Bittersweet Arrangements : A Sugar Dady Affair

The panic made Erick unable to think of anything. His mind seemed to refuse to work. Right now, all he could worry about was the condition of Devan and Elena. Erick couldn’t even initiate a call for help or someone to accompany him to the hospital. All Erick could do at the moment was pace back and forth, crying in front of the Emergency Room. Inside, Devan and Elena were receiving medical treatment.

Erick couldn’t believe that his well-intentioned plan to reunite his father with Elena had turned into such a terrible tragedy. Erick only wanted to give his father a surprise, hoping he would find happiness again. But instead, Erick ended up endangering both of them. Erick started blaming himself. His plan had caused Devan and Elena to have an accident and be hospitalized.

Jeremy and Vanessa, who had just arrived at the hospital, hurriedly walked towards the Emergency Room. Earlier, after receiving news of the accident involving Devan and Elena from his subordinates, Jeremy immediately picked up Vanessa from the boutique. To prevent panic, Jeremy only informed Vanessa about the situation when they arrived at the hospital.

Seeing Erick standing in front of the Emergency Room, they approached the teenager. Vanessa’s tears flowed uncontrollably when she saw Erick’s white uniform stained with blood. Vanessa’s lips trembled, unable to speak a single word, as the worst scenarios crossed her mind regarding her daughter and her friend.

“Erick, where’s Elena? Where’s your Dad now?” Jeremy urgently questioned. Erick was stunned for a moment, looking at Jeremy and Vanessa. Then, with a sob, Erick wiped away the tears that had been flowing.

“They’re inside, Dad,” Erick whispered while pointing towards the Emergency Room entrance.

Jeremy rushed inside the Emergency Room, while Vanessa hesitated, looking at Erick’s disheveled condition. Vanessa’s lips remained tightly sealed, reaching out to pull Erick into a tight embrace. Erick was like a son to her, and there was no way she could leave the teenager alone in such uncertainty. Vanessa decided to let Jeremy be the one to assess their conditions inside.

“Excuse me, who are you?” a male nurse blocked Jeremy’s way. Currently, the Emergency Room was relatively quiet, with only three patients lying weakly on the beds, including Devan and Elena.

Jeremy’s heart momentarily stopped beating before thumping loudly. Even his knees felt suddenly weak as he saw Devan covered in blood and Elena, seemingly injured on part of her face. Both of them were unconscious.

“I’m a family member of the patients named Devan and Elena,” Jeremy replied firmly.

“Do the medical procedures as quickly and as well as possible!” Jeremy ordered, then hurried to approach Elena, who was being treated for her wounds. His daughter seemed to be in good condition, but not Devan. An IV and oxygen were already attached to his body.

“How is Devan’s condition?” Jeremy asked, his heart starting to ache. Seeing his friend in such a pitiful state was distressing. Devan, whom he knew, was not a weak man like the one lying before him now. Among all the members of the Cogan Club, Devan was the only one who could match him. That’s why Devan dared to challenge him openly when he didn’t get his approval. And Erick was Devan’s weakness.

Jeremy’s eyes began to scrutinize Devan’s condition in detail. The white shirt he wore was almost entirely soaked in blood. Half of his face looked bruised, and there was a bandage on the left side of his head covering what Jeremy estimated to be a fairly deep wound. Jeremy rubbed his face in frustration, envisioning something horrifying.

“We still need to observe him before proceeding with further actions,” explained the doctor who was examining the wound on Devan’s leg.

“Do whatever needs to be done as quickly as possible. I don’t want anything to happen to my brother!” Jeremy responded promptly.

“For that, we need to perform a CT scan on Mr. Devan to confirm,” the doctor explained again.

“Do it, Doc! Don’t worry about the cost,” Jeremy said firmly, frustrated with what he perceived as slow hospital service.

“Alright,” replied the doctor, instructing a nurse to prepare the CT scan room.

“Daddy!” Elena mumbled as she regained consciousness. Jeremy hurried over and gently held his daughter’s fingers.

“Yes, sweetheart. Daddy’s here!” Jeremy replied, his body trembling. Ironically, Devan’s condition was now the most worrisome.

Slowly, Elena opened her heavy eyelids. The pungent smell of medications pierced her sense of smell, making her fall silent. Elena began to scan the white and blue-toned room around her, trying to recall what had happened to land her in this place.

Brakk… The loud sound she heard just before losing consciousness echoed in her mind.

“Daddy, where’s Uncle Devan?” Elena asked anxiously, attempting to sit up. However, at that moment, she once again lowered her head, feeling dizzy.

Elena immediately turned to the two nurses who were doing something to the patient beside her.

“Uncle Devan!” Elena shouted, trying to get up again.

Jeremy immediately hugged Elena tightly, reassuring her, “Calm down! Uncle Devan is just being examined, dear.”

Upon hearing Elena’s scream, Vanessa and Erick rushed into the emergency room in a panic. Their faces turned pale, imagining the worst.

“Papa, where is Papa being taken?” Erick’s cries broke out, hindering the nurse who was about to push the stretcher carrying Devan’s motionless body.

Jeremy quickly released his embrace from Elena and approached Erick. He hugged the teenager to provide comfort.

“Your Papa will be fine, Erick. Let the doctor treat your Papa, Erick,” Jeremy said, patting Erick’s shoulder.

The two nurses immediately took Devan away, while Erick could only stare at his Papa’s departure, crying inconsolably. Vanessa and Elena, too, could only weep silently.

“Forgive Erick, Sir. Erick promises not to be naughty again. But please don’t leave Erick alone, Sir, please, Sir,” Erick sobbed, pouring out all the emotions weighing on his chest. Erick couldn’t fathom life without his Papa. “Papa…”

Feeling Erick somewhat calmer, Jeremy instructed Vanessa to take care of Elena while he and Erick followed the two nurses who had taken Devan to the CT scan room. While waiting outside the CT scan room, Jeremy contacted Ardan, his brother-in-law, to come to the hospital.

Erick continued to recite prayers for his Papa’s safety. Forty minutes later, a nurse came out of the room and called the patient’s family.

“You stay here, Erick. Daddy will go in first,” Jeremy excused himself, patting Erick’s head with a sympathetic feeling. In his heart, Jeremy couldn’t stop praying for his friend’s safety.

Jeremy followed the nurse to the CT scan room. Inside, a doctor was already waiting with the results of Devan’s health examination in hand. With indescribable feelings, Jeremy took a seat across from the table, facing the middle-aged doctor who was examining the black film sheet with images that Jeremy recognized as his friend’s body.

“From the results of this CT scan, the patient named Devan only has bruises on the left side of his head,” the doctor began explaining his analysis.

“Thank goodness,” Jeremy responded with a sense of relief. However, that feeling was short-lived as Jeremy observed the doctor’s serious expression. “Is there any other issue, Doctor?” Jeremy added, looking tense.

The doctor nodded before answering, “The patient has a fractured left shinbone, and it needs to be operated on immediately.” The doctor’s explanation left Jeremy momentarily drained.

“B-but can he recover, Doctor? My brother won’t be paralyzed, will he?” Jeremy demanded an explanation that might offer him some comfort.

“We can’t be certain at this point. But we will do our best.”

Jeremy left the CT scan room feeling lifeless. He was unsure of what to tell the teenager waiting outside. Jeremy couldn’t bring himself to deliver the bad news to Erick, a teenager who had been abandoned by his biological mother since the age of 5. How would he feel if something serious happened to his only remaining parent?

Before leaving the CT scan room, Jeremy asked for permission to see Devan’s condition. Just as Jeremy held Devan’s hand, the man showed signs of movement.

“Devan, it’s me, Jeremy,” Jeremy whispered.

“Jeremy, where’s Elena?” Devan replied, still with his eyes closed. His voice sounded hoarse and weak.

“Elena is fine. You don’t need to worry about her,” Jeremy replied to reassure Devan. “Now, rest. I’m going to see Elena and Erick,” Jeremy added to convince Devan that everything was okay.

Devan struggled to swallow saliva to moisten his dry throat. He couldn’t even bring himself to open his eyes. His whole body ached and felt stiff. Even moving his hand was beyond Devan’s capability.

“Jeremy, tell them not to worry too much about me. I’ll be fine,” Devan said, and Jeremy quickly agreed. Jeremy hurried away to calm his troubled heart. He didn’t want Devan to sense the anxiety he was feeling.

“How is Devan, Jem?” Ardan inquired as he and his wife arrived.

“Devan has a broken leg and needs immediate surgery,” Jeremy explained, looking at the three people in front of him who were frozen in shock after hearing the news.

Jeremy then urged Erick to return to the Emergency Room. He shifted his focus to checking on Elena, whose condition he hadn’t confirmed earlier. The medical team was currently preparing for Devan’s surgery.

“Stay calm, Erick,” Ardan whispered, putting his arm around Erick’s shoulders and guiding him away.

Walking behind them, Jeremy reminisced about the youthful days spent with Devan. The man who once helped him save Vanessa from criminals, the man who was always there when he needed assistance. Now, only because of a small mistake, he found himself angry with him. A minor mistake of falling in love with his beloved daughter.

Devan’s current condition, caused by trying to save Elena’s life, presented a dilemma in Jeremy’s heart. Was Devan’s love for his daughter not just ordinary love? A love that only lasted for a while because it grew in a place it shouldn’t have, or was it a love that appeared with divine permission? Jeremy couldn’t think clearly now. For him, his friend’s safety was more crucial at this moment.

From a distance, Arfan and Layla hurriedly approached them.

“Dear, how are Elena and Devan now? Are they okay?” Arfan asked breathlessly. Panic was evident on his face.

“Devan is preparing for surgery, Fan,” Ardan replied, surprising the couple. “We should check on Elena first,” Ardan suggested, leading the way back to the Emergency Room.Belongs to (N)ôvel/Drama.Org.

Arfan sighed deeply, seeing Jeremy with his signature expression. Cold and stoic – the most irritating expression when the man was not doing well.