The Substitute Bride

"Please have a seat," Anthony smiled at Lisa warmly, as he watched her take the seat opposite him.

Lisa took a small bite of her steamed egg custard and remarked in a regretful tone,"After I return to America, it'll be hard to find delicious Chinese food."

Anthony asked in shock as his eyes opened wide,"Did you really resign today?"

"Oh, yeah I did," Lisa replied blankly. Lisa was a girl of her word. Now that she had decided to leave, she was determined to get everything in order to leave as soon as possible. So after she reached the hospital this morning, she headed straight to the dean's office and handed in her resignation.

"The dean agreed to handle my resignation procedures soon after he knew that I needed to go back. Probably things will be settled in a week," Lisa stated.

"So soon? I thought it was going to take a month." Anthony froze in thought, 'This time when she leaves she'll leave here forever. I might never see her again.'

"I don't think it's fast really. If it were up to me, I'd finish the procedures tomorrow itself," Lisa replied with a downcast expression, as she adorned a faint smile. She soon changed the subject and continued,"My family and friends were so excited and happy when they heard that I was coming back soon. If you ever come to America, please do drop by and visit me. I'll be more than happy to see you there."

"Okay, I will surely. If you ever come back here, I'll be glad to meet you as well," Anthony reciprocated in a rather flat tone.

With a polite smile, Lisa said to Anthony,"To be honest, I don't think I'll come back here. I have many miserable memories here. If I return, I might find it difficult to live it all over again."

She glanced at Anthony and said,"I'm full now. I gotta go finish some documentation."

Since that lunch, Anthony didn't meet Lisa again at the hospital. It seemed like Lisa was dodging him deliberately.

On the day Lisa finished her exiting procedures, she invited Autumn to dine out. Autumn gladly agreed expecting to hear news about the development between Lisa and Anthony. But to her amazement, Lisa told her that she had booked her air ticket and was leaving the country soon.

"Why did you make this decision all of a sudden? What happened since I last met you for things to ha

possible to feel safe and calm again.

After reaching home, she still experienced palpitations from that anxious situation. She had a gut feeling that something terrible might happen.

Nancy poured Autumn a glass of milk. Noticing that Autumn looked restless, she asked,"Is everything okay, Mrs. Lu?"

"I'm disillusioned. I feel like something bad is going to happen," Autumn answered with a worried and anxious expression. She confided in Nancy for she couldn't find anyone else and needed to talk about it as she was growing increasingly worried by the minute.

Since Chris was married and no longer in the same, Autumn couldn't find someone to talk to immediately.

"What happened? Did you not sleep well? Is your belly hurting?" Nancy asked with concern. Ever since Autumn hired Brent as her driver, Nancy treated her like her own daughter. That was why she looked equally worried and concerned when Autumn told her the problem.

"I'm at a loss of words," Autumn shook her head with a troubled look. She constantly recalled the flashing sight of Leila. As she recalled that Leila feigned her pregnancy and traced herself stealthily, her uneasiness increased greatly.

"Mrs. Lu," Nancy called tenderly, as she took a seat next to Autumn. "Perhaps you haven't rested well. That's why you are so nervous. Please go ahead and sleep for a while. You are home now, safe and sound. Nothing will happen to you here," she consoled.

"I really hope so," Autumn responded absently as her thoughts were caught in a mess.