William had sent me the connections between Charlotte and the other families, but I didn't have the authority to issue orders at the company.
So, I went to ask my father for help.
I thought I'd need to convince him, but to my surprise, my father simply smiled after hearing me out.
"William was right after all."
"William?"
My father said, "A while ago, William came to me and said you wanted to join the company to gain some experience and asked me to give you a chance."
I was shaken. I hadn't expected William to do this for me.
Suddenly, my father sighed deeply. "William has always been in good health, but recently, I don't know what's going on. He's been running to the hospital all the time."
I froze. Didn't William go to the subsidiary in another city?
"Which hospital is he at? I haven't seen him in a few days."
I remembered how his eyes had looked at me at the last small gathering.
"R Hospital."
After leaving my father's office, I asked the driver to take me to the hospital. At the reception desk, I inquired and found out William was in the ophthalmology department.
So, it really was his eyes.
When I arrived at the hospital room, I happened to see a nurse wrapping William's eyes in bandages, while his assistant stood nearby, looking worried.
William's long fingers gently pressed on one side of the bandage, helping the nurse with the wrapping. His fingers, clearly defined and glowing in the sunlight, seemed almost ethereal.
A sharp pain struck my chest.
A certain guess began to form in my mind.
I stepped lightly, but when his assistant saw me, he instinctively tried to call out to me. I stopped him with a gesture.
As I passed him and approached William, he gently tugged at my sleeve and shook his head.
I ignored him and went straight to William, slightly bending down.
The eyes that always carried warmth were now completely covered by layers of bandages. The usual soft smile I'd always seen was gone, leaving only a pale void.
I felt a sudden ache in my nose.
"Lana?"
William suddenly spoke, his voice tentative and trembling.
I realized that when I bent down, my hair had fallen down, a few strands brushing against his hand. He turned his hand over, catching those strands.
"It's me," I said, my voice choked.
His eyes were covered, and I couldn't tell what expression was on his face.
"Everyone, please leave."
As the assistant and nurse exited, they closed the door behind them, and the large room was left with only William and me.
I straightened up, my hair gently brushing his palm.
Pulling up a chair from across the room, I sat facing William and softly told him, "It's fine if you don't want to tell me; I won't press you about it."
In just a few days, his eyes had deteriorated like this…
William parted his lips slightly, and a soft sigh escaped.
"Actually, it's not a big deal. It's just that my assistant was worried and insisted that I come to the hospital for a check-up."
He said it so calmly, but my heart felt a pang of bitterness.
"Can you still see?" I asked.
William gently shook his head, his tone flat. "I can't see anymore."
In that instant, tears streamed down my face.
"William, is it because of… me?"
William raised his hand, first touching my arm, then moving up to my face.
He gently wiped away my tears with his thumb, smiling as he said, "Didn't you say you wouldn't ask?"
My heart twisted, but I had no choice but to nod. "Okay, I won't ask."
"Good girl," he said softly. "I might not be able to help you much anymore, but remember, I'll always be on your side."
I grabbed William's hand, fighting to keep my voice steady, careful not to let him hear my trembling.
You're a liar, William.
As I was leaving, I asked William's assistant about his condition.
The assistant said that a month ago, William had lost his sense of taste. It happened suddenly and quickly. Once, during a business trip, he ordered food from a restaurant, not knowing it was very spicy. William, who had always hated spicy food, ate it without a reaction, continuing the meal while on the phone. It wasn't until the assistant saw his expression that he realized something was wrong and got William to admit it.
About a week ago, William's vision started to deteriorate.
At first, he couldn't see clearly at a distance. Then, he couldn't even make out things five meters away. Finally, he couldn't see anything at all.
Despite William's objections, his assistant insisted on bringing him to the hospital.
But William made it clear not to tell anyone, especially me.
When I left the hospital, I was in a daze.
I had been reborn into this body a month ago, and William had lost his sense of taste around the same time. Now, it was his eyesight…
What would happen next?
Would his sense of touch and hearing also disappear?
When I was reborn, Veronica was already dead.
The Spencer family had already prepared for the funeral.
At the moment my soul took over this body, my eyes opened.
The first thing I saw was William.
He didn't panic like the servants, shouting or making a fuss. He just quietly watched me.
He bent down and gently lifted me out of the coffin, his expression full of… the tenderness of something lost and found.
As he held me in his arms, he whispered something in my ear.
He said, "I've been waiting for you a long time, little one."
At the time, I was still in shock and didn't fully understand the meaning behind his words.
Now, it seemed like he had traded his life for my rebirth into this body.
But in my past life, I didn't know him.
