"Yes, oh? Didn’t you know we live in the same building?"
Evan’s heartbeat suddenly sped up. "Which floor?"
"The tenth floor. By the way, which floor do you live on?"
The tenth floor?
Evan’s face turned deathly pale, and he almost lost his balance.
Seeing his reaction, the lady caught on. "Dr. Hunter, the fire... it couldn’t be your home... Hey, where are you going?"
Before she could finish, Evan ran off.
He called out to someone, "Where is the most severely injured patient?"
"Huh? The most severely injured patient? She’s still in surgery. The burns are extensive; it’ll be a while."
Evan felt dizzy, something he had never experienced, even after hours of surgery.
"What’s her name? That patient’s name?"
He wanted to ask if the patient was Sophia, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it.
The doctor, seeing Evan so agitated, asked, "Do you know the patient? I don’t know her name, but I can check."
Before the doctor finished, Evan sprinted off.
Yes, sprinted.
The always composed Dr. Hunter was now running through the hospital like a sprinter.
...
Sophia hadn’t slept while waiting for Evan to come home.
She finally fell asleep and dreamt of Evan marrying Charlotte, which startled her awake.
Realizing it was just a dream, she sighed in relief.
It was 4 AM, and Evan still hadn’t come back.
Thinking he probably wouldn’t return tonight, she decided to go to bed.
Just then, a strong smell of burning furniture wafted in from outside. She frowned, wondering who was burning something in the middle of the night.
Looking out the living room window, she almost screamed.
Smoke was billowing from the room next door!
She didn’t waste time thinking and grabbed her phone, running out while dialing 911, knocking on her neighbor’s door without panicking.
Thanks to her father, who used to be a police officer, she knew how to handle emergencies.
She soaked a towel, draped it over herself, and ran downstairs.
By then, the entire building was filled with smoke, and many people in pajamas crowded the ground floor.
Sophia was immensely grateful she hadn’t fallen asleep.
Soon, firefighters arrived, rescuing the people from the burning apartment.
The girl next door lived alone, and the incident was so sudden that she had no relatives around.
Unable to return home, Sophia took it upon herself to accompany the girl to the hospital.
At the entrance to the operating room, Sophia sat quietly on a bench, staring at the door.
She thought, if Evan hadn’t rushed back to the hospital for an emergency call, and if she hadn’t had that nightmare, would she also be lying in there?
Suddenly, a strong force grabbed her arm, pulling her into a warm embrace.
Sophia was momentarily stunned and then tried to push him away, but a familiar, trembling voice said, "Sophia..."
It was Evan.
But why was he holding her so tightly?
She tried to free herself, but he held her even tighter, as if trying to meld her into his body.
Sophia thought his surgery had failed and he needed comfort, so she patted his back to soothe him.
She could feel his body stiffen at her touch.
Taking advantage of his distraction, Sophia pushed him away and asked, "How did you know I was here?"
Mentioning this made Evan’s mood plummet again.
He had asked several people about the patient’s identity but found no one who knew. Left with no other option, he waited outside the operating room.
Seeing her there had filled him with such relief.
Thank goodness she was safe; otherwise, he wouldn’t know how to face himself.
"Come to my office," Evan said, pulling her along.
Sophia resisted, "I’m waiting for her to come out. She has no family; it’s pitiful."
"Her?"
"Yes, our neighbor. It was her apartment that caught fire."
Evan frowned, "Why were you with her?"
Sophia recounted the events of the early morning. "She’s just a girl living alone. I’ll wait here for her. You go back to work."
Hearing that Sophia had tried to knock on the neighbor’s door, Evan’s demeanor turned icy. Unable to hold back, he yelled, "Do you think you’re a heroine? How could you stay in a burning building?"
"I..."
"Do you think your life is worthless? That no one cares about you? Is that why you’d risk it?"
Sophia had been calm, but his words sparked her anger.
"Why are you yelling at me? Evan, if you hadn’t forced me to come back, this wouldn’t have happened. Do you think I wanted this? Do you think I wasn’t scared? I was alone at home, terrified!"
Evan swallowed, unable to continue blaming her.
Yes, if he hadn’t brought her back forcefully, she would have been safe at her parents’ house or in a hotel.
All this mess was his fault.
Taking a deep breath, he softened his tone, "Let’s go to my office and rest. I’ll have someone watch over her."
Sophia didn’t want to deal with him, turning her face away.
Evan added, "Waiting here is pointless. Go to my office. I’ll have someone notify you as soon as she’s out of surgery, okay?"
Sophia knew this was his biggest compromise.
Evan’s office was as cold and sterile as ever.
It wasn’t her first time there, but it was the first time he had brought her in.
"Have some water. I’ll check on the ER."
"Mm."
After he left, Sophia sat in his chair, resting her eyes.
She hadn’t slept all night and was exhausted. With Evan there, she felt a bit more at ease.
Half asleep, Sophia was suddenly awakened by noise.
Opening her eyes, she saw Charlotte rummaging through Evan’s desk drawers.
Seeing Sophia awake, Charlotte smiled, "Sorry to wake you. Evan asked me to find his watch. Go back to sleep."
Watch?
Evan had only one watch, the one she gave him for his birthday.
Her sleepiness faded, and she said expressionlessly, "I’ll find it. I’ll bring it to him later."
