1. Not A Match

Liam rushed through the hospital hallways. After spending the last month visiting his sister here, he didn’t even have to pause to run in the right direction.

“Nurse Mo!” He yelled as the attending nurse to his sister walked out of the ward.

Nurse Mo turned to look at him, her eyes filled with pity.

“Liam, she had another serious attack just an hour ago; this time, it was even harder.”

Liam shook his head, refusing to accept that things were getting worse daily for his sister and only family member.

“Can I see her now?” He finally asked.

Usually, he always tried his best to be there for his sister whenever she was feeling worse because of her failing organ. However, the bills were increasing daily, and he had to spend more time working.

It was impossible to stay by her bedside all day.

Seeing the genuine concern on his face, Nurse Mo couldn’t help but feel even more pity for the pair of siblings and sighed softly.

“She’s still being monitored in the intensive care. In the meantime, the doctor asked you to see him.”

Liam thanked her hurriedly and rushed to the doctor’s office.

It had only been one month but he already knew every part of the hospital. As soon as he stopped in front of the attending doctor’s office, his secretary let him in immediately while gazing at him with pity.

Liam was one of the smartest students in his faculty and was usually observant. After analysing Nurse Mo’s reaction and the secretary’s look, he could already tell that something was wrong.

But there was no other option; he could only go in to see the doctor.

“I won’t waste words with you, Liam; another attack would take your sister’s life.”

Liam felt like the world around him was crumbling.

His face seemed to have aged by some years as he leaned forward to hold the doctor’s hand.

“Has the test been done again? Am I really not a match for her?”

His sister, Rose, had an issue with her cells and her organs were always attacked every now and then with one issue or the other.

To stop her from going through all that pain, the only solution was a stem cell transplant that would give her new, healthy cells.

However, he was not a match, and the cost of getting a paid match was too high. So he told them to do the test again.

They were siblings. They should be a match, right?

The doctor’s solemn look was the only response he needed.

They were not a match.

“Your blood type is one of the rare ones, and very few people have it in the country. It would be hard to have that blood type and be a match for Rose,” the doctor added.

Liam nodded in understanding.

“Is there an available donor?” Although he didn’t have all the money, all he could do was raise it as quickly as possible.

If his sister had another attack…

“All the nurses like your sister have been doing their best and asking other hospitals. We found a match this morning.”

Until Liam arrived in front of his college house, he was in a daze from thinking about all the money that he had to fork out just to get his sister the surgery.

However, he had no choice. He had to beg Lily to give him her share of their savings so he could get a down payment for the surgery first.

Lily was having a girl’s night with her friends and laughing happily at some drama when Liam pushed the door open.

Her smile faltered as she took in Liam’s tired and tattered appearance. After working long hours and barely catching any sleep. Liam had dark circles, and his hair was all over.

His usual charming and handsome appearance was hard to see, and this embarrassed Lily.

“Hehe, didn’t you say he won’t be home tonight?” One of her friends asked Lily as she looked at Liam with a mocking smile.

To all of them, Liam was their friend’s boyfriend, and he could be pushed around because of his low background.

He also adored Lily and would bend over his back to satisfy her. With that impression in mind, none of them ever treated him with any respect in the two years of their dating.

Lily was also annoyed at Liam’s sudden appearance. She had been enjoying having their house to herself in the last week of him running around.

Today, when she decided to have friends over, he suddenly came back.

What type of bad luck was that?

“Liam darling, would you go next door and stay with James? I haven’t spent time with Alice and Mia in a long time,” Lily whined while sashaying towards him.

Even though they owned the house together and Liam paid most of the rent, she didn’t sound like she was asking for a favour but rather like she was giving him instructions.

Liam shook his head, already used to how she used to act.

“I’m not staying for long; I just came to pick something up,” he replied, and Lily’s smile brightened.

“In that case, hurry up and leave so we can have the place to ourselves.”

Without bothering to say more, Lily turned back, prepared to continue the movie they were watching.

“Lily, there’s an important matter on the ground. Can we talk inside the room?” Liam asked while glancing at her friends, who were staring at them.

Since they started dating two years ago, he and Lily had started a joint savings account that they planned to use when they were done with college.

Lily was the one who kept the bank card, and he wanted to borrow the money for Rose's surgery.

With how good he was at earning money, he knew that paying Lily’s share would not be a problem as soon as his sister was healthy.

Sensing that something was wrong, Lily looked at her friends and then nodded.

As soon as they were inside, Lily asked him, “What’s the matter?”

“Lily, they have found a donor for Rose’s stem cell, but I don’t have enough to cover the down payment.”

Lily’s face changed as soon as he mentioned money.

“Isn’t that something very expensive?” She wasn’t very smart, but she had a vague idea that things like that usually cost a lot of money.

Liam nodded, not noticing the change in her expression.

“It is, but getting a donor is even harder, for Rose to find one, it’s already very lucky…”

“What are you saying, Liam?” Lily yelled, her eyes sharp and cautious.

For Liam to call her, she could already guess what he wanted to ask; after all, he shared everything with her.

Liam’s excitement dies when he sees that something is wrong with Lily’s expression.

Thinking his rambling had confused her, he scratched his hair in embarrassment.

“Lily, the important thing is that, I’ll need to loan from our savings.”