The man was only half-conscious when a familiar scent filled his nose.
It was too strong that he woke up and opened his eyes.
But unfortunately, the ground hadn't recovered from the earthquake yet which produced loud noises
from fallen objects.
After everything returned to silence, Caroline heaved a sigh of relief as she let go of him and said,
"You're fine now.The earthquake should be over."
Only then did he figure that it was Caroline who embraced him.
She lowered her head, placed her hands on his shoulders, and with concerned eyes, she asked, "Are
you alright? Does anything hurt?"
When he saw how genuine Caroline's reaction was, he suddenly wanted to hug her.
"I'm fine, Caroline" he said.
She was about to check further if he was hurt when he said, "Where are Charles and Marisa?"
She guided him to stand and replied, "They were playing outside when the ground shook, so they
should be fine"
"l'll go and check" Caroline initiated and he instantly agreed.
When Caroline turned around, he abruptly grabbed her hand and said, "Be careful; there might still be
aftershocks."
Caroline's expression turned from blank to pleased.
She patted his shoulder, smiled and warned, "There might still be aftershocks, indeed, so don't go
anywhere and wait for me here.I'll be right back."
With that, she dashed outside.
The man looked at her back until she eventually departed.
His heart was filled with complicated emotions and tears surged in his eyes.
‘She could've left, but she stayed with me: When he was young, his mother divorced his father because
she could not bear to stay poor all year round.Less than two years later, his father died.Afterward, he
was raised by his grandfather and took over the company.
When he was twenty-two, his grandfather arranged his marriage with a girl he wasn't familiar with at all.
Nevertheless, he did not complain.
He knew that his grandfather's only wish was to have a grandson so he agreed to marry that woman.
On the night of their wedding, the man found out about his father's illness.
He then gathered all his courage and told the girl about it but unfortunately, his bride could not process
it and left without leaving a single message.
The man, on the other hand, wasn't affected by that because he had never developed feelings for her.
It was his grandfather who couldn't accept the fact that his son, the man's father, died while his only
grandson had an incurable illness.
Two years later, his grandfather left him by himself.
The following days became the worst days of his life.
When his doctor told him that he only has two more years left to live, he had lost his will to fight for his
life and was about to give up when Caroline came into his life.
He was already on the verge of death so he didn't question her past.
Everything that had happened between them was never because of love initially, but as he saw how
Caroline genuinely cared for him, his heart felt full and warm.
He was overwhelmed.
‘She should have abandoned me from the beginning.She had a choice to leave but she did not”
At the moment of the earthquake, Caroline tightly protected him in her arms and did not let go of him
for a single moment.
‘How unlucky I must be! 'he sighed.
He already accepted the fact that his days were limited.
Because of that, he couldn't possibly do something nice for Caroline to return her kindness.
The next day, they found out that the epicenter was 200 kilometers away from A City.
That night, when Caroline took care of the baby and returned to the bedroom, she found him seated
beside the bed.His eyes were fixed on her and he gently said the words, "I have something to say to
you."
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