Chapter 8

Happy times flew by, and in the blink of an eye, half of summer had already passed. Ethan and Bella had been living together for almost a month and a half.

On this day, Bella rushed into Ethan's bright room, breaking free from her usual leisurely pace. Her naked cats, Cotton and Snowflake, excitedly followed behind, thinking their owner wanted to play with them.

"Ethan... something's not right..." Bella urgently tugged at Ethan's arm, wanting to leave. "We... we need to go..."

"What's wrong?" Ethan reluctantly diverted half of his attention from the computer screen to her.

Since his lord and lady father had caught him living here, he had been forced to transform from a carefree wild crane to a workaholic. Thankfully, Bella knew how to enjoy life, finding solace in solitude that most people detested, so it didn't affect their relationship.

"The hospital called... they said Jake had a car accident..." Bella gasped, her eyes becoming red.

"Tell me... I need to go there quickly."

Their whole family had already immigrated to Canada, and now only she and Jake remained in Taiwan, so her responsibility was especially heavy.

"Okay! Don't worry." Ethan quickly closed his computer and took her hand, leading her out of the house. "You go fill up the bowls of food for Cotton, Snowflake, and Shadow. I'll go close the doors and windows. I'll meet you outside in a moment."

"Okay." With Ethan giving orders beside her, Bella's frantic heart calmed down slightly, no longer spinning like a headless fly.

She obediently poured the feed into three separate bowls for the cats and dogs, then reassured Cotton, Snowflake, and Shadow. "You guys be good!"

"Woof woof..."

"Meow..."

After Cotton and the others let out a small bark and meow, they immediately buried their heads and started eating, unaware of when their owners would leave.

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"Hi! Sister, you finally came." 

In the emergency room, Jake calmly leaned against the adjusted bed, smiling warmly as he greeted Bella. 

"Jake?!" Bella's eyes were already filled with tears, but when she saw Jake's body wrapped up like a "mummy," she was completely stunned. "How did this happen?" 

"He should be fine, don't cry just yet," Ethan stood behind her, speaking softly. 

Bella worriedly inspected the wounds on Jake's body with her clear, concerned eyes. "But Jake... it looks serious." 

If it weren't for the smile on Jake's face not matching the severity of his injuries, she would have already thrown herself onto him and cried uncontrollably. 

"Hey! Ethan, why are you here with my sister?" Jake saw the two of them coming together, but didn't suspect anything, just thought it was a coincidence. 

Bella's nervously widened her innocent eyes, subconsciously taking a few steps to the side, trying to wear an expression that showed she wasn't familiar with Ethan at all. "Um... Mr. Thornton happened to be at home, so I... asked him to drive me to the hospital to see you, Jake... don't misunderstand." 

"Misunderstand what?" Jake raised his right arm, wrapped in bandages, and scratched his head in confusion. He was just casually asking, why was his sister so nervous?

A touch of crimson spread across Bella's plain and delicate face, as if betraying her. "Misunderstanding...us..." she stammered in embarrassment for quite some time.

This woman couldn't even tell a lie, yet she still wanted to act? Ethan couldn't help but chuckle and generously came to her rescue.

"Jake, how serious are your injuries?" Who would be completely covered in bandages and still manage to have such a radiant smile?

"My left leg is broken, my right hand is twisted, and three ribs are fractured. Do you think it's serious?" Jake retorted with a grimace.

Bella furrowed her slender eyebrows in concern and went forward to examine his wounds. "Wow! It looks really serious," she gently tapped the white bandage on Jake's arm. "But, isn't it a bit exaggerated to wrap it like this, Jake?"

"Sis, do you think I wanted it this way?" Jake wore a pained expression.

"What's going on?" Ethan pulled over a chair for Bella and leaned against the wall himself, attracting quite a few admiring glances from women with his relaxed posture.

"It's all because of that Nathan guy. I don't know where he heard about my accident from, but he completely disregarded the business meeting upstairs and came here, causing all the nurse ladies to keep staring at my perfectly sculpted body! It's really not worth it." Although Jake complained in a serious tone, he secretly appreciated Nathan's meddlesome nature.

"Nathan," his real name was Nathan Cole. He and Jake were fellow classmates in the military and also the son of the director of this private hospital. That's why he could act so arrogantly.

Ethan's mouth curved, feeling the profound and sincere emotion between friends.

"It seems that Nathan is seeking revenge on you for destroying his date last year," he said.

"Come on! That woman has a seductive look on her face. You can tell she's a bad woman with just one look. I was only trying to save Nathan," Jake defended himself proudly.

"Jake, what does 'seductive' look like? Can you describe it and broaden our horizons?" Bella couldn't help but ask curiously.

So bad women can be distinguished just by looking at them. How amazing!

"Um... seductive is..." Jake was at a loss for words, especially after seeing the sympathetic look from Ethan. He felt even more embarrassed and quickly changed the subject. "By the way, sis, please don't tell Mom and Dad about the car accident, or we'll never hear the end of it."

Bella hesitated for a moment before reluctantly agreeing. "Okay, but you have to promise not to go street racing again."

"It's not street racing, it's professional racing!" Jake corrected her angrily.

"Fine! Then you can't go professional racing either!" Bella quickly corrected herself, going along with it. "Professional racing is just too dangerous."

"Who said racing is dangerous? Sister, are you mistaken?" Jake exclaimed indignantly.

"As long as proper safety measures are taken, the fatality rate in car racing is lower than riding motorcycles. How can it be considered dangerous?" 

Hmph! He hated it when others misunderstood his beloved racing!

"If it's not dangerous, then how did you get injured?" Bella pursed her lips and showed a rare stubborn expression.

Jake rolled his eyes and couldn't bear it, asking, "Sister, who told you I got injured in a car race? Is my skill that poor?

"Huh? Isn't it?" Bella widened her clear, watery eyes, looking very surprised.

"Of course not!" Jake almost broke his intact ribs trying to stand tall with pride. "I was hit by a car while saving a blind puppy on the road. So my injury has nothing to do with racing!"

"Jake, you're so brave!" Bella's bright eyes immediately sparked admiration. "No wonder you're my good little brother!"

"Oh, come on. Saving a 'dog' is a great feat!" Jake's face, covered in colorful streaks, was filled with satisfaction.

On the side, Ethan heard the two siblings talking more and more earnestly, almost making him vomit out today's lunch.

"You guys can chat slowly! I'm going to help Jake with the hospital admission procedures." God! He couldn't stand listening anymore. Today, he just found out that this guy Jake is so childish.

But then again, as the saying goes, "Like father, like son." With Bella as Jake's sister, it's no wonder he turned out this way!

"Alright! You go quickly."

The White siblings turned their heads and casually dismissed him, happily chatting away.

"Jake, where is that little dog?"

"With Nurse Miss..."

Ever since Ethan saw them completely forget his existence and chat away, he could only touch his nose and leave in frustration.

...

"There are no empty beds in the hospital, but there will be a double bed available later. I have already reserved it for Ethan." Bella and Ethan looked at each other in surprise. "What did you reserve?!" Did this guy think they were idiots? Ethan explained helplessly, "A bed. The doctor said Jake has a minor concussion and needs to stay in the hospital for a few days. If there's no bed, he would have to sleep in the corridor. So I took the liberty to reserve a bed for Jake." "It's okay, I'm willing to sleep in the corridor," Jake declared, pale with shock. "Ethan, go and cancel that bed reservation, I don't want it." "Jake, don't be silly, it's not nice to sleep in the corridor!" Bella scolded him with her big sister face. "Luckily it's just for a few nights, it shouldn't be too expensive!" She comforted herself. "It won't look bad and it won't cost you a piece of flesh..." Jake murmured, then gritted his teeth and thanked Ethan. "Thanks, Ethan." The thought of not having the health insurance cover the cost of the room for the two of them, meaning he would have to pay hundreds of dollars every night, made his heart ache. "Don't mention it, take good rest," Ethan smiled faintly. "I'll take Bella back first and then come back later to help you check in." Since Bella was of no use here, it was better to take her home early and keep watch. "Go ahead! Remember to bring some magazines for me later," Jake instructed, and continued to mourn his loss.

"No problem." Ethan casually walked to Bella's side and affectionately held her delicate hand.

"Let's go, Bella."

Since Bella had long been used to Ethan holding her hand, she completely forgot to put on a show in front of Jake and obediently let Ethan lead her away. The only thing she had was a small complaint. "Why are we going back so early? I still wanted to spend more time with Jake."

Seeing Ethan and his sister walking hand in hand, Jake's eyes bulged in shock. What on earth was happening now? Wasn't Ethan supposed to dislike women? How could he suddenly be walking so intimately with his sister?

This was simply... too unbelievable, right?!

"Bella, we still need to go get the little dog that Jake rescued. You haven't forgotten, have you?" Ethan easily diverted her attention.

"Oh, right!" Bella's eyes sparkled, and a sweet smile immediately bloomed on her lips. "Let's go quickly!"

So, they walked to the clinic and asked about the whereabouts of the little dog.

"The little dog?" The nurses exchanged a peculiar look.

"Is it the 'little dog' that Mr. White brought?" One nurse emphasized the word "little dog" to confirm that she hadn't misheard.

Ethan nodded thoughtfully, vaguely sensing that the other person's words seemed to have another meaning.

As for Bella, she excitedly nodded her head like pounding garlic. "Yes! Yes! Yes! It's that little dog, we're here to pick it up."

"Okay, wait a moment, I'll go get it." After giving them an admiring look, a male nurse took a deep breath and left the nursing station.

Three minutes later--

The male nurse was sweating profusely as he pulled out a fierce, enormous black dog and handed Ethan a thick, long leash. "Here! The...the little dog you wanted." He was really out of breath!

Ethan and Bella were speechless, their eyes wide.

Bella stared blankly at the massive black dog in front of her, which was just as huge as Cotton but ten times more ferocious in appearance.

"Is this really the dog Jake saved?" Ethan finally understood why everyone at the nursing station had such strange expressions.

Damn it! Did this "beast" really need saving? If it stood in the middle of the road, he didn't believe anyone would dare run over it. Has Jake gone blind or something?

"Ethan, what... what kind of dog is this?" Bella tentatively reached out her small hand, wanting to touch the big dog that was barking furiously.

"What are you doing!" Ethan's handsome face turned pale as he narrowly saved Bella's hand from the jaws of the black dog.

"Woof woof woof..." The black dog angrily barked a few times.

"Ethan, why are you so nervous? I just wanted to touch the dog." Bella wasn't scared by the ferocious big dog, but rather startled by Ethan's actions.

"Why would you want to touch this big dog?" Ethan tightly held her hand, afraid that she would foolishly offer her hand to the dog again.

Bella withdrew her hand with a smile. "I think the dog must be scared, that's why it keeps barking. So as long as we touch it, give it some comfort, it'll be okay."

Ethan was making too big a fuss about it. "It's scared? Don't joke. Bella, I won't allow you to mess around."

The nurses around all nodded in agreement. "Yes! Miss, please don't mess around!" Although there was no shortage of doctors in the medical room, if such a beautiful hand were bitten off by the big dog, it would be a great loss to the world.

"Otherwise, you should get a rabies vaccination first." A kind nurse earnestly suggested.

"Don't be nervous, I have the best rapport with animals. If you don't believe me, let me show you." Before everyone had a chance to cover their eyes, Bella had already placed her hand on the head of the black dog and gently caressed it.

The big black dog let out a low growl, not only did it not bite off Bella's delicate little hand, but it surprisingly stuck out its tongue and allowed her to touch it freely.

"It really won't bite!" The male nurse who was responsible for holding the dog couldn't help but reach out to touch it, but unfortunately, he was met with the cold stare from the big black dog.

"Wow! It's really fierce! Miss, why don't you just take the dog home and raise it well, so it doesn't wander around scaring people."

Bella lovingly rubbed the black dog's head and her hopeful gaze fell on Ethan.

"Ethan, can we?"

If it were a smaller dog, she wouldn't hesitate to take it home, but this black dog was just too huge. Just by thinking about its appetite and how it would compete with Cotton, she needed to respect her dear boyfriend's opinion.

"If you like it, then let's keep it!" Ethan chuckled as he stared at the big dog that behaved obediently like a little lamb under Bella's touch. "Besides, we already have so many dogs at home, what's one more?"

Bella gave him a sweet smile and then bent down to pat its head. "Do you want to come home with us, doggie?"

"Woof woof..." The black dog lovingly nudged Bella's hand with its large furry head, especially enjoying the scent and soft voice of this human.

"Good girl!" Bella ignored the strange smell coming from the dog and affectionately kissed its head. 

Ethan shuddered at the sight and immediately decided that if this woman didn't brush her teeth when she got home, he would absolutely not kiss her. 

Usually, he didn't mind how she showered love on Cotton and Snowflake, because he washed them thoroughly every week. But this black dog was different. It had no idea how long it had been wandering outside and how many bacteria it had come into contact with, and yet she was kissing it like that. 

Goodness! 

"Doggy, your fur is so black and shiny. Shall we call you 'Coal' from now on?" Bella excitedly asked it. 

"Woof woof..." The black dog didn't know if it understood, but it wagged its tail vigorously at her. 

"Coal, you're so smart!" Bella held its dog head and happily showered it with kisses. 

Ethan's handsome face continued to turn green, and he decided not to kiss her for this entire week. 

And the staff at the shelter looked at him with sympathetic eyes! It was actually quite tough to have a girlfriend so full of love.

　　··························· 

Due to being busy, Ethan helped Jake to be admitted to a hospital while also arranging for a male special caregiver to take care of him. Then, he hurriedly went to the veterinarian's office to pick up Coal. 

"How is Coal? Is there anything wrong with his body?" As soon as he entered, Ethan went straight to the rectangular table and gently stroked Coal, who was lying on the table.

Coal glanced at him uninterestedly, flicking his tail on the table indifferently. His lazy attitude couldn't be considered friendly.

Not sure if it was out of familiarity, Coal was relatively friendly towards Ethan, but not so polite towards others.

"Don't worry! This dog is as strong as an ox, and there's nothing wrong with him. What you should be concerned about is whether his teeth are too sharp." The veterinarian joked.

"This big friend of yours almost scared my assistant to death." If it wasn't for the muzzle on its mouth, Ethan probably wouldn't have had the courage to get close to it.

Ethan lightly tapped Coal's head in reprimand. "Coal, Bella told you to be obedient! Why aren't you listening?"

"Woof..." Coal whimpered with a sense of grievance.

"Mr. Thornton, you misunderstood. Coal is well-behaved and doesn't throw temper tantrums, it's just that its size is intimidating." The veterinarian shook his head with amusement. "Strange! Both you and your girlfriend seem to love raising large dogs, and they just keep getting bigger."

Ethan smiled faintly at him. "By the way, Dr. Smith, have you found out what breed Coal is?"

"It should be a mix of local dogs and other breeds, that's why it's so big," Dr. Smith said professionally.

"Local dogs?" Ethan frowned with an air of British haughtiness. In his impression, local dogs shouldn't be this tall.

"Local dogs can be fierce, but they are also loyal. With proper training, they won't bite people at random," Dr. Smith gently explained the characteristics of local dogs. "If you're still worried, you can temporarily put a muzzle on it."

Ethan declined his offer. "No need, Coal won't hurt Bella." It wasn't that he had confidence in Coal, but he believed in Bella's amazing affinity with animals. Whether they flew in the sky or walked on the ground, no creature could escape her 'charm'.

"Woof..." Coal whimpered, scratching at the muzzle with its paw.

Dr. Smith glanced at Coal and thought it would be better to get rid of this dangerous person. "Mr. Thornton, Coal has been vaccinated and microchipped, you can take it home now."

"Don't worry." Ethan removed Coal's muzzle and casually rubbed its head. "Dr. Smith, why didn't you give Coal a bath?"

This well-known animal hospital had a pet department that made it convenient for veterinary care, grooming, boarding, and buying pet food.

"Uh... Today a bunch of cats and dogs were delivered. The people in the pet department are all busy like crazy. I suggest you take Coal back and bring him for a wash another day," Dr. Fran's face turned slightly red, unwilling to admit that no one in the pet department dares to bathe Coal. 

Ethan's handsome black eyes flickered with a teasing light, seeing through his embarrassment. "Coal, come down." 

Coal arrogantly glanced at him before slowly jumping down from the rectangular table and walking towards the door on his own. 

"Dr. Fran, is there anything else we should be aware of?" Ethan casually watched Coal's actions. By now, it had already reached the door and sat down with a bored expression, scaring away passersby. 

"No, no, just take your dog and go! You can settle the payment another day." Dr. Fran quickly urged him to leave. 

If this arrogant star keeps sitting like this, he won't have any business today. 

Ethan raised an elegant eyebrow and nodded before taking Coal away.