Never Again in This Life Chapter 05

Never Again in This Life Chapter 05

A little while later, I called Sterling again.

This time, my voice was weak.

“Sterling, my stomach is killing me. I’m in the ER at the downtown hospital.”

He replied instantly.

“Don’t move. I’m on my way.”

I sat on a cold bench in the emergency room waiting area, watching people hurry back and forth.

Half an hour later, I saw Sterling.

He was running, his expression frantic, but he didn’t even glance my way.

He rushed right past me, heading straight for the orthopedic clinic on the other side of the hall.

I stood up and followed him.

At the entrance to the clinic, Elara was sitting in a wheelchair, her ankle wrapped in bandages, crying pitifully.

Sterling was crouched in front of her, his voice low and soothing.

“Hey, don’t cry. The doctor said it’s just a mild sprain, right? You’ll be fine after a few days of rest.”

“But it hurts so much,” Elara whimpered, looking up at him.

Sterling frowned. He wanted to touch her ankle but was afraid of hurting her, his every movement almost painfully careful.

The raw concern on his face was more genuine than any tenderness he had ever shown me.

I stood behind them and watched for a few seconds.

What I’d overheard in the ICU hadn’t come out of nowhere.

This had all started a long, long time ago.

My presence made them both freeze.

Sterling whipped his head around, and when he saw me, the color drained from his face.

“Tessa… why are you here?”

Elara saw me too.

The tears in her eyes vanished, replaced by a flicker of smugness she couldn’t quite hide.

“My stomach hurt, so I came to get some medicine,” I said, gesturing vaguely at myself.

Sterling scrambled to his feet, his voice a little unsteady.

“How are you feeling now?”

“It’s nothing. Just an old problem.”

I didn’t give him a chance to explain.

“You’re busy. I’ll head home.”

Then I turned and walked away.

I didn’t look back.

They probably thought I was just being jealous of Elara again.

The day I signed the sales contract and received the payment, the weather was beautiful.

I transferred the money into a new bank account, then went to the university and finalized my temporary leave of absence and all the paperwork for the exchange program.

That weekend, a mutual friend hosted a party and invited me.

I knew Maddox and the others would be there.

I didn’t want them to suspect anything was wrong before I left, so I went.