Bound by the Past, Locked by the Heart novel Chapter 61

There were two light knocks on the door before the doctor walked in for his rounds.

After a brief examination, the doctor flipped through her test results with a slight frown. "This high fever was triggered by catching a chill and exhaustion. But your baseline immune system is much weaker than a normal person's, and you have moderate anemia. You can't keep pushing your body like this."

Randal's brows pulled together. "What could cause a condition like this?"

"There are many reasons. Congenital immunodeficiency, chronic malnutrition, debilitating chronic illnesses, or... a massive loss of blood in a short period, like a hemorrhage or blood donation, without proper recovery afterward. That would damage the foundation of her health."

Willa's grip on her water glass tightened as she slowly lowered her head again.

Randal's frown deepened. "Donating blood can be this serious?"

The doctor offered a small smile. "A standard donation wouldn't cause this, of course. But if the amount taken in a single session exceeds the body's limit, combined with long-term physical exhaustion, the immune system naturally loses its balance."

"Oh, right," he suddenly turned to ask Willa, "Do you have any history of giving a massive amount of blood?"

Willa froze slightly, then looked up at the doctor and gave a subtle nod.

The doctor sighed. "That explains it. A sudden, massive blood loss causes significant damage to the immune system. Some people can spend three to five years recovering and still not be back to normal."

"It's not a terminal illness, but you absolutely cannot keep trying to tough it out. If you keep wearing yourself down like this, it won't just be fevers next time."

After delivering his instructions, the doctor left the room.

A dead silence fell over the room once more.

After a long while, Randal slowly spoke up. "You donated blood? Why didn't I know about this?"

"It was a long time ago. There's nothing to talk about." Willa set down the water glass and slowly lay back. She purposefully turned her back to him, having zero desire to discuss the topic.

Her shoulders were slightly hunched as she curled up under the blankets.

Randal walked around to the other side of the bed and crouched down to look at her face.

Her eyes were closed, her eyelashes trembling slightly.

"Willa," he called her name. "How much did you donate?"

She didn't open her eyes, but her lips pressed into a tight line.

"When did this happen?" he pressed on, a note of urgency creeping into his voice.

Her eyelashes fluttered even more frantically.

"Randal, I'm tired and I want to sleep. You should go home and get some rest too."

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