Her eyes shimmered with nerves, tension, and an unmistakable glimmer of hope.

“We love each other… right? We’ve been together for over ten years. That’s what I remember, and it’s true, isn’t it?” she asked softly.

Ernest didn’t speak at first, but he nodded slowly.

It was true. There was no denying they had been together for over a decade.

“Then let’s get married,” she said with a smile.

Her fingers tightened around his as she beamed at him. “Ernest, I want to marry you…”

Tears welled in her eyes as she went on, her voice breaking. “I don’t have anyone else. I’m completely alone… and now, in this condition… I might not even make it through the surgery.”

Her voice trembled as she pressed on. “But I’ve always dreamed of standing at the altar… reaching out to the one I love, exchanging vows, and slipping rings onto each other’s fingers…” She shook her head as tears streamed down her face. Between sobs, she added, “I don’t want to leave this world like this… not so miserably… I don’t want to…”

“Linda.” Ernest’s brow furrowed, and he gently shook his head. “Don’t think like that. Try to stay hopeful…”

“But I could die, couldn’t I?”

Her words left him speechless.

Because yes… there was that possibility.

“Here, look at this!”

Suddenly, Linda rolled up her sleeve. “Look!”

On her arm was a small infusion pump, filled with both a sedative and a painkiller.

Her lips trembled as tears slid down her cheeks. “I’d be in unbearable pain without this! I want to stay positive, I really do, but…” She lifted her trembling hand and pointed to her temple. “I may not remember everything, but I’m not stupid… I know I won’t get better. This isn’t something I can just recover from!”

?tｅt ? ? gαlnovels.ｃοm

Her emotions surged uncontrollably. She clutched her head and let out a sharp scream.

“Linda!” Ernest instantly grabbed her wrist, trying to calm her. “Relax! Listen to—”

“Ernest!” Before he could finish, she threw herself into his arms, clinging to him in a desperate embrace. “I don’t want to die like this. I want to wear a wedding dress… to walk—”

“Down the aisle… to be your bride. Even if I die, I want to die as your wife!”

Ernest’s jaw clenched. He couldn’t marry her.

“Why won’t you say anything?” Linda suddenly stopped crying and looked up at him, stunned. “You don’t want to marry me? Why?”

The question left Ernest at a loss for words. How could he tell her now that his heart belonged to someone else, that he was preparing to marry the woman he truly loved?

Linda let out a hollow laugh.

Her arms loosened as she slowly pulled away from him. “So I was right… Neither you nor Eric want me anymore. If that’s how it is…” She sniffled, her voice dropping. With clenched teeth, she muttered, “Then what’s the point of the surgery?”

Closing her eyes tightly, she let tears stream down her face. “Living like this… is too painful. I’d rather die and be free…”

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