She clenched her fingers, gritted her teeth, and forced herself to say, "If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now."
"Nikki."
Lucas was clearly angry. He had always possessed excellent emotional control and never showed his emotions. Even his parents had never seen this side of him. However, in the past few years of marriage, he had revealed this side of himself to Nikki.
She suppressed the throbbing pain in her heart and was about to hang up again when she heard Lucas throw out another sentence. "Ben is sick."
The four simple words instantly brought Nikki to a standstill.
"Ben." Nikki blurted out subconsciously, then immediately put the phone back to her ear. "How did he get sick? What kind of illness is it?"
Before any response could be received, a soft female voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Lucas, let's talk this out. Can you help me see if it's okay to take half a pill? Ben is waiting to take his medicine."
It was Taryn.
Nikki's anxious heart suddenly felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over it, and she couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. "It seems that someone is already taking care of Ben for me, so I don't need to worry about it."
She then hung up the phone. Then, she conveniently blocked Lucas's number.
Nikki felt as if the whole world had fallen silent, but she felt a lump of air stuck in her throat. It was as if a mountain were pressing down on her, and she couldn't find any sense of ease.
She sat down and stared at the rows of complicated data on the computer screen. Just moments ago, she had been handling it with ease, but now she felt dizzy and frustrated, and her mind began to feel heavy.
"It's no use. It's been three days already. Although I've barely dilated to 10 centimeters, the baby is breech, and it just won't come out."
"If you force a natural birth, you're doomed. You're already showing signs of postpartum hemorrhage."
"Her blood pressure is dropping too."
After ten months of pregnancy and childbirth, Nikki had never been so close to death. Lying on the delivery bed, she suffered excruciating pain for three whole days, so much so that she wished she could die instantly.
But hearing the midwife's anxious voice and the nurse taking the critical condition notice to inform the family outside, Nikki knew in that instant that she might not make it. Doctors would subconsciously choose to save the mother or the baby.
So she desperately grabbed the midwife's hand. "Save... save the baby. I want... I want my child."
At that moment, she abandoned her instinct to survive, disregarding everything, even if it meant trading her life for another to ensure her child's safety.
The delivery was eventually changed to a cesarean section, and after a fierce struggle and rescue efforts, both mother and child were finally safe.
"Mama... Mama."
"Mom, I'm so happy. You're the best mom in the world."
"My mom is the best. My mom and I are the closest people in the world. Even my dad can't compare."
From the time he learned to speak to the day he grew up, Ben was well-behaved and sensible. Like a little shadow, he was always sticking to her and didn't want to be separated for even a second.
"Mom, Dad, and I are your knights. We are both men and will protect you."
Every time Nikki heard Ben's confident words, she couldn't stop smiling, feeling gratified that her efforts were worthwhile. No matter how difficult the pregnancy or how painful the childbirth, she was content to have such a wonderful son like Ben. But...
"Aunt Taryn? What a lovely name."
"Aunt Taryn, you are so beautiful. I like you so much."
"Can't you be my mom? My mom doesn't understand anything. All she does is nag me. She's a nagging old hag. Aunt Taryn, I really want you to be my mom."
The unintentional words that Ben uttered to Taryn were like needles, each one piercing Nikki's heart. He had fallen in love with Taryn—his own flesh and blood, preferring another. No wonder he was Lucas's son; father and son had such identical tastes.
Nikki clutched her forehead in anguish, wiping away the tears that welled up in her eyes. She was heartbroken and disappointed. She just couldn't understand how her own flesh and blood, whom she had raised with such care, could reject her, his own mother, and instead fall for a third party.
What a big joke. What a huge irony. What caused Nikki a thousand times more pain than Lucas's betrayal was her son's betrayal of her.
Nikki suppressed her emotions and let out a long sigh. She was about to take out her phone to order takeout when she suddenly felt dizzy, accompanied by a sharp pain and tinnitus.
"Nikki?"
Paul's voice came over. Seeing that Nikki didn't react for a long time, he walked over. "Nikki, you."
Before he could finish speaking, he could tell that Nikki was not in a good mood. Paul pulled up the swivel chair, intending to examine her again, but Nikki gritted her teeth and endured the unbearable tinnitus and stinging pain. Although she was still somewhat uncomfortable, she tried her best to control herself and stood up. "I... I'm fine."
"It might be... I have a little low blood sugar because I haven't eaten." She hurriedly tried to explain, forcing a smile as she picked up the water glass on the table and took a few sips, barely managing to suppress the sharp pain.
Paul stared intently at her, and only when he saw that her expression had eased slightly did he breathe a sigh of relief. "You just got back. Don't be in such a hurry to do anything. I know your abilities."
Nikki nodded. "Thank you, Teacher Paul. I'm really fine. Don't worry."
Paul grunted and handed her the document he was holding. "This is the school's latest notice regarding the Cortex-7 project. They plan to hold an evaluation meeting at the end of the month, and if the project hasn't made any progress, it will be officially canceled."
Nikki took the document, quickly scanned its contents, and felt a surge of urgency. "Professor Paul, give me a month, and I will definitely make a breakthrough in the project."
Paul looked into her determined eyes and nodded. "I believe you, but."
Without continuing, Paul turned his head away and exhaled, then changed his words, saying, "It's nothing. Don't worry about it for now. It's already noon. Why haven't you gone to eat?"
Nikki smiled, but the smile quickly faded as the sharp pain in her brain returned. She staggered and grabbed the table for support. "Teacher Paul, I... I'm not feeling well. Can I come a little later this afternoon?"
Nikki was not taking the recurring headaches lightly and planned to go to the hospital again to better complete her work in the future. Paul naturally did not refuse, and even told her to go back and rest well, and that she didn't need to come in the afternoon.
Nikki agreed hastily, left the research institute, hailed a taxi, and went straight to the hospital. After emergency treatment, while she was receiving intravenous fluids, the doctor also advised her to start chemotherapy as soon as possible.
"Based on the current examination, you are not suitable for brain tumor removal at the moment. The best course of action is chemotherapy to see if it can further control the cancer cells."
Nikki shook her head slightly, stopping the doctor from finishing his sentence. She took a deep breath and asked the question that had always been on her mind. "Given my current condition, how much longer can I live?"