloud, trying to check Aiden’s condition in a hurry. One of the employees standing behind her cautiously spoke up, “Actually… He hasn’t been able to eat properly for a while now.”
“Uh…?”
Since Erin mentioned divorce, the two of them hadn’t had a meal together.
Aiden had received reports several times that he was waiting for her in a restaurant, but he forcibly turned away the thought that he had to draw the line.
But not having meals together all this time…
Erin’s lips trembled.
“Recently, it seemed like you couldn’t sleep at night either.”
No way… It couldn’t have been since we slept together then.
Erin’s worries gradually piled up.
“You’ve been training more than twice as much as usual.”
“……”
A single comment made Erin’s heart turn black.
It was even worse to torture his body by not eating properly and not sleeping.
Not collapsing became more difficult.
All the reports from employees flew to Erin like daggers.
There was no other choice.
All of his recent actions were because of Erin.
It was the result of being disappointed due to her declaration of divorce.
It stimulated Erin’s sense of guilt.
My heart sank.
Although I secretly felt happy to see Aiden holding onto himself, I didn’t want to see him struggling like this.
Until now, the Aiden that Erin had seen had always eaten well, slept well, and lived a disciplined life.
In fact, her healthy lifestyle habits had rubbed off on him since they had been together.
So she couldn’t even imagine such a situation.
Erin didn’t think her crumpled face would ever smooth out.
The biggest obstacle for her was not being able to see Aiden’s struggles well.
She had loved and cherished him so much since childhood.
She couldn’t forgive those who made Aiden’s face wrinkle even for a moment.
But now the cause of it all was Erin herself.
And that made her even more upset.
Soon the doctor arrived.
“Sorry for being late.”
“Please start with the examination.”
Erin said weakly.
Knowing Aiden’s condition accurately was a top priority now.
The doctor carefully examined Aiden and turned around to speak.
“You don’t have to worry too much. It seems like you’ve had a lot on your mind lately, and the stress has accumulated in your body.”
“Is he really okay? Even if it’s Aiden, he wouldn’t collapse for no reason….”
Aiden wasn’t easily sick.
It was clear that it wasn’t a light reason for him to collapse.
As Erin’s worries didn’t decrease, the doctor calmly spoke up.
“He’s really okay. However, his nutritional status… It seems like he hasn’t been eating well lately. That seems to be the biggest reason for his collapse. If he eats enough and rests well, he’ll be fine.”
“….”
“I’ll prescribe medication to help him recover his strength.”
“Thank you.”
“If you have any other problems, please call me anytime. I’ll take my leave now.”
The doctor politely turned around and left.
Erin’s gaze turned back to Aiden.
Her heart was complicated.
What the doctor said was the most basic things.
Furthermore, Aiden’s nutrition imbalance in Lianster.
It was something that could never happen.
“I’ll stay here, so just go get the medicine.”
At Erin’s command, the employees left the room.
Only Erin and Aiden remained.
Actually, there was nothing for her to do by his side.
Still, she couldn’t bring herself to leave.
Erin kept watch until Aiden opened his eyes.
To be more precise, she glared at him until he opened his eyes.
How long had she been like that?
Aiden’s eyelids trembled slightly, and he slowly began to open his eyes.
His pupils quickly found Erin.
Erin had originally planned to scold him when he opened his eyes.
She was determined to ask why he did this and sternly warn him not to do it again.
But when she saw Aiden’s painful eyes, her burning anger lost its strength and disappeared, leaving only pity.
“Are you feeling a little better?”
“….Yeah.”
“If you’re tired, sleep more. It’s important to get plenty of rest after not being able to sleep for a while.”
After Aiden’s condition improved, of course.
It was when Erin reached out to Aiden’s blanket with the thought that it was important now.
“No, I’ll get up.”
“….”
Aiden was already getting up.
His movements were quick, probably because he didn’t want to lose sight of Ellen in front of him.
“Well, how about we eat something? You said you haven’t been eating well.”
“…You’ll eat with me?”
Aiden asked, staring at Erin.
She felt something rising in her chest for a moment.
“Yes.”
“Then let’s eat.”
Aiden’s answer was as expected.
His response was always determined by Erin’s reaction.
She swallowed a sigh and gently pleaded with him to do his best.
“You have to continue eating well and sleeping well from now on.”
“…Then will you keep staying with me?”
In Erin’s eyes, Aiden had always remained true to his childhood self.
Sometimes, he showed blind trust like a newborn baby mistaking their first sight as their parents and blindly following them.
But that was only true for Erin.
To everyone else, he was a completely different person than he was with Erin.
Erin was well aware of this fact.
So she was skeptical of the fact that Aiden’s current demeanor was an unconscious display of any inner emotions.
He seemed to have deliberately shaken up her heart with his expression as if to target her sympathy and taste at once.
His wide eyes, wet with tears, were reminiscent of a puppy’s ears and tail that she hadn’t seen since Aiden was sixteen.
It wasn’t clear whether what she saw in his eyes was that of a puppy or a wolf.
“But what does that matter?”
Erin couldn’t bear to see Aiden not sleeping properly and not eating.
Furthermore, the fact that she was the only one he revealed such a desperate state to was the most important thing.
If he really made that face without any intention, her heart ached at the thought of how much he must have been struggling.
On the other hand, if it was a deliberate action on his part to move her heart… it was quite cute.
Aiden was waiting for her answer.
It was when Erin was pondering what answer to give that her lips were pursed in thought.
Aiden took Erin’s hand and spoke first.
“Give me a chance.”
His voice cracked as he spoke, his mouth dry from not eating properly.
Erin was momentarily taken aback, but Aiden urgently continued to speak without paying attention to it.
“I should also have a chance for you to turn your heart to me.”
“….”
“But if you still want a divorce, then I’ll accept it then.”
Aiden’s gaze was pitiful.
Like someone desperately holding on to their last hope, his fragile state made Erin feel uneasy.
So she couldn’t give an immediate answer.
Normally, she would have rejected his proposal.
Because there wasn’t much time left for her.
But for Aiden, who had just collapsed before their meal…
For him, who needed her presence to even eat and sleep…
She couldn’t bring herself to reject even that.
“Okay.”
Erin replied.
As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a twinge of regret, but even if she could go back in time, she would have given the same answer.
“But I can’t give you much time. The time I can give you is… two weeks. That’s all.”
Erin couldn’t give him much time. Her goal was to leave before Julia returned.
So it couldn’t go beyond two weeks.
“It’s okay. I’ll be satisfied with that much.”
Aiden’s face brightened up.
The pale expression from earlier disappeared, and anticipation showed on his face.
It was as if he was happy just knowing that she would be with him until then.
At that sight, Erin’s conscience pricked like a burn on her smile.
Even if Aiden did something, Erin’s heart wouldn’t change.
She had confidence that she wouldn’t waver no matter what happened.
