The Apple of My Eye

Damian caught up with Sheryl in a hurry. The woman seemed to look impatient and was off somewhere in a rush. "Sheryl! Where are you going? What's the rush? Did the call have something to do with Shirley?"

Sheryl stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Damian. "Oh, Damian! Yes, Charles told me that Shirley just woke up and was looking for me. I need to hurry over there as soon as possible." She licked her lips and looked at him for a moment as if contemplating something. "Why don't you go back first? I'm sorry I took so much of your time, but now that Shirley's awake, I'll be able to go home very soon." Of course, this did not sit right with Damian. There was no way he would let Sheryl stay by herself. "I'm coming with you. How can I abandon you at a time like this? It'll be too much if you handle this all by yourself."

Sheryl was a bit confused with what he said. "Why should I be handling this all by myself? Charles is also there. He's the father of my children. He won't do anything to hurt Shirley...."

Damian's face grew noticeably sullen at the mention of Charles' name, so Sheryl changed her tone to comfort him. "Please, go back. If Charles sees you, then there might be even more misunderstanding. That's not going to be good for Shirley, don't you think?"

Seeing that Sheryl was firm with her decision, Damian could only let her go. Despite that gut feeling he had that he shouldn't leave her alone, he had to concede.

"Okay, then. In that case, I'll head back first. Please do call me if anything comes up. Don't be so worried, okay? Shirley has regained consciousness, so she should be okay now. She'll recover soon. Please do take care of yourself."

Sheryl nodded appreciatively. "Yes, I know. Thank you for your help today." With that said, she then turned around and walked briskly towards the elevator.

The sight of Sheryl's retreating figure caused a tidal wave of jealousy and bitterness to surge through Damian's heart.

Damian always knew he had never gained access to her heart. There was no way Sheryl had forgotten about Charles, but he always had that tiny sliver of hope that he could at least stay quietly by her side. The news of their divorce had made him incredibly ecstatic. It took everything in him to not run over to Sheryl and profess his undying love for her, to tell her that it was okay and that he would always be there for her.

However, he had been too naive. All things considered, maybe there really was no way he could ever have a place in her heart.

Meanwhile, Sheryl had already arrived at the hospital and made her way to the fifteenth floor. The location of Shirley's ward was thankfully provided to her by a nurse, so she quickly made her way over there. As she was just about to reach the ward, the sound of her daughter's familiar voice rang through the halls.

"No! I want my mommy! I want my mommy! I miss her!"

It was from Shirley! No doubt about it. It was definitely her voice.

Sheryl picked up her pace, hearing her daughter's voice get louder as she approached. The minute she reached the door, she swung it open and ran headfirst into the ward. Inside, Shirley was crying in Charles' arms and demanding her mother's company. The little girl was too weak, and she hadn't stopped crying since the moment she woke up. Charles had never been good with kids. He was borderline about to give up just as he heard the door open. He turned and saw none other than Sheryl panting heavily by the doorway.

"Mommy! Mommy! I miss you! Where have you been?" Shirley sat up, immediately ceasing her tears when she saw her mother. She held up the arm that was free of the IV tube and reached for Sheryl. At that moment, Sheryl was blind to everything but her daughter. She immediately ran over to Shirley's side. "I'm here, Sweetie. Mommy's here. Do you hurt anywhere? How do you feel?"

"I'm okay now, Mommy. It no longer hurts. Now that you're here, nothing will hurt anymore!" Shirley replied, giving her mother a big smile in an effort to comfort her.

Sheryl felt a terrible amount of guilt for what had happened to Shirley. She blamed herself for everything. If she hadn't agreed to let her daughter have dinner at the Dream Garden with Melissa, then this wouldn't have happened.

Seeing Shirley's pale face and IV tubed arm made her heart ache.

This scene made Charles also tear up. He felt terrible about what happened too. "Sher, I'm so sorry that I..."

However, Sheryl immediately turned her back to him. This was how she showed her anger: with her stiff and straight back.

"Sher, please, I had no idea Shirley had such a serious problem with her stomach. Had I known, I wouldn't have-"

"What did you say? You didn't know?" Sheryl snapped, no longer able to hold back her anger. She had initially felt guilty about what happened, but hearing what Charles just said made all her guilt turn into white-hot fury.

"How could you not know something like this? Shirley has always been living with us. How in the world were you never aware of her condition? Do you even care at all?" She did not face him but continued her tirade in an ice-cold voice. "I think it's because you don't have a heart. You have no room for your family or your kids, so it's only natural that you don't know anything about them."

She left no room for his rebuttal, deciding right then and there that she would never give him a second chance.

Charles' lips twitched as he racked his brains for his defense; however, he came up blank and had no idea what to say under such circumstances.

Sheryl wasn't wrong. He did think of work as his life, so he spent more time in his office than at home with his kids. In a way, he truly wasn't a good or responsible father.

It was quiet in the room. Sheryl had waited for Charles to come up with at least a lame excuse to get out of his responsibility. To her disappointment, the man did not even utter a single word to let her know he still cared for his two kids.

Sheryl could only close her eyes in disappointment.

Hearing her parents get into an argument, Shirley couldn't help but intervene. "Mommy, please don't get mad. Daddy didn't do it on purpose. I'm okay now, see? It doesn't hurt a single bit!"

Sheryl opened her eyes to look down at her daughter. It hurt just how much she looked like Charles. There was a needle stuck to her arm, but Shirley still thought of her father, and she even had the strength to comfort her parents. What a wonderful kid!

Overwhelmed by emotions, Sheryl couldn't stop the tears that flowed down her beautiful face. However, she immediately blinked, and the next time she opened her eyes, there was nothing but coldness. "You should leave. I don't want to argue with you in front of Shirley, and I don't want to see your face again!" she told Charles.

Her words shocked him. He didn't think she'd kick him out at an hour like this.

He didn't want to leave, not one bit. Charles wanted to stay here and take care of Shirley with her. Despite his recent absence, he still wanted to make sure that his child was completely okay. "Sher, this is all my fault. I did not take good care of Shirley. It's all my fault. I swear I'll pay more attention to our kids. Just please let me stay here and look after her with you. Please." "No way!" Sheryl replied with not a moment's hesitation.

Charles could only lower his head in sorrow.

Seeing her father like this, Shirley couldn't help but also feel bad. She wanted to say something but couldn't because her mother was so angry.