Nelly went to see Thalia after she was done eating.
“How are you? Feeling better?” she asked upon entering the room.
When Thalia saw the woman, she sat up at once. For some reason, after learning of Nelly 's true identity, she felt much closer to her despite the slight awkwardness. “Yup. I'm much better now,” she said.
“I haven't felt any discomfort since I woke up,” Nelly informed, looking at Thalia, who nodded in response.
Noticing that Thalia was staring at her, Nelly asked, “You have something to tell me?” Thalia stammered, “Shadow... Miss...”
She wanted to speak but wasn't sure how she should address Nelly . Finally, she decided to ask directly, “I was wondering if I should address you as Shadow Seeker or Ms. Jackson ?”
After a brief moment of contemplation, Nelly replied, “You can just call me Nelly .” “Nelly ?” Thalia seemed slightly surprised to hear that.
“It's just a name. If you're not comfortable with that, you can call me anything you like,” Nelly said casually.
She had always given off a relaxed and carefree vibe, and it was easy for one to feel comfortable in her presence.
Thalia gazed at the woman and replied, “No, it's all right. I just need to get used to it.”
She had grown up without anyone by her side and had no other family apart from Spencer. As such, she was rather touched that Nelly had asked her to call her by her nickname, which was a sign of intimacy, trust, and friendship.
“Why don't you give it a try?” Nelly suggested.
“Nelly .” Thalia let out a chuckle after saying that. “It's funny that I'm addressing you the same way the kids address you. Will they think I'm crazy?”
“Nah. They won't.”
Thalia thought for a moment and said, “In that case, I will just greet you casually from now on!” “Sure.”
Just then, Thalia shifted in her bed. When she moved her body, a crease appeared between her brows. “What's wrong?” Nelly asked.
“Nothing. My legs just feel a little numb,” Thalia answered.
Nelly regarded the woman. “Go for walks outside when you are free. It's good to get some sun. Staying indoors all day is bad for your health.”
When Thalia heard that, she replied helplessly, “I want to go out too, but I don't dare to do that.”
“Why?” Nelly asked with narrowed eyes.
“It's because of Ben and Donna . Whenever they saw me, they would ask me what was going on. I'm not sure if you had told them anything, so I didn't dare to say too much. I'm worried that they would start having suspicions,” Thalia explained.
“They can be really curious at times,” Nelly remarked. “I texted you about it, but you didn't reply.”
“Did I not reply?” Nelly took out her phone and started scrolling through her messages. When she realized that she had indeed not replied, she said, “I didn't have my phone with me then. When I wanted to reply, I ended up being distracted by other things. I must have thought that I had already replied.”
“Did you reply telepathically?” Thalia jested. “Well, you can think of it that way.”
Thalia could not help but be amused by the woman's reply.
The next moment, Nelly spoke. “Actually, I did consider telling them the truth since they would find out sooner or later. But the thought of them being upset made me want to delay it for as long as possible. One additional day of them not knowing is one more day of them being happy.”
Upon hearing Nelly 's words, Thalia gave a small nod. “I understand. I guess that's what all mothers would choose to do.”
“How about you? I know you care about them as much as I do,” Nelly said.
Thalia replied with downcast eyes at the mention of that, “I didn't think that much. I just... I just don't want others to pity me.”
“Is that so?” Thalia nodded.
“If that's the case, you don't have to tell them anything.” “But I can't do that,” Thalia said.
After knowing each other for three years, Nelly knew Thalia's character very well and was aware of her stubbornness.
Nonetheless, she decided not to insist as a sign of respect.
Fixing her gaze on Thalia, Nelly said, “Feel free to say anything you want. It's okay even if you want to tell them the truth. Perhaps, after knowing what happened to you, it would be easier for them to accept my situation.”
Thalia looked at her and replied, “How can that be the same? You're the most important person to them in the world. I can't even start to describe how much you mean to them.”
Nelly remained silent as she knew that as a fact.
She was aware of how much she mattered to the three little ones, and it was exactly because of that that she did not dare to tell them the truth.
It would break her heart to see the kids sad.
Oblivious to what Nelly was implying, Thalia nodded after giving it some thought. “That was my original plan. Why are you in such a hurry, though? Don't you want them to stay with you a little while longer?”
Nelly froze as she realized she was probably rushing things a little. Not wanting Thalia to get suspicious, she said in the calmest tone possible, “Their growth matters more to me than anything else. Besides, they'll miss out on the training if we send them over any later, right?”
Thalia stroked her chin. “Fair enough. If they join right now, they'll probably be considered older than the others.”
Nelly looked her in the eye as she said, “Please promise me that you'll take good care of them, Thalia.”
Thalia let out a chuckle. “I'd promise you that if I could survive, but—” Nelly cut her off, “You'll definitely survive. I know you will.”
“All right, then. I have no reason to be pessimistic if you're that optimistic about it. We'll see how things go,” Thalia replied after a brief pause.
Nelly breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Thalia had agreed to it without getting suspicious. “You don't plan on leaving anymore?”
Thalia shook her head. “Spencer wants me to stay with him.”
“Does that mean you two are on good terms now?” Nelly asked.
Thalia nodded with a smile. “I suppose you could say that. Back then, I didn't want him to see me suffer from intense pain. Now, I can't help but be a little selfish. Even if I don't make it somehow, I'd at least be able to spend my final moments with the person I love, so my life would be complete anyway.”
“You'll definitely get what you wish for. May the love you share today grow stronger as you grow old together,” Nelly reassured her.
“Thanks!” Thalia said with a smile.
“All right; you should get some rest. I'll be taking my leave now,” Nelly said as she got up and prepared to head out.
Thalia stepped forward before quickly grabbing hold of her arm. “Wait up, Nelly !”
Nelly had barely socialized in her years of investigating the cause of her father's death, so she didn't make any friends, especially female ones. As such, Thalia grabbing her by the arm all of a sudden caught her completely off guard, causing her to freeze up as an inexplicable sensation formed deep inside her heart.
“What's wrong?” Thalia asked when she saw Nelly 's strange reaction.
After taking a moment to snap out of her dazed state, Nelly shook her head and said, “N-Nothing. What is it?”
Thalia stared at her in silence for a few seconds before asking, “You and Spencer are friends, right? Could you tell me what happened to him over the years? I want to know more about him.”
“It's true that we were friends, but we didn't see each other that often. We mainly kept in touch via phone calls and texts,” Nelly replied.
Thalia frowned after hearing that. “Isn't that the same as my situation, then?” Nelly nodded. “More or less.”
Thalia let out a sigh. “All right, then. I was hoping you would know some interesting things about him.”
“I may not have met him often, but I have heard him mention someone's name a lot,” Nelly said when she noticed how disappointed Thalia looked.
Thalia's eyes lit up the moment she heard that. “Whose?”
“Yours.”
Noticing that Thalia was frozen in shock, Nelly continued, “That was how I first heard about you. Although he had been avoiding you all this while, he had been asking me about you throughout these years. That's why you were able to find me and not get blocked.”
Thalia was so shocked that it took her a while to collect her thoughts. “Y-You mean he has always been up to date on my affairs?”
Nelly nodded. “Yes, that's right.” Thalia fell silent instantly.
And here I thought my feelings had been one-sided all this while. I can't believe Spencer has been watching over me all this while...
“He would help treat my condition, and I would provide him with your information. That was our deal. So far, Spencer has mentioned your name the most,” Nelly added.
Thalia shifted her gaze back toward Nelly as she asked, “Really?” “Would I lie to you?” Nelly asked.
Thalia shook her head as she knew Nelly had no reason to lie.
“Don't worry; Spencer only has eyes for you. I don't know what he's being so conflicted about, but I believe you are the only one he cares about,” Nelly reassured her.
The look in Thalia's eyes grew gentle when she heard that. “So, you don't know why he has been avoiding me either?”
Nelly shook her head. “No, I have never heard him mention it. Spencer would never talk about something unless he felt like it, so I have also been curious about it.”