In the hospital room, after an emotional moment with three generations of family members, Grandpa Miller grabbed Samantha's hand and happily said, "Sammie, do you have time tomorrow?"
Samantha guessed his intention and asked, "What do you want to do?"
Grandpa Miller grinned and said, "Grandpa asked a friend to find a man for you. He may not be wealthy, but he looks handsome, has a stable job, and a steady income. Go meet him tomorrow."
"Grandpa..." Samantha helplessly exclaimed.
Grandpa Miller's eyes turned red, and he pretended to wipe away tears, saying, "I am already old, and I may not have many days left. The biggest wish of my life is to see you settle down and have someone take care of you. This way, even if I die, I can rest in peace."
For these four years, he had been constantly thinking of his granddaughter.
If it weren't for this belief supporting him, he would have gone to find his wife long ago.
"If I can't see my precious granddaughter settle down, I really can't die in peace."
Samantha's heart ached.
Seeing Grandpa like this, she couldn't bear to refuse and quickly nodded, saying, "Okay, okay, I promise you, alright? Please don't cry!"
Anyway, it's just a meeting; she could handle it casually.
So Grandpa wouldn't nag endlessly.
Seeing her agreement, Grandpa Miller immediately gave Samantha the contact information of the young man, and in turn, gave Samantha's contact information to him.
At this moment, her phone in her pocket rang.
It was an unknown number.
Curious, she answered, and on the other end, came the voice of Noah, "Mommy, I met a friend at the hospital who invited me to the amusement park. I won't visit Grandpa today. You and Charlotte go home first; I'll go back by myself tonight."
Samantha didn't suspect anything and cautioned, "Be careful, and call me if anything comes up."
"I know!" Noah replied hastily before ending the call.
Samantha put away her phone and roughly explained to Grandpa Miller about Noah's inability to come.
Grandpa Miller, understanding the nature of kids and their playful hearts, wasn't upset. He kindly said, "It's okay. Next time, bring him to see me again."
Samantha nodded, and after having lunch with Charlotte and Grandpa Miller, they left.
...
After parting ways with Noah, Nick drove straight to the Eco Park.
It was the weekend, so there were many people around.
He searched for a while before spotting 'Noah,' setting up a tent with Oliver on a grassy field. His eyes darkened slightly as he approached, touched Noah's head, and asked, "Noah, do you still remember me?"
Oliver looked at him inexplicably, not understanding why he would ask such a strange question out of the blue.
Alexander didn't like anyone other than Mommy and Daddy rubbing his head. He tilted his head to the side, avoiding the touch, and politely resisted, "Of course, I remember, Uncle Nick!"
Nick then asked, "Do you remember when we last met?"
Alexander looked at him as if he were a bit slow, saying, "Of course, it was at the hospital for check up!"
His suspicions were confirmed, and Nick's smile deepened.
Without further questions, he turned to find Ethan.
Ethan sat in a reclining chair, eyes closed, habitually pursing his thin lips, exuding an aura that discouraged others from approaching.
Nick lay down on the adjacent recliner and teased, "People always say paternal love is great. I didn't believe it before, but now I do."
Ethan remained indifferent, showing no reaction.
Nick continued, "You used to hate crowded places like this, but now you're willing to give up your principles for Noah. It shows how important he is to you, even surpassing Jessica."
Back then, Ethan wouldn't have made such sacrifices for Jessica.
Ethan still kept his eyes closed, lips slightly parted, and casually said, "People have to make changes. My current identity is that of a father."
In short, everything was for the child.
Nick caught the undertone in his words, his eyes flashing briefly. Concealing the true emotions in the depths of his eyes, he closed them and said, "I'm sorry for what happened that day. I've deeply reflected on it."
Ethan dismissed it, saying, "I never blamed you."
Because he knew Nick was right.
He drank, not because of Nick's words or Jessica's death.
But because of Samantha.
He didn't like this woman occupying too much of his thoughts.
She even made him almost forget Jessica's death anniversary.
After so many years with his brother, how could Nick not understand what was on his mind?
After a brief hesitation, Nick decided to temporarily keep the matter of the fake Noah a secret.
Biologically speaking, only identical twins would look exactly the same.
Therefore, real or fake, both were Ethan's sons.
With one son already occupying all his heart and prompting such significant changes, would Ethan still reserve a place for Jessica in his heart if another son appeared?
Jessica gave up her life for Ethan.
He couldn't be cruel to her anymore.
...
When Samantha returned home with Charlotte, only Yurika was at home.
While Yurika played with Charlotte, Samantha locked herself in the study, drafting plans, and working against the clock.
At dinner time, Noah came home.
The first thing he did upon returning was to take Samantha's phone and log into Skype, checking if Alexander had sent any messages.
Sure enough.
As soon as he opened Skype, two messages popped up.
[Daddy's not in a good mood today. Can you ask Mommy to come over and accompany Daddy tonight?]
[After dinner, I'll hide in my room, and you can find a reason to bring Mommy over.]
Noah furrowed his small eyebrows, glanced at the date on his phone, and instantly understood his father's unusual behavior last night and today.
Every year during these days, his father's mood would be very low.
Not disturbing him was the best approach.
So, he sent a message to Alexander: [Father is not in a good mood these days. It's best if you stay away from him. Having Miss Samantha go over to comfort him isn't wise; it might backfire. Let's talk about it after these few days.]
There was no immediate response.
Noah guessed that the phone must not be with Alexander, so he logged out of Skype and returned the phone to Samantha.
Tonight, Karen had not returned again.
She posted a cryptic message on Whatsapp status.
"The happiest thing is to be with you."
The accompanying image showed two hands tightly clasped together.
Seeing this message and image, Yurika exploded with anger and smashed her phone.
"Damn, shameless! She's clearly doing it on purpose. Samantha, why did you give up on Justin, such a good man, and let her take advantage of it?"
Samantha's heart was bleeding, but she pretended to be indifferent, saying, "Karen is also nice! They match well."
Yurika didn't want to mention Karen.
Just talking about her made Yurika wish she could kill her.
She decided to directly block Karen's status, out of sight, out of mind.
***