The Day Our Promise Breaks

Evelyn's face changed in an instant.

Before their lips could meet, she swiftly turned her head away, dodging Charles's kiss.

That burning touch fell instead on her cheek, and the man's voice husky, full of feeling-brushed her ear. "Eve..."

But Evelyn didn't let herself drown in the emotions Charles revealed in his fevered state. Her first instinct was to resist.

Yet she remembered the injuries she'd seen when she changed his clothes just moments ago.

Evelyn forced herself to swallow her anger, lowering her voice to a cold command by his ear. "Charles, let go."

Charles's mind was foggy with fever, his actions guided entirely by instinct.

He could barely hear Evelyn's words, unsure if this was real or just another dream.

In reality, he knew he had to let go of Evelyn.

But deep down, he didn't want to.

He'd made up his mind about her when he was ten years old. If he hadn't been forced, how could he ever bear to let her go?

With his willpower at its weakest from illness, reason slipped away, and only the voice of his heart remained.

So, when Evelyn spoke, not only did Charles not let go, he instinctively tightened his hold.

Evelyn's face darkened further.

She couldn't struggle free for fear of aggravating Charles's wounds, but she refused to just let him hold her like this.

"Aiden."

She called for Aiden, who was waiting outside the hospital room.

Thinking something had happened, Aiden rushed in immediately.

Seeing the scene inside, Aiden almost regretted his haste.

But now that he was here, he had no choice-he hurried to assist Evelyn. With Aiden's help, Evelyn managed to free herself from Charles's embrace.

Afraid that Evelyn might storm off after what just happened, Aiden quickly tried to explain for Charles. "Ms. Evelyn, Mr. Jenkins didn't mean it. He's not himself right now-it's just the fever talking. Please, don't be upset."

Evelyn had really been furious for a moment there.

But she couldn't bring herself to quarrel with someone half-delirious from fever.

Wordlessly, she walked into the bathroom, turned on the cold water, and prepared

to bring Charles's temperature down the old-fashioned way.

With a fever this high, she didn't even know if it would help.

All she could do was try her best.

So she could live with herself.

Seeing that Evelyn didn't storm out, Aiden finally relaxed.

།

He looked in at her, saw she wasn't paying attention to them, and bent down to whisper in Charles's ear, "Mr. Jenkins, if you don't want Ms. Evelyn to leave for good, you'd better behave."

He couldn't be sure Charles even heard him.

After a quick warning, Aiden left as quietly as he'd come when Evelyn reappeared.

Evelyn worked to bring Charles's fever down.

She knew to do this because, in her own childhood, she'd often been sick.

Back at the orphanage, the director would give her medicine, but no one ever stayed to look after her. Everynoveldrama

time she fell ill, she had to tough it out alone.

Only after she joined the Jenkins family did she learn what it meant to be cared

for.

The first time she got sick there was

the day after she'd been locked in

the basement. Shock and cold had

pushed her temperature to a dangerous 105 degrees.

No matter what they tried, her fever wouldn't break.

That night, it was Charles who sat by her bedside, patiently cooling her fevered

skin with cold compress after cold compress.

He never complained, tending to her over and over,

Until her fever finally broke.

Every time she got sick after that, it was always Charles who took care of her.

Now, Evelyn stayed up all night tending to Charles, never stopping.

Maybe it was her relentless care, maybe just luck, but by six in the morning, Charles's fever finally subsided.

The doctor came in for a check-up and visibly relaxed.

"As long as he doesn't relapse, Mr. Jenkins should be out of danger."

Hearing this, Evelyn breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Her mother had always known her heart.

If Charles had been injured and faced amputation for his own reasons, she would have steeled herself and moved on.

But he was hurt saving her and her mother-she'd never be able to forgive herself otherwise.

With the fever finally gone, Charles began to regain consciousness.

He blinked groggily at the ceiling.

The air was thick with the scent of antiseptic-but beneath it, he caught a whiff of something achingly familiar.

Eve.

Last night hadn't been a dream.

Eve had really come to see him.