CHAPTER 175: CHAPTER 175: I HAVE SELFISH MOTIVES TOO

Jean Ellison rushed to the hospital, striding toward Susan Kingston’s room.

Before she reached the door, she heard a shout from inside the room, followed by the sound of something falling to the floor.

Her heart tightened, and she immediately began to run.

Pushing open the door, the sight before her made her freeze.

Jules Ellison stood by the bedside, one hand covering her other arm, her face wearing a startled expression.

On her arm was a clear bite mark, oozing fresh blood.

A spilled water cup and a few scattered pills littered the floor.

Susan Kingston was curled up on the bed, her hair disheveled, with eyes that were both fearful and aggressive, like a frightened beast, glaring fixedly at Jules Ellison, while letting out indistinct whimpers.

"Mom!" Jean Ellison stepped forward, positioning herself between Jules Ellison and Susan Kingston, then turned to face Susan Kingston, softening her voice, "Mom, it’s me, don’t be afraid, everything’s okay now."

Susan Kingston’s wild eyes softened a bit upon seeing Jean Ellison, but her body remained tense.

Jean Ellison continued to use her body to separate the two, reaching out and gently patting Susan Kingston’s back, her voice even softer.

"It’s okay now, Mom, look at me, it’s me."

Susan Kingston’s gaze focused on Jean Ellison’s face, her rapid breathing gradually calming down.

Only then did Jean Ellison have a chance to turn and look at Jules Ellison, her brows furrowed, eyes filled with apology and concern.

"Sis, are you okay? Is the wound serious?"

Jules Ellison lowered the hand covering her wound, looking at the bite mark on her arm that was bleeding, shook her head, her face still somewhat pale.

"It’s nothing, just a bit of broken skin, a little bleeding."

"Watch Aunt Kingston, I’ll find a nurse to get it bandaged."

She looked at Jean Ellison, then at Susan Kingston, who had quieted down on the bed, and sighed.

"I don’t know what happened; she was fine just now, I tried to give her the medicine, and she suddenly just..."

"I’m sorry, Sis," Jean Ellison said, her voice full of apology, "I didn’t know my mom would react like this, really sorry. You go take care of your wound, I’ll handle things here."

Jules Ellison nodded, "Okay, be careful."

She bent down to pick up the pieces of the shattered water cup before quickly leaving the room.

Jean Ellison redirected her full attention to Susan Kingston.

She continued to gently pat her back, softly soothing, "Mom, it’s okay, it’s okay now."

Suddenly, Susan Kingston extended a hand, tightly grabbing Jean Ellison’s wrist with great strength.

She stared intently at Jean Ellison with clouded eyes, her voice trembling.

"Claire... is it my Claire, have you come back?"

Jean Ellison crouched slightly, leveling her gaze with Susan Kingston sitting on the bed, allowing her to grip her hand, her voice very steady.

"It’s me, Mom, Claire is back, I’m here."

Susan Kingston extended her other frail hand, trembling as it cupped Jean Ellison’s cheek, her fingertips cold.

"Claire, Mommy couldn’t find you..."

"Mommy thought the police had taken you away again, Mommy was so worried about you."

"No, I wasn’t taken by the police."

Jean Ellison maintained her crouching position, looking up at her mother, her voice trembling.

"I’m right here, staying with Mommy, not going anywhere."

Susan Kingston scrutinized her face, her fingers gently stroking her cheek as if confirming this was true.

After a while, the fear gradually faded from her eyes.

She released Jean Ellison’s wrist, her entire being seemed drained of energy as she leaned back against the headboard, her gaze still fixed on Jean Ellison.

Jean Ellison remained crouched by the bedside, holding her mother’s hand, saying nothing more, simply quietly accompanying her.

She wore a simple shirt and trousers, and because of her crouched position, the fabric outlined her overly thin back.

The bones in her shoulders were clearly visible, her wrists slender, as if they might snap with slight force.

The extended crouching made her appear even more fragile, like a gust of wind could topple her.

At this moment, the room door gently opened.

Simon Sterling walked in.

Tall and slender, coldly handsome, he wore a white coat, holding a small tray with pills and a water cup in it.

At a glance, he saw Jean Ellison crouched by the bed.

Her thin back presented a clear contour of her spine through the thin fabric, the pale neck bent down, exposing a vulnerable curve.

She curled there, appearing small and fragile.

Simon Sterling’s steps paused for a moment, then he walked over, maintaining his usual calm demeanor.

Instead of attending to Susan Kingston first, he went to Jean Ellison’s side, extending a hand to support her arm.

Jean Ellison raised her head, looking at him.

"Stand up," Simon Sterling’s voice was quiet, carrying the steady tone typical of a doctor, "It’s uncomfortable to crouch like that."

He applied a bit of force, helping Jean Ellison up from the floor.

Jean Ellison straightened up, her legs slightly numb from crouching so long, she wavered a bit, and Simon Sterling’s hand steadied her arm.

"Thank you," Jean Ellison said softly.

Simon Sterling released his hand, turning his gaze to Susan Kingston, while also handing the medicine tray to Jean Ellison.

"These are your mother’s afternoon medications, make sure she takes them."

Jean Ellison took the tray of medicine: "Okay."

She picked up the cup of water and pills, walked to the bedside, and softly said to Susan Kingston, "Mom, it’s time to take your medicine."

Susan Kingston looked at Jean, then cautiously glanced at Simon Sterling. This time she didn’t resist, obediently taking the pills from Jean’s hand and swallowing them with a few sips of water.

Jean watched her mother finish taking the medicine, helped wipe the water from the corners of her mouth, and gently helped her lie down.

Simon Sterling stood quietly by, observing everything.

Once Susan Kingston closed her eyes and her breathing became steady as if she had fallen asleep, Jean finally let out a gentle sigh, turning to face Simon Sterling.

"Doctor Sterling," she began, "Thank you for taking care of my mom during this time, sorry for the trouble."

Simon looked at Jean. Her face was somewhat pale, with faint shadows under her eyes, clearly showing she hadn’t been resting well.

His tone was flat as he replied, "It’s my job. No matter who the patient is, I’ll do my best."

Jean paused for a moment and then said, "Also, thank you for notifying me to come back in time. Cousin Jules didn’t tell me the specific situation here. I thought my mom would cooperate with the treatment if she saw her."

Simon Sterling’s gaze rested on Jean’s face for a few seconds.

The overhead light in the ward cast a faint shadow on her face, making her look even more haggard.

"No need to thank me," Simon said, his voice still calm, but the words made Jean slightly stunned.

He looked into her eyes and continued, "I notified you for my own selfish reasons too."

Jean looked at Simon Sterling, her face showing a hint of confusion.

She hadn’t expected him to say something like this.

"Selfish reasons?" she repeated, her tone filled with doubt.

"Yes, selfish reasons."

Simon Sterling’s expression didn’t change, still as businesslike as ever, his voice steady.

"While you weren’t here, Aunt Kingston was very emotionally unstable, almost causing disturbances every day, repeatedly saying she wanted to see you, which increased the workload for the hospital’s nurses and other doctors."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Jean’s somewhat pale face, before continuing.

"As you can see, this private nursing home is not large, with limited medical staff."

"With your mother’s condition, a lot of effort is needed. If you stay in the country and visit often to calm her down, it will help stabilize her condition, and also reduce some of the pressure on our medical staff."

"My selfish reason is simply to make the work a little easier."

His explanation was reasonable, entirely from the perspective of medical management and work efficiency.

Jean listened, stayed silent for a moment, and then nodded: "I understand, Doctor Sterling. Sorry for troubling you all. I will try to come every day recently, to spend more time with my mom and help keep her emotions stable."

Simon Sterling watched as she agreed compliantly and apologized, a deeper look in his eyes, though his expression remained indifferent.

"Okay." He responded, acknowledging her words.

He turned and was about to leave the ward.

His hand had just reached the doorknob when he paused.

Without turning back, his back facing Jean, he spoke after two seconds, his voice flat, his speech seemingly a bit slower.

"Take care of yourself too."

Jean was taken aback, not quite registering it.

Simon Sterling then slightly turned his head, his gaze falling on her, and added, "Eat more nutritious food, don’t always forget to eat."

With that, he didn’t wait for Jean’s response, but turned the doorknob and walked out, gently closing the door behind him.

Only Jean and the now sleeping Susan Kingston were left in the ward.

Jean stood still, looking at the closed door, a clear sense of bewilderment on her face.

Simon Sterling’s last words completely stepped out of the usual doctor-family member conversation realm.

How did he know she often forgot to eat?

Jean instinctively looked down at herself.

She indeed was very thin, her wrists so slender as if they could break at any moment, the clothes she used to wear now hanging loosely.

Recently, with so much to do—taking care of her mother, handling various chores, dealing with Justin and Ronan—she indeed often got so busy she didn’t manage to eat on time, sometimes only having one meal a day.

But how did Simon Sterling see through it?

Jean slightly frowned.

Could it be that she looked so weak and haggard now that even outsiders could easily tell she wasn’t eating regularly?

She walked to the bedside, looking at her mother’s sleeping face, gently tucking in the corners of the blanket.

Then she took out her phone and checked the time.

She had to head back.

Before leaving the ward, she instinctively glanced again toward the door.

Simon Sterling was long gone, only a few nurses in the hallway.

"Did you hear? Doctor Sterling is getting married."

"Really? I hadn’t heard he had a girlfriend. Did they meet through a matchmaker?"

"The bride’s father is apparently the head of a public hospital, and Doctor Sterling’s family has been in medicine for generations. It’s a perfect match."

"So envious, I’d love to have a husband like Doctor Sterling. Handsome, capable, and such a gentleman."

Jean stopped in her tracks, looking towards the nurse station.

Simon Sterling is getting married?

He didn’t seem to mention it to her just now.