?<strong>Chapter 422:</strong>


    Joelle had anticipated this, but hearing it still felt like a knife to her chest. “Okay,” she managed to whisper.


    Lacey had left this world quietly, with little suffering. The night before her passing, she and Michael had shared a deep, reflective conversation about life. But the following day, she was struck by a heart attack. Even as she was rushed to the hospital, she clung to her fading strength, holding on just a little longer.


    She had said, “Michael, I’m most worried about my sister. Could you call her over? I want to see her.”


    It wasn’t until Michael made the call to Fiona that he truly understood the weight of Lacey’s words.


    Standing at the hospital room door, he felt paralyzed, unable to move inside. Each moment with Lacey felt both like a precious gift and a reminder of the fleeting time they had. For so long, he had believed himself strong, resilient enough to face whatever life threw his way.


    But now, he found himself slumped in the corridor, his heart in pieces. He cursed the cruel hand fate had dealt him, railing against the injustice of it all.


    Among all the healthy people in the world, why had this cursed heart disease imed Lacey? It seemed so unbearably unjust.


    What if he hadn’t gone in to see her? Would she have fought just a little longer? Maybe a miracle would have happened.


    In a moment of self-loathing, Michael pped himself hard across the face, his frustration boiling over.


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    Later, it was Adrian who called him, urging him not to leave with regrets. Only then did Michael find the courage to enter.


    There, surrounded by the cold, sterile beeping of the machines,y Lacey. The once carefree girl was now locked in a losing battle against time.


    Michael wiped his tears as he approached her, masking his sorrow with a brave front. “Lacey…”


    Lacey’s eyelids fluttered open with great difficulty. Her breaths were shallow and uneven, fogging up the oxygen mask.


    She lifted her frail hand, reaching for his, and when their fingers interlocked, she held on as if she never wanted to let go.


    “I’m sorry, Michael…”


    Michael’s throat tightened, and he squeezed her hand, using the connection between them to hide the agony on his face. He finally understood what Adrian meant about not leaving regrets. “Lacey, I love you.”


    A faint smile ghosted across Lacey’s lips, fragile yet filled with all the emotion she had left to give.


    “I love you,” Michael continued, his voice breaking with every word. “I didn’t say it before, but now I want you to remember it. I love you!”


    Over and over, he repeated, “I love you,” as if sheer will could make her stay.


    Lacey gave a small nod, her eyes speaking volumes more than words ever could.


    Slowly, her fingers wrapped around his, tracing the delicate shape of a heart in his palm.


    But Michael couldn’t findfort in her touch. A horrifying thought wed at his mind—Lacey could no longer speak.


    “Lacey? Please, stay with me. Don’t fall asleep, okay?” The lines on her heart monitor began to steady.


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