Gloria was in a trance. The past that had been lost in time seemed to become clear again.
She remembered that when Harry fought with those rogues, he shouted fiercely, "Gloria is my sister. If anyone dares to bully her again, I will kill him!"
She also remembered Harry's fierce look. It was as if he would bite the person he saw the next moment.
Gloria sat upright on the sofa for another three hours.
She stared blankly at the empty space. She seemed to be reminiscing. Memories were not always pleasant, but Gloria felt satisfied with those little happy moments.
In the quiet living room, the phone rang urgently. Gloria was shocked and became sober.
She looked at the screen, and her eyes became cold. It was Patrick.
She did not press the call, nor did she pick it up.
Gloria stood up from the sofa, picked up her backpack, and walked to the door.
She suddenly stopped when she saw the two pairs of slippers placed side by side.
She stood straight and stared at the slippers for a long time.
Time seemed to slow down, and Gloria finally made a move. She squatted down and picked up the two pairs of slippers. She went back to the living room and threw them into the trash can.
She turned back to the table and threw the cups into the trash can too.
In the bathroom, she threw everything in pairs away, such as toothbrushes and towels.
Gloria stood in front of the trash can and smiled sarcastically. She thought, 'No wonder he wanted to play dumb.
He managed to take part of my life bit by bit.'
There were more and more things in pairs in the apartment before she noticed it.
If she hadn't sorted it out today, maybe she would never have noticed them.
Gloria turned around and left.
She stood in front of the door of the ward. Finally, she reached out and pushed it open.
"I won't eat it." Harry looked haggard in bed.
These days, he lived in fear every day, and the desire to live forced him to fight the pain.
It was painful. As time passed, he became more desperate.
He struggled with illness in despair. He wanted to live and enjoy life and returned to his carefree days in the past.
Camille was sad all day. Harry couldn't bear to see her wiping her tears beside him all day.
Camille had been sick recently, and Harry was relieved because Camille wouldn't stick around him.
Camille felt sorry for Harry. She hired the best nurses, who would take turns taking care of him 24 hours a day.
Harry was tired of staying in the ward. When he was awake, he looked out of the window at the scenery, and his bright eyes turned listless.
The door opened quietly. Harry thought that it was another servant who came to deliver things. He had to take medicine every day, and long-term chemotherapy had caused the loss of his taste. Everything tasted bitter to him.
If he did not starve, or his stomach wasn't upset, he wouldn't eat anything.
He was weak, and he was unwilling to talk.
Similarly, when someone pushed the door open and entered, he wouldn't turn around and take a look.
Harry sat on the bed and looked out the window.
Then, there was a shadow covering his bed.
Although Harry was weak and did not want to waste any strength, he looked annoyed.
He was sick of those who were healthy and cared for him. If he could, he was more willing to be in good health and then pity others.
"Get out." Harry's breath was weak, and he was a little agitated.
"You have been sick for a long time. Is your mind also sick?" A hoarse female voice sounded.
Harry seemed to be a little stunned, and his body was stiff.
He turned his head from the window to the door. In an instant, his expression changed greatly.
He looked up at Gloria. After a long time, he laughed at himself. "Are you here to see if I am still alive?"
Gloria did not speak. She pulled the chair and sat down beside the bed, her eyes sweeping behind Harry. She stood up, picked up the pillow on the sofa, and placed it behind Harry.
"What are you doing? Trying to pity me?" Harry said sarcastically.
Gloria stared at Harry's sunken cheek for a long time. She could still recognize his handsome facial features.
She reached out her hand and unbuttoned Harry's clothes.
"What are you doing?" Harry pursed his pale lips and looked alert.
Gloria shook off Harry's hand that was on the back of her hand and continued to undo Harry's buttons. Then, she pulled the collar down, and his shoulder was exposed. The wound healed, but there was still a hideous scar left.
"Do you still remember how you got this scar?" Gloria's hoarse voice slowly sounded.
Harry's shoulder trembled. Gloria was rubbing the scar with her fingers. He felt hot and wanted to flinch.
"If you come to talk about the old times, you can leave. I'm dying. Do you want to recall the past with a patient?" Harry didn't say much.
Gloria ignored Harry's harsh words. She rubbed the scar gently and continued, "When I was a child and Grandpa was still alive. I grew up by his side."
"You want to show off that Grandpa favored you? Gloria, Grandpa is dead, and no one will dote on you anymore." Harry's voice was low and he sounded weak.
Gloria ignored his harsh words once again. "Back then, I was envious of you for being favored by Dad and Mom. I thought that I had done something wrong, so Dad and Mom did not like me. I thought that if I were more outstanding than you, they would pay more attention to me. I was stupid. Grandpa said that you were smarter than me, and I was not convinced. But later, when I became more and more outstanding, I found that Dad and Mom disliked me more and more. Only then did I know that they did not want me to be outstanding. In a fit of anger, I forced myself to learn more things. Though mom and dad don't care about me, I have my grandpa. Back then, he was the most important person to me."
Gloria paused for a moment and continued, "For a long time, I worked hard to get Grandpa's approval. This way, I would feel that there was someone who loved me in that family. One day, he said that you were smarter and more talented than me. I saw his expectations for you in his eyes. I realized that he did not favor me. But in my eyes, he loved me, and that was enough."
Harry was in disbelief at first. Then, he listened quietly.
In the ward, there was only Gloria's hoarse voice. She was telling her story slowly.
"But I hated you even more. I once thought that you had snatched Dad and Mom from me and were even going to snatch Grandpa."
Gloria's expression was calm, as if she was telling someone else's story.