Merry didn't understand Chris' mood when he said that. Even though she was feeling sad, she still lifted her head with a slight expression in her eyes.

  "You're not going to lie to me this time, are you?!" Merry asked, demanding. There was a hint of accusation in her eyes which seemed to say that Chris had broken his promise after they met again overseas.

  Chris understood her hatred and his languid face turned soft. He raised his hand to try to touch Merry's hair, but his hand was caught in the air by the wound.

  The man smiled bitterly and was about to take his hand back. But before his hand fell, Merry bent down and placed her head under his palm. That way, Chris could still stroke the young woman's hair.

  "Brother Chris, don't lie to me ever again," Merry said in a trembling voice. "I promise I will study hard. I can finish all my classes at the university as early as two years. If you didn't come to pick me up at that time, I really wouldn't have returned to Indonesia!"

  The girl rubbed her head under Chris' palm. She looked like a cute cat begging for love that it made Chris' heart melt.

  The man stroked Merry's hair affectionately. Then he spoke in a slightly hoarse voice, "I promise. In two years, I'll come to America to pick you up,"

  And that sealed their agreement. Even though they didn't know what the future held for them, this innocent promise remained something of great value to them.

  Merry believed that with her intelligence, two years would be enough for her to finish all of her classes. Chris also believed that whatever happened later, he would go to America to see Merry after two years. He didn't know if the girl could really pass in that time, but he decided to trust her.

  Merry looked at Chris and smiled brilliantly. "Brother Chris, when you recover from your injury, you will go overseas to visit me, right?"

  Chris immediately answered without hesitation, "Yes!"

  That night, after Merry fell asleep on the sofa, Chris sat on his bed. He opened his blanket and got out of bed very carefully while enduring the pain.

  His footsteps were still a little shaky, but his eyes were filled with a soft light. Chris walked over to the young woman's side, then slowly crouched down and studied Merry's peaceful sleeping face. He tried to burn the image in his heart.

  As Merry was deep in her dream, she suddenly felt something touch her lips gently. Could it be that she was bitten by a mosquito? She frowned and waved her hand in front of her face, trying to shake off the strange sensation. Then Merry turned and continued to sleep.

  He was nearly hit by Merry's hand, Chris then took a deep breath. Two years from now, 730 days and nights, how could he hold back himself knowing he had to wait for that long?

  *****

  On the other hand, after Lilia and Jean left Chris' ward, they met someone on their way. The unexpected encounter took place on a garden walkway outside the inpatient department.

  At this time, the sky was already dim and the dusk was gradually fading. The cold night breeze blew nonstop, stealing warmth from anyone outside the room. Therefore, not many people passed this way.

  When Lilia looked around, she saw a woman who had returned from the hospital's canteen and was rushing towards the inpatient department. For some reason, that sight stabbed her heart. Whenever Lilia was hospitalized, Sylvia never bothered to visit her. She never knew what it was like to be accompanied by her mother in the hospital.

  Suddenly Jean grabbed Lilia's hand. The man thought that it was cold so he put Lilia's hand in his coat pocket. Such a simple act made Lilia smile again. She decided not to think about her past anymore. She had Jean by her side now.

  When they turned the corner of the inpatient department, they heard the sound of footsteps from the opposite direction. The path was not wide enough and it was the only way to the parking lot.

  When Lilia looked up, her steps automatically stopped. She met the eyes of a woman who was familiar to her. For a moment, the two of them looked at each other in suffocating silence.

  Sylvia was holding the food box in her hand. Looking at the direction where she was coming from, it seemed that she took the box from her car in the parking lot. When Sylvia saw Lilia, her expression turned cold and cruel. But she still held back due to the presence of the man beside Lilia.

  Lilia calmly looked at Sylvia and the food box in her hand. She thought back to Leila's injured knee. It seemed that Sylvia came to the hospital to deliver dinner for her daughter.

  Lilia smiled faintly and squeezed Jean's finger gently. She ignored Sylvia by turning to her husband. "Let's go, it's kind of cold in here."

  From the bottom of her heart, Lilia didn't want to get involved with Sylvia anymore. Leila's existence was like a thorn, piercing her heart at such a depth that it couldn't be pulled out. Maybe Lilia would be able to look at Sylvia and not feel anything one day. But right now, her heart ached whenever she saw that woman's attention on Leila.

  Hearing Lilia's cold words, Jean wrapped his arms around his wife's waist. Their figures were reflected on the ground by the light of the street lamp, reflecting a deep and profound determination.

  But Sylvia's gaze never left Lilia. She was still standing in the middle of the road, her hands gripping the food box tighter. Sylvia opened her mouth and said sarcastically to her, "I've been raising you for years, but you don't even know how to greet someone when you meet them?"

  This habit was hard to break. Whenever Sylvia saw Lilia, she always had these cruel and fierce looks on her face.

  Lilia's eyes slowly shifted towards that woman. She took Sylvia's contemptuous gaze calmly then shook her head and smiled bitterly.

  Did this woman just insult her? What made Sylvia think she could insult Lilia out in the open?

  "Jean, you go to the car first. I'll catch up with you soon," Lilia didn't want that man to get involved in their confrontation, so she asked him to go first.

  Jean glanced at Sylvia with a cold and sharp gaze. He unbuttoned his jacket and tucked it around Lilia's shoulders while ignoring her protest. "Don't take too long, I'll wait for you in the car," he reminded her.

  "Yes, I know. I won't be long, so go now." Lilia urged him with a worried look.

  On this windy night, Jean wore only a light shirt. Lilia stared at the man's figure walking away intently, feeling worried that Jean would fall ill due to the harsh weather.

  Sylvia watched this scene with cold eyes. She waited for Jean's figure to disappear near the parking lot before saying sarcastically, "Hey, Lilia, I've really raised an ungrateful child, huh?"

  Hearing that, Lilia's gaze automatically turned to her adoptive mother.

  Sylvia continued to yell at her with a rage, "You ate and lived under the roof of my house. But you still dared to be rude to me! You even dared to humiliate me at the Irwan Family's house! You really are shameless!"

  It's clear that Sylvia still held a grudge towards her for what happened at the Irwan Family's house.