Chapter 80

Isabella was speechless. She felt that Jack was acting strangely and his reasons were quite far-fetched.

However, since Jack sincerely seemed to want to give it to her, she couldn't ignore Jack's kindness and reached out to accept it, saying, "I'll take it then, thank you, Jack."

Jack breathed a sigh of relief. "You're welcome."

He then said to her, "You go up first. I have something to do."

"Okay." Isabella nodded and walked toward the elevator with the gift box in her arms.

Jack watched her figure disappear around the corner and turned back to walk toward the car. The window rolled down, revealing Sebastian's face.

"Mr. Landon, the item has been delivered according to your instructions." Jack wondered, "But why didn't you deliver it yourself?"

It was a valuable item. Since he had given it to Isabella in his name, it would have wasted Sebastian's goodwill.

Sebastian frowned. "I was afraid she wouldn't want it."

Jack was taken aback.

Many people would want it, but Sebastian couldn't care about them. Yet when it came to Isabella, he feared she wouldn't want it.

He had never seen Sebastian so lacking in confidence. It seemed that in Sebastian's eyes, Isabella was truly special.

"Let's go." Sebastian closed the car window.

Jack also got into the car and drove away from the underground garage.

Neither of them noticed Isabella standing at the corner, holding the box.

Isabella hadn't left. She had been hiding there all along and overheard Jack and Sebastian's conversation.

Something felt off to her. This skincare set was very expensive, and Jack was just an assistant manager. What kind of partner would be so generous and give away a $15,000 skincare set just like that?

If it was Sebastian, then everything would make sense.

Isabelle heard him say, "I was afraid she wouldn't want it." Isabella bit her lip, and suddenly everything became clear. Perhaps all the recent unusual occurrences at the company had been orchestrated by Sebastian.

Isabella took out her phone, opened her social media, and found Vanessa's status from last night.

"Thank you to Mr. Landon for his kindness."

There were two pictures, one of the beautifully packaged unopened gift box, and the other of the opened box displaying a set of exquisite skincare products.

It was exactly the same as what Isabella was holding in her hands.

Clearly, Sebastian had prepared two of the same gifts.

Isabella bit her lip, feeling a bit confused.

She would never want this gift box no matter what, so when she returned to the office, she placed it on Sebastian's desk. She gave it back.

But because of this incident, Isabella was distracted the entire afternoon.

In the evening, Miley suddenly called her, saying she was in the hospital. She asked if Isabella could come over.

Isabella bought some fruits and hurried over. When she entered, she saw Miley leaning on the hospital bed, a hint of paleness on her delicate face.

"Isabella, you're here." Miley squeezed out a smile, pure and beautiful, tinged with a sickly beauty.

Isabella placed the fruits on the bedside table. "What's wrong with you?"

"I had a minor surgery, but it's a bit scary being alone in the hospital. And I don't have many friends. I called you over so suddenly, hope I'm not bothering you?" Miley, now makeup-free, looked refreshing without her usual charm.

Isabella shook her head. "It's fine. I just finished work."

With that, she took out an orange and peeled it for Miley.

Miley looked at her. "Why aren't you asking what surgery I had?"

Isabella was taken aback. "That's private."

Miley smiled. "It's not a big deal. I just had an abortion and lost a child."

She was smiling, but a hint of sadness flickered in her eyes.

"Abortion?" Isabella, now pregnant herself, was sensitive about anything related to children. "What happened to you?"

A tinge of self-blame flashed in Miley's eyes as she lowered her gaze and softly said, "I didn't know at first, so took a lot of medication. The doctor said with such a large dose, it was best to terminate for the sake of the child."

Isabella's mind went blank, "You couldn't keep it even with medication?"

"It's not a certainty," Miley said. "But for safety, it was better not to."

Miley then looked at Isabella's belly. "You must be a few months along now, right?"

"Yes." Isabella subconsciously protected her abdomen, feeling worried. She had taken expired birth control pills, and no one could guarantee those pills wouldn't affect the baby.

After that, she had been hospitalized for a drip and had applied medicine to the external wound.

Isabella had no experience in this area, and hearing Miley's words made her increasingly anxious.

So when she came out of Miley's place, she made an appointment, and consulted the doctor.

The doctor, looked concerned after listening to her long explanation. But no one could guarantee anything. The doctor just told Isabella that if she didn't want it, she should consider having an abortion soon. If she decided to keep it, the earliest prenatal screening would have to be between three to four months. If there was a risk of deformity at that time, an abortion would be necessary.

The doctor explained the differences and risks of the two procedures to her, and also suggested that if she couldn't make a decision, she should go back and discuss it with her family.

How could Isabella dare to tell Nina about this?

Besides, Nina was not having an easy time herself. Isabella was a grown up and didn't want Nina to worry anymore.

But she felt really helpless facing this situation alone.

On the way back, she searched online for a lot of information, but couldn't find any answers, which only added to her anxiety.

Matthew was waiting for her when she returned to the dorm.

Isabella tried to lift her spirits and said, "I told you not to come see me anymore."

Matthew ignored her. He turned and handed her some washed fruits. "I bought you some fruits, all cleaned. It's good to have fruits and supplements during pregnancy. I'll buy them for you every day from now on."

Isabella brushed his hand aside, hung up her bag and coat, then drew the curtain and crawled into bed.

She couldn't be bothered with him.

Matthew pulled back the curtain, stood by the bed, and said, "You don't look well, what's wrong?"

He reached out to hold Isabella's hand, but she evaded him.

"I'm tired and I want to rest. Please leave." Isabella turned over, facing away from him.

Matthew set down the fruits and sat on a stool. "I'll stay with you."

Isabella sat up abruptly, her eyes moist as she stared at him. "I told you to leave me alone. I want to be alone, can't you stop bothering me all the time? Do you realize how embarrassing it is for you to do this, Matthew?"

Matthew was stunned.

There was a moment of silence in the room.

Matthew stood up and said, "I know you're not in a good mood. And mood swings during pregnancy are normal. I won't argue with you. I've already talked to my parents, and I'll take you to meet them tomorrow."

Isabella shook her head. "I'm not going."

Isabella lay back down, wrapping herself up like a cocoon.

Matthew stared at her back for a while, then said in a deep voice, "You will go."

Isabella closed her eyes, not wanting to say another word to him.

"Rest well, I'll come pick you up early tomorrow." Matthew left.