DAVID’S POV
I sat in the dark, listening to the quiet hum of the refrigerator and the occasional creak of the walls. It was almost 11 PM. The exact time my father usually returned home.
Tonight, I was the anomaly.
"David?" His voice cut through the stillness, tinged with confusion. "Why are you sitting in the dark? You’re not usually up by this time."
I turned slowly, blinking against the hallway light spilling into the living room. "I was waiting for you."
He stepped into the room, removing his coat with a wary look. “Waiting for me? That’s unusual. What happened to your golden bedtime rule? Nine o'clock sharp, no matter what.”
He chuckled to himself. “I still remember how I joked you'd keep that up even after becoming a full-fledged doctor.”
I stood. “Can we talk?”
He paused, coat still halfway off. “Talk? Now?”
I nodded once. “It’s important.”
Without another word, he gestured for me to follow him down the corridor toward his study. The scent of cigars and mahogany greeted me as he switched on the lamp. He motioned to the leather chair across from his desk and took his own seat behind it, lacing his fingers together.
“This about Kate Stanley?” he asked, cutting right to it.
I hesitated.
“Yes,” I said finally.
His sigh was long and disapproving. “David, I thought we were past this. All you have to do is work with her a few more days. You can’t let personal drama mess with your professionalism. That girl—”
“That’s not it,” I interrupted, my voice sharper than I intended.
He leaned back, surprised. “Then what?”
“I need your help.”
He arched an eyebrow. “My help. With Kate?”
I nodded again, slowly this time.
There was a brief pause. “I’m listening.”
“She’s sick.”
He didn’t react at first, just stared.
“I’m serious. She’s really sick,” I continued. “It’s not something small. It's... serious, Dad.”
He sat up straighter, and my mouth felt dry. “And there’s no cure yet. It’s Huntington”
He nodded solemnly. “The researchers are on it, but it’s complicated. This disease—whatever mutation she has—it’s relentless. There’s no definite pattern, no predictable course. We don’t have a timeline for a breakthrough.”
My chest tightened.
“She’s going to die, isn’t she?” I asked, my voice cracking.
He studied me. “Are you seriously concerned about Kate Stanley? The same Kate you’ve been sparring with since day one?” He smirked. “Funny how you were raving about how she’s your biggest competition few days ago. That once she was out of the picture, you’d finally get the assistantship.”
I met his eyes. “Yes, I wanted her gone. But not this way.”
He raised both brows. “Then what way?”
“Not through death, Dad. Not through disease.” My voice rose without my permission. “She can’t die like this.”
He went still.
“Please,” I said, softer this time. “Please help me.”
He stared, and for a second, he looked tired. “Help you how?”
“I know you have connections. You sit on the boards of five international research institutes. You fund three of them. You have reached. You have power. Use it.”
“And do what, David? Miraculously create a cure from thin air? I told you—there’s no cure right now.”
“I know that,” I said, frustration bubbling. “But maybe if we fund more trials, maybe if we support the research faster if we get the top scientists from every corner of the world in the same room…”
He shook his head. “This isn’t a sci-fi film, David. Research takes time. Money alone doesn’t solve—”
“You and I both know money changes the pace of everything!” I snapped.
He stared at me, lips tight.
“I’m not asking you to wave a wand,” I continued. “I’m asking you to do what you do best—fund brilliance. Push the envelope. You could make a difference, Dad. You always have.”
His fingers tapped lightly against his desk.
“She has no one else,” I said quietly. “Just her father—an aging man who’s already lost too much. Her mother died when she was barely ten. She's been fighting all her life to be here. To save lives. That’s why she became a doctor.”
He rubbed his forehead. “Where is all of this coming from?”
“Because I want you to know how important this is.”
“Why now?”
“Because I’ve seen her fight to stay upright even when she’s shaking. I’ve seen her hide her episodes so no one thinks she’s weak. I’ve seen her collapse into herself with no one to catch her.”
“And?” he asked, watching me like a hawk.
“And I can’t stand back and do nothing. Not anymore.”
He leaned forward. “Why, David?”
I swallowed.
Silence hung thick between us.
Then I whispered, “Because I like her.”
His eyes widened.
“What?”
“I like her,” I repeated, louder this time. “I like Kate Stanley.”