Chapter 59: The Silent Girl
In the ward, there were four beds, but the other three were empty. Only on the bed by the window lay a young girl, her long black hair spread out like a magnificent waterfall on the pillow, reminiscent of a princess from a fairy tale. Wrapped in her slender body, strength and vulnerability seemed increasingly discordant, her pearl-white face covered in an unhealthy sheen.
The sound of the door opening didn't draw any attention from her. She simply gazed quietly at the pale blue sky outside the window, sparse sunlight lingering around her pale lips. Dimly, one could see a faint vitality flowing slowly, yet the atmosphere remained lifeless.
Her name was Hazel Cross, only fifteen years old, afflicted with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as "Lou Gehrig's Disease". This was one of the cruelest conditions Renly had ever encountered.
(A/N: The author introduces her as Hazel but refers to her as Heather throughout the rest of the story.)
Patients gradually lose control of their muscles, with motor neurons eventually completely wasting away, akin to full-body paralysis. It can even affect basic bodily functions like eating, breathing, and speaking. However, since it doesn't affect sensory neurons, patients' intelligence, memory, and senses remain intact. In other words, patients can only watch helplessly as they progressively lose control, step by step, inching closer to death, powerless to stop it.
The process is slow and agonizing, with pain accumulating day by day. Typically, patients survive only two to five years after onset. To date, there's still no effective treatment, and even slowing the progression of the disease is incredibly difficult. The "Ice Bucket Challenge," which went viral on the internet in 2014, was to raise awareness about ALS.
Heather was the first patient Renly cared for after arriving at Mount Sinai Hospital.
They got along very well at first, and Heather, just learning about her illness, remained positive. However, after Renly left for filming for half a year, upon returning, Heather became silent and refused to talk to Renly, ignoring his presence every time.
Renly knew this was Heather's way of protesting.
"New York's weather has been unusually sunny lately, a whole week of clear skies. I almost doubt if this is still New York," Renly said without receiving any response. He continued, "Did you listen to the records I brought last time? I told you, the British rock from the 1960s, that's the real classic. Just pick any band, and they leave a lasting impression. If you like, next week, I'll bring you the first album from Joy Division. Only four songs, very experimental, but interesting. It represents the dawn of punk in the 70s."
Renly chattered on as if to entertain himself, occasionally glancing at Heather, who still showed no reaction, staring fixedly out the window, as if Renly didn't exist in the room.
Watching Heather's childish behavior, Renly couldn't help but smile, sitting down at the nearby bed. He took out kite-making materials from his backpack. Spring had arrived, and Manhattan's winds were strong, perfect for flying kites. Renly had prepared the materials at home last week; today, he only needed to assemble the final parts.
"Renly! Renly!" shouts came from outside the ward, gradually approaching until they stopped at the door. It was Alex again. He appeared with a big smile, proudly saying, "I took all my medicine!" He puffed up his chest, waiting for Renly's praise.
Renly gave him a thumbs up, making Alex sway his head proudly. But then his gaze fell on Heather, and Alex hesitated, worried about disturbing her.
Renly rubbed Alex's head with a big hand. "Do you want to join?" Alex's attention was immediately drawn, nodding vigorously. Renly took out a stack of pre-cut papers from his backpack. "Draw whatever you want on it, then we'll make it into the tail of the kite, long and long..."
Alex didn't immediately take the pencil but pondered for a moment, asking seriously, "So it's like a Chinese dragon?"
Renly raised an eyebrow and laughed, "Of course, why not."
After receiving affirmation, Alex took the pencil with a big smile, then supported his chin seriously, contemplating. Renly couldn't help but chuckle at his earnestness. "What are you doing?" he asked.
"I'm thinking, what to draw. I can't just doodle randomly," Alex replied matter-of-factly. Renly hesitated, nodded solemnly, and said, "Right, of course." Then he fist-bumped Alex to cheer him on.
Watching Alex's serious demeanor, as if painting for an international competition, Renly felt a bit envious. Often, children were the purest, most determined, and simplest. Though their actions might seem childish, always wasting time on "unnecessary" things, it was precisely this loss of innocence that deprived adults of the source of happiness.
Unconsciously, Renly took out his camera from the backpack, aimed it at Alex, and clicked the shutter. Experiences from a previous life taught Renly to cherish every moment of life.
There was a movement behind him, and Renly looked up to see Heather hastily turning her head, her soft hair flowing like a waterfall, reflecting the light, revealing her slight movements. Renly's lips curled up involuntarily as he aimed the camera at Heather, capturing this moment once again.
At the sound of the click, Heather snapped her head around, eyes wide with anger, and scolded, "What are you doing?"
Renly remained calm, checking the effect of the photo he just took, and replied nonchalantly, "I'm taking a picture."
This answer caught Heather off guard. "Delete it! Don't you know it's very rude to take pictures without someone's consent? If I want to, I can even take you to court!"
Renly raised his head, smiling faintly at Heather's fiery gaze. "I know," he said. This made Heather's pupils burn even hotter with anger. Renly shook the camera in his hand. "If you don't like it, you can come and delete it yourself, or even smash the camera." Then he casually placed the camera on the white sheet, a gesture of indifference.
Heather clenched her teeth, wishing she could bite Renly's neck directly. "You know..." Her words stopped abruptly. As time passed, Heather's symptoms became more apparent, and she was beginning to find it difficult to walk. That's why she always lay in bed, reluctant to move.
Renly couldn't understand Heather's current feelings, but he knew she would regret it in the future. Because at least now she could still walk, just a bit inconveniently. When she truly couldn't walk, it would be too late to turn back time.
"We all make choices and pay for them," Renly shrugged. He didn't preach to Heather directly because they both understood these truths. It's just that putting them into action wasn't so simple, and these so-called truths were just another form of torture for patients.
After saying that, Renly didn't pay any more attention to Heather but continued to work on the kite in his hands.
Heather glared at Renly angrily, her chest surging with suppressed emotions that she couldn't swallow, only able to breathe heavily, her chest rising and falling. She clenched her fists, wanting to sit up and punch Renly hard, but... she ended up turning her head again, looking out the window, allowing the silence to engulf the ward once more.
After a while, Heather even forgot about the passage of time. This kind of quietness, however annoying it was at first, gradually calmed her restless heart. Time seemed less boring, less agonizing, and even the unchanging view outside the window took on different colors.
Suddenly, Alex's restrained voice came, "It's done! It's done!" Heather exerted all her strength not to turn her head, then she heard Renly's steady response, "Before the kite flies, it can't be called a kite. So, do you want to be the one who brings it to life?"
"I do, I do!" Alex eagerly shouted, followed by a series of footsteps gradually fading away, disappearing in the distance.
But Heather couldn't help but freeze. Is that it? Didn't Renly invite her? Didn't he even say hello? No, Renly must still be in the room, waiting for her to turn around, waiting for her to surrender. She wasn't that stupid! In this battle of patience, she was never worried about losing. Let's see who would give in first!
Unconsciously, Heather clenched her fists, forcing herself to keep going, not to look back, otherwise, it would be admitting defeat.
The passage of time began to become clearer, as if she could hear the slow descent of an hourglass. But the silence in the ward made Heather feel uneasy. The same silence now gave her a thin layer of chill on her skin.
"Heather!" a voice came from behind, startling her. But before the joy in her heart could rise, she realized that the voice calling her wasn't Renly because within her line of sight, Renly was already downstairs with Alex, accompanied by a group of children, like a hen with chicks.
"Heather?" the voice called again from behind. Heather let out a long sigh, concealing her emotions, turned her head, and pulled the corners of her mouth into a weak smile. "Jennifer, good afternoon."
Jennifer Lawrence also smiled broadly. "Good afternoon."
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