Chapter 37
Eric POV
It was still early in the morning.
The kind of morning that hadn't fully decided what it wanted to be yet too quiet to feel normal, too pale to feel alive. Light slipped weakly through the curtains, stretching across the room in thin gold lines. Even the air felt slower than usual, like the world itself was still waking up.
My heart, however, was not.
It had been doing that lately, racing for no reason, tightening in my chest at moments that didn't even make sense yet. Maybe it was because I had started seeing things differently since yesterday. Since I had stepped into this life properly. Since I had started to understand what it meant to exist here.
Then a sound.
A sudden thump.
like something heavy hitting the ground.
My body reacted before my mind did.
I rushed out of my room, barefoot, heart slamming against my ribs, and the moment I reached the hallway.
I saw her.
Laurel.
On the stairs.
Collapsed.
For a second, everything inside me stopped.
"LAUREL!" I shouted, my voice breaking through the house like something sharp.
I ran down immediately, dropping beside her. My hands hovered for a moment before touching her, like I was afraid she would disappear if I held too hard.
Her face was pale.
Too pale.
"Hey...hey, Laurel," I called again, shaking slightly. "What happened? Wake up, please"
My mind scrambled.
Call someone. Call anyone.
I pulled out my phone immediately.
SEO Hee.
I pressed call.
It rang.
Once.
Twice.
No answer.
"Why aren't you picking up…" I muttered under my breath, frustration mixing with panic.
I tried again.
and yet Still nothing.
My hands were starting to shake now.
Laurel's head rested weakly against my arm. I adjusted her carefully, trying to support her weight as I sat on the floor beside the stairs.
Think, Eric. Think.
Nicholas.
His house was closer.
I dialed him immediately.
He picked up almost instantly, voice thick with sleep.
"Hello? Who is it?"
My voice came out rushed, uneven.
"Laurel fainted."
Silence.
A sharp one.
"What?" His voice changed instantly. Fully awake now. "What happened? Where are you? Is she okay?"
"At home," I said quickly, glancing down at her. "I don't know what to do. She just collapsed."
"Stay there," he said immediately. "I'm coming. I'll call my doctor too."
The line cut.
I exhaled shakily, lowering the phone.
For a moment, I just stared at her.
Laurel.
The same person who carried entire companies on her back.
The same person who never slowed down.
And now…
She looked small.
Too human.
Too breakable.
"No," I whispered under my breath. "You can't just… do this."
I leaned closer.
"Laurel," I called softly.
Her eyelids fluttered.
Slowly.
She blinked once.
Then again.
Relief hit me so hard it almost hurt.
"She's awake," I breathed.
Her lips parted slightly.
"…why are you crying?" she whispered faintly.
I didn't even realize tears had fallen until she reached up and wiped one from my cheek.
That simple touch made my chest ache harder.
"I'm not dead yet," she said weakly, like it was supposed to be a joke.
But her voice wasn't strong enough to make it funny.
I let out something between a laugh and a broken breath.
"You scared me," I said honestly.
She tried to sit up on her own.
I immediately stopped her.
"No. Don't move."
I carefully lifted her instead, supporting her as I placed her on the chair nearby.
Her body leaned slightly, exhausted already.
"This is unnecessary," she murmured. "I can walk."
"No, you can't," I said quickly.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn't argue again.
That alone told me how bad it was.
Then the doorbell rang.
Nicholas.
I rushed to the door immediately.
And there he was.
Hair slightly messy, expression sharp with concern. Beside him stood a man carrying a medical suitcase.
He didn't waste time.
"Where is she?" Nicholas asked immediately.
"Over there," I said quickly, pointing.
He walked straight in.
No hesitation.
No greeting.
Just urgency.
The doctor moved fast, kneeling beside Laurel, checking her pulse, asking questions she barely answered.
The room felt tighter suddenly.
Like the air itself had turned heavier.
After a few minutes, he stood.
"The patient's stress level is extremely high," he said calmly. "She needs complete rest. No work. At least two weeks minimum."
Two weeks.
I blinked.
That didn't sound real.
That didn't sound like Laurel.
The doctor continued, writing something down.
"Even simple tasks like cooking are not advisable for now. Her body is exhausted. She has been pushing herself too far."
He handed prescriptions to Nicholas.
"I'll return after monitoring," he said, before leaving with the assistant.
The door closed.
Silence fell immediately.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Laurel had already fallen asleep again on the couch.
Her breathing was slow now.
Stable but weak.
I stood there, still frozen in place.
"I'll go get the drugs," I said quickly.
Nicholas shook his head slightly.
"You're going to school."
I frowned. "What?"
"You just started yesterday," he said firmly. "You can't miss."
"I'm not leaving her."
His gaze sharpened.
"Eric."
There was a pause.
Then he spoke more softly.
"She wouldn't want that."
That hit harder than I expected.
Because it was true.
Laurel would hate it.
She would be angry.
Not at being sick.
But at us stopping our lives for her.
I clenched my jaw.
"…fine."
Nicholas nodded once.
"I'll handle it."
Before leaving, he looked at me briefly.
"She's not alone," he said. "Neither are you."
Then he left.
I stood there for a while.
Just watching Laurel breathe.
Still.
Quiet.
Alive.
But barely.
Later, I bathed quickly, still feeling unsettled.
The house felt too quiet now.
Too aware.
I was drying my hair when
Ding-dong.
I froze.
That was fast.
Did Nicholas forget something?
I opened the door
And stopped.
Lee Joon.
He looked confused for half a second, then surprised when he saw me in a towel.
"…where is SEO Hee?" he asked immediately.
I blinked.
"What?"
He stepped inside anyway, eyes scanning the room.
"Is Laurel home?"
Something in his tone changed when I answered.
"She's in her room."
He froze.
Then slowly turned.
"That's not Laurel," he said quietly.
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Then
"She fainted."
The words hit the room like a stone.
His entire expression changed instantly.
"What?!" he snapped. "Where is she? Is she okay?"
"Doctor said she needs rest," I said quickly. "Nicholas just left to get medication."
He exhaled sharply, already moving toward the kitchen.
"She needs food before medicine," he said firmly. "Where is your kitchen?"
I watched him for a second.
Then stepped back.
Without thinking, I went upstairs.
And stopped at the stairs.
Looking down at her sleeping form.
Laurel.
For someone like her…
Rest looked almost unnatural.
Almost unfair.
And yet
For the first time…
There were people in her space.
People worrying.
People running.
People staying.
People refusing to leave.
I didn't even realize I had been smiling slightly until I whispered to myself—
"…you finally did it."
Not only success.
Not only power.
Not only money.
But something softer but still rare in her world.
Something she never had time to notice.
She had built a life.
And now…
That life was starting to hold her back.
Not out of weakness.
But out of care.
And maybe that was the first time Laurel Davis wasn't carrying everything alone.