Aurora took the phone, her eyes fixed on the flashing name "Madan Grace," and her heart leapt to her throat.

In her memories, Grace hadn't treated her badly, especially after that accident; the impression left on her had been deep. But before that, she’d clearly misunderstood her. To be honest, she didn’t even know how to face her now. Still, there were reasons behind it all. She just hadn’t fully prepared herself emotionally.

Seeing her hesitate, Megan couldn’t help but urge her, “Aurora, what are you staring at? Answer it!”

“Okay, I got it.” She nodded and answered the call at the very last second before it would’ve disconnected.

Once the call connected, Grace and Arnold, back in their home state, both let out a sigh of relief. Their nerves had been stretched thin, afraid that even Megan might be out of reach. If that were the case, even going to Millford would be pointless, with no one to contact. And without knowing Aurora’s exact location, it would’ve all been for nothing. So, when the call finally went through, Grace truly felt a wave of emotion rise in her chest. Her voice was slightly rushed as she blurted out, “Megan, where are you right now? Why did you take so long to answer? And what’s going on with Aurora? Do you know? I can’t get through to Lucas either, and when I called earlier, I heard a loud noise–I’ve been really worried. So I wanted to ask if you could help me find out what’s happening.” The moment the call connected, Grace couldn’t help rambling on by herself.

Although Aurora didn’t have the phone on speaker, the hospital room was quiet enough that everyone could hear the urgency in Grace’s voice. Normally, Grace wasn’t like this at all. She had always been composed and capable, known for handling things with poise. Even Leonard, who was sitting to the side, was surprised. It was the first time he had seen this side of Grace. It seemed the rumors about Aurora not being favored at home weren’t entirely true. There were still many things that needed to be reconsidered. Not everything could be taken at face value. And wasn’t this moment proof of that?

Hearing Grace’s stream of worried questions, Aurora felt completely thrown off. She realized she might have confused the mother in her memories with the one standing in reality. Right now, both versions of Grace were flashing through her mind—the loving and the harsh, both tangled together. For a moment, she had no idea how to respond. Lucas noticed something was off.

He got up, walked around to the other side of the bed, and gently pulled Aurora into his arms, his large hand softly kneading her shoulder in silent encouragement. When Aurora looked up, her gaze met Lucas’ steady, reassuring eyes. In that instant, something inside her clicked. She needed to take this step forward. She would have to face Grace sooner or later.

While Aurora was gathering the courage to speak, Grace grew anxious on the other end. She couldn’t help calling out again, “Megan, what are you doing? Why won’t you answer me? Megan, I know I’ve caused you a lot of trouble lately, but I really didn’t have a choice. That’s why I reached out to you. Don’t worry, I…”