Novel Palace
Chapter 1273
"Kenneth, did you pop by the hospital today? Something wrong?" Sienna's face lit up with concern as she greeted her son returning home. Lately, she's been extra cautious about Kenneth's state of mind, always greeting him with a smile, careful not to let any hint of her own worries show. After all, if everyone around him started to lose hope, how could he be expected to stay positive?
"Just tagging along with Karen," Kenneth brushed off, knowing full well that the news of his hospital visit was probably relayed by their driver.
It felt like his mom had eyes and ears all around him!
"Karen? What's the matter with her?" Sienna hesitated before asking.
Ever since the drama with Dorothy, Sienna had grown a bit cold towards Karen, which was inevitable.
But they hadn't exactly had a falling out, just not as close as before.
"She's a bit under the weather, but it's nothing serious." Kenneth kept it brief. He had more pressing matters on his mind and didn't want to get sidetracked. "That's good to hear, but you know, your health comes first. If there's anything else, just give me a call. I can come over and keep you company."
"Mom!" Kenneth couldn't hide his exasperation, "Karen is my sister, let's not start holding grudges for no reason."
Sienna knew she couldn't push further and simply waved him off, "Alright, alright, I'll drop it. Go get some rest."
With a heavy sigh, Kenneth headed straight to his room.
He had asked a buddy to reroute a GPS signal to his phone so he could keep tabs on Lane's whereabouts. Just as he finished setting it up, his phone buzzed. It was Eleanor.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!
She called now and then, but Kenneth wasn't too keen on picking up, managing only brief, polite exchanges.
"Been keeping up with your physiotherapy?" she asked.
"Yeah, recovery's going well. No worries," Kenneth replied, almost blurting out that she needn't call him about this anymore but stopped short, not wanting to sound harsh.
Eleanor hesitated before speaking up again, "Can... Can I come visit?"
She had wanted to ask before but couldn't muster the courage.
After Kenneth had made his feelings clear back in the hospital, any further attempts from her would seem desperate.
"I'm a bit tied up these days. Let's catch up once I'm free."
His obvious avoidance hit Eleanor hard.
"Is it really that you're busy, or... you just don't want to see me?"
"It's really just a busy time."
"Kenneth, your injury was partly my fault. I want to make things right Eleanor's voice was soft, resigned. "Now that you and Dorothy can't be together, why not consider me?"
Kenneth frowned, at a loss for words.
One rejection was enough; repeating it felt cruel.
But his silence spoke volumes.
Swn?
"Going forward, I won't fuss over your past with Dorothy. It won't bother me that she's all you can think about. You can keep loving her."
"That's not fair to you," Kenneth found himself unable to address Eleanor as Dorothy anymore.
"It's my choice. I don't need fairness.
If... if there's ever a chance for you
two in the future, I can step aside,
leave the spot open for Dorothy."