She Outshines Them All (Athena and Matthew) novel Chapter 263

Chapter 263
“Ah, ah, ah…” After she said the word “I”, she could only make an “ah” sound.
Elsie quickly shut her mouth and swallowed her saliva. Then she opened her mouth again and said, “Ah, ah…”
Everyone was stunned, including the netizens. ‘What is she doing? She’s asked to say something. Why does she keep making that sound? What’s wrong with her?’
Elsie subconsciously raised her hand to touch her throat, her eyes revealing fear. ‘I… seem to be unable to make a sound…
The crowd could no longer sit still. Someone shouted, “Elsie, what are you doing? There are so many people waiting. Please don’t waste our time!”
“Do you feel guilty and don’t dare to speak?”
“The evidence is conclusive. It’s useless for you to deny it! I advise you not to pretend to be pitiful…”
“Ah…” Elsie was so anxious that she was about to cry. She covered her throat with both hands and looked around in fear and helplessness, hoping that someone could help her.
Ryan could tell that something was wrong with her. He said sharply, “Miss Morin, are you feeling unwell?”
Elsie was crying. She opened her mouth and nodded vigorously. “Mhm…”
Ryan said loudly to his assistant, “Let the doctor take a look.”
This was how he was. He looked unreliable, but he was always extremely meticulous and considerate when it came to work.
He had also arranged for a doctor and an ambulance at the press conference tonight.
Before the doctor went on stage, Kerise had already rushed to Elsie and pinched her arm hard. She said angrily, “I’m just asking you to tell the truth. Is it that difficult? Hurry up and say it. After that, we’ll leave.”
Elsie’s body trembled and her facial features scrunched up.
But she still didn’t say anything. She just opened her mouth and let out an “ah” sound.
“What a useless thing!” Kerise was really disappointed. She kept pinching Elsie’s arm. “You were a poor female high school student back then and you came from a single-parent family. How could you compare to boys like Zayn and Ben? There are so many people watching now. They won’t dare to do anything to you. Hurry up and tell the truth!”
“Mrs. Morin, stop pinching your daughter.” Ryan grabbed her wrist and said sternly, “The doctor is here. Hurry up and let the doctor examine her.”
Kerise could not move a single hand from his grasp, and her heart was filled with fear from his sharp gaze. She could only say hatefully, “I understand. Let go of my hand! I’m warning you. There are so many people watching. Don’t try to force my daughter to lie.”
Only then did Ryan let go of her hand and said coldly, “If you disturb the order of the scene again, I’ll chase you out.”
At this moment, the doctor had already walked to Elsie’s side. He took out a small flashlight and made Elsie open her mouth to make a sound. Then, he pointed it at her throat and looked at it carefully.
After that, he checked her eyes and ears and asked the assistant to give her a simple heart and brain examination.
While the assistant was examining Elsie, he asked Kerise, “Does she usually smoke, drink, stay up late, and don’t like to drink water?”

Kerise shook her head. “Elsie is an announcer and host. She takes great care of her voice and never does anything that hurts it.”
The doctor asked, “When was the last time she spoke? Was there anything unusual in her voice?”
Kerise said, “When she left in the evening, she said a few words. There was nothing unusual in her voice…”
The doctor asked again, “When was the last time she ate? What did she cat?”
Kerise answered them one by one. There didn’t seem to be anything unusual about them.
A few minutes later, the doctor finished his questioning and looked at the results of his assistant’s examination. He came to a conclusion. “Based on the current examination, there’s nothing wrong with the patient’s mouth and throat. Her hearing and vision are normal, and there’s no other problem affecting her voice.
“There’s a good chance she’s suffering from psychosis.
“I suggest that she should either go to the hospital for further examination or see a psychiatrist.”
As soon as he said this, the venue and the Internet were in an uproar again.
[So much psychological pressure that she can’t speak? Isn’t this just a guilty conscience?]
[She’s a host. If she can’t make a sound, can she still do this job?]
[This is retribution, right?]
When Kerise heard these discussions, she could not hold it in anymore. She shouted at the camera, “Elsie has no psychological problems. She’s very energetic! It’s just that she’s been too tired from preparing for a new variety show recently. In addition, she’s facing the boys who bullied her back then. She’s so afraid that she can’t speak for a while.”
She picked up a piece of paper and a water pen from the side of the podium and placed it in front of Elsie. “Since you don’t dare to speak in front of Paul and Tadeo, write it down!”
Elsie looked at Kerise and shook her head.
Kerise’s face twitched. Suppressing her anger, she picked up the pen and stuffed it into Elsie’s hand. She said “Write it now!”
forcefully,
Elsie looked at Kerise silently for a moment before slowly grabbing the pen. She pressed the tip of the pen on the white paper and slowly wrote.
The camera moved closer and aimed at her pen.
Her fingers were trembling, and her grip on the pen was unsteady. It took her dozens of seconds to write a crooked, choppy
“I”.
The audience in front of the screen shook their heads repeatedly.
“Did she have a cramp or did she not eat? Even a three-year-old child can write better than her.”
“She often signs autographs for people. How can she not write well? She probably has something on her mind…”
Kerise listened to the discussions below the stage and was disappointed again. “What are you afraid of? You were so afraid back then, but after eight years, you’re still so afraid. Can you be more promising? If you don’t write it, everyone will think that you’re feeling guilty. Do you still want to be a host in the future?”
Click. The pen in Elsie’s hand fell to the floor, and tears ran down her face.

Kerise’s face darkened as she roared uncontrollably, “Is this how you treat me? I raised you painstakingly. When I divorced, I didn’t leave you to your violent father. This time, I risked my life to protect your rights, but you retreated at the critical
moment…”
Ryan could not take it anymore and said coldly, “Mrs. Morin, Miss Morin is sick. What she needs now is treatment. I’ll send someone to take her to the hospital now. It won’t be too late to explain what happened back then when she can speak and write.” With that, he ordered his assistant, “Send Miss Morin to the hospital.”
Kerise knew that it was useless to say anything now, so she could only suppress her dissatisfaction. “I’ll go with you.”
“But…” She raised her voice. “My daughter didn’t wrongly accuse Zayn. Zayn and those hooligans were pestering her back then. Only she’s the real victim!”
The crowd booed.
When Elsie was helped away, she looked at a corner of the curtain with tears in her
eyes.
A figure stood there and looked at her quietly. Although he was wearing a mask, she could tell at a glance that he was Zayn.
The fear that came from being unable to speak suddenly dissipated. The weight pressing down on her chest disappeared.
There was even a faint smile on her lips. It was actually quite good that she couldn’t make a sound…
Back then, when she was needed to speak up, she did not. Now, she wanted to speak, but she could not. This was probably God’s punishment for her.
It was really quite good. She took a deep breath and retracted her gaze. She silently said in her heart, ‘I’ll never see you again, Zayn. Goodbye, my dream when I was 17!’