“Ms. White.” Sawyer came over and went over the arrangements with Rebecca again. “Don’t worry, since Ms. Gomez can’t make it, the babysitter will stay over to take care of you. Everything’s set.” “Okay.” Rebecca nodded, standing up. “Thank you, truly.”
“It’s no bother at all. Rest up.”
Sawyer then turned to Francis, saying, “Mr. Francis, we can head out now.”
“Right.”
Francis nodded, rising to his feet.
“Mr. Francis!”
Suddenly, Rebecca called out to him.
“Yes?” Francis paused, turning back to look at her. This time, too, he remained silent.
Oddly, despite not having exchanged a single word with her, Rebecca felt his presence profoundly. Rebecca opened her mouth, paused, then said, “I… just wanted to say thank you. Take care.” Silence fell for a moment.
Francis squinted slightly but only responded with a “Hmm.” Then, he turned and walked away. As his footsteps grew fainter until they disappeared, Rebecca felt a pang of loss… He was gone? The babysitter came over, “Ms. White, I’ll be staying here tonight. Just call if you need anything.”
“Thank you.”
When Sherilyn emerged from the changing room, Gilbert took her hand, his joy evident in his smile.
“Let’s head home.”
Entering the elevator, perhaps due to the cramped space or stuffiness, Sherilyn suddenly covered her mouth, “Ugh…”
“Not feeling well?” Gilbert immediately supported her. “Feel like throwing up?”
Sherilyn nodded miserably.
They were in the elevator, with no trash bin in sight. Where could she possibly vomit? It wasn’t exactly feasible to just deal with it on the spot, especially not with others around. “Vomit into my hands!”
Gilbert, in his panic, stretched out his hands, ready to catch it.
Sherilyn shook her head vigorously, unable to speak, but clearly refusing.
“Then…let’s do this…”
Gilbert started to take off his jacket, “I’ll catch it with my coat…”
“Ugh!”
Before he could even get his jacket off, Sherilyn had already vomited, and due to their proximity, it all landed on Gilbert.
Sherilyn was instantly mortified; it wasn’t intentional.
The air was soon filled with the scent of food and stomach acid mixed together, causing others in the elevator to frown and complain. Already feeling unwell, and now overwhelmed with embarrassment, Sherilyn’s face went pale.
“It’s okay.”
Gilbert wrapped Sherilyn in a hug and draped his jacket over her to help cover up the smell.
He then apologized to everyone, “I’m terribly sorry, folks. My wife is
pregnant, dealing with morning lnes
sickness. She didn’t mean it, couldn’t help it. We’re really sorry.”
Hearing the explanation, the others softened, showing understanding.
“Oh, pregnancy, that can’t be helped.”
“No worries. Pregnancy is tough…”
“Thank you for understanding.”
Gilbert smiled in gratitude, then looking down at Sherilyn, he whispered, “Feeling any better? It’s okay that you vomited on me.” Sherilyn shook her head, feeling a bit relieved by now.
Once the elevator stopped and the others had exited, Gilbert, still
holding Sherilyn, was the last net
leave Sherilyn immediately pushed away from him.
Looking at the mess on his chest, she grimaced, “Maybe head to the restroom to clean up?”
“Let’s just go to the car.” Gilbert shook his head, smiling. “If I go to the restroom, I’ll have to come out shirtless. Let’s go.”
Reaching the car, Gilbert handed his
jacket to Sherilyn, then proceeded to take off his soiled cashmere sweater
and shirt, standing shirtless
car.
by the