The next morning, at the hospital in Singapore, Katrina's condition showed slight improvement.
Her health did seem a little better, but... she still couldn't walk.
Jenny patiently fed her older sister, who lay weakly on the hospital bed.
"Sis... are you feeling any better?" Jenny asked softly.
Katrina stared at Jenny's face for quite a while.
Then, in a low voice, she said, "I am, Jen... I want to go home."
Jenny immediately looked at her with worry.
"But... you're not fully recovered yet!" Jenny exclaimed as she held Katrina's hand.
"It's okay, Jen... I'm tired of being here. Besides..." Katrina paused for a moment before continuing with an empty gaze, "I'm not going to get better anyway."
Those words pierced Jenny's heart.
"Sis! Don't say things like that! You have to stay positive, okay?" Jenny replied, her voice rising slightly.
But Katrina only stared blankly ahead.
Her eyes looked hollow... like someone who had completely lost the will to live.
The woman who had once been so strong now looked utterly hopeless.
"Jen! I want to go home no matter what. Why stay here and waste money?" Katrina said again, more firmly.
Jenny fell silent.
She didn't want to argue with her sister.
On one hand, she knew Katrina's condition hadn't truly improved.
But on the other... she also knew that forcing Katrina to stay in the hospital might only make her more stressed.
"Alright, Sis... I'll call Mom first," Jenny said as she reached for her phone.
But Katrina stopped her immediately.
"Don't call Mom! I don't want to trouble her. Just call Hendrik!"
Jenny froze for a second.
She lowered her phone, then finally called Hendrik.
That morning, Hendrik had woken up earlier than usual.
He had planned to exercise for a while to clear his head from the endless problems piling up in his life.
But just as he was about to leave the house, his phone vibrated.
Hendrik immediately turned to look at the screen.
His eyes sharpened.
It was Jenny calling.
Inwardly, Hendrik muttered,
What does she want now?
He answered the call.
"Mas... Sis insists on going home. What should we do? Should I just follow what you say?" Jenny's panicked voice came from the other end.
Thud!
Hendrik's heart instantly skipped a beat.
"What!? She wants to come home? She's not even healed yet, Jen!" Hendrik shouted in shock.
"I know, Mas... I already tried to stop her, but she keeps insisting. I'm afraid she'll get even more stressed if she stays here..."
Hendrik fell silent.
His mind spun rapidly.
One problem hadn't even been solved yet, and now another one had arrived.
After thinking for a few moments, he finally said,
"Fine... let her come home. Just tell me what time you're leaving. I'll pick you up."
"Alright, Mas... I'll let you know later."
The call ended.
After that, Jenny gathered the courage to visit Dr. Stephen Lim's office to discuss Katrina's condition in more detail.
Knock... knock...
"Come in!" the doctor's voice called from inside.
Jenny entered the room with a faint smile.
Politely, she bowed her head a little.
"Doctor... may I speak with you for a moment?"
"Yes, of course. Please, have a seat," Dr. Stephen Lim replied briefly.
Jenny sat down in the chair in front of his desk.
"Yes, how can I help you?" the doctor asked as he removed his thick glasses.
Jenny looked at him with pleading eyes.
"It's about my sister, Katrina... She wants to go back to Jakarta. She keeps insisting on leaving."
Dr. Stephen Lim looked at Jenny, then asked to confirm.
"Your sister named Katrina? The bone cancer patient?"
Jenny nodded quickly.
"Yes, Doctor."
The doctor opened Katrina's medical file and reviewed it once more.
After reading for a while, his expression turned grim.
"To be honest..." he said quietly, "your sister's condition is already very severe. We doctors have done everything we can. But... her illness can no longer be treated."
Jenny's heart felt like it was being crushed.
She lowered her head, trying to hold back the tightness in her chest.
"If that is truly her wish, we cannot force a patient to stay. But all risks must be borne by the family. If anything happens, it will be beyond the hospital's responsibility."
Jenny remained silent for a long moment.
She knew... forcing Katrina to stay in the hospital wouldn't change much anyway.
Maybe... going home was the best choice.
At least her sister could be close to the people she loved.
"Alright, Doctor..." Jenny's voice trembled.
"We'll take responsibility for the risk ourselves."
Dr. Stephen Lim then prepared a discharge form stating that Katrina was leaving at the family's request.
Jenny had to sign it as proof that the patient was being discharged against medical advice.
With slightly trembling hands, Jenny signed the document.
After that, she took the paperwork to the administration desk and settled all the bills for Katrina's hospitalization and four days in the ICU.
The total came close to two hundred million rupiah.
But at that moment, money was no longer the most important thing to Jenny.
The only thing that mattered to her now... was Katrina.
Once everything was done, Jenny returned to the VIP room where her sister was staying.
When she entered, she saw Katrina still lying weakly on the bed.
Her face was pale, but her eyes immediately lit up with hope when she saw Jenny.
Jenny slowly walked closer and said gently,
"Alright, Sis... we're going home."
At once, Katrina's eyes sparkled.
"Really, Jen?" she asked in a weak voice, but full of excitement.
Jenny nodded with a faint smile.
"Yes, Sis. We're going home today."
Katrina's pale face suddenly seemed more alive.
She looked so happy.
Jenny knew very well... that happiness wasn't only because they were going back to Jakarta.
It was also because Katrina would get to see Hendrik.
"Jen... help me, okay? I want to freshen up first," Katrina said softly.
"I don't want to look bad when I see Hendrik."
That sentence made Jenny's chest ache.
But she still forced a smile.
"Of course, Sis."
Patiently, Jenny helped Katrina sit up.
Then she lifted her frail body into the wheelchair and took her into the bathroom inside the VIP room.
She cleaned her sister carefully and gently.
When they were done, Katrina asked Jenny to take out the nicest outfit from the suitcase.
"The cream-colored one, Jen..." Katrina said with a small smile.
"Hendrik likes it when I wear bright colors."
Jenny's hands instantly froze.
Her chest tightened even more.
With trembling fingers, she took the outfit and slowly helped her sister put it on.
Katrina looked at her reflection in the mirror.
Her face was pale, her body thin, but she still tried to smile.
"I look so ugly now, don't I?" Katrina asked quietly.
"No, Sis... you're still beautiful," Jenny replied quickly, though her voice was almost breaking.
Katrina gave a faint smile.
"Hendrik is coming to pick us up, right?"
That question made Jenny fall silent for a moment.
Her lips felt heavy.
Meanwhile, her heart felt like it was being squeezed mercilessly.
"Yes, Sis..." she finally answered softly.
The moment she heard that, Katrina's eyes lit up with hope.
Jenny quickly turned her face away.
She was afraid..
afraid her sister would see the tears beginning to fall from the corners of her eyes
Jenny truly couldn't bear seeing her sister so happy just because she wanted to meet Hendrik.
When in reality...
that man had already betrayed her sister's love.
Katrina's innocent gaze still seemed to believe that Hendrik was faithful.
That he was still the man who loved her wholeheartedly..
When in truth... everything might have already changed.
Jenny desperately wanted to tell her the truth.
She wanted to warn her sister not to place too much hope in Hendrik.
But when she looked into Katrina's sparkling eyes, full of happiness...
Jenny couldn't do it.
She couldn't destroy her sister's last remaining hope.
After everything was ready, Jenny quickly sent Hendrik a short message.
"Mas, we're leaving at 10. I've already bought the tickets online for today. All the administrative bills have been paid."
The message was sent.
Jenny glanced at her phone screen again.
The message had been delivered... but it still hadn't been read.
Not long after, Jenny wheeled Katrina out of the hospital.
With the help of an online taxi, they headed to the airport to return to Jakarta.
Meanwhile, at Hendrik's house...
Hendrik, who had just been about to get ready to go out, finally saw Jenny's message.
The moment he read it, his face tightened.
Katrina was coming home today.
His heart instantly began pounding faster.
Without wasting any time, Hendrik quickly rushed into the bathroom to shower and get ready to pick up his wife.
But Lanny was still in the house.
The woman had just woken up.
She stepped out of the room in a hurry, her hair still slightly damp
Earlier that morning, she had taken a shower in Hendrik's bathroom Because she had been in such a rush, she had gone straight back to the room without checking whether she had left anything behind.
When she saw Hendrik already fully dressed and looking panicked, Lanny immediately froze in surprise.
"Dear,.. are you going somewhere?" Lanny asked in confusion.
Hendrik turned toward her with a tense look.
His face was clearly panicked, though he tried to keep his voice low.
"Lanny, hurry and pack your things. Katrina is coming home today," Hendrik said firmly.
Lanny's eyes widened in shock.
"What!? Today?"
"Yes," Hendrik answered quickly.
"Don't leave any of your things behind. I don't want Katrina getting suspicious that you've been staying here."
Lanny's face instantly turned pale.
"O-Okay, dear.... I'll pack everything right now."
Lanny immediately ran to the room to gather all her clothes.
Meanwhile, Hendrik stood there in silence.
His jaw tightened, and his hands clenched into fists.
Today... Katrina was coming home.
And if there was even one small mistake...
all of his lies could collapse in an instant.
But because she was too panicked and in too much of a hurry, Lanny didn't realize that one of her belongings had been left behind.
A pink bra still hung quietly behind the bathroom door in Hendrik's bathroom.
It looked like such a small, insignificant thing...
but it could become the beginning of the destruction of all Hendrik's lies.
And the worst part...
not one of them realized it.