Jack's eyes darkened, and a strange look flashed across them before disappearing.
He asked in a deliberately casual voice, "Where is your mother now?"
"She's in Germany. She said she is going to Czech Republic for a while and make a wish in the Old
Town Square in Prague." Eric opened one of the bags he brought with him and showed it to Jack. "I
told her that these things can be bought online now, but she wouldn't believe me."
There were two boxes of chocolate. Jack picked up a piece and put it into his mouth. "This is
authentic," he commented.
"That's right. One piece is enough for you. Give the rest to Rachel, okay?" Eric added childishly.
Jack chuckled and reluctantly shook his head. A second later, the corners of his mouth tightened into a
straight line and his eyebrows drew together in a frown.
When Rachel returned from Andy's house, she found Jack acting a strangely absent. She had to ask
him a question multiple times before she managed to get a response from him.
Confused, she took out a bowl of bone soup she made in the afternoon from the kitchen, sat down
beside him, and asked, "Jack, what happened? Why do you look a little distracted?"
Jack looked up at her with an indescribable emotion in his eyes, but then he finally he shook his head
and said, "It's nothing."
Rachel frowned slightly. Just now, the look in Jack's eyes made her feel like his odd demeanor tonight
had something to do with her. She was about to ask more questions when he stood up, hands rubbing
at his temples, and said, "I'm a little tired, I think I'll go lie down for a while. I'll be in my room if you need
me."
She wanted to tell him about Andy, but something in his voice stopped her. Staring at his back, Rachel
could only murmur an "okay."
She finished the bowl of soup that she had prepared for him.
The next day, Rachel had just arrived at the hospital and donned her white coat when she received a
call from Bill. The man, who had just flown back, stated his intention to have Andy examined at the
hospital and asked her if she could go with them.
Rachel hesitated for a long time without saying a word.
Bill explained, "Rachel, don't worry. I don't mean anything else by asking you. You are a doctor, and
you know these tests well. It will be more reassuring to have you accompany us. You know how
important Andy is to me.
But if you feel embarrassed about it, then that's okay. I can take Andy there on my own."
After hesitating for another few seconds, Rachel finally said, "It's not a big deal. I just have to endorse
some stuff, which will take about an hour. Where should I meet up with you and Andy?"
"He doesn't want to go to your hospital because he is afraid that many of his acquaintances might see
him. Rachel, can you recommend any other hospital?"
"Let's go to the provincial hospital. The staff there are foremost experts in the field."
After ending the call, Rachel found a doctor to take her shift and hurried out. She drove to the provincial
hospital and met up with the two men.
At the door of the consulting room, Andy looked a little uneasy. He reached out to take Rachel's hand
as soon as he saw her and said, "Rachel, I think I'd rather not be examined. What if it turns out that I'm
at an advanced stage of disease of something?"
Rachel glanced at Bill, who was standing behind Andy, and then lowered her head and patted the elder
man's hand reassuringly. "Andy, we won't know your health condition until we have a check-up. Then,
we can address what's bothering you through medication or other ways once we find out. If we don't
address it, it will only get worse. You don't want Bill to fend for himself, do you?"
Putting his hand on Andy's shoulder, Bill forced a smile and said, "I don't know how to wash clothes
and cook, and you know I have a bad temper. Andy, do you want me to kick out a servant every day?"
It was a testament to how much Andy cared for Bill when he said, "Okay, I'll undergo the examination."
All of a sudden, he grabbed Rachel's hand with one hand and grabbed Bill's with the other. He put their
hands together, sighed, and said in a hopeful tone, "I'm going to leave one day. At that time, Bill only
has you as his friend, Rachel. Can you help me look after him?"
Andy seemed to be saying his last words. "Bill is a shy and introverted man. He would rather suffer
losses than speak out about his feelings. Rachel, I'm afraid I'll forget everything soon, so I must tell you
this now while I still remember."
Rachel felt her eyes blur with tears. She opened her mouth to speak but couldn't.
After a long time, she said in a tearful tone, "Andy, don't think too much now. I'm sure there's nothing to
worry about."
Andy sighed slightly and patted the backs of their joined hands. "Rachel, don't comfort me. Although I
don't know much about it, I still know what my condition is. Once Alzheimer's disease starts, it's difficult
to control. Anyway, I'm so old that one of my feet are already in the grave. I'm only worried about Bill."
"I'm an adult now. There's nothing to worry about." Bill raised his head to hold back his tears.
His feigned relaxed tone made the atmosphere more somber.
Andy wiped the corner of his eye and said, "Rachel, Bill is usually smiling, but he's going through a
tough time and is not in good health. From now on, please help me take care of him."
This time, before Rachel could say anything, Bill had already taken Andy by the shoulders and steered
him to face the consulting room. He changed the topic and said, "It's your turn soon. We'll talk about
these things once the examination is over, okay?"
Rachel couldn't help but cast a grateful glance at Bill. She really didn't know how to react to what Andy
said.
Looking at Andy's imploring eyes, she couldn't say no to him. After all, what role should she play if she
were to take care of Bill?
Seeing the expression in her eyes, Bill threw Rachel a bitter smile. He reached out and knocked on the
door of the consulting room. The nurse told him that the doctor left due to emergency and that they
needed to wait for another half an hour.
Half an hour seemed to be extremely long.
They were so nervous and scared that the three of them sat in the waiting area without saying a word.
It was unusually quiet
until Andy rubbed his hands and said, "I need to go to the bathroom."
Bill stood up and said, "I'll go with you."
The elder shook his head. "No need. I remember the way to the toilet. Isn't it right around the corner?"
Rachel also spoke up to placate Bill. "Don't be too nervous. It's okay."
"Okay." Although Bill sat down, his eyes remained fixed on Andy's back until he was out of sight. Then,
he unwillingly withdrew his gaze and said, "Although Andy is my butler, he has always been more like
my grandfather, so I can't let anything bad happen to him. Absolutely not!"
The oddly nasal quality of his voice betrayed his agitation. He lowered his head, as if to hide his
emotions.
Pursing her lips, Rachel said, "God blesses a good man. Andy will be fine."
Although the words were so weak, they were the only ones she could utter at that moment.
Bill raised his head to look at her, but then lowered his eyes again. He nodded his head slightly and
kept silent. After a long time, he said with emphasis on each word, "Thank you, Rachel."
The word "thank you" sounded particularly heavy in the din of the hospital hallway. Without answering,
Rachel raised her hand and gently patted him on the shoulder. At this moment, the nurse also came
out and shouted, "The doctor is back. The next patient can come in now."
At that moment, Bill and Rachel realized that Andy had yet to come back.
For a moment, they looked at each other, worry clouding their eyes. Rachel murmured, "It's okay." She
was reassuring herself too.
Bill said, "I'll go to the men's room."
Watching him break out in a slow jog, Rachel couldn't help but feel nervous. She kept praying, hoping
that Andy was only delayed because there were too many people in the bathroom. She told herself that
nothing bad happened, or she would be overwhelmed with worry.
Rachel trotted up and stood at the door of the men's room, feeling every second stretch like an hour.
She didn't know how many minutes had passed. When she saw Bill hurriedly exit the men's room and
look around, her heart gave a little jolt.
"Andy is missing." It was not a question.
Bill didn't spare her shocked face a moment. With red eyes, he grabbed the arms of everyone passing
by, describing Andy's appearance and holding out a hand in front of him to estimate his height. "Have
you seen him? He just went to the bathroom. I don't know where he is now."
"No." All of them shook their heads in confusion.
Rachel stood still for a few seconds before she came to her senses. She grabbed one of the hospital's
cleaners, an old woman with a broom and a duster in her hands, and asked, "Excuse me, did you see
an old man in the men's room just now? He is about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a grey Chinese tunic suit."
"Are you a family member of that old man?" The woman propped the broom against her hip and took
out a piece of paper from her pocket. "I was cleaning the men's room when he happened to come in.
He gave me this piece of paper and asked me to give it to the person who will come looking for him."
Rachel's expression became more serious. Clutching the note tightly, she asked in a trembling voice,
"Did you see where he went after that?"
The woman shook her head and picked up the broom again. "I was busy cleaning up the sink at the
time. How could I have time to notice him?"
Looking at the red-eyed Bill, Rachel felt the note burning in her hand. She slowly walked forward, bit
her lower lip, and said uneasily, "Bill, Andy left a note with the cleaner..."
Before she could finish her words, Bill grabbed the note from her hand. After a few seconds of silence,
he suddenly raised his head and roared, "Andy, didn't I say that you are not my burden?"
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