The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Chapter 209

When Ashley arrived at the hospital room, she saw Tristan obediently lying in bed, listening intently as

Calista briefed him on his recovery and gave him

instructions to follow

Calista, dressed in a white lab coat and sporting a pair of golden–rimmed glasses, looked elegant and

sophisticated.

She held a tablet in one hand and looked at Tristan with a firm yet authoritative gaze as she spoke,

displaying a unique commanding charm,

Tristan, on the other hand, was looking at her with unusually soft eyes. There was even a trace of a

smile playing on his lips. It was such a stark contrast to his usual brooding and intimidating demeanor

Ashley couldn’t help but shake her head in amazement.

Calista had somehow managed to tame Tristan, who was normally as wild and unpredictable as a rabid

dog

“Dr Pendleton.” Ashley greeted her with a warm smile as she entered the room and placed a basket of

fresh fruits on the table in front of Calista. “Some fruits for you. They’re all your favorites. Eat them to

replenish your vitamins.”

“Thank you” Calista replied, taking the basket with one hand

“How’s Tristan’s recovery? Ashley glanced at Tristan who immediately resumed his brooding

expression as he met her gaze, as if his earlier soft demeanor towards Calista was a mere

hallucination

“He’ll be able to walk again. He just can’t participate in any strenuous activities.“Calista answered while

adjusting her glasses and setting her tablet down. “He needs to stay away from any rough sports or

heavy exercises

Ashley couldn’t help but feel a bit of schadenfreude. She wondered if Tristan would still take part in

Arabella’s schemes against her now that he was semi–disabled Would he have ended up in this state if

Arabella hadn’t persuaded him to provoke Percival?

Tristan, however, seemed to have already accepted this outcome.

“It’s okay. I’m grateful I can still walk, at least I’m not bedridden for life. And it’s all thanks to your

excellent skills, Dr. Pendleton. I don’t know how to thank you enough”

“As a doctor, it’s my duty to heal and save lives. You don’t need to thank me” Calista replied

indifferently “Besides, the Brooks family has paid a hefty sum for this.”

Ashley almost laughed out loud at Tristan’s flustered expression.

Calista was indeed a straightforward woman.

With just a few words, she had brushed off any potential sense of obligation Tristan might have felt

towards her.

Upon seeing Calista struggling with the fruits and her tablet. Ashley offered to carry the fruits for her

“Calista, I can bring these to your office for you.”

“Alright” Calista nodded, gave some instructions to the nurse, and left the room with Ashley without

sparing Tristan another glance.

Once they reached Calista’s office, Ashley helped unpack the fruits.

They sat down and began to chat while snacking on the fruits After a few minutes of idle chatter, Ashley

brought up Arabella. “Calista, did you hear about the latest scandal involving my cousin, Arabella?”

“Oh Calista frowned mildly. She wasn’t particularly interested in gossip.

Calista had met Arabella when she visited Tristan at the hospital She had also heard about Arabella’s

various scandals when she was in Riverwood She thought of Arabella as nothing more than a pretty

face with no brains, an individual not worth a second glance.

So, when she heard that Tristan had been beaten up because of Arabella, she had even less regard for

Tristan

“Well, she’s pregnant, and she isn’t even married” Ashley took out her phone and showed Calista the

news. “And she has the audacity to claim that Percival is the father of her child. I don’t even think Paul

is actually the father”

Calista wasn’t interested in Arabella or the notorious playboy Paul from the Ellington family. She

deemed these mediocre people, including Ashley, not

worth her attention

The only thing that could possibly pique her interest would be if the once chippled Percival, against all

odds, managed to stand–up and walk again.

However, as she scrolled through the news article, she paused when Percival’s picture popped up. She

pointed at the image, asking. This is Percival?”

“Yeah” Ashley replied with a smirk “Can you believe that my cousin once thought Percival would be her

knight in shining armor? She’s delusional She’s only managed to ruin her own reputation”

Calista, however, didn’t hear a single word Ashley said She was too focused on the video of Percival

Her eyes fell on the woman Percival was holding in

bus arms

“Who is she?” She asked in a tone that was hard to read

“Oh, her?” There was a flicker of jealousy in Ashley’s eyes That’s Vivienne Percivals fiancee, and

Arabella’s adopted sister.”

Calista only focused on the term “fiancée.”

“What’s her educational background?” Calista asked.

“I think she has a double Ph.D in medicine and biology from Elite University Ashley replied, not quite

understanding why Calista was asking about Vivienne. “She’s quite impressive She finished her studies

when she was just sixteen

And she, Ashley, had just graduated high school at eighteen.

Sometimes, comparing oneself with others was indeed a recipe for disapp

Calista fell silent for a while as she processed the information she had just received. She then asked,

“So after earning her dual Ph.D., she chose to teach at a small high school?”

Ashley nodded, still puzzled by Calista’s persistent inquiries about Vivienne.

“Short–sighted, lacks ambition” Calista commented on Vivienne.

How could such a woman be a match for Percival?

Cloudcrest High School.

“Achool”

Vivienne sneezed abruptly while attending the high school graduation ceremone with Percival

“Is the air conditioning in the auditorium too cold? Percival asked with concern

Vivienne furrowed her brows and shook her head. Why did she feel like someone was badmouthing

her?

All the speeches scheduled for the day were almost done, and it was near the end, leaving only room

for the student performances

Suddenly someone tapped the mic onstage, following it by clearing their throat Ahem Hello, everyone

We’re the graduating seniors of Class Eighteen For our final act tonight, we’d like to dedicate this to our

amazing homeroom teacher, Ms Vivienne!”

Vivienne’s gaze was drawn to the stage. There stood Logan, Oberon, Charlotte, Faye, and Coral

Logan clutched a guitar. Oberon held a bass. Charlotte was by the keyboard, and surprisingly, Faye sat

behind a drum set. Coral was on the mic as her eyes met Vivienne’s across the crowd.

“Ms Vivienne, I’ve made many mistakes in the past, and you were the one who pulled me out of the

mud. You saved Class Eighteen, and in doing so, you saved me too! Now, this song “Until the End of

the World‘ is for you”

The music, a blend of heavy metal and rock, echoed in the auditorium. Each beat of the drum

resonated with every pump of their yourig hearts. Coral was the lead singer, and her voice reverberated

with the intense music throughout the hall.

The crowd was boiling with excitement.

The students in the audience rose to their feet, chanting along with the melody,

However, the eyes of the five on stage were all on Vivienne: She was the only one to whom they

wanted to convey their emotions.