Ethan arrived at the dean's office.
Nick, wearing a white coat, leaned against the back of the chair with a jade-like figure. His handsome profile, adorned with gold-rimmed glasses, exuded refinement and elegance.
Seeing Ethan enter, he greeted him to sit down and then took out Noah's medical examination report from the drawer, handing it to him.
Ethan's gaze fell on the diagnosis results.
Stomach problems.
Tendency towards depression.
When he saw the stomach issue, there was no fluctuation on his face.
After all, Noah had been a picky eater since childhood. If the food didn't suit his taste, he would rather go hungry. Over time, it was abnormal not to have a stomach problem.
But, depression...?
Ethan's handsome brows furrowed slightly, and his thin lips tightened. "How could he have depression?"
Nick's expression turned serious, and he spoke with emphasis, "That's exactly why I asked you to come. Although he currently only shows a tendency towards depression, if not treated promptly, the situation may worsen. After all, he's only four years old this year."
Worry clouded Ethan's handsome face. "How can it be treated?"
Nick reassured, "Don't worry for now. Bring him back tomorrow, and I'll conduct a test to see the extent of his condition."
"Okay."
Ethan nodded in agreement, asked a few more questions about Noah's condition, and then left.
...
Ethan drove back to Chelsea Creek.
The butler, seeing him return, breathed a sigh of relief and immediately approached, anxiously saying, "Sir, you're finally back. Since the assistant brought back the young master, he has been crying non-stop. No matter how we try to comfort him, it's of no use."
"Where is he?"
A touch of annoyance flashed in Ethan's eyes, and his gaze was as cold as frost.
"Following your instructions, Assistant Jade locked him in his room."
Ethan's face darkened, and he walked upstairs.
Just as he reached the second floor, he heard the sound of banging and smashing coming from the direction of the children's room.
"You human traffickers, let me out quickly. If you don't let me out, I will smash everything in your house. You villains, villains...!"
Ethan's face instantly turned grim. The words of Nick echoed in his mind.
‘The most obvious symptom in the early stages of depression is extreme mood swings, uncontrollable anger...’
His hand clenched into a fist suddenly, and the veins on the back of his hand surged.
He approached the door and asked, "Has he been like this all along?"
Jade, who had been guarding outside the door, saw him and finally relaxed his tense face, nodding with a bitter expression, "Ever since he was brought back from the shopping mall, he's been like this. He will rest for ten minutes when tired, then continue..."
He had no idea why the young master's spirit was so good.
He had been cursing for hours without feeling tired.
It was like a completely different person from the silent young master of the past.
Ethan's face looked as grim as if it had been splashed with ink.
He opened the door.
Alexander, who had been locked in for several hours, saw the door finally open. Without a word, he lowered his head and rushed towards the door.
However, someone grabbed him by the collar at the doorway.
Angry, he raised his head, and at the moment he saw Ethan, his eyes widened in shock.
"Why do you look so much like me?"
Ethan's brows furrowed.
‘Can depression cause memory loss? Not even recognizing the closest person?’
Seeing him staring without speaking, Alexander took the opportunity to kick his small leg forcefully. "Is it you who told them to grab me? You kidnapper! Let me tell you, you better let me go now, or I'll call the police..."
Ethan realized that his son's condition was more severe than he thought.
He had been fine in the morning at the mall, so how did he become like this so quickly?
He released the grip on Alexander's collar.
As soon as Alexander gained freedom, he ran towards the door, only to be blocked by Jade.
He was completely in despair.
"What do you want by bringing me back? If it's for ransom, I advise you to dismiss this idea. My mommy is not rich; she's very poor."
For the first time, Ethan let go of his stern fatherly demeanor and gently rubbed Alexander's head.
"I was too strict with you before, leading to you becoming like this. In the future, whatever you want, just tell me, and I will try my best to fulfill it."
At these words, Alexander's eyes lit up.
"Really? Then give me a cellphone."
There were people everywhere inside and outside, making it impossible to escape.
With a cellphone, he could contact his mommy and ask her to save him.
The refusal was on the tip of his tongue, but he forcefully held it back. Ethan turned to Jade and ordered, "Go buy a cellphone for the young master."
Jade left to carry out the order.
Ethan, unusually patient, said, "I'll have someone bring the laptop over for you to play with."
Alexander immediately nodded in excitement.
No cellphone, but a computer was fine. A computer could also contact mommy.
Ethan had someone bring a laptop from the study to Alexander.
With the computer in hand, Alexander immediately pushed Ethan out of the room and locked the door.
Locked outside, Ethan's heart felt as if it had been seized by something. Silently, he took out a cigarette, enveloped in an air of concern.
He felt that his son might not only have depression but also...
Perhaps, a bit of schizophrenia?
Alexander sat cross-legged on the floor, placing the laptop on his lap. He opened the laptop, only to find it was password-protected.
"Hmph..." He smirked.
Did they really think a password could stop this computer genius?
In less than a minute, he cracked the computer password.
He logged into Skype and initiated a video call to Samantha, hoping she could come and rescue him.
To his surprise, the one who answered the call was a little boy who looked exactly like him.
At the sight of the boy, he thought he had made a mistake. He rubbed his eyes and pinched his thigh until he was sure he hadn't made a mistake. "Who are you? Why do you look exactly like me?"
Then, as if understanding something, he suddenly realized, "They want you, right?"
Noah's expression remained unchanged, exceptionally calm. "Yes, he is my father."
Alexander was not naive. He immediately detected from his words and expression that there was premeditation. He stared at him warily.
"What do you want? Any conspiracy? Where's my mommy? Let me talk to my mommy. I'm telling you, don't harm my mommy, or I won't be polite to you."
Noah's face became serious. "From a biological standpoint, only identical twins will look exactly the same."
Alexander asked nonchalantly, "So what?"
Noah countered, "Don't you want to know why we look exactly the same?"
Seemingly understanding his implication, Alexander stared at him intently. "So, what do you want to do?"
Noah tightened his thin lips, his delicate face resembling an ice sculpture.
"Find out the truth! I want to know whether you are my long-lost brother or if Miss Samantha is my biological mother."
His words made Alexander gasp for breath.
He looked at Noah incredulously, obviously shocked by his speculation.
Capturing his reaction, Noah's narrow eyes flickered with an inscrutable coldness. "I hope you can cooperate. Stay there temporarily until I investigate the truth. Don't reveal your identity prematurely, to avoid alerting the enemy. If anything happens, we can contact each other by phone."
With that, before Alexander could react, he hung up the call.
Alexander was dumbfounded, staring at the blank video call screen for a while before he could react.
***