Chapter 907 You and Austin should get married
After Quentin's condition chilled out, a good half-hour had already ticked by.
Hannah, all jittery, asked, "Doc, how's my dad doing now?"
The doc, looking all serious, said, "Didn't I tell you? The patient can't get worked up. If he does, not even God can save him."
Hannah was twisting the hem of her shirt like it was a stress ball.
Seeing she wasn't saying anything, the doc went on, "His heart attack was a big one, usually from getting too emotional! If you want him to bounce back quick, you gotta keep him calm and not let him get pissed off again. Acute stuff like this comes and goes fast, so don't stress too much; just keep him chill."
Hannah bit her lip hard, the doc's words echoing in her head, 'He can't get mad. He can't get mad. Quentin can't get mad at all. If he does, he's toast. What do I do? Should I really marry Austin like he wants?'
Lisa jumped in, "Doc, if no one ticks him off, will he get better fast?"
The doc nodded, "In theory, yeah! His heart attack was from getting too mad. If he stays in a good mood and doesn't get angry again, it'll help him recover."
With the doc's thumbs-up, Lisa shot Hannah a smug look.
Lisa snapped, "You heard that! Your dad's in here because of you! If you don't want him to get better, keep making him mad."
Hannah's eyes welled up, tears of frustration making it hard to breathe.
After giving the rundown, the doc bounced.
Hannah stood by the bed, heartbroken, silently crying.
Lisa didn't yell anymore but kept nagging, "Think about it. Who's more important, us or that guy? Is it worth pissing off your dad for him?"
Lisa kept going, "I'm begging you, for your dad's sake, dump that guy! Your dad and I have been around for over forty years and can read people better than you. If you marry Austin, you'll be happy! We just want you to be happy."
Hannah bit her lip, staying quiet.
She didn't agree with them but was scared of making Quentin worse.
She said nothing and just did her chores.
She got water to wipe Quentin's hands and face.
Then she gave Quentin his meds. And then she fed him.
She silently protested, showing them her stance.
Lisa and Quentin were fuming at her behavior.
They used to think Hannah was pretty obedient and sensible. In middle school, she worked part-time to help out, and in college, she never used their money.
She even agreed to get engaged to Austin.
But now she was being so stubborn.
No matter what they said, she wouldn't budge.
While she was feeding him, Quentin tried to talk sense into her, using both the carrot and the stick.
Quentin said, "Hannah, listen to me and break up with that guy. I'm doing this for your own good. Look at how great Austin is! The doc just now was an expert he found for me. And your boyfriend? He hasn't even shown up. What can he offer us? He doesn't even respect me, his potential future father-in-law. How can he respect you? I raised you with great difficulty and hope you will have a better life than us."
Compared to Lisa, his voice was much softer and more patient.
But Hannah still didn't respond, just kept her head down, not even giving him a look.
Quentin knew she needed time to process, so he didn't push it, waiting for her to come around.
Hannah spent three uneventful days.
During these three days, she stayed in the hospital to take care of Quentin.
Lisa was worried and left Oliver with a friend, staying at the hospital too.
Austin showed up every morning and stayed till the afternoon.
He chatted with Quentin, helped with his illness, finding docs and experts. Quentin and Lisa liked him even more.
Stella, not seeing her for a few days, called her several times out of concern. Not wanting Stella to worry, she used family stuff as an excuse.
Without Hannah arguing with him, Quentin got better fast.
A few more days passed peacefully like this.
One day, Quentin and Austin were having a good chat when Quentin suddenly dropped a bomb, "Austin, Hannah's birthday is on the fifth of next month. You two should tie the knot then!"
Hannah was peeling an apple when she heard this. Her hand slipped, and the knife cut deep into her thumb, blood gushing out. She gasped in pain.
Austin heard the commotion and turned around, seeing her blood staining half the apple. He jumped up and pulled her to the faucet to rinse the wound.
Austin, worried, said, "How could you be so careless!"
Hannah shook her head, saying she was fine and tried to pull her hand back, but he held on tight.
Austin insisted, "Don't be stubborn! Let's take care of the wound first."
Only then did Hannah stop resisting.
Austin noticed that the more he rinsed her wound, the more it bled, so he took her straight to the nurse's station for treatment.
The nurse disinfected her wound and wrapped it with sterile gauze.
On the way back to the ward, Austin asked, "How is it? Does it hurt a lot?"
"It's okay," Hannah responded calmly.
She wasn't just being polite; she genuinely didn't feel much pain. All her attention was on Quentin's sudden talk of marriage.
Why did he suddenly want her to get married?
Weren't they just talking about chess? The topic changed so fast.
When they got back to the ward, Quentin quickly asked, "How is it? Are you okay? I saw a lot of blood just now."
Hannah shook her head, "It's fine, it doesn't hurt."
Quentin glanced at her hand and saw it wasn't a big deal, just a cut from peeling an apple. So he didn't ask further and went back to the original topic.
Quentin continued, "You should've heard what I said to Austin just now! Your birthday is coming up, and you'll be twenty! We agreed when you got engaged that you'd marry Austin when you turned twenty!"
Hannah said irritably, "Dad, didn't I tell you? I don't like him. Forcing us together is unfair to both of us. We won't be happy."
She thought her silent protest over the past few days would make Quentin understand her stance.
But she didn't expect him to still be so stubborn, trying to make decisions for her.
"Nonsense!" Quentin, for the first time, cursed.
Quentin fumed, "You're only nineteen; what do you know? A woman will be very happy if she marries a man who loves her. I've seen how Austin has treated you over the years. You won't go wrong marrying him. I'm your father, and everything I do is for your own good."
Hannah unhappily retorted, "How do you know I won't be happy marrying the man I love?"
Quentin said, "If he really loves you, why hasn't he come to see me? I've been in the hospital for so long, and he hasn't shown up once. He doesn't care about you, so he doesn't care about me, his potential father-in-law! He knows we oppose your relationship, so he should try to convince me, to make me feel comfortable giving you to him, not leave you to face this alone. Without even the basic responsibility of a man, how will he cherish you in the future?"
Hannah anxiously said, "It's not like that. There's a reason he hasn't come. It's not that he doesn't want to come; he can't come."
Quentin angrily said, "I didn't forbid him from coming. Why can't he come?"
If he saw him, he would definitely give him a good scolding. How dare he encourage his daughter to defy him? He must be tired of living.
"That's because, that's because..." Hannah wanted to explain but stammered, not knowing how to.
Should she tell Quentin that Charles was now in a vegetative state? If she did, Quentin would undoubtedly force her to marry Austin without hesitation.
Quentin's neck veins bulged as he shouted, "What is it? Tell me! What's the unspeakable reason you can't say?"
Hannah, pushed to the brink, had tears welling up in her eyes.
She was both anxious and angry.
Seeing the situation deteriorate, Austin quickly said, "You misunderstood. It's not that he doesn't want to come; he was in a car accident not long ago and is now in a vegetative state. His parents have taken him back to Sunset Bay, so he can't come. Don't blame Hannah; she has no choice."
As soon as he said this, the room fell into dead silence.
Hannah forgot to cry, staring blankly at Austin.
Quentin also forgot his anger. His eyes were wide and mouth agape, looking at Hannah in disbelief.
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