When His Perfect Mask Shattered I Awoke (Anneliese) novel Chapter 620

The light in Jessica's eyes grew even brighter. She smiled and leaned against Anneliese's shoulder.

"Honestly, I've been quietly teaching myself some professional courses these past few years. It's not formal training, but I've sketched numerous design drafts. I can scrape together a decent portfolio. I know I won't be able to get into a top international university anytime soon, but I should be able to find a university willing to accept me. I just need a recommendation letter," she declared.

Anneliese nodded. "Leave that to me. Right now, your only job is to rest. You need to be healthy before you can handle anything else!"

She nodded again. She finally felt herself relax with Anneliese helping her sort out her thoughts and resolve the biggest obstacle in front of her.

Just then, a knock came at the door. Anneliese helped her to lie down properly before walking over to open it.

The person standing outside was Zion, holding an insulated food carrier in one hand and a phone box in the other. "Mrs. Fullbuster and Ms. Sweeting haven't had dinner yet. Mr. Fullbuster had nutritious meals prepared from Moonstone Pavilion. Ms. Sweeting is expected—she can't go hungry. Please eat something before resting."

He set the two large food containers on the bedside cabinet, then lifted the phone box. "We found Ms. Sweeting's phone, but it was damaged. So we replaced it with a new model. The SIM card is already installed."

He handed the phone to Anneliese, who accepted it.

Anneliese hadn't expected Jonathan to be so thoughtful and meticulous, and her smile softened.

Jessica smiled too, shooting her a look filled with pure envy. "Make sure you thank your husband for me."

Then she turned to Zion. "And thank you as well, Mr. Harland. It's so late now, and you still had to handle all this for me."

"It's no trouble. Mr. Fullbuster pays very well for overtime. Ms. Sweeting, take care of yourself and recover soon. I'll head out first," Zion replied.

But Anneliese looked up at him and questioned, "Where is he?"

Zion hadn't mentioned that Jonathan had gone downstairs to meet Anneliese's grandmother. He wasn't sure his boss wanted her to know. "Mr. Fullbuster likely had something urgent to deal with. Mrs. Fullbuster, please have dinner before it gets cold."

Anneliese nodded. She stayed with Jessica while they ate, cleaned up afterward, and only left when Jessica practically pushed her out.

When the room fell silent again, Jessica rested a hand on her belly and closed her eyes, though sleep refused to come.

She powered on her phone, and a wave of missed calls and messages flooded the screen.

Zane had called eight times and sent four or five WhatsApp messages.

She couldn't tell if he was always this busy—or if she simply wasn't important to him.

It's embarrassing, honestly. I once convinced myself that Zane might actually care about me—that having his child might somehow keep whatever we had alive.

A sudden, piercing pain tightened in her chest, as if even Jessica's own heart was mocking her for being so naïve.

She shut off her phone and drew in a few deep breaths, trying to steady herself, but the tears slipped out anyway—quiet, unstoppable, tracing down her cheeks.

…

When Anneliese stepped into her grandmother's hospital room, Nishay was already lying down.

Relieved, she tiptoed closer to pull the blanket up—only for Nishay's eyes to open abruptly. "Oh, Grandma, you're still awake?"

She nearly jumped. Her grandmother gave her a pointed look. "That guilty face of yours says it all."

She instantly wilted. "Grandma, I didn't mean to keep it from you. I tried to break up with him truly—but I just couldn't."

Anneliese clung gently to her grandmother's sleeve. She pleaded, "Grandma, is it really impossible? What do you need from him—what would it take for you to give him, give us, a chance? Even people on death row get a few years for rehabilitation. You can't just sentence him on sight."