She hesitated momentarily but quickly regained her composure.

She had decided to draw a clear boundary between herself and Holden.

Thoughts of him should no longer consume her.

With a slight shake of her head, Ariana replied, "It's nothing that pressing. I'll deal with it once we're back." She then inserted the new SIM card into her phone.

Ariana and Mitchel hustled into the hospital and stepped into the ward.

Melon, clad in a hospital gown, lay on the bed, flipping through a picture book. Catching sight of Ariana's arrival, he reached out, yearning for a hug.

Ariana swooped in, lifting Melon and holding him close. She gently tapped his tiny nose and asked, “Missing Mommy, aren't you?"

“Absolutely!” Melon beamed, snuggling against her shoulder. Then, pointing at the book, he said, “Mommy, tell me about this one.”

Ariana kept Melon in her arms and began reading him a story. As the story unfolded, a doctor strolled in to carry out the routine blood test for Melon.

Ariana observed as Melon obediently extended his hand, his tiny fingers already marked by needle marks, a faint bruise emerging on the back. Her heart ached at that moment, her brows furrowing as tears welled up. She battled to keep them at bay, not wanting Melon to see her distress.

Feeling a comforting hand on her back, Ariana turned to find Mitchel offering her solace. "He'll recover soon," he reassured her.

Ariana nodded, discreetly brushing away the tears while Melon was preoccupied.

Soon, the comprehensive test report was out, and thankfully, the results were good.

Reviewing the report, Mitchel said, "Given the current scenario, once the new medication from the hospital's lab is in play, we can kick Melon's illness to the curb. It'll take time, though. Another round of meds, and once he's stable, he can get out of here. Odds of relapse? Slim to none."

“That's fantastic news!" Ariana was elated, enveloping Melon, tears of joy streaming down her face. “You'll be okay."

*

Three weeks later, Ariana and Melon hopped onto the plane back to Eleymond. Mitchel had flown in a day earlier due to urgent matters.

Melon was in high spirits, chatting cheerfully throughout the journey.

Holding Ariana's hand, he seemed to have brushed off the incident with his father, reverting to his carefree self.

Seeing Melon so happy and his health improving, Ariana breathed a sigh of relief. She grinned and tousled her son's hair, joining him in gazing at the clouds outside.