When she was about to sleep that night, Lauren Shaw suddenly felt a hard lump in her right breast. It scared her badly.
The next morning, she drove to the hospital.
She’d asked her older sister, Nina Shaw, to book an appointment ahead of time with an old specialist—her sister used to work at the hospital.
Lauren Shaw waited outside the consultation room her sister told her about.
The breast department was the third room on the left on the fifth floor. Its nameplate had fallen off—probably broken and not yet replaced.
There were voices from inside the partly open consultation room.
“Dr. Shen, thank you for saving my father. As a token of appreciation, may I treat you to a meal?”
Hearing this somewhat flirtatious voice, Lauren Shaw stopped herself from going in.
She was just standing there—not trying to eavesdrop at all.
“Miss Taylor, this is my job. If there’s nothing else, please leave. I have other patients to see.”
His voice was indifferent and distant, but magnetic, polite yet keeping people at arm’s length. Still, Lauren Shaw thought it sounded awfully familiar.
From his voice, he sounded young. But her sister said this was an old expert, which left Lauren Shaw rather puzzled.
The woman inside was persistent. “I can wait until you finish work. Just give me a chance to thank you. Without you, my dad might have…”
“Sorry, there’s no need for a meal. Please don’t interrupt my work,” the man cut her off, flatly refusing.
The woman wanted to argue more, but the man didn’t give her a chance.
How boring, Lauren Shaw thought. He wouldn’t even accept dinner from such a beautiful woman.
The door was pulled open from inside. The woman glanced back unwillingly; the man kept his head down, not sparing her a look, and she could only leave, disappointed.
“Next!”
Hearing the call, Lauren Shaw entered the room. The first thing she noticed was a pair of elegant hands typing at a keyboard.
The man in a white coat wore rimless gold glasses. His cool gaze regarded her calmly.
For some reason, Lauren Shaw’s heart skipped a beat.
A faint smile curved Yancy Shaw’s lips—an attractive, warm arc.
“It’s you, Miss Li,” he said.
The coolness in his eyes warmed a little, making him seem gentler than before.
Forcing down the frantic flutter in her chest, Lauren Shaw felt a bit embarrassed. “I had no idea you were a doctor, Mr. Shen.”
And a breast surgeon, at that.
“What’s been bothering you?” Yancy Shaw asked.
Lauren Shaw looked up at him, briefly distracted.
Under his doctor’s coat he wore a crisp white shirt, buttoned right up to the collar—a simple, typical look, and yet he gave off a strangely ascetic vibe.
After a long daze, Lauren Shaw glanced away, feeling embarrassed. Even if doctors see no gender, she still felt incredibly self-conscious.
“Relax. You can tell me anything,” Yancy Shaw reassured her, his gentle smile completely different from how he’d spoken with Miss Taylor.
Lauren Shaw bit her lip and pointed at her chest. “It hurts here.”
“Is it your heart?” he asked patiently.
“No, um… my chest.” She dropped her gaze, voice barely audible. “I found a hard lump there last night.”
Seeing her discomfort, Yancy Shaw’s lips twitched up in an amused smile.
“Which department did you register for?”
“Breast department!” Lauren Shaw waved her registration slip for him to see.
Yancy Shaw chuckled softly, his eyes full of warmth.
“Miss Li, this is cardiovascular surgery. The breast department is in the next building.”
“….”
Lauren Shaw was so embarrassed she could have dug a three-bedroom apartment out of the floor with her toes.
Her gaze drifted to Yancy Shaw’s elegant hands. Such hands, if wielding a scalpel…
He was handsome, refined, and, most importantly, so gentle. Claire Xu was right: There are plenty of men in the sea—lose one, forget one. Looking at handsome guys always brightens your mood.
“Miss Li, do you need me to walk you over?” Yancy Shaw’s gaze held a teasing glint.
“No, that’s okay.” She hurriedly looked away and left the consultation room, still mortified.
A familiar voice echoed through the corridor, making Lauren Shaw freeze.
“Yuche, don’t you have an important meeting this afternoon? You don’t need to stay with me.”
“I can’t relax unless I’m with you. Nothing’s more important than you,” Yvonne Sung replied, his voice warm. Even without seeing his expression, Lauren Shaw could tell his gaze must be exceptionally tender just now.
In her memory, he had never treated her that way.
Lauren Shaw tried to walk calmly past them without a fuss, but Yana Quinn’s sharp eyes spotted her.
“Miss Li! What a coincidence. What brings you to the hospital? Are you feeling unwell?”
Lauren Shaw gave her a calm look. “No.”
Wonderful. Running into them here had completely ruined her good mood from seeing a good-looking doctor.
She didn’t want to get entangled with them and turned toward the elevators.
But Yana Quinn caught up, grabbing her hand, anxiously begging, “Miss Li, I’m sorry, it’s not how you think between me and Yuche. Please don’t misunderstand.”
Lauren Shaw calmly shook off her hand, her gaze turning colder. “Miss Quinn, hearing the same lines too many times just makes them sound fake. That act doesn’t work on me.”
She figured only Yvonne Sung would fall for this master-class ‘green tea*’ routine. As for Lauren Shaw, her feelings for Yvonne Sung were dead; he was just a stranger now. Yana Quinn’s tricks had nothing to do with her anymore.
(*‘Green tea’ here refers to a woman who appears innocent and sweet but is actually manipulative—popular internet slang.)
Yvonne Sung frowned at Lauren Shaw, coldly saying, “Yana Quinn, you don’t have to apologize to her. What she thinks is no longer your concern. Don’t wrong yourself for her sake.”
After Lauren Shaw had called off the engagement, Su De’an had looked into it, found out Yvonne Sung and Yana Quinn were together, and flew into a rage, even giving Yvonne Sung a beating last night. He’d forbidden them to be together, but Yvonne Sung still didn’t get it. Why did everyone dislike Yana Quinn? Yvonne Sung thought Yana Quinn was the best woman ever.
Su De’an always said he was blind for letting go of a ‘gold ingot’ like Lauren Shaw and insisting on treasuring a ‘rusty iron scrap’ like Yana Quinn. He’d regret it one day.
But Yvonne Sung refused to believe it. As far as he was concerned, Yana Quinn was perfect.
Watching Yana Quinn act out her pure, innocent persona, Lauren Shaw patted her own chest. Calm down—getting upset is bad for your health.
Yana Quinn clung to Yvonne Sung. “Don’t be like that, Yuche, Miss Li will be upset.” she said softly.
Lauren Shaw watched her perform in silence. She really was born to act—Lauren Shaw almost wanted to give her an award for it.
“Miss Li, are you lost? Should I walk you over personally?” Yancy Shaw showed up at the door at some point. Who knows how much he’d overheard.
Lauren Shaw was about to refuse, but with both Yana Quinn and Yvonne Sung eyeing them curiously, she couldn’t turn down Yancy Shaw’s offer now.
Yancy Shaw led the way, with Lauren Shaw following behind into the elevator.
For some reason, watching the two of them enter the elevator together, Yvonne Sung suddenly felt a wave of irritation and gloom.