It was like in the fable: The Boy Who Cried, Wolf. If you kept on raising an alarm over nothing, you would damage your credibility when something really bad happened. This was the case with Melissa. Feeling tired of Melissa's nonsense, Sheryl let her words pass in one ear and out the other.
No matter what Melissa said, Sheryl insisted that she would stay to take care of Charles. At first, Melissa was strongly against it. But later on, something occurred to Melissa and she relented.
"Fine, do whatever you want. But let me remind you, if something ever happens to Charles again, you're the only one to blame!" Melissa warned her before turning around and leaving the ward.
Closing the door behind Melissa, Sheryl felt relieved. Finally, she could have some peace and quiet.
Leaving the ward, Melissa bumped into Leila. Since she had seen Sheryl in the ward earlier, Leila got anxious immediately. She wanted to rush back to the ward, but Melissa stopped her.
"Leila, don't. Let her be. You and I are both tired after staying here the whole morning. We might as well get some rest. Sheryl wouldn't be feeling tired at all. However, once Charles wakes up, I will ask him to divorce her!" Melissa explained, in an attempt to assure Leila.
Hearing Melissa's words, Leila stopped, but she couldn't hide her disappointment. Keeping watch at night might be tiring, but she was happy to do so since she wanted to stay with Charles.
"But Aunt Melissa, I want to be with Charles. What if Charles wakes up at night and the first person he sees is Sheryl? Won't he assume that Sheryl is the one who's been with him all this time?" Leila expressed her concern.
This made Melissa hesitant, for Leila had a point.
After giving it some thought, Melissa returned to the ward with Leila following at her heel.
Seeing Melissa back again, Sheryl was speechless.
Glancing at her, Sheryl smiled coldly. "What? Do you want to go back on your word now?"
"Charles is my son. Why should I let you alone keep him company?" Melissa stressed her disapproval.
Noticing that Leila was standing behind Melissa, Sheryl immediately figured out what had happened. Sheryl was impressed by the fact that Leila could easily manipulate Melissa. 'Couldn't Melissa think for herself? Why would she listen to Leila every time?'
"Charles is also my husband. I don't see anything wrong with me taking care of my own husband," Sheryl argued with Melissa.
"Your husband? Sheryl, can you hear yourself? You have no shame at all," Melissa mocked her, "The whole world knows that you cheated on Charles. How can you even talk about being committed to my son? If you really took Charles as your husband, you wouldn't be seeing another man behind his back!" The more Melissa thought about the rumors, the angrier she became. Walking towards Sheryl, she grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the ward.
Sheryl didn't take Melissa's criticism seriously because she cared nothing about those rumors. It was enough for her to know that she never betrayed Charles. If Melissa's criticisms would wake Charles up; she would gladly have taken all the blame.
Melissa and Leila didn't return to the Dream Garden until midnight. Before leaving, they hired a special care nurse to take care of Charles and kicked Sheryl out.
However, that didn't stop her. Sheryl showed up as soon as the coast was clear. Watching Charles from outside the glass window, she realized how much she missed him. This was their moment, quiet time alone, where no one would come to disturb them. Suddenly feeling hopeful, Sheryl's sadness began to fade. Crossing her hands, she started to pray for Charles.
With a smile finally shining on Sheryl's face, she murmured to herself, "Charles, I am waiting for you. Wake up."
The next day
Sheryl went to visit Cassie after she had left Charles' ward. Both Cassie and Charles were in a coma. But knowing both of them were safe, was enough for Sheryl to feel some relief. She didn't need to worry at all. It was just a matter of time before they both woke up. All she had to do was to wait patiently.
Just as she was about to leave the hospital, she ran into Lewis.
Sheryl didn't want to make a scene. It was just a misunderstanding, but she didn't bother to explain to Melissa. She wouldn't listen to her anyway. But Melissa wouldn't let Sheryl off the hook easily. Quickening her pace, she stepped in Sheryl's way.
"Do you have any idea what you are doing? You're cheating on your husband! If it was still the olden days, you would have been put into a pig's cage, and drowned in the river!" Surprisingly, Melissa managed to articulate something that made her seem educated this time!
But Sheryl just ignored Melissa's comment.
Seeing that Sheryl had remained silent, Melissa thought it was because Sheryl felt guilty. So she continued, "But you are still married now. And yet you are dating someone else behind our back." Melissa took a quick glance at Lewis before she stared back at her. "Sheryl, you make me sick!"
Sheryl didn't argue the accusations. All she cared about now was Charles. She wished for nothing else but for Charles to wake up.
Melissa continued with blaming Sheryl, but she swallowed her accusations silently. Lewis couldn't stand it anymore and decided to intercede. He felt sorry for Sheryl.
Furrowing his brows, Lewis spoke up and cut Melissa down. "Mrs. Lu, you are the mother of the Shining Company's CEO, please, mind your language. You are blaming Sheryl for no reason at all. This is just a misunderstanding. Sheryl and I are just friends. Sheryl can sue you for slander, did you know that?"
Lewis knew that it was inappropriate for him to argue with Melissa. But seeing how mean she was being to Sheryl, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.
"Oh, I see. Are you feeling sorry for you girlfriend? Sheryl won't say anything. So you're trying to defend her now?" Melissa sneered at Lewis. His actions had now fully convinced Melissa that they were having an affair.
Failing with his initial intention to shut Melissa's mouth, Lewis decided not to try and refute her argument further. It was pointless. Melissa would just make a huge scene, and that was the last thing Lewis wanted.
Melissa was that sort of person. You gave her an inch and she would take a mile. Smiling coldly, she said to Lewis in a condescending tone, "Are you helping Sheryl now?"
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