Now They Want My Forgiveness - Chapter 79: Chapter 79

"What kind of blood type is that rare?" Max asked.
Lionel answered, "The golden blood type, or to say, the Rh-null blood type."
Anna had never even heard of such a blood type. She asked, "Why does Stella have it, but I don't?"
Lionel explained, "There are fewer than fifty documented cases of this golden blood type worldwide. I've traced it back to your great-grandfather. This rare trait is bound to reappear in later generations, and Stella happens to inherit it."
This blood type was even rarer than other Rh-negative blood types. No wonder Stella was their only hope back then.
Anna asked hesitantly, "If Stella doesn't get the transfusion, will she..."
Lionel remained silent.
Max abruptly strode out.
Anna asked, "Max, where are you going?"
Max said, "I'll go get that blood. She's not dying on my watch."
Anna clenched her fists tightly as she watched Max's back.
No one else noticed, but Anna had seen it long ago: Although Max always seemed to dislike Stella, his lips would curl into an involuntary smile whenever she was near.
Max might have seemed to favor Anna, but Anna could keenly sense the deep affection he had for Stella.
Anna's deepest fear was that everyone in the Hayes family would come to adore Stella instead of her.
Anna thought, 'So, don't blame me. I'm just scared.'
She asked, "Lionel, is there anything I can do to help?"
Lionel gazed at Stella lying unconscious on the bed. She wouldn't be waking up anytime soon. She needed substantial rest to recover.
Finding a matching blood donor would be ideal. Otherwise, it was all up to fate whether she could wake up or not.
Lionel said, "You can go visit Mrs. Eleanor Hayes. I'll stay here with Stella."
Anna said, "Mom and Dad are with Grandma. I'll stay here with you. Lionel, I know you need someone right now."
Anna clasped Lionel's hand and rested her head on his shoulder. She said, "Lionel, don't worry. No matter what happens, I'll always be right here by your side. You'll never have to face anything alone."
Lionel looked at Anna and was still moved.
When Lionel realized he had wronged Stella, he was consumed by remorse. He tried to find her several times, but to no avail.
For a period, he neglected his work. When his parents found out, they scolded him back to his senses.
His parents told him back then, "If you can't focus on your work, then maybe you shouldn't stay at the hospital. Didn't you become a doctor because you couldn't stand seeing Stella suffer?"
Though Stella rarely fell ill, every time Lionel saw her in pain, it tore at his heart more deeply than anyone else's.
His parents also said, "If Stella comes back and needs you, how would you possibly help her if you're no longer a doctor?"
Therefore, Lionel kept working while searching for Stella. During that time, Anna stayed silently by his side. She just quietly kept him company.
Gradually, as Lionel came to terms with the possibility that Stella might never return and, unwilling to let Anna down, he agreed to engage with Anna.
Fate always seemed to play cruel jokes. Just as Lionel had finally let go and was ready to embrace a new future, Stella reappeared.
But before Stella returned, Anna sought Lionel out and wept uncontrollably because she was terrified that he would abandon her.
Thinking of all that Anna had sacrificed for him over the past three years, Lionel made her a solemn promise that he would never have anything to do with Stella again.
However, deep down, he couldn't help but care about Stella.
Anna was well aware that Lionel was torn inside, but she wasn't worried. Ever since Stella came back, no one from the Quinn family, except Lionel, had bothered to visit her.
The Quinn family had been so fond of Stella before. They even hoped she would marry Lionel one day when she grew up. But now, Stella had lost that chance for good.