Chapter 304 - 291: What Are You Going to Do?
One moment, he was laughing and joking with Sharon Ennis over congee; the next, he was suddenly "tired."
Elliot Sheridan’s brows knitted together tightly. ’He’s not tired,’ he thought. ’He’s asking for a beating.’
"Mom, take Georgia outside. I need to have a word with him!"
"Elliot, you..."
Georgia Thorne wanted to stop Elliot, to tell him not to be rash. No matter how angry he was, Aidan Sheridan was still just a kid.
But a single, icy glare from Elliot silenced her.
’She was just worried!’
Sharon, on the other hand, understood her son. It was good for the two brothers to have a proper talk. Even if they had a huge fight this time, they would surely make up later.
She took Georgia’s hand. "Georgia, let’s go outside first. Let the two brothers talk things out."
She patted the back of Georgia’s hand reassuringly, a silent promise that they would be fine. Only then did Georgia follow her out.
Sharon deliberately closed the door, then took Georgia for a few laps around the garden outside.
Inside the hospital room, Elliot stood before the bed without a word. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his suit jacket, deftly lit one, and just smoked.
Elliot didn’t speak, just took one hard drag after another. Aidan, in a fit of pique, looked away.
For as long as the two brothers had known each other, this was the first time they had been so distant and cold.
Aidan was, after all, much younger than Elliot, with the mindset of a seventeen or eighteen-year-old. He didn’t have Elliot’s composure and was the first to break the silence. "If my sister comes back, what are you going to do?"
After Aidan’s shout, the room fell silent once more.
White smoke curled up from Elliot’s fingertips, blurring his vision. The Aidan before him was still Aidan, just more unreasonable now.
"What’s it got to do with me?"
He didn’t speak until he had finished the entire cigarette. Then, with a CLICK, he lit another.
"What do you mean, what’s it got to do with you? My sister used to be with you!" Aidan roared in anger.
"You said it yourself. That was in the past."
"..."
His cold, indifferent words left Aidan speechless, able only to glare at him with a mixture of anger and indignation.
He knew his second brother had excelled at everything since they were young. His words and actions were always flawless, giving no one any leverage. On the contrary, you were more likely to be on the losing end with him.
"I will never accept her, not in this lifetime!" Aidan said furiously.
"You not accepting Georgia, what does that have to do with me?" Elliot looked at him calmly. "The person Georgia Thorne married is me. What does that have to do with you!"
"Brother, you know perfectly well..."
Before Aidan could finish, Elliot cut him off. "There’s only one solution to you not accepting Georgia!"
"What solution?"
"Aidan, from now on, you’re no brother of mine."
Aidan’s eyes widened in shock. Was Elliot really going to disown him for Georgia Thorne?
"Mom and Dad will still treat you as family, but I won’t," Elliot looked at him. "Aidan, you’re a grown-up now, not a child anymore. Do you have any idea what’s happened these past few years?"
"Enough has happened to turn your world completely upside down. No matter what, your sister and I can never be together. Don’t even dream about it in this lifetime."
"Meeting Georgia was the luckiest thing that ever happened to me. Every single day I’m with her, I feel my life is full and happy. It’s a feeling I’ve never had before, so I will never let her go."
Aidan looked at him in disbelief. This wasn’t the Elliot he remembered.
He rarely expressed his desires so strongly. The Elliot he remembered was always a cold person.
"Did you not feel this way when you were dating my sister?" he asked, his voice hoarse.
Quentin Chase’s family was not well-off; she grew up in poverty. Her father passed away when she was fifteen, leaving only her mother to care for her.
Quentin’s parents had a strong preference for boys and had originally wanted a son. Who knew that after Aidan was born, he was frail and sickly.
They were poor, so they abandoned Aidan. Fortunately, the kind-hearted Sharon Ennis found him and brought him home, raising him as her own ever since.
Quentin Chase always kept in touch with the Sheridan Family. He was her biological brother, after all, and she wasn’t as heartless as her parents. She would secretly come to see Aidan during school holidays.
As Aidan grew up, he learned about his past and knew that this beautiful older girl was his biological sister. He would often pull Quentin along to play with him.
Back then, Quentin was one grade below Elliot, and they happened to attend the same school. While Aidan played nearby, Quentin and Elliot would do their homework together.
It was a classic case of familiarity breeding affection.
Aidan suddenly missed the time before everything had changed.
That period was arguably the happiest time of his life. His favorite sister and his most respected second brother were together.
His second brother was a good person. He never liked other girls getting close to him, but his sister was the exception.
Elliot allowed Quentin to be by his side, enjoying a treatment no other girl had ever received.
At an age when romantic feelings first blossom, Quentin developed a crush on Elliot and confessed her feelings. Elliot then agreed.
After they officially started dating, Elliot would leave an hour earlier every day to pick Quentin up for school, and come back an hour later after walking her home.
At that time, all the girls envied Quentin Chase. Some, their eyes red with jealousy, would even bully the gentle Quentin.
When Elliot found out, he taught those girls a harsh lesson. Seeing that made Aidan incredibly envious. He thought to himself that one day, he wanted to become a man just like Elliot.
The news of Elliot and Quentin’s relationship spread like wildfire; they didn’t hide it at all. It wasn’t just the school; even the Sheridan Family knew.
Sharon Ennis and James Sheridan were called in by the school’s teachers and informed that Elliot and Quentin were dating at a young age.
That was back in high school, it seemed. Other students who were dating all took their relationships underground. Who would be as brazen as them?
James Sheridan had a fiery temper. After being criticized by the teachers at school, he went home and gave his son a piece of his mind.
After that, not only did Elliot not change, but he doubled down and treated Quentin even better.
Back then, he thought the one his second brother would marry was his sister.
But sadly, everything changed.
The present was a world away from what he had once imagined.
Elliot had become even colder, and the person he now cherished and protected was someone else.
"Brother, my sister is back. I’ve already seen her!" Aidan said softly, carefully watching Elliot’s expression.
Seeing no change on his face, a look of disappointment crossed his own.
He continued, "My sister... she hasn’t had it easy these past few years. She was forced to leave you back then. She was even..."
"In what capacity are you telling me this? If it’s as an old friend, perhaps I’d listen. But if it’s for the reason I think it is, then I’m sorry, but I don’t want to hear a single word!"
Aidan looked at him, feeling he was playing dumb. "I hope you two can get back together."
"You want your sister to be a homewrecker, scorned by everyone? You want her to be the other woman who destroys someone’s marriage?"
"My sister is not a homewrecker! That Georgia Thorne is the other woman!" He hated Georgia Thorne to death.
"Aidan, you watch your mouth!" Elliot’s voice turned sharp. No one was allowed to speak ill of Georgia Thorne.
"Brother, you’re playing favorites!"
"She’s my woman. Of course I’m biased!" Elliot admitted without hesitation, his voice cold. "If I ever hear you slander her again, don’t you dare call me ’Second Brother’ ever again! I can’t bear the title!"
’If I don’t protect my own woman, who will?’
"Brother!"
Sensing the absolute seriousness in his tone, that he meant every word this time, Aidan’s own voice couldn’t help but soften.
Elliot stubbed out the cigarette in his hand, dropped it to the floor, and ground it out with his foot. "You just behave yourself!"
Leaving that warning behind, Elliot turned and walked out.
Standing at the doorway, he scanned the corridor but didn’t see Georgia. He pulled out his phone to call her.
Meanwhile, Georgia and Sharon had gone downstairs and ran right into William.
William dismissed Sharon with a few quick words, saying he needed to talk to Georgia.
Georgia didn’t move. "I don’t think I have anything to talk to you about."
Although William was a doctor, Georgia had no good impression of him.
He had deceived her once, and she had almost believed him.
"A secret about Elliot. Are you really not interested in knowing?"
"What secret? Can’t you say it here?"
"You seem to have a problem with me. Is it because I lied to you last time?"
Georgia glared at him angrily, but he just raised an eyebrow, seemingly unbothered. "I’m a doctor. Saving people is my job. Even if I deceived you, it was only because I wanted to save Aidan."
"Besides, it wasn’t exactly a lie. Right after your car accident, Elliot really did want your kidney."
It was just a matter of timing.
"This time, I’m really not lying. It’s a secret about Elliot. It can’t be told, only seen with your own eyes." William turned around. "If you want to know, then follow me."
William strode toward his office. Just as Georgia was hesitating, Elliot’s call came through.
"I’m downstairs. I’ll be right up."
"Don’t bother. We’re going home." Seeing Sharon coming up the stairs, Elliot gestured for her to leave. "Where are you? I’ll come find you."
"I’m at the main entrance."
"Wait for me there."
Elliot hung up and was about to leave when Sharon stopped him. "How did your talk with Aidan go?"
Elliot didn’t answer, but from the look on his face, it couldn’t have gone well.
"Aidan is still young, you should be more patient with him. Besides, William also said that he... Hey, why won’t you kids ever listen to advice!"