Chapter 8 Pushing Boundaries

• After paying the bill, Adrian and Serena walked out of the jewelry store.
• “Your mother’s awake,” Adrian said.
• Serena looked up at him quickly. “Then… could I please—”
• Adrian lowered his head and took a whiff at her neck, murmuring, “I’ll allow you to come back after lunch. Be back by two o’clock. That’s plenty of time, isn’t it?”
• Serena glanced down at her digital watch—11:00 AM. That gave her only three hours, and traveling back and forth would eat up a chunk of it. That wasn’t much time at all.
• “Could I maybe—”
• Adrian’s expression turned cold. He snapped, “Do you think you’re in a position to negotiate? If I weren’t in a good mood, do you think I would’ve even told you she woke up?! Don’t push your luck!”
• “Yes!” Serena replied immediately. “I’ll definitely be back on time!”
• Adrian gave a short snort and told Achen, “Take her. Be back sharp.”
• Serena stared at her own reflection in the car window. The faint marks on her neck from the past few days were still visible. She reached up to cover them—there was no way she could let her mom see those! After a moment of thought, she turned to Achen. “Take me home first,” she said, giving him her home address.
• Achen glanced at her through the rearview mirror. “The boss told me to take you to the hospital.”
• “I need to change clothes!” Serena shouted.
• Achen hesitated, reaching for his phone to ask Adrian.
• Afraid Adrian would say no, Serena quickly said, “I’ll be back on time. I won’t cause you any trouble, I promise!”
• Achen paused—this really wasn’t something he could explain. He couldn’t exactly call the boss and say, Sir, the young lady has your love bites on her neck and doesn’t want her mother to see them, so she’s asking to change clothes. That’d probably get him fired. So he quietly put his phone away.
• Serena returned home and quickly changed into a collared blouse that covered the marks, then rushed to the hospital. When she entered the room, she saw Lily was awake.
• “Mom—”
• “Serena?” Lily looked at her, a soft smile of relief appearing on her face. “Your… your hand, what happened?”
• “Oh…” Serena froze for a moment, then quickly made something up. “I fell during gym class.”
• “You need to be more careful,” Lily scolded gently. Lying in bed, she reached for Serena’s hand once she got close. “Is it serious?”
• “It’s nothing.” Serena sat down. “Mom, are you okay? I was so worried about you…” As she spoke, tears filled her eyes. It was all Adrian’s fault—he wouldn’t let her see her own mother…
• “Why are you crying? I’m fine now,” Lily said. “Just focus on your classes, and be careful. Don’t get hurt again—it breaks my heart.”
• “Mm…” Serena sniffled, holding back more tears.
• Lily asked, “Didn’t you have class today?”
• “I… I took a leave of absence. I still have to go back soon—there’s a quiz this afternoon.”
• “If you’ve got a quiz, then don’t come back again!” Lily said. “Mom’s fine. The surgery’s already done—what could go wrong now? Focus on your classes from now on. Don’t keep missing them; the college entrance exam is next year. Put all your energy into studying.”
• “Okay.” Serena nodded.
• Lily was quiet for a moment before asking, “Where did the money for the surgery come from?” Though Serena had tried to hide the hospital expenses from her, she knew it had to be a huge amount—especially for a kidney transplant.
• “It was…” Serena bit her lip, “It was Dad…”
• Lily froze, her expression clouding as she thought of her heartless ex-husband.
• Serena reassured her, “It’s what he owed us anyway! Mom, you don’t have to worry about money anymore—just focus on your recovery. The money he gave… it’s enough to help you get well again.”
• Lily didn’t respond, but after a pause, she changed the subject to Serena’s schoolwork. They chatted for a while until she suddenly asked, “Have you eaten yet?”
• “Not yet. Let’s eat together—”
• “I can’t eat anything right now,” Lily interrupted. “The nurses are giving me nutrition through an IV, and some special liquid food. Don’t worry about me—go eat something for yourself.”
• Serena shook her head. “I’ll stay with you a little longer. I’ll grab something on the way back.”
• “What if you get too hungry?” Lily protested.
• Serena said playfully, “Let me stay with you just a bit more! Once I’m back at school, who knows when I’ll get to see you again…” She couldn’t help but tear up again.
• “Alright, alright, just a bit longer. Don’t cry anymore,” Lily sighed. “You’re not a kid anymore.”
• When Serena returned to the villa, she saw an IKEA delivery truck parked in the driveway. Several workers were hauling furniture upstairs. She asked Emily, “Ms. Emily, what are they doing?”
• Emily replied, “Mr. Adrian bought you a wardrobe and a shoe cabinet! The clothes and shoes were already delivered earlier. He just called and asked me to help organize everything.”
• “Oh… thanks.” Serena headed upstairs. As soon as she reached the room, she saw the bed and floor were covered in bags full of clothes and shoes.
• The door to the walk-in closet was open, and she could hear the sounds of furniture being moved inside. Serena sat down on the bed, randomly opened one of the bags, and pulled out a purple dress… the price tag read 8,888 dollars. In the past, she wouldn’t even spend that much in a whole year.
• Clutching the dress tightly, she had the urge to tear it to pieces. Then she suddenly remembered that Adrian had told her to go buy lingerie. A chill ran through her. She decided to ignore it altogether. She’d organize the clothes, and if he asked about the lingerie, she’d just say she forgot.
• Soon, the delivery staff walked out of the closet. Ahua followed them and said to her, “Ms. Serena, I’ll be downstairs. Let me know if you need anything.”
• Before she could respond, he had already left, gently closing the door behind him.
• Emily got up and walked into the closet, sighing, “It’s huge! Rich people really do live differently—even the space for their clothes is massive.”