For three years, his legs had shown no improvement.
Olivia touched the bridge of her nose, feeling guilty.
"Son… I heard there's a new specialist here, she's very skilled. The Mopius couple had struggled with infertility for ten years, but after undergoing her treatment plan, they suddenly conceived. And William too, she had multiple fractures from a car accident half a year ago. After following Dr. Bailey's rehabilitation and nerve-stimulation therapy, her pain disappeared, and she hardly limps anymore. They say she'll make a full recovery in two months."
Hearing that, Jason remained expressionless.
His condition was completely different from William's. At least William could still feel pain. His legs were completely paralyzed utterly numb.
Even if someone dug a hole into his leg, he wouldn't feel a thing.
"Son, please listen to me. Just let this doctor take a look at you, okay?"
Olivia bit her lip, her eyes brimming with tears.
"I would never do anything to hurt you. I just… want you to be healthy again."
"…Fine."
Jason couldn't stand seeing his mother cry, so he reluctantly agreed.
Hearing that, Olivia grew so excited she nearly trembled.
"Good, good, Son, let me help you out of the car…"
Jason closed his eyes, allowing Olivia to help him down.
Sitting in the wheelchair, he could clearly hear his own heartbeat, heavy, uneven.
Especially when facing another hospital.
For more than three years, he had wished countless times that his legs could stand again.
But that hope faded…
Then sank…
And was finally buried.
Now, going back into a hospital, that familiar urge to run away rose again.
His hands gripped the armrests tightly.
His dark eyes flickered, then slowly dulled, like a lake with no ripples.
Maybe… just give himself one more chance.
If not for himself, then at least so his mother wouldn't suffer.
When they arrived at the door of a consultation room, it was lunchtime, so the hallway was empty.
Olivia, however, was buzzing with excitement.
"Son, we're here. I'll take you in."
Jason's eyes were lifeless dry and still like a drained well.
He neither agreed nor refused, simply letting things happen as if going through the motions.
But Olivia was as energized as if someone had injected her with adrenaline.
When she pushed the door open and entered the office and finally saw the young doctor wearing a mask inside, she froze.
It was Dr. Bailey.
The doctor everyone had been talking about.
...
I had just finished eating and was grinding some medicinal herbs when I noticed someone stepping into my office. I set everything down and lifted my head, then froze for half a second. A woman and a young man had walked in, likely mother and son. The woman was older, fine lines collecting at the corners of her eyes. The young man must have been in his early twenties, gentle features, clear eyes, but with a distant coldness buried deep within them. Beautiful, in a quiet and subdued way.
The only pity was… he was sitting in a wheelchair. His legs rested on the footplates thin, bony, almost skeletal. Startlingly frail.
I looked them over again. Their clothes were clearly high-end unmistakably wealthy. And the young man… I felt I'd seen him before. Then I remembered. Le Miroir Bleu. That American restaurant. I'd bumped into him there and even picked up the brooch he dropped. He was distant then too, barely said a few words before leaving. I didn't expect to meet him again.
"Who's here to be examined?" I asked, glancing at the woman, Olivia and then involuntarily shifting my eyes to the young man.
"Dr. Bailey, I want you to look at my son's legs," Olivia said, handing me the medical file from a year ago.
I lowered my gaze. Jason. A beautiful name.
I flipped through the file, no detailed descriptions at all, only vague summaries. I skimmed a few more pages, closed it, and said, "Please extend your hand first, I'll start there."
When I looked at him again, Jason's eyes seemed dull, empty. Gentle features, graceful lines, but something about him made people uneasy. It was like whatever used to give those eyes life had been extinguished long ago.
While I was studying him, he was studying me.
Even behind my mask, he could see I was young probably younger than him. My eyes were bright, and the beauty mark beneath one eye always drew attention. Something about me must have seemed familiar to him, because for a second he stared.
Then, abruptly, he withdrew his gaze disinterested.
I pressed two fingers against his radial pulse. After a few minutes, my expression grew serious. I frowned without realizing it, it didn't look good.
Olivia immediately tensed. "Dr. Bailey… is it hopeless?"
Jason's fingers tightened around the armrest of the wheelchair. His face stayed expressionless, but the moment was heavy with resignation. He must have already prepared himself for the worst.
"It's hard to say right now," I said. "Let me examine his legs first."
I stood up and reached toward his trouser leg to roll it up.
Jason stiffened instantly, a flash of resistance flickering in his eyes. Ever since the accident three years ago, he'd lost all sensation in his legs. The muscles had atrophied, leaving them thin, colorless, a sight even he avoided looking at. Letting someone else see them especially a stranger was something he clearly struggled with.
My fingers froze mid-motion. I lowered my hand.
"I'm a doctor. You're the patient. Some conditions require a direct exam before I can prescribe anything. If you truly want your legs treated, I need your cooperation."
My tone lost its softness becoming clear, firm, disciplined. It shifted the air around us instantly.
Olivia understood exactly why he resisted, but she also knew I was right. "Son, listen to Dr. Bailey. I want you to get better too."
Jason dropped his gaze. I saw hesitation in his eyes… but at least he wasn't refusing anymore. Silence from him was equivalent to agreement.
"Dr. Bailey," Olivia said, "he agrees. Please look at his legs."
I studied him again. He really agreed?
Then I didn't waste another second. I quickly pulled up his trouser leg.
A pair of bloodless, corpse-pale legs appeared, muscles completely wasted, veins standing out sharply under thin skin like bones wrapped in paper. It was a shockingly severe case.
Jason immediately furrowed his brows, the coldness between his eyes intensifying. He clearly hated having them exposed like this.
Olivia glanced once and quietly wiped her tears.
But I wasn't affected. I'd seen far worse. I crouched, examined carefully, then my frown deepened.
"This was a gunshot injury. About three years ago."
Both Olivia and Jason snapped their heads toward me, stunned.
It was a gunshot wound but I had only looked with the naked eye.
"Dr. Bailey… can you treat him?" Olivia asked, her voice shaking with desperate hope. "If you can heal my son, I'll do anything you ask. Anything."
Jason's fingertips trembled. Even if I could identify the injury, that didn't guarantee I could fix it. The real question, the only one that mattered was whether recovery was possible.
I didn't answer immediately.
Instead, I touched several points along his legs specific nerve pathways checking for reaction. "Here, any sensation?"
I pressed another point. "Here? And here?"
Jason shook his head each time. Nothing. Completely numb.
"A gunshot injury from three years ago and no sensation at all means treatment will be difficult," I said honestly. "But not impossible."
I straightened up.
"I'm going to begin by stimulating the damaged nerves and pathways with targeted electroacupuncture. If after one week, you regain even the slightest sensation, we can proceed to the next stage of treatment."
They both stared at me.
Jason's hands clenched the wheelchair armrest so tightly veins bulged under his skin. His voice was low, unsteady.
"Dr. Bailey… are you saying… I might… actually regain feeling in my legs?"