Delayed Regrets: He Regretted Only After Her Death-Chapter 86: If I Don’t Die, You’re Not Allowed to Die Either
Hospital.
Oncology department, inpatient ward.
Tiana Linden’s eyelids felt heavy; opening them took all her strength.
The smell she inhaled through her nose was that of disinfectant.
So familiar!
As she moved her arm, the IV above her head swayed gently.
This is...
"If you keep lying here any longer, I’m about to lose patience guarding you."
Tiana looked in the direction of the voice and saw Hector Chaucer sitting on a chair beside the bed.
The man claiming impatience had bloodshot eyes.
The bluish-black stubble on his face was something Tiana had never seen before.
Even when Hector had escaped from prison and met her, he hadn’t appeared this worn down and haggard.
Tiana’s mind was fuzzy, like it was stuffed with glue.
"So I... didn’t die?"
She had clearly seen her mother coming to take her to another world.
She’d heard Daisy’s pleading cries, so helpless and powerless.
She didn’t even know how she finally lost consciousness.
Hector was also trained in medicine.
He checked the vital sign monitor at Tiana’s bedside—all the readings were normal.
Only then did his gaze return to Tiana’s face.
"From now on, you’re not allowed to mention ’death’ again."
"Bad luck!"
Tiana had always known Hector was a staunch materialist.
Words like ’bad luck’ had never passed his lips before.
Her head grew even foggier. "So am I... dead or alive, then?"
Hector repeated, "Tiana, from now on, do not mention that word."
The word ’death’ made the blood in Hector’s eyes even redder, densely packed and shining with tears.
Even the veins at his neck were tensed tight.
It was as if he was afraid of something.
The shimmer of tears among the bloodshot eyes pricked at Tiana’s heart.
The Hector Chaucer she knew had grown up in the Chaucer family.
He’d grown used to the schemes and harm from those around him.
He’d also learned to hide every emotion with numb, inscrutable eyes.
She’d known him for more than twenty years.
Tiana had never seen tears in Hector’s eyes.
"Hector, you..."
"Tiana, you should know, ever since we were little, I’ve only had you, Aiden, and Christopher as friends."
Hector spoke with utmost seriousness.
That was true!
The people closest to Hector had hurt him the deepest.
He grew up withdrawn—no family, no friends.
Was she... really his friend since childhood?
The glimmer of tears disappeared from Hector’s eyes.
The iron will and toughness of a man returned to his gaze once again.
"Tiana, as long as I’m alive, I won’t allow you to mention death again."
The tone carried a kind of rare, inexplicable authority.
Tiana didn’t have time to think of anything else.
All she could hear in her mind was Daisy’s cries, over and over.
At death’s door, Daisy had begged her, pleaded for one last hug.
But at that moment, she could feel her life slipping away.
She’d wanted to get up and hug Daisy, but just couldn’t do it.
Now, she ached to hold Daisy in her arms.
Never let go again.
"Hector, where’s Daisy?"
Hector replied, "You’ve been unconscious, and I was worried revealing you were alive would shock Daisy too much—so I haven’t told her yet."
As he spoke, Hector succinctly explained everything that had happened over these days to Tiana.
At this moment, all of those unreadable flashes in his eyes were gone.
Only the usual calm and toughness remained.
As if the fear and tears Tiana had seen just now had only been her imagination.
Tiana didn’t dwell on it.
Now she understood.
Everyone had thought she was already dead.
They’d even held a funeral for her.
Hector added, "I’ve already notified Leo Sutton. Daisy will be brought here soon."
Not long after, a doctor came to check on Tiana’s condition.
She was recovering well.
But the cancer cells in her body still hadn’t been completely cleared.
Treatment had to continue.
Afterwards, Tiana was transferred to a regular ward.
In the bright morning light of May, a trace of color had returned to her cheeks.
But she was still much too thin.
Gordon Lowell brought a bowl of pork and vegetable porridge.
The grains were cooked until soft and mushy.
Just smelling it made her feel hungry.
Gordon handed the bowl, filled with steaming porridge, to Tiana.
"Miss Linden, Mr. Chaucer specially instructed the kitchen to cook it extra soft and mushy."
"He didn’t know when you’d wake up these days."
"He’s been watching over you, hasn’t showered or changed his clothes, and honestly, he smells!"
Hector took the porridge from Tiana and brought it over himself.
With calm eyes, he glanced sidelong at Gordon:
"You’re no longer needed here."
Gordon grinned and quickly slipped out of the room, knowing not to overstay.
Now only Tiana and Hector remained in the ward.
Hector scooped up a spoonful of porridge and brought it to Tiana’s lips.
Tiana wasn’t used to being taken care of like this.
She thanked him, snatched the spoon, and started eating on her own.
Halfway through, she looked up and asked, "Hector, where did you get the M901 anti-cancer drug?"
Hector: "Just eat your porridge first."
After surviving such an ordeal, everything tasted wonderful to Tiana.
She took a few more bites.
The aroma of rice, vegetables, and meat.
All of it felt like the energy of life.
It’s good to be alive!
She could keep watching over her Daisy.
She wondered how Daisy had fared during these days.
Had she eaten well, had she cried?
She missed Daisy so much.
After finishing the porridge, she raised her eyes.
"Hector, why did you save me?"
Hector didn’t answer, but asked instead:
"Twenty-three years ago, at the Zane Family’s grandson’s one-hundred-day banquet—"
"The Chaucer family pushed me into the water. Do you remember?"
Of course, Tiana remembered it clearly.
As the Chaucer family’s unwanted illegitimate child, Hector was bullied since he was small.
At the Zane Family’s baby’s hundred-day banquet, Hector’s half-siblings, knowing he couldn’t swim, pushed him into a more than two-meter-deep pool.
She couldn’t swim, either.
But she grabbed a battered swimming ring and struggled to reach him.
Tiana suddenly understood, "Because I saved you, you had to save me?"
Hector: "Hector Chaucer always repays what he owes. Both resentment and gratitude."
When he said this, he kept his eyes on Tiana.
His gaze was calm, yet felt like a deep whirlpool that could swallow her whole.
For half a minute, he didn’t even blink.
Tiana suddenly didn’t know how to respond, "...."
She’d been six, Hector nine years old.
When she jumped into the water, her swimming ring was broken.
She was afraid of the water.
But she still paddled desperately towards Hector.
In her memory,
She’d meant to save Hector.
In her panic and fear, she’d accidentally shoved Hector’s head under water.
She couldn’t have looked more ridiculous at the time.
In the end, it was Aiden and Christopher who rushed over and fished them both out.
Childhood memories seemed so distant.
So far away it felt like another lifetime.
And yet, it could have been just yesterday.
Tiana felt grateful; she was lucky to have such good friends around her.
"Hector, you’re definitely a friend worth keeping for life."
The word ’friend’ made Hector’s eyes grow quieter.
With a creak,
The ward door was pushed open at that moment.
Daisy, standing in the doorway, was stunned.
Leo hadn’t lied to her.
Her mother was alive!
Her mother really was alive!!
Tears of joy streamed down Daisy’s face.
She couldn’t contain herself, broke into a run towards her mom.
Tiana, on the bed, couldn’t help herself either; she threw off the covers and rushed to Daisy.
But her legs, still weak, gave out the moment she touched the floor and she collapsed to her knees.
Hector, quick as lightning, grabbed her arm in time.
His single arm was strong as steel.
He effortlessly lifted Tiana up.
"Careful!"
These gentle words, ’Careful,’ dropped softly.
But carried immense weight.
And came with Hector’s steady gaze directed at Tiana.
In their excitement, Tiana and Daisy didn’t even notice.
Only Leo Sutton nearby heard and saw it all.
Hector’s eyes were bloodshot, his dark stubbled face unruly from days without shaving.
He’d really been watching over Tiana?
Now Leo realized Hector had stayed here the entire time.
Hector made sure Tiana was steady. "You okay?"
Tiana had no time to answer.
At this moment, she had Daisy pressed tightly in her arms.
Lost and regained, overcome with tears of joy.
"Mom!" Daisy cried in her mother’s arms, completely overwhelmed, "I missed you so much!"
"Daisy, Mommy missed you, too."
Witnessing this touching scene, Leo’s eyes reddened.
Thank God!
Tiana was alive! Alive!!
Daisy wouldn’t have to lose her mom after all.
Hector turned to Leo and reminded him:
"Let’s leave them alone. Mother and daughter need time to reunite."
There were endless words the two of them had to say.
Endless emotions to share.
The two men walked out of the ward.
Tiana and Daisy didn’t even notice.
Outside, Leo watched Hector close the door. "You’ve been here with Tiana this whole time?"
Hector didn’t answer, but asked instead, "You and Tiana aren’t married in reality, are you?"
Leo had never told Hector the truth about his and Tiana’s legal marriage certificate.
Leo asked, "Did Tiana tell you?"
Hector: "I’m waiting for your answer."
Leo: "What made you suspect?"
Actually, it wasn’t hard to figure out.
Tiana loved lisianthus, yet the Sutton Family villa garden was full of gardenias.
Back when Leo secretly loved Tiana in school, Hector had known.
Leo had even fought with Aiden once back then.
If Leo still harbored feelings for Tiana, the garden would’ve been changed to her favorite lisianthus.
But gardenias had always grown there.
Meaning Leo’s heart still belonged to his late wife, Kiera Chaucer.
He’d found his answer and went silent.
Then, he patted Leo’s shoulder. "I’ll leave this to you. I’m going home for a shower."
Tiana had been unconscious for five days, and he’d kept vigil for all five.
In the heat of summer, he was starting to smell.
Time for a shower!
Exiting the oncology ward,
Hector bumped into Aiden Grant.
Both came from different departments and met head-on in the outside corridor of the inpatient building.
Clearly, both were headed for the parking lot.
They stopped where they stood.
Obviously, across from him, Aiden looked haggard and weak.
Hector asked, "I heard you coughed up blood at the funeral?"
Saying this, Hector’s gaze unconsciously swept Aiden’s left hand.
A needle mark remained.
With blood stains, too.
No need to guess—that came from forcibly pulling out the needle, causing bleeding.
This guy had a death wish!
Hector frowned, snorted, "You made your own bed."
Before he finished, Hector was already walking away.
Aiden stared at his retreating back. "Hector, why are you at the hospital?"
All he got was Hector’s cold reply:
"Take care of your own health. If you die, no one will mourn you."
He wouldn’t tell Aiden that Tiana was still alive.
Tiana didn’t want to see him either.
Aiden was courting death.
Tiana’s ’death’ had hit him like a wrecking ball.
Now, in the blazing sun of May,
Everything was lit up with harsh sunlight.
But to him, the dazzling skyscrapers, the lush creeper vines, the vivid flowers, even the bright sunshine were all gray and bleak.
The whole world had lost its color.
Life had lost all meaning.
Only Daisy’s broken, scattered figure in his mind kept him going.
He’d promised Daisy he’d bring her a photo of himself and her mother.
He had to hurry back to Star River Bay.
Just the thought of seeing Daisy when he had the photo brought him a sliver of comfort.
...
Star River Bay, Serenity Villa.
Vivian Linden had been waiting for Aiden for three days and nights.
He’d vanished as if off the face of the earth.
She tried every way but still couldn’t reach him.
Also unreachable were Uncle Carter, Mrs. Walsh, and his driver Carter.
When Aiden finally dragged his exhausted body back to the living room, Vivian burst into tears and threw herself at him.
Her slender hand landed on Aiden’s hand.
"Aiden, where have you been these last two days?"
The slender hand on his arm was coldly brushed off by Aiden. "Don’t call me Aiden."
Aiden...
Only Tiana had ever called him that.
