Early the following morning, Bryan, Alfred and Michael arrived at the hospital to see if there was anything they could help with before Selina got discharged. Once they arrived, the doctor had already completed a physical exam on Selina and announced that everything seemed fine with her.
Clipping the pen to her white coat, the doctor asked everyone to step out. "Before I sign the discharge papers, I want to double check on her chest wound. Though it has been a while since she has been last discharged, I still need to follow the procedure and do my job."
As the group attempted to leave the room, Selina anxiously grabbed onto Celinda's arm. "Hold on, the guys could wait outside. Can Celinda stay with me during the exam?"
Seeing how shaky she was, the doctor sighed and permitted Celinda to stay in the room. Jason and the rest closed the door from behind after walking out to the hallway.
Michael leaned his back against the counter with one hand stuffed into his pocket. "She looked scared."
"She's very cautious about strangers. It's understandable considering her memories just started coming back in pieces. All her painful ones." Jason sighed as his eyes laid on the closed doors in front of him. He hoped Celinda's presence would be enough to calm her down during the examination.
Inside the room, Selina slowly unbuttoned her top until her scar became visible. Although it looked like a messy straight line and not ugly, she was afraid to show it off. The doctor inched closer to make sure everything was alright and the wound was fully recovered. She took out her stethoscope and proceeded to listening to her heartbeat.
As soon as the cold ends of the stethoscope touched her skin, she widened her eyes and moved backwards; letting out a small shriek. Taken aback by her reaction, the doctor questioned if she was feeling any pain. Celinda patted Selina's back and calmed her down.
"Sorry, doctor. Is it possible for you to not have any physical contact with her? She is obviously uncomfortable with any skin contact. Can't you just look at her scar and sign the discharge papers? If there was something wrong with her heartbeats, then it would have shown in the other examination results."
The doctor could see Selina taking deep breaths and clenching her fists around Celinda's waist. Sighing, she nodded. "I've already taken a look at how the wound closed. There shouldn't be any irregular patterns in her heartbeats. I'll sign the discharge papers."
After scribbling on the discharge papers, the doctor gave Selina one last glance before leaving the room. Once she came out, she spoke to the guys about her condition. She recommended bringing her to a therapist, but was quickly rejected.
Once the discharge papers were processed, the group went to pick Celinda and Selina up from the room. They noticed Selina's puffy eyes instantly, but didn't point it out. Smiling, Bryan and Alfred took her bags while Michael looked around to make sure she didn't leave anything behind.
"Time to go eat. You must be hungry right?" Jason held out his hand and waited for her to respond.
Nodding, she took his hand and followed his lead out of the hospital. Celinda was awfully quiet during the ride to the restaurant. At the same time, her attention focused on Selina as if she was worried something would happen to her.
Once they've arrived and parked the car, Jason helped the girls out of the car. On their way into the restaurant, Jason discovered some uninvited guests around. He wrapped his arm around Selina's shoulder and brought her closer to his embrace as they fast walked towards their reserved room.
Bryan, Alfred and Michael kept looking back to make sure nobody was tailing them. As soon as they stepped foot into the private room, Jason's phone rung.
"I need to take this business call. I'll be right back. Order what you feel like eating, okay?" He said to his sister and Selina with a smile on his face. His face looked slightly annoyed by the call despite having a smile curved on his lips.
With the three brothers in the room, Jason felt at ease leaving the girls alone. Before leaving the room, he whispered into Bryan's ears. "The Hans are here."
"Okay. If you're not back in ten minutes, I'll come to greet them." Bryan smirked as he poured tea into empty cups and passed them around the table.
Selina didn't say anything, but her eyes were glued to Jason. After he had left the room, she asked. "What did Jason say to you? Is it really just a call? He looked upset."
Bryan's heart skipped a beat. He asked himself. 'Since when Selina's instinct get this strong?' Snapping out of his thoughts, he answered. "Nothing much. He told me to let the staff know what we want to eat in ten minutes."
Of course, his words were not convincing at all to anyone at the table.
- Next door -
Jason picked up the call and was told that the Hans were waiting for him in the next room. Before entering, he made sure to tell Bryan the room number he was in. Upon stepping into the room, he saw Anthony and Tracy in plain clothes. Unlike their usual arrogant, flaunting self, they looked poor and worn out.
"Mister and Mrs. Han, what can I help you with today? You've interrupted my lunch with some friends. Please make this quick." Jason was quite curious about what they've been up to. After challenging him a few times, they've literally disappeared from the industry.
"Please. Please help us! We've already lost everything from all our properties to businesses. Nobody would give us a hand nor lend us money. We promise to return the money after gaining profits. No. No. We will add interest to it!" Anthony sounded helpless and out of place when asking him for help.
Jason crossed his arms while standing. "I'm not sure who it is that has such power to strip away the Han family's power, but I am not stupid enough to help you. Have you forgotten our former relationship as rivals? For someone like you who bites others to earn a profit, I do not want to get involved with you and the mysterious person. You're better off asking your daughter, Shirley to work and earn money."
"We don't have a daughter like her. She's not our real daughter. Do you see how my wife is right now? She went nuts after losing both wealth and her child. There are many things I can't explain nor tell you about, but Shirley isn't our daughter. My real daughter died the day I carried the baby home. But somehow this baby got swapped with Shirley. Even I don't understand it! But please, lend us some money."
Anthony knelt on the floor, begging for a way out of poverty. Jason furrowed his brows, "What do you mean you carried a child home and she was swapped? Your real daughter died already?"
Gritting his teeth, he confessed. "I can't say anything more. I can only tell you that my daughter died in my wife's womb. When my wife opened her eyes, she saw the baby in my hands and thought it was ours. I went along with it so she wouldn't have a breakdown or sink into depression. Anyways, the Han family ended up like this because Shirley is not that couple's daughter."
Before Jason could reply, Bryan entered the room and greeted the couple. "Well hello. We meet again. We don't care whether Shirley Han is your daughter or a hobo you picked up. What I do know is you've interrupted our precious lunch. Also, I didn't mean to eavesdrop but Anthony Han...you have arms and legs. You can work from the bottom again. Why ask others for money?"
Jason felt a tug against his sleeve and understood Bryan's intention. "That's true. With your experience, you have the capabilities of obtaining a manager position in other companies."
"That's not true. All my rivals would play me for past grudges or end up firing me in a day. Some even tossed my resume into the trash bin during the interview. They just want me to become a laughingstock." Anthony Han shouted.
"But are you not one, though? When you're in your highs, you've looked down on those who had less. Now that you are no longer in the peak of your career, you can finally understand how much you've humiliated others in the industry. This is a lesson for someone like you who only care about reputation and brags. I suggest you find a job and start from low.""I'm not going to lend you any money. Use your own hands to rebuild what you once had if you truly have the abilities you were credited for in the past. If you don't, then forget it. Go look for a job and not spend time stalking others."
Jason's words crushed his last bit of ego. As he sobbed on the floor, Jason and Bryan walked out.
"Have you tracked down Shirley Han yet?" Jason asked.
"No. After she escaped from the auction hall, none of my men could find her anywhere." Bryan answered.