Chris was right. At this moment, she must hold on.

After half basket of soup dumplings, Freya still could not taste anything on her tongue. Noticing the porridge before her, she reached out but was stopped by Chris.

He pushed a glass of soybean milk to her and had put the straw in.

Freya did not bother to talk, so she just quietly got rid of Chris's hand and drank up the soybean milk like it was water. Wiping foam off her lips with the back of her hand, she immediately picked up the bowl of porridge like it was her mission to eat it.

It was hot, but she just paused for a second, gulped it down, and didn't so much as to look up. Chris's face darkened.

Finishing breakfast, Freya left as if she were escaping a scourge. Chris dropped the spoon and looked dejected.

It turned out that this was what failure felt like.

Soon, Joanne came and carried a set of new clothes for Chris. Chris went to wash himself in a nearby hotel and then headed to the company to finish the work.

Currently, they still could not enter ICU to see Mr. Norris Mrs. Norris yet, so Joanne stayed, standing on the corridor with Freya. At the same time, Freya watched her parents lying on the sickbed in ICU, as motionless as a statue.

If anything happened to Mr. Norris and Mrs. Norris, Joanne had to be cautious about anything stupid that Freya might do.

When it was about 11 o'clock, Travis arrived.

He looked sorry. "I just saw it on the news. Freya, is there anything I can help?"

Nevertheless, Freya turned to Joanne. "Joanne, can you get me a bottle of water?"

Joanne knew what Freya meant, nodded, and went downstairs.

In the long corridor, only the sorrowful Travis stayed with Freya.

Freya remained calm. "Travis, I was drunk that day, so I only remembered I mentioned Chris's company. But, what exactly did I tell you?"

"Maya told me you helped translate the document for Chris. But you didn't say anything when I asked you about the content. You kept babbling about how awesome Chris were and how he developed Everbridge Group to this extent in only years."

Freya gradually realized. "At first, you and Maya tried to get the plan out of me so Chris would ditch me. But she didn't expect that I still kept my mouth shut even when drunk. So she decided to give you the plan directly and framed me. Anyway, I was drunk so I wouldn't remember a thing I'd said. That's how you planned, right?"

After a while, Travis reluctantly nodded. "Yes, we planned so. But soon, Chris found out everything."

Freya raised her lips because she wanted to laugh. She wanted to laugh out loud but tears came out first.

At that time, she truly believed that she had caused great damage to Chris and she could not face the tens of thousands of employees in Everbridge Group. She couldn't sleep at night and her life was a living hell.

However, after all was said and done, she was just a scapegoat.

"Don't ever show your faces again."

Freya turned around to face the windows of the ward and let tears blurring her vision.

Now, as long as her parents could wake up, she wouldn't want Chris, love, future, or anything like them.

...

In the next morning, the two specialists arrived.

After knowing that Chris had made a great effort to send for the two doctors, she would be lying if she said she was not touched, but she managed to suppress her feelings. Instead, she just quietly listened in their meetings and hoped that they could bring back her parents before night fell.

Nevertheless, with time passing by, it didn't seem to turn for the better.

The sun was setting, and darkness was swallowing the lightness inch by inch. Incandescent lights went on above her head, while Freya stood beside the windows. She felt that the outside darkness wanted to break the window to swallow her too.

It was after 48 hours, and though Mr. Norris and Mrs. Norris were out of the critical condition, they did not wake up yet.

"Miss Norris," The foreign doctor tried to speak as slow as possible and told Freya in a gentle but helpless tone. "Your father and mother are in a vegetative state. "But don't give up, because many people have gotten out of this state, and a miracle might happen again."

Freya's eyes reddened but she refused to cry. Instead, she calmed down and thanked the doctor politely. Then, she asked the further treatment arrangement and did something that shocked the doctors.

She left the hospital because she said she was going home.

It was not that she did not want to accompany her parents, but she knew that she needed to face the upcoming things in her best state.

Before her father went into a coma, the things he cared about the most must be her and the company.

Therefore, she needed to take care of not only herself but also the company affairs.

The first thing she did when she arrived home was to turn on the tap. She could use a shower.

The second she stepped into the bathtub, Freya felt so hopeless that tears streamed down without a warning. She closed her eyes and sank into the water to block her tears.

After the shower, she heard a "click".

The sound came from the other side of the door.

Freya got completely guarded and was searching for a tool to protect herself, but then she heard familiar footsteps that she used to anticipate the most.

Her heart suddenly twitched, and Freya gritted her teeth. When she finally looked at the tall figure, she had to snap. "Didn't you hear me? I told you to get out of my face!"

This one sounded familiar because that was what Chris used to tell her all the time.

"Norris Group's stock price is falling." Chris said, "Tomorrow, you need to show up in the company as the heir and the biggest stockholder. And, you can't trust your vice president."

"These are my business, and I don't need you to remind me." Freya looked into Chris's eyes. "Right now, I really don't want to see your face. Chris, don't make me hate you."

Chris felt that someone had punched him in the heart. "Freya..."

"You still won't leave?" Freya nodded. "Then I'll leave!"

She galloped out the door straight in her pajamas but was stopped by Chris in the end.

Chris closed his eyes. "Have a good rest. I'll leave right now."

Freya walked Chris outside the room. The moment he stepped out, she slammed the door close.

Then, she raised her head, because she would never cry for Chris again.

At the same time, Chris stood behind the door. After a while, he left.

It was not too spacious in Freya's apartment, but she was already used to staying with Chris every night. Now, she suddenly felt the house so empty. That kind of emptiness seized her throat and made her see Chris's figure flashing on her mind, almost suffocating her.

Moreover, something intangible pressed against her and was welling up inside her. She did not feel sleepy at all, nor did she feel like crying.

Freya got up and poured out everything inside her bag. Among her lipstick, mascara, and other stuff, she found a white pill bottle.

It contained a kind of imported sleeping pill which Chris used to take.

For a long time, Chris had been relying on sleeping pills. However, recently, he had been sleeping well at night, so she secretly took away his medicine. Then, he found them again. Though he stopped taking them, he still put them at the bedside for fear that he couldn't fall asleep again. She saw it as a kind of abnormal mental dependence, so she directly took them away.

She never expected that she would find them useful someday.

After taking a tablet, soon, Freya felt drowsy and then she couldn't feel a thing anymore.

Before she fell asleep, Freya had only one thought on her mind. If her parents really would not wake up again, then she wouldn't either.

However, the next day, reality still ruthlessly woke her up.

She grabbed a bite and headed to the hospital first.

"Miss Norris, Mr. Norris and Mrs. Norris are still in the same condition..."

They meant that they were not getting better or worse, so no one really knew when her parents would come back again.

Freya didn't allow herself to get upset or beaten. She simply thanked the doctor and then set off to the company.

Almost all of the staff knew this young lady, but she nearly knew no one except a few uncles on the board of the directors. When some employees greeted her, she could only smile and nod.

"Freya, you must be strong." The vice president sighed and comforted Freya. "Don't blame yourself. It was just an accident."

Freya forced a smile and nodded. "Uncle Chen, I know. And can you tell me how the company is right now?"

"We should go to your dad's office," said Carson Wood.

"Sure."

Freya quietly observed Carson's behaviors. She knew nothing about business, and Chris must have his reason when he reminded her to take caution with Carson.

"Everyone's concerned about the president's injury, but generally, the company is doing OK right now.

Freya stayed silent for a few seconds and looked up. "I'm holding a board meeting, and the department heads need to show up too."

Carson's eyes flashed. "I'll inform them then."

Freya turned on the intercom. "Secretary He, coffee please."

It was espresso, a small cup of black condensed liquid. Freya took a look and gulped it down.

A bitterness that could seep into her tongue spread onto her lips and teeth but gave her courage and vigor somehow. She walked into the conference room with her the lawyer.

A dozen stockholders and dozens of senior executives unanimously threw a look at Lu Freya and kept their eyes fixed on her as if trying to see what she really could do.

Freya felt lucky that she had stage experience, otherwise, she could not make sure she could stay under those fierce looks.

After a brief self-introduction, Freya cut to the chase. "My father, the president of Norris Group, is currently unable to exercise civil capacity. From today, I'll handle the company's affairs on behalf of my father. I'll get my hands onto the pending projects and push forward them. "And I hope you can help me with those affairs."

"Miss Norris." A director named Han interrupted Freya. "I've seen you on Top Model. You're excellent on stage, and I think you're more suitable for the stage. As for the affairs in the company, I think you should leave them to the vice president. You don't know much about business, and to be honest, we don't feel so certain to leave them to you. What if you mishandle and cause losses? Who'll be responsible for them?"

The lawyer was just about to speak when Freya gestured for him to stop. Then, she said, "I'm THE only heir of Norris Group, and I'll run this company sooner or later."

President Bushes thumped on the table and retorted, "But you don't have any experience. How can we not worry?"

Freya did not get angry. Instead, she slowly said, "We're in a negotiation with a UK company lately?"

"Yes, we are." General Manager replied. "But they're demanding too much, and our competitors have been tough. We've been going on for nearly half a year, and we're still getting nowhere."

"I'll make them sign the contract to prove I can run the company." Freya stood up. "Thank you all for attending this meeting. Now, I declare the meeting closed."