Chapter 263

"Giselle...." As he spoke, Patrick crumpled his brows, appearing very uncomfortable. He then put his hand on Giselle's shoulder. Giselle sensed something was amiss; her voice unconsciously heightened, "What's wrong with you? Where...." "Shh!" Before Giselle could finish her words, Patrick placed a finger on his lips, gesturing for Giselle to hush, and said, "My parents are here. Don't let them hear." "You...." "I've already contacted Stacy to come and pick me up later, so there's no need to worry about me." Patrick was trying to reassure Giselle with a comforting smile but his back started to hurt so badly that he had difficulty straightening his body. In the private booth, he sensed something was off, and escaped outdoors immediately. Feeling his body deteriorating more and more, it felt like his time was almost up. Previously on a checkup, Dr. Chen had warned him that his condition could worsen significantly at any time. Yet he didn't expect it to happen so quickly. He couldn't even finish a meal with his family. "Patrick, what's wrong with you?" Giselle was alarmingly anxious. "I’m fine." Patrick still didn't tell her anything. As his hand on her shoulder got heavier and heavier, he leaned half of his body against the wall, his back slightly bent. "Giselle, can you...help me a bit?" Giselle hurriedly helped him, supporting him. Patrick steadied himself, took a deep breath, then seemed to be better, pulling a faint smile at her. "Giselle, is Maverick good to you?" What a time for Patrick to bring this up. Giselle did not answer, but looked at him closely and asked, "What's happened to you?" Patrick still didn't say anything. "It's nothing serious," he said, "Just a minor issue." But this certainly did not look like just a minor issue; he could hardly stand. "I'll take you to the hospital!" "Patrick!" Two voices fell simultaneously, just as Yan Li was turning her head, her hand was pushed off. The next second, Vanessa supported Patrick, looking at him nervously. "How is it, is it severe?" Patrick glanced at Giselle, then said, "It's not severe." He said it wasn't severe, but he could hardly stand. "Hang in there, I'll help you out." Vanessa, supporting Patrick, made their way to the exit. Giselle wanted to help but was pushed away by Vanessa. "You won't be useful," she said, perhaps rudely due to the urgency. Giselle paused for a moment. Patrick glanced at her. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he didn't. He couldn't let her help, much less go to the hospital with them. Giselle stood still, watching wide-eyed as Vanessa led Patrick out of the hotpot restaurant, the effort visible. Just as they reached the door, Giselle ran out. After Vanessa helped Patrick into the car and closed the door, she moved to the driver's seat. Upon seeing Giselle, she furrowed her brows. Giselle spoke first, "What's wrong with him?" "It's none of your business," retorted Vanessa. She opened the car door, got in, quickly shut the door and stepped on the gas. The car sped off, heading in the direction of the hospital. In a bit of a stupor, Giselle returned to the hotpot restaurant, just in time to meet Patrick's parents who had come out looking for them. "Where's Patrick? He's been out for so long and isn't answering his phone," said Liyana, worry lacing her words. "Something must have come up. He left earlier. Let's just enjoy our meal," replied Gemini, shrugging off the concerns. "Why didn't you notify us if something happened?" Liyana was saying, and as she turned her head, he saw Giselle. Instantly, her face changed, and she directly headed over to Giselle, "Why are you here?" Before Giselle could even respond, she added, "Is it you who called Patrick away? Where is he now? Let him come out." Giselle looked at Liyana in front of her, thinking of Patrick's appearance just now, she suddenly found herself at a loss for words. Seeing this, Liyana assumed that she had correctly guessed, raised her voice and asked, "Do you know that you are married? Why are you still entangled with Patrick? Are you insisting on harming him?" Upon reaching the point of excitement, she reached out and grabbed Giselle's arm. This tug landed on Giselle's arm that was dangling in front of her, causing her to gasp in pain. Gemini quickly pulled Liyana away, "Didn't you see that her arm is injured?" "What are you nervous about?" Liyana suddenly glared at Gemini, "Do you feel sorry for her now? I just grabbed her, and you are screaming at me." "I'm not..." Seeing that the two were about to start an argument, Giselle interjected, "He left with Vanessa." Liyana's face changed in a second, "Are you telling the truth?" Giselle nodded her head. A sigh of relief escaped from Liyana, and as Giselle watched, she pursed her lips. She didn't really understand why Liyana had such a unique loathing for her. She didn't believe that she was any less than Vanessa back in the day, however, inexplicably, Liyana never liked her, one could even say, she absolutely detested her. Indeed, it was quite strange that all the older people in the Finceland seemed to loathe her. George and Amira were no different. Giselle's thoughts barely strayed before she decided to leave. She walked a few steps, then couldn't help but look back, "Liyana, you don't need to keep your guard up against me. I am happily married now and I have absolutely no intentions of chasing after your son. Instead, you guys should, if you have time, take care of Patrick's health more." Having said that, Giselle left without looking back. Liyana furrowed her brows. Returning to the private room, Giselle wasn't eating anything. When the three left, she asked Harper, "Are you going back to the hospital now?" Harper shook her head, "No." But she quickly sensed something wrong, "Are you heading to the hospital?" Giselle hesitated for a moment, then slowly nodded, "I want to clarify something." In the end, Harper drove Giselle to the hospital, and upon reaching, Giselle headed straight for the renal department's inpatient ward. "What are you doing here?" Giselle didn't speak, instead, she went up the stairs and methodically swept through each and every patient room. Her expression was excessively grave, making Harper, who was following her, feel uneasy and completely baffled. Until——. As they passed a corner corridor, Giselle's footsteps suddenly came to a halt, pulling her back a step. Harper wanted to ask something, but before she could utter a word, the voices of a man and a woman echoed from the corridor. "Uncle, is there really no way?" "With how rapidly Patrick's condition is deteriorating and the lack of news regarding a kidney donor, I'm afraid even if a match is found, he won't survive long enough to undergo the operation." "Are you saying... Patrick will die?" "Vanessa, you should have been prepared for this long ago." "Uncle, Patrick can't die, he really can't. Please, find a way to save him. I implore you to save him," Vanessa pleaded through her tears. "It's not that I don't want to save him, but other than a kidney transplant, there's no other solution." .... As Vanessa's crying grew more intense, Giselle could no longer hear her. Her head buzzed. Patrick, — would die!