Chapter 366
With that, Teresa gently patted his shoulder, offering comfort.
Gabriel glanced at Patrick, a strained attempt of a smile briefly touching his lips before turning to Teresa with a gruff, hoarse voice, "Dad, you don't need to comfort me. It's my negligence that led Teresa to be hurt over and over again. It's my fault."
"Gabriel, don't beat yourself up," Teresa reassured, despite her pained expression that tugged at Sophia's heartstrings, tears flowing down her cheeks uncontrollably.
Sitting beside the hospital bed, Sophia reached out, caressing Teresa's swollen cheek while wiping her tears away, "Teresa, darling, you've never suffered like this before. You've always been pampered and protected. Maybe it's just fate's way of toughening you up a bit."
With a reassuring smile, Sophia comforted herself and Gabriel, "It's going to be alright; this will pass, and Teresa won't suffer any more hardships after this."
"Gabriel, go get some rest. Your health is important; we can't have you falling ill," said Patrick, patting Gabriel's shoulder earnestly.
William stood off to the side, quietly observing Teresa, his mind drifting to an altercation he had with Hayden in the hospital several years ago. Back then, Hayden was such a mess; he had almost lost his cool and throttled her.
Gabriel shook his head at Patrick, "Dad, don't worry, I'm fine."
Just as Gabriel's words fell silent, Teresa, who had been still on the bed, suddenly let out a soft moan. Everyone lit up with joy at the sound and turned to look at her.
"Teresa!"
"Sweetheart!"
"Teresa."
Seeing Teresa slowly opening her eyes and waking up brought joy to everyone in the room. William, snapping back from his reveries, walked over to the bed.
"Dad, Mom, brother..." said Teresa, squinting through her weakened state at the several blurred faces hovering over her.
"Ah! Teresa, my sweet girl, you're awake. You and your father scared me to death," Sophia said, touching Teresa's cheek with tears of joy flowing down her face.
"Teresa," murmured Patrick, his eyes gleaming with happiness as he watched his daughter appear to be all right after regaining consciousness.
"Dad, Mom..." Teresa's vision cleared, the overlapping shadows fading away to reveal distinct, comforting faces smiling back at her.
"Honey, how are you feeling?" Gabriel clutched Teresa's hand, his eyes brimming with joy as she finally came to.
Honey?
Upon hearing his voice, Teresa slowly turned her head. As she saw Gabriel sitting beside her bed, holding her hand tightly, her brows furrowed deeply, and her face revealed sheer confusion.
The next moment, she yanked her hand from Gabriel's grasp, her delicate features donning an extra layer of wariness. In a cold voice, she demanded, "Who are you? Who's your honey?"
Everyone watching Teresa's reaction was dumbfounded.
"Teresa, he... he's Gabriel!" Sophia, taking glances between Gabriel and Teresa, exclaimed in utter shock.
"Go, call the doctor," William finally reacted, promptly instructing the bodyguard waiting outside the door.
"Right away." The bodyguard nodded and dashed off to call the doctor.
"Honey, I..."
"What are you talking about? I'm not your honey. My boyfriend is Liam. Who are you, and why are you holding my hand?" Teresa looked at Gabriel with a mix of estrangement and rejection, her tone decidedly cool and edged with distinct anger.
Gabriel gazed at her unblinkingly, utterly paralyzed. For a few seconds, his breathing and heartbeat seemed to have ceased.
What had happened to Teresa? She didn't recognize him anymore! She actually said her boyfriend was Liam, and she questioned who he was.
"Teresa, could it be that you have amnesia?" Patrick expressed his realization, his expression a mix of bewilderment and astonishment.
"Dad, what amnesia? I don't have amnesia," Teresa replied to Patrick, her brow creased with confusion.
"Do you remember what happened last night?" Patrick pressed, hoping to spur her memory.
"Last night?" Teresa looked even more perplexed. "Dad, I came home from school last night. We had dinner as a family, and I spent the evening with you and Mom. Was there some big incident last night?"
Teresa stopped mid-sentence, pondered, and then added, "Oh, right! I signed up to be a volunteer translator for the Tennis Open in River North. I'll have to stay at the hotel for a couple of days."
Oh my god!
The room fell into stunned silence as everyone absorbed Teresa's words.
Had Teresa truly lost her memory? It seemed like selective amnesia.
"Dr. Bennett, William, Gabriel, Mrs. Bennett." The moment was urgent as several doctors hurried into the hospital room, the lead physician respectfully calling out their names.
"Quick, come check on my daughter. What's going on?" Sophia pleaded with urgency as she addressed the doctor.
"Calm down, Mrs. Bennett, we'll get to examining Unity right away," the chief doctor reassured her as he immediately moved towards the hospital bed.
The doctors conducted a thorough examination of Teresa and confirmed she had indeed lost her memories, but it wasn't a complete amnesia; it was selective memory loss.
Her memories halted three and a half years back, precisely two nights before the ill-fated hotel encounter with Gabriel.
Gabriel stared at Teresa lying on the hospital bed, now completely devoid of recollection, her face filled with indifference and even caution toward him. For a brief moment, he felt as pale as death.
The way she looked at him now was even colder than that night in the hotel's emergency exit three and a half years ago when her eyes were filled with resistance and fear.
Back then, there was at least a certain fear of him, a rebellious spark in her gaze. Now, there was nothing but indifference.
Gabriel opened his mouth, trying to say something, but as he met her indifferent yet clear eyes, he swallowed his words back down.
"Teresa, listen to mom, you've forgotten everything from now until three and a half years ago..."
"...Mom."
Sophia was halfway through explaining that Teresa had forgotten the events of the past three and a half years and that the man standing before her was indeed her husband when Gabriel cut her off.
His voice was deep and hoarse, almost unrecognizable as he strained to find his speech.
"Gabriel, Teresa just..."
"I know." Once again, he interrupted Sophia before she could finish.
Teresa turned her head, her bright and uncluttered eyes glancing at him, void of emotion beyond indifference, then she asked Patrick and Sophia, "Mom, Dad, is this man really my husband? I don't believe it. My boyfriend is clearly Liam, right?"
"Teresa, a lot has happened in the past three and a half years, and you and Liam..."
"Mom, I want to see Liam." This time, Teresa cut off Sophia before she could finish.
Startled, Sophia turned to look at Gabriel.
It wasn't just Sophia and Patrick who turned their gazes toward Gabriel; only William sat quietly on the side sofa, seemingly unrushed, as several doctors stood by in silence.
"I need to call Liam," Gabriel managed to say with difficulty, his voice escaping his throat as he addressed the silent doctors, "All of you, come with me."
Without another word, he turned and left, quickly followed by the doctors. William rose and trailed behind them.
"Got a smoke?" Gabriel asked Luke once they were out in the hallway, outside of the patient's room.
"Yeah," Luke, who had been standing by the door earlier, heard everything about Teresa's amnesia and Gabriel being erased from her memory. Swiftly, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, offering one to Gabriel and lighting it for him.
They weren't the finest cigarettes—they were harsh on the taste—but Gabriel didn't seem to mind. He inhaled desperately, as if deprived of air, hungrily drawing on the biting smoke.
The doctors watched silently, no one daring to break the silence.
