BACK AT THE ALTAR

Chapter 9: The shocking diagnosis

Emily was shocked to see John in such a state, she knew he easily gets angry but not this angry, his face twisted in anger and frustration. She went close to him, trying to calm him down, but he pushed her away at first. Determined, Emily's instincts told her to try again. She approached him cautiously, stretching out her hand to pat his shoulder gently. To her surprise, he didn't push her away this time. Fearless, Emily wrapped her arms around him in a gentle hug.

Unbeknownst to them, Sophie was coming upstairs, her eyes widened in shock as she saw them before her. She was stunned and speechless, she gently and quietly walked into the room. "Wow!" she breathed, her voice low, barely above a whisper.

John's head jerked up as he heard her voice, and he quickly pushed Emily away.

"Sophie, why didn’t you tell me you were coming?" he demanded, his tone sharp. "And how long have you been standing there?"

Sophie's expression, filled with amusement and annoyance. "I wanted to surprise you, but it looks like I'm the one who got surprised instead," she said, her eyes darting between John and Emily. "So, you and...this thing are now lovers?"

Emily immediately looked at Sophie, as she took a step back, her eyes fixed on John.

"It's not like that," John muttered.

Sophie raised an eyebrow. "No? Then what is it like?”

John shook his head, "I didn’t even know why I hugged her. I think she cast a spell on me or something."

Sophie's expression turned incredulous. "Are you even listening to yourself?" she asked, her voice rising in annoyance. "You're were standing there, hugging this thing, and now you're making excuses about spells? Are you kidding me?”

John lowered his hand “I’m sorry babe I didn’t mean to hug her” he whispered

Surprised look etched on Sophie’s face “Its the first time you’ve called babe, you’ve never called me something nice before, aside my name.”

John chuckled softly “That’s because you have a nice name.”

Sophie blushed a little bit and then put on a serious face “please don’t flatter me, this is a serious matter.”

John laughed and grabbed Sophie’s hand.“fine, since its a serious matter, why don’t we go to the dining and talk, plus I’m starving.”

"Okay," Sophie said, agreeing with John's earlier statement. Just as they were about to leave the room, Emily stopped them, her voice low and even.

"And who were you calling a 'thing'?" Emily muttered, her eyes narrowing.

Sophie's expression was puzzled. "Huh?"

"If not you, who else?" Sophie asked, her voice rising. "You can't even remember your own name, so I gave you one. You should be thanking me instead of ranting."

Emily’s face twisted in annoyance. "I should be thanking you? Are you for real?" she snapped.

The tension between them was palpable as Sophie's eyes flashed with anger. "Stay away from John," she warned, her voice firm and menacing. "He's my man, so stay away from him," she said, pointing at Emily.

In a sudden, aggressive move, Sophie pushed Emily.

~ Downstairs – In the dining

Sophie gazed at John, her eyes filled with worry. "Sophie, what's wrong?" John asked, noticing her concern. "You look a bit absent minded."

"John, there's something off about this...your guest," Sophie said, her voice low. "Don't you find it strange that your father is showing her so much attention and care? I think you should ask your secretary to do a background check on her."

John's expression amused. "Well, I don't think that would be possible," he said, shaking his head.

"And why is that?" Sophie asked, her brow furrowed in confusion. "I no longer have a secretary, that's why."

Sophie's eyes widened in surprise. "What happened? Did your secretary, Alex, resign?"

John's face twisted in a mixture of frustration. "No, it's not that. My grandfather removed me from my position. Apparently, I have to face the consequences of my actions. I have to choose my words wisely."

Sophie's grip on John's arm tightened. "Which position do you have now?" she asked, her voice soft with concern.

John's eyes dropped, his voice low. "He removed me from director and demoted me to sales team leader."

Sophie's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow, your grandfather is really something," she said.

"Anyway, you still have to run a background check on this...your guest who supposedly doesn't remember her name," Sophie said.

John shook his head. "How will that be possible? How are we going to do that?”

Sophie’s face lightened up “I have an idea, why don’t we check her social media page? We might find something.”

“How are we going to check social media when she doesn't even remember her name? How are we going to know her account?" he asked, his frustration visible.

Sophie nodded. "That's true."

As they were discussing the matter, John's father, Mr. Smith, was in his room when his phone rang. He picked it up to hear Doctor Lee's voice on the other end.

"Hello, Doctor Lee," Mr. Smith said, his tone courteous.

"Hello, Mr. Smith. I'm sorry to bother you, but it's about your guest, the one you brought in two days ago," Doctor Lee said, his voice professional.

"Okay, go on."Mr. Smith said.

Doctor Lee hesitated before continuing. "The other day, two days ago, when you brought her here to the hospital, we were having complications due to her Amnesia. I asked my nurse to carryout a test on her, since we couldn't figure out what's the main reason for her not responding to treatment. The results came out yesterday, but I couldn't call you, I'm sorry about that."

Mr. Smith's anticipation grew. "What did the result show?"

Doctor Lee's voice was somber. "The result came out that she has cancer. That's why she wasn't responding to treatment."

Mr. Smith was stunned, his mind reeling from the news. "Cancer?" he repeated, his voice barely above a whisper.

Doctor Lee's tone was apologetic. "Yes, sir. I'm deeply sorry. We're giving her the wrong drugs for her body system due to the cancer. We need to stop those drugs immediately before her cancer gets worse. I’ll have my nurse bring the drugs over to your place.”

Mr. Smith's face was pale. "Okay, Doctor. Please take care of her. Do whatever it takes to help her."

Doctor Lee's voice was reassuring. "Don't worry, sir. We'll do everything we can. I'm deeply sorry about this."

Mr. Smith hung up and went downstairs.

Emily was already on her way downstairs when she met Mr.smith

“Thank God you’re all here. I just finished talking to Dr. Lee he told me a very shocking news.” Mr. Smith narrated. “He told me that the reason why she wasn’t responding to treatment was because she…she has can…cancer.” He stuttered.

“Cancer!” They echoed