Evander told Zara that his grandmother would be discharged in two days and asked her, as his "girlfriend," to come with him to the hospital to pick her up.
Zara felt uneasy about the fight with Lise that led to the grandmother's hospitalization. Last time, she had followed them to the hospital secretly, only to be blocked by Evander at the door. This time, seeing that he had brought it up himself, she readily agreed.
Early the next morning, Zara got ready and waited in the living room for Evander to get up so they could go together. However, after more than half an hour, he still hadn't appeared.
She called him, and before she could say anything, he spoke first. "Zara, I'm sorry, something came up, and I had to leave early this morning. How about this? Don't wait for me. You drive there first. I'll head to the hospital as soon as I'm done. Please explain it to Grandma for me. By the way, can you drive?"
"My skills aren't great!"
"You have to try everything. You can ask Martha for a key; there are many cars in the garage, just pick one!"
After hanging up, Zara called Martha and asked her for a car key. A strange look flashed across Martha's face, which made Zara uncomfortable. But it was only for a moment, and Martha smiled, "I'll go get it now!"
Martha went to a corner, and seeing no one around, she took out her phone to make a call. After she hung up, she looked around as if she had a guilty conscience, then walked away quickly.
Zara ran to the garage and immediately picked a red Ford sedan with an Anya pattern sticker on it.
The hospital was very close, but Zara's driving skills were poor. She drove very slowly and occasionally sat up straight and leaned forward, trying to see the road ahead.
As the car turned a corner, a black sedan suddenly drove straight toward her from behind. Just as it was about to hit her car, she instinctively turned the steering wheel. But she turned it too hard, and with a "bang," the car fell into a mud pit on the side of the road.
She quickly turned off the engine and got out to check, but the other car had already fled. She had to shift her attention to the problem of her car being stuck in the mud. She tried to call Evander for help, but his phone was off. She looked at the time, weighed her options, and decided to go to the hospital first and call for a tow truck on her way back.
She stood in the middle of the road, waving for a cab, but no car would stop. Seeing that time was running out, Zara steeled herself and decided to run. After only a few steps, her body swayed. She looked down and saw, to her dismay, that the heel of her shoe had come off! She had no choice but to take off her high heels, hold them in her hand, and run barefoot.
At the same time, Margaret, who had been waiting in the hospital room, saw that Evander and Zara had not yet arrived. She said to Ferlock, who was sitting next to her, "Let's not wait. Let's go!"
"Shouldn't we wait a little longer?"
"No, something must have delayed them. Evander is always punctual!"
Ferlock nodded and helped Margaret out of the hospital.
When Zara finally arrived at the hospital in a hurry, she was told that Margaret had already been discharged. Like a deflated balloon, she stood in place, holding a pair of shoes.
The grandmother's kind face appeared in her mind, and she decided that no matter what, she had to see her. She had to apologize to the old lady in person!
With a feeling of unease, she went to see the grandmother. The grandmother's expression was calm, and it was impossible to tell if she was angry about Zara's lateness. Ferlock, who was standing nearby, looked friendly and took Zara's hand, saying, "Why are you here alone? Where's Evander?"
"Something came up, and he said he'd be here later! I'm sorry I couldn't be on time and that I disappointed you and Grandma!"
Zara walked up to Margaret. Margaret was sitting in a soft armchair. Zara knelt down and said with a forced smile, "Grandma, please forgive me. There were a lot of unexpected things that happened on the way that made me late." Zara then recounted how she had been in a car accident, her car got stuck in a mud pit, she couldn't get a cab, and she had to run to the hospital barefoot.
This story was overheard by Lise, who had come to visit Margaret. Lise quickly stepped forward and said angrily, "Stop pretending! It was a short drive. A car accident and a mud pit? Do you think everyone here is a fool?"
Zara slowly stood up and said solemnly, "You're right, I'm also wondering why all these bad things happened to me on such a short drive. Could it be that someone is deliberately trying to frame me? Who could this person be?" As Zara said this, she stared intensely at Lise.
"You... what do you mean? Are you suspecting me? Let me tell you, if you wrongly accuse an innocent person, I can sue you for slander!" Lise seemed to feel guilty for a moment, but then she became haughty.
"That's right, you have to have evidence to talk. Don't wrongly accuse an innocent person and make everyone unhappy. After all, we watched Lise grow up. Even though she's outspoken, she doesn't have any malicious intentions!" Ferlock said.
"That's right, Zara and Lise, you have to learn to get along!" Margaret paused. "You all can go now. I want to talk to Zara alone!"
Everyone left the room.
"Zara, since you're here to see me, I assume you and Evander have resolved your misunderstanding. Evander must have told you the reason, right?"
"Grandma, you're so smart!"
"Good child, Grandma doesn't blame you. After all, you didn't know beforehand. Evander is a good boy, and I hope you'll take good care of him for me!"
Zara couldn't tell the grandmother that she was just Evander's "contract girlfriend." To comfort the old lady, she forced a smile and said, "Grandma, don't worry. I will respect, take care of, and love Evander with all my heart!"
The grandmother smiled with satisfaction.
Evander, who had been hiding and listening, was about to walk to the door when he suddenly heard Zara talking about him. He instinctively dodged and hid behind a cabinet next to the door.
He heard everything Zara said. He couldn't calm his emotions for a long time. He couldn't describe what he was feeling—it was a mixture of warmth and contradiction, and even a faint longing. He shook his head in a daze, smiled, and walked in.
His gaze lingered on Zara, then shifted to Margaret. He held his grandmother's hand and smiled, "Grandma, I'm sorry I'm late!"
"Grandma doesn't blame you. I know you always keep your word. If you couldn't be here on time, something important must have delayed you!" The grandmother looked at Zara, then at Evander. "Grandma is very happy to see you and Zara's love for each other!" She then took Zara's hand and placed it on top of Evander's hand. "You two are a match made in heaven. You must cherish each other!"
Evander turned to look at Zara. Zara met his gaze, and she saw approval and even a hint of affection in his passionate eyes.