Chapter 420: Dylan Heston, What Am I Going to Do?

Chapter 420: Chapter 393: Dylan Heston, What Am I Going to Do?

The doctor hadn’t meant Zoey Zane only had a few days left.

He meant that her condition was now highly unstable. If she had to undergo another surgery, it was very likely she wouldn’t survive it.

Her condition had been under control when she was in the hospital, but it had been deteriorating ever since she went home.

This continued until her recent flare-up, which landed her back in the hospital.

The surgery had snatched Zoey Zane back from death’s door, but it was only a temporary reprieve. The inevitable was still coming.

When Nancy Hughes entered the hospital room, Zoey Zane had already fallen asleep from exhaustion.

Zoey Zane’s complexion was getting worse and worse. She was pale and listless.

If it weren’t for the steady beat of the heart monitor, Nancy would have thought the person in the bed was already gone.

She reached out, took Zoey Zane’s hand, and, leaning against the side of the bed, couldn’t stop herself from sobbing.

Dylan Heston walked over and put an arm around her shoulder, hoping to ease her sorrow.

As far as Dylan Heston was concerned, he had grown accustomed to matters of life and death.

Everyone is born to die; he just hoped that those who were still living could live their lives to the fullest.

But now, Nancy Hughes’s sorrow was his own, and he didn’t know what to say to comfort her.

“Dylan, what am I going to do?” Nancy Hughes turned, wrapping her arms around his waist and crying even more wretchedly.

“You still have me.” Dylan Heston knelt, bringing his eyes level with hers.

He cupped her face, his fingers threading into her hair as he gazed deeply into her eyes. “Nancy, you still have me. I’ll always be by your side.”

Nancy Hughes blinked, and fresh tears spilled from the corners of her eyes.

Never before had she felt such a profound sense of peace.

When she was little, after Peter Hughes passed away, she had been too young to understand. Staring at her father’s body, she could only grip Zoey Zane’s sleeve tightly. Everyone else was crying, but she couldn’t shed a single tear.

Later, she had hidden in her room and cried until she was a mess.

She hugged his neck tightly. ‘With a man like this by my side, even if the sky were to fall, he’d be there to hold it up for me.’

When Zoey Zane woke up, Nancy Hughes acted as if nothing had happened.

“Mom, you’re awake!” she said, her tone as normal as ever.

Zoey Zane felt even more unwell. She glanced at the pitch-black sky outside. “How long was I asleep? Why is it already dark?”

“It’s seven o’clock. Are you hungry? I can go get you something to eat.”

“Seven at night? I thought it was just morning. How did I sleep for so long?” It was a struggle for Zoey Zane to even speak.

Nancy Hughes just smiled and said nothing.

“Where’s Heston? Isn’t he with you?”

“No, something came up with work, so he stepped out to take a call.” Nancy Hughes brought the warm porridge to her mother’s bedside. “Here, Mom, have some porridge.”

As she spoke, she helped Zoey Zane sit up, then picked up the bowl and spoon.

Zoey Zane had never needed anyone to feed her in her entire life. “I can do it myself,” she said, a bit awkwardly.

“Don’t, the bowl is hot!” Nancy Hughes took it back. “Besides, you have an IV in your hand. It’s better if I feed you.”

Only after Nancy Hughes’s reminder did Zoey Zane notice the IV needle in the back of her hand.

After a couple of spoonfuls of porridge, she thought of what Nancy was like as a child, and the corners of her lips curved into a smile. “I remember when you were little. You were so short you didn’t even come up to my waist. Before I knew it, you’d grown so tall—a whole head taller than me now.”

“That’s because I was a late bloomer. I didn’t get my growth spurt until high school,” Nancy added.

“That’s right, you shot up in high school. Time really does fly.” Zoey Zane smiled. “It would be wonderful if your father were still here to see you now.”

“It’s just a shame… Ah, well. I’ll be seeing your dad in The Underworld soon enough. At least then I can tell him all about you.”

“Mom, don’t say that!” Nancy’s expression changed instantly. “You’re going to live to be a hundred! Didn’t you always say you wanted to see me get married?”

“I know my own body, dear. Sigh… Nancy, don’t cry. Mom…”

It was her own body, after all, and Zoey Zane knew her own condition. How much longer she had was anyone’s guess.

“Heston is a good man. You have to cherish him. Don’t be difficult or throw tantrums. Just live a good life together, understand?”

At these words, Nancy’s eyes turned red again, and she threw her arms around her mother, sobbing.

Dylan Heston stood in the doorway, watching the mother and daughter crying in each other’s arms.

‘Nancy Hughes is actually quite fragile,’ he thought. ‘When she gets scared, she hides away to cry, unwilling to let anyone see her at her most vulnerable.’

‘Everyone thinks she’s so strong, but she’s the one who needs to be comforted and cherished the most.’

That night, Dylan Heston chose to stay and keep vigil with Nancy Hughes.

Once Zoey Zane was asleep, Nancy tiptoed outside. “It’s getting late,” she said. “You should go back to the hotel and get some rest.”

“I’m fine.” Dylan Heston took her hand, guiding her to sit down. “How’s your mom?”

“She’s sleeping soundly.” Nancy sat beside him, taking his hand and leaning against his shoulder.

She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally.

She tilted her head, gazing at Dylan’s profile, and gave him a goofy smile.

“What are you smiling at?” Dylan glanced at her.

Her smile widened. “I’m just so glad you’re here with me.”

‘Meeting Dylan Heston was the best thing that ever happened to me.’

Dylan laughed at that. “Only realizing that now? You were avoiding me at first, remember?”

“I had just met you! I didn’t know anything about you, of course I was going to avoid you!” Nancy hugged him, nuzzling her cheek against his. “But I promise, I’ll never avoid you again!”

‘I think I’m falling for him more and more.’

With someone by her side, the long night became much more bearable.

Dylan told her stories about his past, and as Nancy listened, she remarked, “Really? I would’ve thought you were a little troublemaker as a kid!”

‘A fearsome man like him was actually a well-behaved student as a kid? No one would believe that.’