Chapter 6
When Charlotte rushed to the hospital, Victor was already lying in a hospital bed.
His face was pale, breathing quick and shallow. He squeezed Charlotte's hand, looking down.
"Charlotte, something is wrong with my kidneys," Victor said.
He continued, "Doctor says I need a new—"
Before he could finish, Charlotte cut him off.
"Can I give you one of mine?" she asked.
Victor flinched slightly, disbelief flashing in his eyes.
He fixed his gaze on Charlotte, unable to believe what he'd heard.
"Y-you're willing?" he stammered.
He looked as if he'd been hit with a shock.
Charlotte said calmly, "We both have two kidneys. If we're a match, it's nothing for me to give you one. As long as you're healthy, that's all I care about."
Victor's hand started shaking uncontrollably.
He stared at Charlotte, his gaze darkening, emotions flickering across his face before he suddenly blurted out, "Actually, I—"
At that moment, he was on the verge of confessing everything.
But just then, Sophie pushed the door open and wheeled herself inside.
Sitting in her wheelchair, she purposefully pulled the blanket away, revealing her legs that were thin and twisted from muscle wasting.
The sight was disturbing.
She grabbed Charlotte's hand with excitement and said, "Charlotte, are you willing?
"I'm so jealous of Victor. When I got into that car accident, I messed up a kidney and shattered both my legs.
"If someone had been willing to give me a kidney back then, I wouldn't have had to go overseas for treatment, lying in the ICU for years."
She looked over at Victor, her gaze lingering, loaded with meaning.
Victor choked down all the words he'd been about to say.
He tightened his grip on Charlotte's hand, his words coming out slow and heavy.
"How about scheduling the surgery for next week?" he asked.
Sophie flashed Charlotte a provocative, almost challenging smile.
"How convenient! Once the surgery is done, Victor's got something big planned for you," Sophie said.
She chuckled softly, "And if the surprise happens right outside the surgery room, wouldn't that be more of a shock?"
Victor gripped Charlotte's hand, falling silent. It was a rare thing for him.
Sophie tugged gently at Victor's sleeve, her gesture subtle but persistent.
"Victor, you're not thinking of skipping out on the surprise for Charlotte, are you?" she asked.
Victor let out an uneasy, almost desperate chuckle.
His voice was soft, but to Charlotte, it sounded like a thunderclap.
"How could I?" he said.
To make sure she was in top shape for the surgery, Charlotte checked into the hospital for a while.
Victor was caught up taking care of Sophie, so he didn't show up once.
But Sophie kept blowing up her phone with braggy texts.
[On the day of the surgery, Victor is planning to propose to me right outside the operating room.]
[I told him I love red roses, and he went out and bought me 999 fresh roses.]
[I said I wanted to be treated like a princess, and the next thing I know, he's got a crystal crown waiting for me.]
[Charlotte, you're about to lose everything.]
[If you get down and beg me, maybe I'll help you out.]
Charlotte's hands trembled as she printed out all of Sophie's messages, made them into an auto-playing slideshow, and saved it onto a USB drive.
She stared at her reflection, a woman who'd dropped twenty-two pounds and felt like she'd been given a whole new life.
She pulled her lips into a cold, detached smirk.
They were waiting for me to embarrass myself, weren't they?
Let's see who got humiliated in the end.