Chapter 172: Oppression
"Yo, Brad, what the heck happened?" I asked, my voice all shaky.
Brad rubbed his face, but man, he looked beat, like he hadn't slept in days.
"Jane, Daniel can't see, and he can't feel anything below his knees on both legs."
What the actual heck?
Hearing that, I felt like I got hit by a truck. My legs almost gave out right there.
"How is this even possible? His eyes were fine just the other day. And his legs, I massaged them, he could feel it. How did this happen? Maybe they messed up the diagnosis? Brad, get another doc to check him out," I rambled, my brain going haywire.
"The chief said there's a blood clot in his brain that hasn't fully absorbed. His symptoms are from the clot moving and pressing on his nerves."
"Surgery, can't they just do surgery? Take out the clot and he'll be good, right?"
"The doc said the clot's in a super risky spot. Not doing surgery might just mean he can't see, but if something goes wrong during surgery, he could be permanently disabled. And there’s more than one clot; even with surgery, no guarantee it won't happen again. So, they can't operate without being sure."
"Then what do we do? We can't just sit around and wait," I said, feeling like I was gonna lose it.
'Daniel, please be okay, or I don't know what I'll do!' I prayed silently.
I was so freaked out, my hands and feet went ice cold. I couldn't even think about eating or going to class. I found a spot to sit down before I collapsed right there on the street.
That old fear came rushing back, way worse than before.
"The best bet is to wait for his body to absorb the clot naturally, but that takes forever. Jane, don't stress. Finish your meal and go to class. I called to tell you Daniel's really emotionally unstable. I might not be able to talk much; gotta focus on him. If you need anything, hit me up."
"I get it, Brad. I'll go see him after class."
Even after the call ended, I was still in a daze. My head was spinning with images of Daniel in a wheelchair, looking all defeated.
If he never saw again, if he couldn't walk and was totally disabled, how would I face him, Hugh, and Emma? And what about my thing with Brad? What would happen to us?
All this 'cause of my recklessness.
I couldn't eat and found a quiet spot to call Helen.
I was so lost and could only lean on Ronan and Helen.
It was still early, and Ronan and Helen hadn't left home yet. When they heard about Daniel, they were super worried. They said they'd come over tomorrow, Saturday, to see him and told me not to stress too much. Who knows, maybe a miracle would happen.
In the evening, Mindy drove me to the hospital. Daniel was out cold. I stood at the door of his room, too scared to go in.
Maybe it was just me, but he looked even thinner, his skin pale and lifeless, his whole vibe just screaming despair.
"He was agitated all day, wouldn't eat or drink. The doc had to give him a sedative to knock him out," Brad said, worried about waking Daniel, and led me to sit on a bench outside.
Brad kept rubbing his face, looking totally helpless.
"Isn't there any other way? Medicine's so advanced now; they should be able to handle a blood clot, right?"
Brad pressed his temples, looking totally wiped. I hugged his head and started massaging him, hoping it’d help a bit.
"The main issue is where the clot is. I checked online, and Regalia Hospital is top-notch in this field. If they say there's no fix, then no one can. We just gotta hope Daniel's body absorbs it on its own. There's no other way right now."
"How long does it usually take for the body to absorb it?"
"It varies. Could be a week, a year, or even forever. No one knows for sure."
"It's all my fault. What should I do?" I was losing it.
When I walked into the ward earlier, I was scared out of my mind. Last time Daniel was in the hospital, it had nothing to do with me, and Emma was so hostile, cursing me out with the worst words.
This time, Daniel lost his sight and legs to save me. I was terrified she’d do something even more extreme, and I wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Even if Brad protected me, Emma was still his mom, and this was about his brother Daniel’s health. What could he do?
With all this anxiety, I walked into the ward, keeping my head down, too scared to look at Emma, fearing she’d say something that’d make me wish I was dead.
Surprisingly, even though they were all in the ward and saw me come in, Hugh just glanced at me, and Emma kept staring at Daniel with a blank expression. No one said anything to me.
I felt a weird mix of relief for not being scolded and deep guilt.
Maybe if someone yelled at me, I’d feel a bit better.
When faced with problems, people always hoped for the best but ended up with the worst.
Daniel ended up like this because of me, and I couldn’t do anything about it. I could only watch him become blind and spend his life in a wheelchair.
I felt deeply uneasy.
"Don't overthink it. It's all my fault. If anyone's to blame, it's me. Don't take it all on yourself. Take care of yourself and don't distract me. I'll find a solution." Brad grasped my hand, trying to comfort me.
"If it were just his eyes, it’d be easier. I could give him one of mine. But in this situation, even if I gave him both, it wouldn’t help." I sighed.
"Don't talk nonsense," Brad said, giving me a hard pat on the head. "It's not your place to worry about. If there's nothing else, go back."
Brad was trying to send me away. He didn’t want me to see Daniel’s current state and feel sad and guilty.
No matter the hardship, Brad wanted to bear it alone and leave all the peace for me.
"Brad, you need to rest more too. Don't wear yourself out."
"Okay, be good."
As I left, I felt like I’d lost my heart, unable to focus, feeling like everything was wrong, constantly on edge.
All night, I tossed and turned, half asleep, half awake. Sometimes I seemed to see Daniel lying lifelessly in bed, sometimes it was Brad standing in the rain, looking at me sorrowfully.
When I got up in the morning, my head hurt like crazy, and my body felt like I’d done physical labor all night. My injured arm also throbbed with pain.
I was more irritable than ever, feeling like something worse was going to happen.
Mindy drove me to the airport to pick up Ronan and Helen. I didn't tell her about Daniel when she took me to the hospital yesterday.
On the way to the airport, I told her about it. She was super worried but had no good solution. She said she’d talk to Louis when she got back and see if they could find an expert abroad.
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