When Julian returned, the medicine had left me exhausted and weak.
He propped my head with his hand and bent down to look at me.
"Wanda, I have something urgent to take care of. Be good and stay here for the infusion. I’ll come back to pick you up later."
I grabbed the hem of his shirt and stared directly into his eyes as he turned back to look at me.
"Julian, I'm having an allergic reaction."
His brow creased in annoyance, a look I'd never seen on him before.
"Wanda, you're not a child anymore. I’ve already told you—I have something urgent to handle. Don't be childish."
I slowly let go of his shirt.
At that moment, I finally understood. He was no longer the Julian who would do anything to protect me.
Seeing me let go, Julian ran out without looking back.
I watched his retreating figure and memories of when I was fifteen resurfaced. Back then, a group of debt collectors had shown up at my school.
Julian was in the middle of a vast business deal when he got a call from my teacher. He abandoned the deal worth millions and rushed to my school without a second thought. He broke three debt collectors' ribs at the school gates with his bare hands.