Fortunate to Have You This Lifetime

The dusk of winter is especially brief, and in just a moment, the sky has already darkened.

Nathaniel Summers stands by the window, looking at the white-walled, red- roofed little mansion in the distance, where the warm light seems to drape a thin layer of gauze over the house, dim, hazy, and romantic.

He doesn’t know why, but he feels envious.

Compared to the luxurious house he is living in right now, that place seems more comfortable, more filled with the warmth of home…

Ever since Suzanne Saunders passed away, this home has increasingly lost the feeling of being a home.

Nathaniel glances at the photo of his wife on the table, her familiar face and laughter feeling increasingly strange and distant.

He can’t help but think of the time he just saw Purple Summers downstairs.

From afar, he watched her approach, and in a daze, he thought it was Suzanne returning.

They really look so alike…

Not only their outfits but also their way of walking and their expressions when they frowned are strikingly similar.

They are clearly two completely different people, so why are they so similar? And why hadn’t he noticed before that Purple Summers resembled his wife? Some thoughts are too absurd, and Nathaniel doesn’t dare to think deeply about it.

Feeling restless and irritable, he plans to go to his study to deal with work matters as a way to numb himself.

As he passes Laura Summers’ room, a servant is coaxing her to eat.

Laura has seen several doctors, but she hasn’t improved. She’s insane all day long, and if no one feeds her, she won’t even know she’s hungry.

Nathaniel feels sorry for her.

How could a young girl lose her mind like this?

“…There’s a ghost, she’s a ghost…she wants to hurt me! Go away!… Don’t hurt me… Go away all of you!…” Laura crouches at the foot of the bed with a blank look in her eyes, muttering constantly.

“Hasn’t she been to the hospital? Why is there no improvement?” Nathaniel frowns and asks the servant.

The servant replies with difficulty, “The doctor recommended a hospital in Scenton that specializes in mental illnesses, but Mr. Dylan Summers has been very busy lately and has not had the time to take Miss. Laura to Scenton…” Upon hearing this, Nathaniel’s eyebrows furrow deeper.

He knows that his elder brother values fame and fortune, but Laura is his biological daughter. He simply cannot leave her unattended like this.

…Things at home have indeed been going awry recently.

Nathaniel decides to talk to Dylan Summers and discuss the matter in depth. As he’s turning to leave, the servant in the room suddenly lets out a cry of exclamation.

Laura has knocked over the bowl and pounces on the servant like a lunatic, hitting and kicking her while screaming, “Don’t hurt me! Don’t hurt me!… Get away! I know you’re a ghost! You’re a ghost!!!”

The maid does not dare to fight back and endures several blows before she finally can’t stand it anymore. With tears in her eyes, she runs out of the room, telling Nathaniel at the door, “Sir, I really can’t do this job anymore! With Miss. Laura like this, you need to hire a professional caregiver to take care of her!” Without waiting for Nathaniel to say anything, the maid runs off quickly, clearly quitting her job.

Nathaniel has a headache, as problems have been occurring at home more frequently, and more and more servants are quitting.

Looking back into the room, Laura’s emotional turmoil has calmed down, perhaps because she has driven away the “ghost”. She no longer raves but sits on the edge of the bed, lost in her thoughts.

Nathaniel heaves a deep sigh, calls another servant to clean the room, and then goes to find Dylan Summers.

At this moment, Dylan Summers is also overwhelmed with problems.

“Wasn’t it agreed upon? Why isn’t he coming?… All those rumors outside are nonsense!”

Dylan angrily yells into the phone before hanging up in frustration. He looks up to see Nathaniel standing at the door of his study.

“When did you come?” He asks.

Nathaniel replies, “Big brother, I just saw Laura having a meltdown again. We can’t let this go on. We must find a good doctor to treat her properly. She’s only seventeen years old. She can’t live her life like this in confusion.”