~Aurora.
Hadria ran into my arms the moment I stepped down from my car with tears running down her cheeks. I was still baffled at the audacity of Ethan and mad at the way he felt he could say whatever to me but, my anger dissipated once I saw her swollen and red face.
Nevermind her asshole brother, this lady doesn't deserve to be hurt.
I gathered her in my arms and held her firmly to stop her weight from pushing down against me.
"What happened, Hadria?" I asked as I wiped her face but it was of no use as the tears still came pouring down.
"D-Dad. He..." She pointed behind her as she shook her head, the tears still uncontrollably.
I got sense of what she was trying to say and quickly dashed towards the king's chambers, leaving Hadria to run up behind me.
~<~
The rubber gloves slapped against my palms as I pulled them off and tossed them in the bin by the side of the bed where Ethan's Dad, former King Raphael laid almost lifelessly.
I hung my stethoscope around my neck and with another look at Raphael, I turned to the door where the queen and Hadria were waiting for me at the other side.
I had to force her out of the room when I rushed in and it took me a great deal to convince Hadria to stay with her. The family doctor was already there and I stepped in quickly to continue from where he has stopped.
Blowing out a rush of breath, I gripped the doorknob and threw the door open. The queen and Hadria sprang to their feet once the saw me and hurried footsteps came from the left as Ethan came to stand behind the ladies, looking all man and... that's not the point.
"What happened this time Aurora?" The queen asked, wiping off her snot with her handkerchief, "because that didn't look like a minor relapse."
I nodded, "Yes, it wasn't. The King, your husband and Father," I said more to Hadria alone, "had a minor heart attack."
"That didn't seem like minor to me." Hadria chipped in, snatching words from my mouth.
"Well, yes. His blood pressure was really high and that was why the attack seemed major."
"Is he okay now?"
My lips thinned as I looked up at Ethan. He always seemed so emotional whenever his Dad was involved. According to my previous knowledge of their relationship, they didn't have the best father-son relationship but Ethan has always looked up to him.
"He will be." I tried to keep my voice light. He nodded once and side stepped his mother and sister to walk into the room and the both ladies tried to follow him in.
I held an arm out to stop them and they halted, giving me a questioning look. The Queen's, a little sterner than the rest.
"I wasn't done. He will be fine but while he is trying to recover now, I would advise we don't all crowd his room at the same time.
He is not awake yet and while you are in there, try not to make any noise. It will be bad for his condition." I turned to Hadria. "And how has it been going with you?"
She wiped off the tears at the corner of her eyes with her thumb, "I am fine. The nurses are taking good care of me and I'm sticking to my medications."
"Okay. But I still need to pull you in for a lab test tomorrow, it's been a while since we checked you last."
She nodded and followed her Mother closer to the door, while the Queen slipped in and closed the door behind her, Hadria planted herself next to it.
I turned my eyes away from them and saw Ethan looking at me. Giving him a curt nod, I turned on my heels and began making my way out, only Ethan followed me closely till we were almost out of the building.
Sighing internally, I stopped in my track and turned to him. "Was there something else, Ethan?" He shifted from foot to foot and crossed him arms against his chest before thinking otherwise and tucked them in his pockets.
"I wanted to talk to you about today." He cleared his throat, "at the jewelry shop."
I held a hand out to stop him from saying anything further. "There is nothing to talk about. Don't worry about it, your concern now should be on your Dad. And Mom and sister."
His brows furrowed and he took a step forward as his hands came off from where they were tucked in his pocket. "I was not worrying about it. Not in the way you think anyway. I just wanted to know that it wasn't the heat of the moment that pushed me to say that and-"
I scoffed, "there wasn't any heat of any moment, Ethan. I helped you pick out a ring for your girlfriend and you made a joke of asking me to marry you."
"It was not a joke." He took some steps forward and I countered them with a few steps back. "Aurora, you have to hear me out eventually."
I chuckled in utter shock, "Eventually?"
"No. Shit, no. No. I meant please, Aurora. Just give me a chance to talk things through. We haven't done that."
"Don't you think it may be a little too late?"
"Is it? Is it too late?"
"You are yelling, Ethan. Keep your voice down."
"I don't care who is listening."
"Well, I do. And you have a girlfriend, goddammit!" I've never been one to curse, especially when I'm angry but Ethan's proposal, him wanting to talk things out with me was starting to get on my nerves, not because I didn't want it -because I did, I wanted it. Him- but because I knew that Ethan Balor was a liar and would never keep to any of his promises.
I looked up at him and nodded towards the direction of his Dad's ward, "You should go see him. Worry about your family." I said with an dismissive tone and without waiting for his responses, I hurried away from him.v by