Chasing His Substitute Wife

a's

the ho

ing, mixing with the endless beeping of machines. It felt like the walls

ll, six figures. Just

s if they'd magically change. How was I supposed to com

I worked my

bed. My grandmother, the strongest woman I knew,

ty press down on my shoulders

on," she said weakly, her voice bare

t. "Nothing to worry about, Grandma," I lied, trying to sound

acade. I could feel my resolve cracking, but I couldn

tell you?" she

rvous about the ans

ne, her touch light but groun

and heavy. "Lupus?" I repeated,

eak smile. "It's what I ca

r jokes," I said, my voice waveri

reaking. "What do you expect me to do, darling? Cry about it? We have to

ituation was sinking in too fast. Before I could respond, a nurse entered

oing in here?" the

ld you explain what lupus is?"

is an autoimmune disease," she began. "It means the b

p. "Wait, so... it's like h

parts of the body-joints, skin, kidneys, even the

's... s

with the right treatment. But without it..." She tra

And how much will t

her paper. "This include

e air leave my lungs. "This can't be

the accounts section," she said. "Your grandmother's lungs are f

o. The urgency in her voice said enough.

so young, Lyra. Let this old woman go,

ered, tears blurring my v

nwavering despite everything. "You're stronger

hest. I left her room, the sterile hospital corridor stretching endlessly

Desperation clawed at me. As I walked away, an unsettling thought crossed my mind-sel

d to myself. "I

re. Maybe I'd get lucky. That's when I saw it: a request for blood donation. The pay was astonishing-en

was exactly m

" I muttered under my breath, my finger hovering over the apply button. But

form, my thoughts racing. "This is crazy," I whispere

es ti

nd, when a sudden buzz made me jump. A notif

creen, my stomach flipping.

the outskirts of the city felt like an eternity.

ng faintly under the streetlights. "This can't be it,

t?" the cab driver call

eart pounded as I approached the entrance, the faint hu

forcing my legs to keep moving.

t intensity. His features were sharp-a chiseled jawline, a neat

alm authority t

nn," he said smoothly