I Faked My Death—Now I Have to Tame the Crazy Men I Left Behind-Chapter 102 - 100: I Don’t Mind Using My Mouth
Inside the hospital room.
Mia Grant was as nervous as if she were taking her college entrance exams.
Hayes Hughes had indeed stayed behind mainly to check on her condition. At first, he was very tactful, his tone light and casual as if they were just chatting, putting her at ease.
Gradually, his professional habits must have kicked in. He asked two or three technical questions in a row that Mia Grant couldn’t answer, making her scratch her head in frustration.
Hayes Hughes noticed her nervous habits—scratching her head, avoiding his gaze, fidgeting with the blanket.
His questions were making her very anxious.
Realizing this, Hayes Hughes abruptly stopped his questioning.
He carefully tucked the stack of reports, which felt as useless as waste paper, back into the file folder.
Mia Grant looked at him, surprised. "Hayes?"
"Hm?" The man looked up at the sound of her voice.
"...Why did you stop asking?"
Hayes Hughes smiled. "I have enough. Don’t worry, the test results show that you’re very healthy."
Mia Grant swallowed nervously. ’That’s exactly the problem!’
’Being healthy is what’s so troublesome.’
"As for the reason you were coughing up blood, I’ll discuss it with some other senior doctors later. For now, what matters is that you’re not feeling any discomfort. You don’t need to be nervous."
Mia Grant blinked, her eyes fixed on the marks on his hand. She said softly, "You seem more nervous than I am."
At her words, Hayes Hughes followed her gaze and looked down.
He froze.
The tip of his fountain pen had leaked black ink at some point, staining his fingers.
The scent of ink wafted up. A patch of it had already dried on his fingertips, but he hadn’t noticed at all.
The pad of his finger was still unconsciously rubbing the barrel of the pen. The curve of the nib repeatedly pressed against his skin, tracing the indentation as if seeking the right angle to pierce him when he wasn’t paying attention.
"Hayes?"
Mia Grant had no idea what he was thinking.
Hayes Hughes snapped back to reality. When he looked up, his gaze was calm and gentle. "I’ve had this pen for a long time. It might be broken."
He didn’t admit it.
But he wasn’t good at lying, so he could only brush it off lightly.
As a doctor, he didn’t want to transfer or add to his patient’s anxiety.
Especially when that patient was Mia Grant.
He hadn’t expected to give himself away and be caught red-handed by her.
Hayes Hughes got up to wash his hands. With his back to her, he said, "The doctor came by this morning. If there are no abnormal reactions after another two days of observation, you can be discharged."
Mia Grant’s voice was filled with surprise. "So soon?"
"Mhm." Hayes Hughes turned to look at her, his eyes gentle. "When I came, I was thinking of transferring you to my hospital. But now, I don’t think that’s necessary. We’re all colleagues. I have to trust their judgment."
"Of course, I also trust our Mia."
Mia Grant’s eyelashes trembled.
He dried his hands with a paper towel, ending the conversation.
"It’s the Mid-Autumn Festival today. What would you like to eat tonight?"
"I’m fine with anything." Mia Grant asked him, "Don’t you need to go to Portia, Hayes?"
Hayes Hughes shook his head.
"I already let them know beforehand. It’s fine if I don’t go back."
Behind him, the girl had a sudden realization. "No wonder. A few days ago, Grandpa’s side called and invited me to celebrate the festival with them."
"..." The man spun around alertly, a nerve jumping in his temple. "Grandpa?"
"Yeah."
For a split second, Hayes Hughes nearly lost control of his expression.
"What did he say?"
Mia Grant blinked, feigning ignorance, and answered obediently, "The butler said Grandpa thought I’d be too lonely in Jynsia by myself, so he asked me to go to Portia for the Mid-Autumn Festival. But I refused."
"I thought you’d be going back this year, too. So it’s just Eldest Brother celebrating with Grandpa? If I’d known, I would have rushed over."
Hayes Hughes clenched his fist, crushing the paper towel in his hand.
Fragments of memory slowly pieced themselves together, leaving him stunned and motionless.
Fortunately, Yates Donovan returned just in time.
His voice burst into the room before he even stepped through the door, shattering the silence.
The sound startled Hayes Hughes. Seeing Yates Donovan enter carrying a bunch of things, he silently stepped forward to hold the door for him.
Yates Donovan set out the food for Mia Grant, then turned and handed the other breakfast to him. "Here. This one’s for you~"
Since it was already bought, Hayes Hughes felt he couldn’t refuse and thanked him.
"Why be so polite? We’re all family," Yates Donovan said perfunctorily, busy unwrapping cutlery for Mia Grant.
Hayes Hughes glanced at the time and said, "I have a surgery at the hospital that I need to get to. As for Mia... I’ll leave her in your care."
Yates Donovan’s head snapped up. "You’re leaving?"
"I’ll be back tonight."
Hearing this, a certain someone’s smile widened, and he quickly rushed over.
"No problem, no problem. You go do your thing."
"Here, take your breakfast! A man’s gotta eat breakfast."
Yates Donovan picked up the other bag and shoved it into his hands, deftly swapping it with the one he’d given him before.
"That last one wasn’t nutritious. Eat this one!"
Yates Donovan advised him with great earnestness, "Hayes, you absolutely have to take care of yourself. You’re a doctor with heavy responsibilities; you can’t let your health collapse. Eat well, rest well, and just go home and sleep after your surgery. No need to come back. Right, Mia Grant?"
"...Ah, right." Caught off guard by being called on, Mia Grant didn’t know what crazy fit he was having now, but what he said did make sense.
Yates Donovan, all attentive and fawning, personally escorted Hayes Hughes to the door.
Seeing the spring in his step as he walked back, Mia Grant took a bite of her sandwich and asked, "What are you so happy about?"
Yates Donovan plopped down on her bed without a shred of ceremony, lacing his hands behind his head and leaning back against her headboard like he owned the place.
"Just the two of us. Aren’t you happy?"
Meeting Mia Grant’s cold stare, he blinked. ’Alright, fine.’
"Little Third Brother finally took the hint. We are most gratified. Is that better?"
"..."
Mia Grant couldn’t be bothered to retort.
"Are you going to eat my brother’s portion? If not, give it to me. Don’t waste it."
She held out her hand, but Yates Donovan was faster, tossing the bag directly into the trash can.
"?"
He pinched her cheek, seeing her mouth stuffed full, and teased, "You’re such a little piglet. You’ll eat anything, won’t you?"
Mia Grant swatted his grubby paw away. "So what did you put in it?"
’She knew there was something wrong with it.’
Having been found out, Yates Donovan wasn’t the least bit sheepish. He replied brazenly, "Which one are you asking about?"
"The tamagoyaki sandwich with wasabi, or the hot latte mixed with aged vinegar?"
"..."
"What are you glaring at me for? I was doing it for his own good. Eat that first thing in the morning, and it’s guaranteed to wake you right up."
Mia Grant raised her hand and threw a punch.
After she finished eating, Yates Donovan rubbed his cheek and asked:
"What were you guys talking about just now? He seemed so out of it."
She ignored him, so Yates Donovan guessed, "Did you propose to him?"
"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..." Mia Grant choked.
The milk in her cup sloshed, spilling a few drops.
They trickled down her cheek to the corner of her mouth, and then continued downwards.
Staring at her lips for a few seconds, Yates Donovan’s eyes darkened. He nonchalantly reached out to wipe the drops away for her.
Mia Grant instinctively shrank back, and the man’s hand froze in mid-air.
The next second, he pounced like a hungry wolf, leaning down and giving her a wicked grin. "I don’t have to use my hand, you know. I don’t mind helping you with my mouth."
