Chapter 131: My life has nothing to do with you anymore.
Evelyn tightened her grip on her clutch.
Yes, she had loved him desperately. Even now, a part of her still did. And it was also true that she had been the one to file for divorce because she had finally understood that love wasn’t about forcing someone to stay.
Slowly, she lifted her head. "Dr. Ian Whitmore."
She deliberately addressed him formally. "I don’t regret my decision. And I’m not here because of you. I came for my eye checkup."
Ian frowned. Only then did he notice something unusual.
She wasn’t looking at him. Her gaze was unfocused. It was as if she couldn’t see.
His heart skipped a beat. "What happened to your eyes?" His voice became noticeably heavier. "What is going on?"
"That’s none of your business," Evelyn replied coldly. "We are divorced."
She lowered her head again. "My life has nothing to do with you anymore."
Ian stared at her silently.
She really hadn’t changed. She was still as stubborn as ever, always making her own decisions, never letting anyone interfere. It was always about her. She had never cared about other people.
That part of her had always infuriated him. In the past, he would have exploded in anger.
But now, looking at her vacant eyes, his chest tightened painfully.
"What the hell happened to you?" he demanded. "I’m just asking how you ended up like this. Why didn’t you tell me?"
He took a slow step closer. "Even if we are divorced, there is still something between us."
"No," Evelyn interrupted him without hesitation. "There isn’t. We ended everything. There is nothing left between us."
Her answer struck him like a knife.
Ian clenched his jaw. "Evelyn..." Frustration flashed across his face. "Can you stop acting like this for once?"
"Acting like what?" She abruptly rose to her feet. "You always accused me of not understanding you. You said I forced myself into your life."
Her voice trembled with years of suppressed pain. Her breathing became uneven.
"Now I’ve finally stayed away from you, and you are still dissatisfied." Her lips quivered. "Will you only be happy if I die?"
Ian froze. His pupils contracted.
"What?" His voice was barely above a whisper.
"Evelyn." Elena came back, carrying a paper bag filled with medicines.
Hearing Elena’s voice, Evelyn closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath to steady herself.
"Elena." She forced herself to sound composed. "What took you so long?"
She reached out instinctively. "Take me home. I’m tired."
Elena immediately noticed the tension hanging in the air. She glanced at the tall man in the white coat before taking Evelyn’s hand.
"Is everything alright?"
Evelyn gave a faint shake of her head. "I’m fine."
After a brief pause, she whispered, "I just... feel suffocated here."
"Please take me away."
Elena didn’t ask any more questions. She simply nodded.
"Okay."
Supporting Evelyn carefully, she led her toward the exit.
Before leaving, Elena cast one final glance at Ian.
He remained rooted to the spot, staring silently at Evelyn’s retreating figure, unable to move.
"What happened to her?" he mused aloud. "How did she become blind?"
Ian’s gaze shifted toward the ophthalmology department. Without wasting another second, he strode to the chief ophthalmologist’s office. He knocked once before pushing the door open.
The middle-aged doctor looked up and immediately recognized him.
The hospital’s newly appointed chief of neurosurgery.
A smile spread across his face. "Dr. Whitmore. What brings you here?"
"I’m here to ask about a patient." Ian closed the door behind him. "Evelyn Rowan."
The doctor’s smile faded. "You know her?" he asked, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully.
Ian nodded. "She is my ex-wife."
Understanding dawned on the doctor’s face. His expression turned solemn. "I see."
He gestured toward the chair opposite his desk. "Please, have a seat."
Ian sat down, his posture rigid.
The doctor opened Evelyn’s medical file. "Miss Rowan was involved in a serious car accident. She remained in a coma for several days."
Ian’s body stiffened.
A car accident...
He had known nothing about it. For the past few months, he had been in the Middle East, performing complex neurosurgeries. He had been so consumed by work that he had completely lost touch with Evelyn.
A dull ache spread through his chest. If only he hadn’t buried himself in work, if only he had cared more about his family, perhaps their marriage wouldn’t have fallen apart. Perhaps Evelyn wouldn’t be suffering like this.
Regret washed over him.
"The trauma affected her optic nerve," the doctor continued. "At present, surgery offers only about a fifty-percent chance of restoring her eyesight."
Ian’s expression grew grave. "May I review her scans?"
"Of course." The doctor handed him the medical file.
Ian accepted it carefully. "Thank you. I’d like to study everything in detail. I’ll return the file as soon as I’m done."
"No problem."
After thanking him once more, Ian left the office.
Inside the car...
Elena quietly observed Evelyn from the seat beside her. She noticed the beads of sweat glistening on her forehead, the way her fingers were tightly clutching her handbag, and the unusual paleness of her face.
It was obvious that something was weighing heavily on her mind.
’Is she worried about the surgery? Or is something else bothering her?’
Then Elena remembered the doctor she had seen speaking with Evelyn at the hospital. Her brows knitted together.
"Evelyn," she asked gently after a long silence, "who was that doctor? Do you know him?"
Evelyn’s body tensed. She had no desire to talk about him. But she couldn’t ignore Elena’s concern.
"He is..." she answered after a brief pause, "my ex-husband."
Silence settled over the car once again, this time heavier than before.
Elena understood the pain of a broken marriage better than most. She knew how deeply old wounds could linger and how painful it was to revisit memories that had never truly healed. She didn’t know what had happened between Evelyn and her ex-husband or why their marriage had fallen apart.
But she knew one thing. Life had to move forward. No one could remain trapped in the past forever.
Gently, she placed her hand over Evelyn’s. "Someone once told me that sharing your pain makes it a little lighter," she said softly. "If you want to talk, I’m here to listen."
She smiled warmly. "Sharing your pain makes it lighter. But I won’t force you. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s perfectly okay too."
Evelyn let out a quiet laugh. "That sounds exactly like something Elias would say."
Elena blinked in surprise. "How did you know?"
Evelyn wiped the moisture gathering at the corners of her eyes. "He always says that."
The faint smile on her lips slowly disappeared. "Ian and I were married for seven years."
Her voice gradually became quieter. "I thought I had the perfect life. I was married to the youngest and most talented neurosurgeon. But..."
She lowered her head. "I loved him so much."
Her voice cracked. She swallowed hard.
"The worst part is, I still do."