My Amnesic Ex Married My Sister, So I Married His Uncle-Chapter 57: Recommendation for Inpatient Treatment
As Stella Sterling spoke, she bared her teeth at Madeline Jennings in a mock snarl.
Upon seeing this, Madeline Jennings’s well-maintained face filled with shock.
’Is this still my cold, quiet, aloof, and withdrawn younger daughter?’
’Stella looks like a complete lunatic right now!’
After a long moment, she snapped, "Are you out of your mind? Look at you! Is that any way for a young lady to act? If you’re sick, go get treated. Don’t throw a fit in here!"
The anger made Stella laugh. "If you find me such an eyesore, then why insist on dragging me back here? You brought this misery on yourself, yet you pin all the blame on me. Ms. Jennings, Kiana is so skilled at stirring up trouble and making a scene—it must be a testament to your excellent guidance."
Hearing this, Madeline was so furious her hand trembled as she pointed at Stella’s face.
With her eyes red-rimmed, Kiana tugged at Madeline’s hand, desperately trying to calm her down.
"Stella Sterling!" Chase Sterling shouted from the side, cutting her off. "Will you ever stop? Do you have to keep making a scene? Every time, we try to talk to you civilly, but you’re the one who goes crazy! You’re the one who insists on acting up, making it seem like the whole family has a vendetta against you. Do you have a persecution complex?"
Sometimes, being speechless just makes you laugh.
Stella found it all so absurd.
She found the five people sitting on the sofa utterly absurd.
She put on a very fake, sweet smile and said in a strained, high-pitched voice, "That’s right~ It’s all just my imagination~ I’m just imagining that my own dear sister got engaged to my ex-boyfriend while he had amnesia. I’m imagining that my parents, far from stopping it, did everything to push it through, even trying to marry me off to a total stranger. I’m imagining that my whole family blames me for being immature, throwing tantrums, and being completely unreasonable."
She let out a cold laugh, her voice dropping back to its normal pitch. "Young President Sterling, are you even listening to yourself? You’re a real bastard!"
At this, Kiana Sterling finally broke, tears streaming silently down her face.
She choked out between sobs, "Stella, you really do blame me... It’s all my fault. Just blame me. Mom, Dad, and our brother truly dote on you; please don’t take your anger out on them."
Madeline’s heart already ached for Kiana. Seeing her crying so pitifully, then looking over at the defiant Stella, she rushed to pull Kiana into a comforting embrace and shot Stella a vicious glare.
Kiana was sobbing uncontrollably, her cries and Madeline’s soft murmurs of comfort filling the entire living room.
After a moment, Kiana suddenly stood up and walked over to Stella, reaching for her hand.
Stella instantly jerked her left hand away, even taking two steps back as if recoiling from a viper.
The platinum ring on her left ring finger glinted as she pulled her arm back. For some reason, Stella felt the searing irritation in her heart cool slightly at the sight.
Kiana bit her lip, looking wronged. "Stella, it’s all my fault. If you just can’t get over your anger... I... I’ll kowtow and apologize to you, how about that?"
Stella raised an eyebrow at her words.
She crossed her arms, turning to the side to look at the sniveling Kiana. "Fine. Go on, then. Kowtow."
After a moment of silence, the living room erupted into chaos.
Madeline rushed to stop Kiana, who was already bending her knees to kneel. Chase leaped to his feet, roaring at Stella not to take things too far. Gavin Sterling turned his head and ordered Joel Joyce to fetch the family’s rattan cane...
Amid the chaos, Kiana glanced at Ethan Rhodes.
But she saw him staring blankly at Stella, his brow deeply furrowed, completely lost in thought.
Just then—SLAP!
The crisp sound of a palm striking flesh brought the chaos to a halt.
Stella looked at Chase, sneering. "So who’s the one with the persecution complex now? Kiana was the one who offered to kowtow and apologize. How does that make me the one ’taking things too far’?"
Then she turned to Kiana. "You put on this whole act just to get me to hit you, didn’t you? Well, I did. Are you satisfied now?"
"That’s not... I didn’t..."
As she spoke, Kiana’s body visibly swayed from side to side.
Seeing this, Madeline quickly called out to Ethan Rhodes. "Ethan, hurry! Kiana is about to collapse. Take her upstairs to rest."
But Ethan had zoned out.
Madeline had to call his name twice before he snapped out of it. He then put an arm around Kiana and started leading her upstairs.
Just before heading up the stairs, he couldn’t resist one last glance back at the girl, whose very posture was a picture of defiance.
Ethan Rhodes helped Kiana Sterling to the bed, carefully tucked her in, then poured a glass of water and placed it on her bedside table.
He said softly, "Get some rest. If you’re really not feeling well, I’ll take you to the hospital in a little while."
Kiana’s gentle hand took his. "Ethan, what are you thinking about? You keep zoning out."
Ethan shook his head, one hand gently stroking her shoulder. "It’s nothing. Don’t overthink it."
After he spoke, his gaze grew distant again.
’The image of Stella uncontrollably surfaced in his mind.’
’Today, Stella was wearing a light-apricot, bohemian-style maxi dress, paired with a small, fringed vest adorned with Van Gogh’s sunflowers. She looked like a gypsy girl.’
’She often wore light-colored maxi dresses, which always made her look as elegant and distant as an ethereal fairy, untouched by the mortal world.’
’But today, that splash of orange-yellow made her look like a bright, cheerful college student, adding a touch of vibrant, uninhibited energy that was rare for her.’
’Especially the way she’d bared her teeth at Madeline Jennings just now... He had the insane thought that she was... cute.’
’He clearly didn’t remember anything from the past, yet he had a gut feeling that he had never seen this side of Stella before.’
’He wanted to take another look.’
As he started to get up, Kiana grabbed his hand. Her eyes were hazy with tears, the picture of pitiable beauty. "Ethan, aren’t you going to stay with me?"
Ethan was at a loss for words.
Kiana leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Ethan, promise me, if you ever remember everything and want to go back to Stella, you have to tell me, okay? I love you so much—more than I love myself. When that day comes, I promise I’ll walk away quietly. All that matters is your happiness."
Her soft, tender words were so heart-wrenching. Ethan felt like he must be losing his mind.
He quickly sat back down and held Kiana to comfort her. "Don’t say such silly things. You’re my fiancée, and you’ll be my wife. Kiana, I only love you. Don’t overthink it, hmm? I was just worried that if Stella really has a meltdown, she might hurt your parents."
Kiana nodded meekly. "You don’t have to worry, either. Joel Joyce is downstairs. Stella is more scared of him than anyone."
"Mm."
Downstairs in the living room, however, the situation grew suddenly calm after Kiana and Ethan left.
Gavin Sterling, Madeline Jennings, and Chase Sterling sat primly on the sofa, as if nothing had happened at all.
The sudden tranquility struck Stella as strange.
Sure enough, a moment later Gavin Sterling said, "Please have Dr. Finch come in."
Joel Joyce acknowledged the order and left, returning a short while later to the living room with a man in a suit.
Gavin Sterling politely invited him to take a seat. "Dr. Finch," he asked, "you saw what just transpired. From a medical standpoint, would you say my daughter has some... mental issues?"
Dr. Finch pushed up his glasses and replied with an obsequious smile, "Although a formal evaluation hasn’t been conducted, based on what I just observed, it’s highly likely your daughter suffers from bipolar disorder, accompanied by a lack of self-control and the potential to harm others. I would recommend hospitalization for treatment."
’It finally dawned on Stella. The whole family... they wanted to have her committed to a mental hospital to force her into submission!’
