"Of course, it's meat buns! And by the way, I made them myself." As soon as Ethan finished speaking, he took out the box that he was hiding behind his back. It contained extremely fragrant food that he had worked so hard to make. He then gently placed it on Estelle's lap. But before she could react, he asked her another question.
"I have another one! What's the best kind of food to warm someone's stomach during New Year's?"
Once again, Estelle couldn't even respond. Her eyes were fixated on Ethan, who was standing right in front of her. She had never felt this kind of feeling before. She had never felt the warmth of being taken care of. It was like a cozy fire started inside her heart, all because of him.
"Well, they are none other than warm, hand-made dumplings! And no surprise here, but I also made them myself." Ethan proceeded to take out another box and placed it on top of the meat buns.
His simple gesture of giving her some warm homemade food instantly melted Estelle's heart. She was so touched by his actions that she almost burst into tears. In a soft, hoarse voice, she asked, "Ethan, why did you come here? And what made you bring so much food? Don't you need to spend New Year's at home?"
But Ethan paid no attention to her questions. He just smiled at her and continued to change the topic of their conversation to something simple and light.
It seemed to Estelle that he didn't want to talk about it, so she avoided asking him about it anymore. She was quite amazed at how, in just the blink of an eye, a countless amount of restaurant-quality food was right in front of her. Ethan's surprise visit had definitely brought her an ocean's worth of happiness. Then, she delightfully exclaimed, "Do you really think we can eat all of this food? And what kind of magic bag do you have? I can't believe everything here could fit inside it." Tears of joy welled up inside Estelle's eyes out of sheer disbelief. The large boxes on her lap made it impossible for her to stand and look at the food inside.
"My bag's magic is a secret. I really just wanted to cheer you up on New Year's Day. I'm sure you're thinking about how awesome I am, right?" Ethan chuckled. Then, he took out his final surprise, another box that he had tried really hard to cover with his body.
Estelle's eyes followed his every move, trying her best to see Ethan's final trick. He led her gaze to the side with his right hand, which her eyes quickly followed. But when she saw that there was nothing in his hand, she looked back at him. And to her surprise, a beautiful bouquet of flowers was already right in front of her, so she blissfully uttered, "Wow! Thank you, Ethan! I'm so grateful for everything. I thought this night was going to be a lonely one, but you being here makes it such a wonderful New Year's Eve."
"You don't have to thank me. Your gorgeous smile is worth all of the effort!" Ethan replied. He was such a kind man. Even though they were at a hospital ward, he didn't mind it one bit. He still acted as if they were in Estelle's home. Moreover, he greeted her father respectfully even though he was in a coma.
"Sir, please don't be mad that I came here without notice. I thought that it would be nice for all of us to be together, since, you know, it's New Year's. It's a time for everyone to be cheerful."
All of the food that Ethan had brought covered half of the bed. Both of them moved the boxes to the lower corner of the bed, concerned that the piping hot food might hurt Estelle's father.
In such a small amount of time, the lonely ward became one of the warmest and comfiest spots in the hospital. Not only did the mood become lively, but a subtle and strange romantic atmosphere was also in the air. It even caused Estelle to feel quite bashful. All through the night, she couldn't look at him straight in the eyes.
The somewhat awkward atmosphere could be felt by the two, but they simply enjoyed the moment. Estelle didn't even bother to question why Ethan was willing to accompany her that night. The two of them just gently opened the boxes of food and ate until their stomachs were full. It was just a simple and delightful time together.
Suddenly, a loud noise could be heard from outside the room. Both of them naturally turned around to see what had happened, and to their surprise, beautiful fireworks covered the entire sky. Unfortunately, they didn't notice that Estelle's father unconsciously moved his finger.
Not long after the fireworks died down, Ethan and Estelle found themselves sitting on the bed and sofa respectively. They quietly watched some television together, but from time to time, Ethan would sneak glances at Estelle. Although she took notice of his actions, she decided not to pay attention to them. She just continued to watch the New Year's special show.
Bang... A loud noise attracted Estelle's attention.
"It came from outside. There might be some fireworks again." Ethan, who was closer to the window, turned his head to look outside. "Yes, they're setting off fireworks again. Would you like to come here and have a look?".
Estelle didn't hesitate to put on her shoes and walk to the window, but she chose a spot as far away from Ethan as possible. Still, she had a good view from where she stood.
Ethan noticed her effort to maintain a considerable amount of distance from him and the light in his eyes dimmed.
"Wow, it's so beautiful!" she exclaimed while watching the fireworks in the sky. She even opened the window to lean over it.
"Ethan, we... We can't act like this," Estelle hoarsely mumbled after being silent for so long.
"Why? Please, just let me savor this moment for a bit longer. When your father wakes up, I'll definitely give you the answer you've been waiting for, okay?"
Ethan replied while his hands tightened their grasp around Estelle's shoulders. Right then, her head was still completely buried against his neck.
Estelle could only stand there silently, not knowing what she could possibly say at that moment.
A few minutes later, the midnight bell rang. It was already twelve o'clock and everyone could be heard celebrating the arrival of the new year. The whole city was jumping up with joy.
The two people in the ward, no, three people, just spent this seemingly unusual New Year's together.
On the following morning on the first day of the new year, Estelle woke up and smiled at her father who was lying still in bed. "Father, happy New Year."
After going to the bathroom to freshen up, she opened the door to go out and buy breakfast. But Ethan was already standing outside the door and was just about to knock. When he saw Estelle open the door, he immediately put down his hand, which was in midair. He then exclaimed, "Happy New Year!" While Estelle was still in a daze from being surprised, Ethan quickly slipped inside the ward.
"Happy New Year. Why are you here again?" She greeted back, but her tone was a bit confused. Once she came to her senses, she turned around and saw that Ethan was up to his tricks again. He took out three bowls and placed them on the bedside table.
"Hey, it's the morning of New Year's Day, right? And by tradition, people have to eat some sweet dumplings, so I asked my mother to make some extra for you." He then proceeded to take the food out of the container and divide them equally among the three bowls.
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