Chapter 216 - Happy & Honest Life

"Ow, ow, ow!" Alec hissed a breath through clenched teeth.

"Sorry Mr. Hirogori, but I need to check if there's pain anywhere else."

He snorted. "Well from the sound of my groaning, I think you can tell."

The nurse looked at him with a deadpan expression and scribbled something down on her paper. The corners of Alec's lips twitched, but he said nothing and sighed silently.

When he woke up after the surgery, the doctor informed him of his condition. He had a broken rib. Truthfully, this was good news considering he was in a car accident.

Nevertheless, it still hurt like hell. At the very least, he was glad Tobias was all right.

Alec took a deep sigh and leaned back against the bed frame. When he heard the sound of the door being opened, his eyes slowly fluttered open. Thinking it was another nurse, he indifferently glanced over, but his eyes were quick to widen upon perceiving the figure standing at the door.

"Mimi…" He muttered her name in disbelief.

Standing in front of the doorway with a bouquet, Mimi closed the door behind her before she stepped up to his bedside.

"These are for you," She pushed the flowers forward.

Alec blinked. He was too stunned to speak; his throat dry. When he didn't speak for a while, Mimi's smile gradually dropped, a soft sigh escaping her. She set them down on his lap, pulled out a chair beside the bed and sat down.

"How long will it take for you to recover?" She asked casually, her gaze calm.

"Uh…six to eight weeks. It depends though." Alec answered truthfully, momentarily knocked off balance by her question.

Mimi's expression showed she was listening very seriously. When Alec finished speaking, she nodded in response.

"Does it hurt?"

While it hurt to move and breathe a bit, Alec didn't dare tell this to his sister. It was the first time since their argument at Lee Odo's event that she took the opportunity to see him. He wouldn't waste this precious moment by complaining.

Alec cleared his throat and forced out a faint smile. "Just a little bit."

"Oh." Her lips formed a perfect "o" shape. Her demeanor was calm, almost too calm.

Alec suddenly felt nervous, his hands fiddled a bit with the flowers she gave him.

Mimi was silent for two seconds and said frankly, "I told Tobias the truth about me. Although...it turns out, he already knew."

At that moment, Alec's expression stiffened, his eyes wide. First, Tobias reveals his love for his sister. Now his sister tells Tobias the truth. At this point, Alec was near speechless by the turn of events.

Two weeks. This all had taken place in two weeks.

But from the tone of her voice just now, it was clear she knew who spilled the beans.

Alec gulped. He secretly checked Mimi's expression and found she wasn't angry. His heart was full of guilt, but at the same time, he felt that Mimi's temper had gotten much better.

"Why did you decide to tell him?" He asked without thinking.

Sighing softly, Mimi leaned back into her seat. "You could say I got a little tired of hiding everything."

She lowered her head and her gaze softened. "If I'm honest, I'm a little jealous of Tobias's honesty. That's why…I too want to take the first step and try to change a bit. I want to make myself an honest person."

Alec stared at her with wide, disbelieving eyes, as if he couldn't believe those words had come out of her mouth. He then straightened up and looked over at Mimi sitting beside him.

He seemed to have thought of something and opened his mouth to say, "Does that mean…you're open to falling in love with him?"

Mimi shrugged, her smile reflecting a maturity he didn't usually see in the playful, teasing girl.

"We'll see. You know there's a saying…honesty is more than not lying. It is truth-telling, truth speaking, truth living, and truth loving. I want to live by that." Mimi extended a hand out on the bed and squeezed his hand.

She smiled. "Big brother, you may have not stayed by my side as much as I would have hoped or needed, but you were there in the end. You always came back. Thank you!"

Alec's eyes opened wide in shock. He couldn't believe the words he was hearing. Never had his sister ever thanked him. Hell, even when he gave food to her, she hardly said it. However, her words now were sincere. She was truly thanking him.

A lump in his throat swelled. He said after the briefest hesitation, "But…I hardly did anything…It was Tobias who…"

Cracks started appearing in his stiff expression as he processed what was going on. The weird look on his face made Mimi burst out into peals of bell-like laughter.

"Hmm? What's that? You should be saying you're welcome. No? After all, I did just sincerely thank you. I would much rather hear that then a rejection."

Alec's mouth presses into a hard line, but then, almost reluctantly, his lips lifted, and she knows he's trying to stifle his smile.

"You're welcome," He said.

Mimi giggled and stood up from her seat. "Get well, big brother."

Alec looked up at her with a faint smile. "Thank you."

Just as Mimi stepped toward the door to leave, Alec's voice suddenly caused her to pause in her footsteps.

"Mimi…be happy."

Something shook in the depths of her eyes. Despite that, on the surface, she was full of smiles as she looked back.

"I will."

Following those words, Mimi opened the door and left. Alec sighed with a faint smile. To see his sister so sincere, he could only think it was Tobias's influence. That thought helped Alec calm down a little.

His mind was a mess right now.

But he was happy. Happy that his sister also finally seemed more joyful. He propped his head against his pillow and laughed to himself. Suddenly, he heard the door slide open once again.

Shifting his head, Alec's pupils abruptly shrunk and he was stunned for a moment. The light in his clear, bright eyes instantly dimmed.

Without any particular expression on his face, he asked, "What are you doing here?"

The man standing before him raised a brow, a small sneer forming on his lips. "Can I not pay my brother a visit?"

Standing in between the doorway to his ward, was none other than Kenji Hirogori. However, his presence was not what worried him.

What concerned Alec was whether Kenji saw Mimi leave. If anyone from the Hirogori family were to discover her identity…Alec's narrowed eyes lowered even further.

He could not allow history to repeat itself.

At the same time, Kenji was already pulling out a chair and sitting beside his bed.

"We need to talk."

Alec looked at him with an indifferent expression. He gritted his teeth.

"Speak."