Belated Awakening

Ayden sat in the corner of the infusion room, keeping Claire company while she received her IV.

When he draped his coat over her shoulders, his movements seemed distracted.

In the hallway, two nurses pushed a cart past and whispered. "Did you hear about the fire in Building Seven? The flames were huge, spreading from the first floor all the way to the third... It seems a young woman was trapped inside. By the time they got her out, she was already..."

Ayden's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly remembered that the place Ella rented was also in Building Seven.

He stood up abruptly, moving so fast that Claire nearly slipped. "Ayden, what's wrong?"

Ayden did not answer. A chill shot straight to his heart.

His hands shook as he pulled out his phone. Just as he unlocked the screen, a call came in from his assistant. "Mr. Martin, a tenant said Miss Fuller might have gone back yesterday, but they're not sure if she was in the fire..."

Ayden could not hear the rest.

A buzzing filled his ears, and the world swayed as if it had lost all reality.

"Ayden?" Claire tugged at his sleeve.

He yanked his hand away and bolted out.

Claire's cries faded far behind him.

He was terrified—truly terrified—that something had happened to Ella.

He sped all the way until he saw the charred building still spewing black smoke.

When he tried to rush in, firefighters held him back firmly. "Let go! My wife is inside—"

At that moment, his phone vibrated with a call from Sophia. "Ayden, Ella has been taken to the hospital. She just inhaled some smoke. She's fine."

It felt like a bucket of cold water poured over him. Ayden froze completely.

He slowly lowered his arms and murmured an apology to the firefighters.

Ayden sped to the hospital again.

He burst through the safety door as if crashing into it.

Outside the ward, Sophia stood with two tall bodyguards nearby.

"Where is she?" Ayden asked hoarsely, not stopping as he headed for the room.

Sophia stepped in front of him. "She took some medication and just fell asleep."

"Let me see her for a moment." His eyes locked on the ward door. He moved to go around Sophia.

"I said she needs rest. The doctor mentioned she suffered severe shock and her emotions are unstable."

The two bodyguards caught her signal and stepped forward to block Ayden.

Ayden grew furious. "Move!"

He growled and reached to push the bodyguards aside.

Sophia looked up coldly. "If you barge in like this without a care, do you want her to wake up and see you first thing, then bring up divorce again?"

Ayden's raised hand froze in mid-air.

He remembered his choice in the fire and felt overwhelming guilt.

In the end, he said nothing more, took half a step back.

His gaze passed over Sophia and the bodyguards, lingered on the closed ward door one last time, then he left dejectedly.

For the next few days, Ayden remained in a daze.

He did not dare visit Ella, afraid she would mention divorce again.

After much thought, he decided to send his assistant to check on her.

The assistant stood at the ward door but was blocked by the bodyguards, who said Ella refused visitors.

He had no choice but to leave and planned to hand the supplements to the nurse on duty.

The nurse told him Ella had been discharged two days earlier.

The assistant paused, pulled out his phone to call Ayden.

But the line stayed busy.

He hesitated, worried that reporting rashly would cause trouble.

So he decided to check if Ella had returned to the villa first.

At that moment, Ayden sat distracted in the conference room.

Claire's calls came one after another.

Each time the screen lit up, he thought it was the assistant, but all seven or eight missed calls were from Claire.

He finally answered, wanting to see why she called so many times.

On the other end, Claire's voice carried tears. "Ayden... my head hurts so much. No one's home. Can you come keep me company?"

Ayden closed his eyes. He did not want to go.

But her helpless and dependent tone reminded him of how she trembled that night in the fire.

After all, he had dragged her into this.

"I'll give you another week off and have someone take you to the hospital."

Claire cried louder. "I don't want anyone else... Ayden, please, just come for a little while, okay?"

Ayden sighed and finally gave in. "Send me the address."

He stood and left, leaving a room full of executives staring at each other.

By the time the assistant returned to the company, Ayden's taillights had just vanished from the garage exit.

...

In the apartment, Ayden sat on the sofa.

Claire wrapped in a blanket, only her red swollen eyes visible.

When she opened the door, her face looked pale, as if she truly felt ill.

Ayden sat beside her, yet felt little pity.

He even zoned out, staring straight out the window, lost in thought.

Claire spoke softly to him. "Ayden, thank you for coming... I'm really scared alone. Every time I close my eyes, I see fire, I see smoke..."

Ayden gave a faint "mm" and said nothing more.

His mind drifted back to the hospital, wondering how Ella felt now.

Did she still feel unwell? Would she have nightmares at night?

"Ayden, what are you thinking about?" Claire probed.

Ayden snapped back, stood up, and said. "Nothing. Rest well. I have things at the company."

"You're leaving?" Claire panicked, threw off the blanket to grab him, but stood too quickly and nearly fell as her vision darkened.

Ayden instinctively steadied her.

At that moment, several camera flashes flickered from downstairs.