Forgive My Ex-husband
Chapter 42 Childhood Friendship

Silence prevailed in the room. No one dared to utter a word. Melinda closed her eyes and took deep breaths to calm down. She picked up the crutch from the floor and handed it to Nelson. "Grandpa, let's eat."

Melinda smiled and served the food. Nelson smiled sadly and reluctantly took a bite of the food. Melinda wasn't bothered that Jonas had left her to see Emily.

Her nonchalance surprised everyone in the room. Melinda was behaving as if Jonas was a stranger to her.

Queena was shocked by her reaction. Melinda always felt dejected when Jonas ignored her and left to see another woman.

Queena had thought that Melinda and Jonas were getting along well but she was wrong. Nothing had changed.

"Mellie, I'm sorry."

Nelson felt that Melinda was pretending to be okay when she was hurting inside. He wouldn't have felt bad if she had thrown a tantrum at everyone for the way Jonas treated her. But she restrained her emotions and kept everything to herself. She tolerated everything without complaining.

"Grandpa, I'm fine." Melinda smiled reassuringly.

Melinda and Jonas were pretending to get along well only for personal gains. They weren't living their lives like a married couple, so it didn't matter to her about what Jonas did or who he was with. Nelson's heart was heavy and he had lost his appetite. He was just playing with his food without eating. Queena was conscious of her health, so she hardly ate anything. Yulia couldn't eat in front of Melinda. She nibbled on her food awkwardly. But Melinda was ravenous. She gobbled the food, devouring the taste, and even finished half a bowl of soup.

When Melinda stood up to leave for her room, Nelson called, "Mellie, come to my study after dinner. We haven't seen each other in a long time and there are a lot of things that I need to talk to you about." Nelson smiled and went to his study.

Melinda felt bad to see Nelson losing his mind over her relationship with Jonas. He was old and needed to live in peace rather than worrying about them.

The sweet scent of sandal wafted in Nelson's study. The walls were covered with paintings that Jonas had drawn when he was young.

His desk was filled with articles and photo frames that Melinda had gifted him. Nelson cleared the desk with his trembling hands and plopped on the chair. He wore his reading glasses that made his eyes look bigger.

Melinda felt that Nelson was getting old. Although he was mentally strong, his body didn't seem to cooperate.

"Come here, Mellie." Nelson smiled at Melinda who was leaning against the doorframe.

She nodded and walked in as Nelson pulled out an old photo album from the drawer.

Nelson fondly caressed the album and opened it. Melinda saw the picture of a chubby baby, blowing bubbles.

He had plump cheeks, rosy lips, and was incredibly cute.

"That is Jonas," Nelson said, trailing his fingers across the photograph. "This picture was taken when he was little. He was an adorable baby."

Nelson smiled fondly as his thoughts flitted to the good old days when Jonas was a happy kid. Although Melinda had guessed who it was, she was surprised to see the pictures.

The photo album was a record of Jonas's childhood. His pictures were arranged in chronological order. Melinda realized that Jonas's smile had gradually faded as he grew up.

She saw a girl who was with Jonas in almost all the pictures. The girl was cute and Jonas seemed to smile when she was with him. Melinda recognized the familiar face at once.

"Is this Emily?" Melinda asked when she saw a picture of Jonas and Emily in their teens.

Emily's face had not changed one bit, except that she looked childish and innocent in the pictures.

"Yeah. You know how Jonas is, don't you? Only a few people understand him and want to be friends with him. Jonas had a lonely childhood. Even I was busy managing the company and didn't have the time to look after him. But Emily was always with him. She was his best friend and never left him alone," Nelson said.

Although Nelson was never like Emily, he was grateful to her for being with his grandson at all times. Otherwise, Jonas would have been engulfed by loneliness.

Jonas and Emily grew up together. He was always grumpy and rude to everyone including Nelson but smiled when Emily was around. Being with her made him happy.

"Mellie, no one can replace you. You're the perfect match for Jonas. Emily..."

Nelson paused and blew out a loud breath. Melinda saw agitation in his deep eyes. She felt that there were a lot of things that she didn't know.

"Since Emily had an accident, Jonas has gone to see his friend for old times' sake, and I hope you'll understand that. Please don't give up on my grandson. Only you have the right to be his wife, I promise." Melinda could see the fear in Nelson's eyes. She knew that he was afraid of losing her. But neither Melinda nor Jonas could understand why he always considered Melinda as his granddaughter-in-law. He couldn't accept anyone else. Perhaps it was because of the friendship the two families shared. But Melinda felt that there something she didn't know.

"Grandpa, I'm not angry. I understand him. You need to stop worrying about us," Melinda said, smiling reassuringly.

She knew that Jonas loved Emily and it was normal for him to panic. She could understand Jonas because she had been liking him too. She had been crazy about Jonas and would worry even if he caught a cold.

"Trust and understanding are the foundation of any relationship. I felt I needed to tell you why Jonas had gone to see Emily but you're entitled to your opinion. You can do whatever you want when he returns home. Remember, I'm always on your side," Nelson said and finally let Melinda go back to her room.

Nelson's words were constantly ringing in Melinda's mind.

She had a strong feeling that Jonas was protecting someone but she couldn't figure out who it was and what he was protecting them from.

By the time Jonas arrived at the hospital, William had already finished the procedures. Emily was popular and reporters had crowded outside the hospital, waiting to get footages of her. Jonas tried his best to avoid them.

Emily was resting in the VIP ward. Her body had become limp after the treatment, so her assistant was feeding her water. Emily's pale face lit up with joy when she saw Jonas. She licked her chapped lips and smiled.

"Jonas,"

Emily called softly as tears streamed down her cheeks. Jonas took the water glass from the assistant and sat on the bed next to her. She held his hand and cried harder.

When Jonas was a child and fell sick, there was only Emily to take care of him, while his family was busy with their work. Jonas always felt a strange sense of guilt when Emily got hurt her or fell sick.

He felt that he was indebted to her.

"Drink it slowly," Jonas whispered softly.

Emily took a sip of water and smiled at his handsome face.

Emily was exhausted. She had finally achieved her goal. She felt safe and happy as Jonas was by her side, so she drifted into a peaceful sleep.

It was midnight when Jonas returned home. The living room was dark, except for the faint light from the night lamp. Jonas involuntarily went to Melinda's room. She was curled into a ball and was fast asleep. The quilt was not fully draped and Jonas tried to readjust it. When he touched Melinda, she stirred in her sleep and knitted her eyebrows.

Jonas pulled the corner of the quilt and covered her body. He smoothed her frown and patted her back comfortingly. Melinda gradually fell asleep with a small smile on her face. The soft light illuminated Melinda's face. She was looking peaceful in her sleep. Jonas smiled at her innocent face.

He couldn't comprehend the complicated waves of emotions that were gushing in his heart. He realized that something had shifted in him.

Although Emily's injuries were mild and she was recuperating, the doctors had instructed her to rest in the hospital. The next day, when Jonas went to see Emily, he saw that her ward was filled with flowers and fruit baskets. He guessed that someone had come to see her.

"Jonas, you are here."

Emily beamed with joy.

"Are you feeling better?"

Jonas placed the bag of fruits on the table and sat on the chair next to her.

"I'm okay. I know that you have a lot of work to do. You don't have to come here every day," Emily said thoughtfully.

She knew that Jonas had just returned from a holiday and that he had to catch up with work.

Although Emily enjoyed the attention, she didn't want him to ignore his work.

"It's okay, I'll manage. You are more important to me than work. You rest well and take care of yourself. Don't think unnecessarily and trouble your mind."

"Thank you, Jonas." Emily smiled gratefully.

She knew that she was different in Jonas's heart.

Nelson found that Jonas had been taking care of Emily. He could understand his concern but became frustrated when he saw Jonas going to the hospital every day to see her. Nelson tried stopping him but Jonas ignored him.

William came to the hospital to pick Jonas up. He informed him about what Nelson said.

"You take care of everything in the hospital. I don't want anything bad to happen."

William nodded politely. He wouldn't disobey Jonas.

Jonas knew that his grandfather despised Emily. He thought that Nelson would slowly warm to her but he was firm with his decision. He wasn't ready to accept her. Emily couldn't do anything. She had no choice but to wait until Nelson accepted her. She didn't want to do anything that would potentially ruin her chances with Jonas.

She knew that she had to win Nelson's trust if she wanted to be with Jonas.

But no one could replace Melinda's position in Nelson's heart. She would always be his favorite daughter-in-law.