743: While You Were Sleeping

While You Were Sleeping

3Marie's voice faltered as she uttered those heartbreaking words, sentence by sentence. Subconsciously, Nicolae held Marie's hand to show sympathy. Marie took a deep breath and continued her words. "That's why I asked you to come now... So that I can convince my mother that she doesn't need to struggle anymore... just for my sake."

"Oh, I understand." Finally, Nicolae understood what Marie's purpose was in waking her mother.

The girl wanted the mother to see that her daughter already had a man now, someone she claimed to be her husband, who was kind to her and looked after her so that Marie's mother could calmly leave her child.

This was really sad. Nicolae then took a chair and sat next to Marie. His hand was still holding her hand gently.

The girl wanted her mother to see that her daughter already had a man now, someone she claimed to be her husband, who was kind to her and looked after her so that Marie's mother could calmly leave her child.

This is really sad. Nicolae then took a chair and sat next to Marie. His hand was still holding her hand gently.

"What about your other family members? Do you still have a father, or do you have relatives?" he asked again.

Marie shook her head slowly.

"None. My father died while I was still in the womb. My mother was dying to protect me, even though her pregnancy was really difficult, because she loved my father so much. She wanted to give birth to me as the only legacy of the man she loved in this world. My father died too young, and my mother fought desperately to give birth to me, even though my birth almost took her life…" Marie seemed overwhelmed by despair as she told the story. Nicolae held the girl's hand more tightly. "She should've just aborted me then... Mother was forced to give birth to me, and since then, my mother's health has never recovered. For years, she has always suffered, and the peak was ten years ago when she collapsed and couldn't recover again..."

Nicolae was stunned by Marie's words.

"You must've been very young then... How old are you now? 22 to 23?" he asked softly.

"I'm 22 years old now. My mother fell ill and started staying in the hospital when I was 12 years old..."

"Your life must be really hard..." Nicolae looked at Marie without blinking. For some reason, he felt very sorry for the girl who had always been indifferent and pretended to be strong. Behind Marie's happy and indifferent appearance, she kept a sadness hidden deep in her heart.

"I have no choice..." Marie was still trying not to look sad. She only shrugged at the words of sympathy from Nicolae.

"Who has been taking care of you all this time? A 12-year-old child certainly can't live alone..." Nicolae said.

"I take care of myself," Marie answered nonchalantly.

"Can you really take care of yourself?"

"Eh, don't underestimate me. You've seen for yourself, right, I'm fine now!" Marie snorted unhappily, thinking that Nicolae thought she was weak.

"I'm not insulting you... I was just asking, don't be so quick-tempered..." Nicolae said calmly. He had more or less begun to recognize Marie's explosive and proud nature, who really didn't want to be pitied or considered weak by others.

Before she could answer, she suddenly saw her mother's eyes, which had been closed, now blinking, and they slowly opened. Her hand in Marie's hand also moved.

The woman who was sleeping in the hospital bed had now woken up and looked at Marie and Nicolae alternately.

Marie's mother's eyes slowly moved, and then a whimper of pain came out from her lips.

"Mom, are you awake? I'm here, Mom," Marie said hurriedly. Those pair of eyes blinked again and then opened for a long time. For a moment, her eyes were blurry, but then she began to focus on Marie's face and then turned to Nicolae's.

Her weak and thin hands moved slowly to rub Marie's hands lovingly.

"My child ... My dear child. You come, Sweetheart..." A weak voice came from the pale lips.

"Mom, I'm here. See whom I brought with me today ... You have been sleeping for a long time, so you can't meet him. But here he is ... The Nic, the man I've always told you about," Marie whispered in a slightly trembling voice.

"Hello ..." Mrs. Lu said in a soft voice and looked at Nicolae attentively. For a moment, Nicolae was stunned. He could see the deep love in those eyes for her daughter.

The young man smiled and returned Mrs. Lu's greeting in a respectful voice. "Good morning, Mrs. Lu. My name is Nicolae Sorin."

He had read that Marie's mother's full name was Rosamund Lu

"Who is he?" asked Mrs. Lu, staring at Marie. The girl answered while turning her head towards Nicolae.

"Let me introduce my husband, Mom. We got married three months ago while you were sleeping," Marie said in a trembling voice.

Nicolae nodded softly, confirming Marie's words. "That's right, Mrs. Lu. I love your daughter very much. I hope you will give us your blessings," Nicolae said.

"Hmm ... I'm glad to hear that." The woman smiled faintly as she watched Nicolae with her clear eyes. She gave a signal that she wanted to sit, and swiftly Marie helped her. After sitting on her bed, Mrs. Lu reached out to Nicolae. "I'm glad to meet you, Nicolae ... My name is Rosamund."

Nicolae welcomed the helping hand of Marie's mother and nodded. "Nice to meet you, Madam."

Mrs. Lu seemed to observe Nicolae for a long time and, finally, she nodded after releasing her hand. "You're a good man. Just call me Mother... You can call me Mother Lu, if you want."

Nicolae was stunned by Mrs. Lu's words. The way Mrs. Lu looked at him reminded her of Elena Lupei*, his adopted mother, who had taken care of him since he was a baby and loved him very much. Elena Lupei died 60 years ago, and Nicolae really missed her.

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