Chapter 290

Chapter 290:

In her coma, Stella felt an overwhelming pain. It radiated throughout her body, as if every pore and bone in her body ached in unison. She struggled to swim in a sea of nothingness, where there was no ground to find footing. She was alone—always swimming, walking, and wandering in the void.

She wanted to open her eyes, but no matter how hard she tried, they refused to obey. She gave it her best, but in the end, had no choice but to give up.

Where was she? Why was there no one around? Where was Adrian? Emily? RK? Aden? Tristan? Where had they all gone?

Why couldn’t she see them?

Memories of that night when she drank too much came flooding back. Had she fallen off a building? Was she dead now? But if she were dead, why did she still feel so much pain? Maybe she would see her mother here, or perhaps her grandparents...

Forgetting her earlier struggles, Stella swam through the invisible air, unsure of whether she would ever wake up again.

Meanwhile, RK stood outside the ICU, motionless, his head bowed. He had been standing in the same spot for what felt like forever, watching her through the window. Time had lost all meaning to him as he kept vigil, unable to leave her side.

For days, he had barely slept, barely eaten. He didn’t know how he had survived each day. Every minute, every second, felt like a lifetime.

“Stella... why haven’t you woken up yet?” he whispered to himself.

Emily awoke groggily in the car, realizing Aden was still sitting beside her, half-asleep. When he noticed she was awake, he snapped out of his drowsiness. “Hey, you’re up. Come on, go home and rest,” he urged.

“Are you okay? Thank you,” Emily said softly, though she couldn’t shake her anger toward RK. Aden, however, was different. He was charming and kind, and in stark contrast to RK’s ruthlessness.

She couldn’t understand how Stella, who had someone like Aden in her life, kept getting tangled up with someone like RK. It didn’t make sense to her.

“Oh, I’m fine,” Aden replied, rubbing his eyes wearily. “But are you sure you’re okay to drive? Don’t fall asleep at the wheel. How about I come up and grab a coffee before I head back?”

Lɑtєst chαptєrs in g풶l푛ovєls.풸푂m “If you bring me coffee, I won’t sleep for the rest of the night,” Aden laughed. “Anyway, I need to get back to the hospital to check on RK.”

“That bastard... Why are you even going to see him?” Emily muttered, her disdain for RK clear.

“RK may be a jerk, but you don’t know him like I do,” Aden said with a wry smile.

“And I don’t want to know him,” Emily scoffed.

“Look at Stella. She knows him, really knows him. If he were as terrible as you think, why would she be so hung up on him for all these years?” Aden responded knowingly.

“It’s not because of him. Stella’s been through so much. She’s lived a hard life.”

“True, but RK isn’t as awful as he seems. Even I, who had a serious grudge against him, can’t bring myself to truly hate him,”

Aden admitted, shaking his head. “He’s the kind of person no one can completely hate.”

Emily was intrigued. “What do you mean? Did he steal your girlfriend or something?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.

“It’s more complicated than that. But let’s not get into it now. You should get some rest. You’ve got to be strong when you see Stella tomorrow.”

Emily hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded. She got out of the car and bid Aden goodbye. After watching her lights flicker on in her apartment, Aden drove off.

Back at the hospital, RK continued to stand outside the ICU, gazing at Stella through the window.

“Have you made sure Adrian and Alia are settled? Adrian shouldn’t know about this, not yet,” Aden said as he joined RK.

RK didn’t respond, but Aden knew him well enough to understand that RK had already taken care of everything.

However, when Aden mentioned Adrian, RK’s expression darkened. Since Adrian had been brought back to the Kingston home a few days ago, the boy had refused to talk to anyone. He spent all his time sitting by the window with his Stitch doll, refusing to eat and staring out at the sky.

RK was well aware of the damage this custody battle had done to Adrian, but there was no way he could tell the boy about Stella’s condition. He couldn’t bear to think about how Adrian might react if he knew the truth.

He could only wonder if the child would ever be able to accept it, and whether his innocent heart could survive the pain.

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