Chapter 111: Chapter 111: She Could Actually Make a Sound

Noelle Sutton returned to her small apartment. Since she had stayed up very late last night, she went to bed early.

"No—ah—"

Don’t—

In her dream, her eyes reflected the crimson of a raging fire.

Tristan Lawson was still inside.

She wanted to call for help, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t make a sound.

She was trapped, struggling within the dream. The dream version of herself was frantic as she watched Tristan Lawson charge into the sea of flames.

’It’s too dangerous!’

"No... no..."

Noelle Sutton’s eyes shot open. She was drenched in sweat, strands of hair plastered to her face.

Waking up, she was still trembling with the residual terror from her dream.

She subconsciously touched her neck. Just now, she thought she had made a sound!

She had strained so hard, and it felt like there had been a vibration in her throat.

Her eyes widened involuntarily!

She had aphonia; she was completely unable to make a single sound.

Just now, in her dream, it seemed like...

She released the hand on her neck and clutched the blanket tightly. ’Could it be? Can I suddenly make a sound?’

After so many years of being unable to speak, she couldn’t dare to believe it.

’Am I still dreaming?’

But that sensation of having made a sound felt so real.

She tried to let out an "ah."

There was a distinct vibration in her vocal cords, and a hoarse noise emerged from her throat.

She was stunned...

She could really make a sound.

For over a decade, after facing disappointment time and time again, she had never dared to hope that one day she might be able to make even the faintest noise.

Because she hadn’t made a sound in so long, even with all her might, she could only produce a very, very low sound.

The slight tremor from producing the sound already made her throat ache as if it were being cut by a knife.

She got out of bed, poured a glass of warm water, and drank it slowly.

She tried again. "Bu..."

She couldn’t help but tighten her grip on the water glass. Her voice was raspy and low, but it was a real sound.

Her lips trembled into a smile. This was truly the best thing that had happened to her in a long time.

A searing, stinging pain still lingered in her throat.

But the joy in her heart nearly drowned out the pain.

But she didn’t dare try again. After all, she had only just managed to make a tiny sound, and her throat was already this uncomfortable. She was afraid she might damage her vocal cords, which would truly affect her ability to speak.

Over the years, she had all but given up hope of ever being able to speak again.

Especially after being diagnosed with cancer half a month ago and being told she only had about six months to live, the thought of one day speaking again seemed even more impossible.

When Director Ford first contacted her and said that Smith was willing to recommend a doctor to help treat her aphonia, she had only been briefly moved.

For someone who could once speak, being unable to make a sound for so long was excruciatingly painful. She was tormented by it.

She had no choice but to accept and get used to the ridicule and sarcasm from others.

Every person who cannot speak, even someone born mute, yearns for the day they can talk.

Treatment seemed hopeless. Her grandmother, trying to find a cure for her, was scammed, fell ill from the blow, and never recovered, eventually passing away.

The many hardships of life had long since worn away her fantasies.

It was just that the fantasy of speaking had been sealed away in a small box deep in her heart.

Tonight, she could suddenly make a sound, and that sealed box in her heart was slowly creaking open.

Her phone suddenly rang, interrupting Noelle Sutton’s thoughts.

She picked up her phone. To her surprise, it was a video call from Wyatt Yates.

Ever since Tristan Lawson had forcibly taken her away from the café entrance outside the amusement park, she had been worried about implicating Wyatt Yates and hadn’t contacted him.

And Wyatt Yates hadn’t contacted her either.

Noelle Sutton hesitated for a moment, then answered the video call, placing her phone on a desk stand.

As soon as the call connected, Wyatt Yates appeared on screen, raising a hand and waving cheerfully at her.

Noelle Sutton smiled and waved back.

Wyatt Yates’s smile faded, and he asked Noelle Sutton seriously, "The Little Mute, do you want to be able to speak again?"

Noelle Sutton paused.

If Wyatt Yates had asked her this before tonight, she definitely would have told him no.

But now her vocal cords could produce a sound. The feeling that she might soon be able to speak filled her heart.

She had hope of being able to speak again. She wanted to.

This was the first time Wyatt Yates had ever asked her this.

It was also because his proposal had passed clinical trials.

The test subjects were all able to speak again.

He hadn’t told her sooner because he couldn’t bear to see The Little Mute get her hopes up only to be disappointed again.

Noelle Sutton signed at the screen, "Why are you suddenly asking me this?"

The treatment plan for aphonia was something Wyatt Yates had spent seven years researching for Noelle Sutton’s sake. Now that she was a married woman, he worried that telling her the truth would be a psychological burden, so he said, "I have some good news. A doctor friend of mine abroad spent seven years researching and found a treatment for acquired aphonia. It recently passed clinical trials, and all fifty aphonia patients who participated in the clinical treatment can now speak. Noelle, tell me, do you want to be able to speak again?"

She did want to speak.

But facing her greatest weakness, Noelle Sutton couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

Seeing her silence, Wyatt Yates could understand how she felt.

After all, it had been so many years. When she was young, her grandmother had taken her to countless places for treatment. He figured she had probably lost all hope herself.

Thinking of this, Wyatt Yates lowered his voice and encouraged her, "I know what happened with your grandmother was a huge blow to you. But have you ever thought about how much she wanted to cure you? Even though she’s passed away, if you could just call out ’Grandma’ at her grave, I believe she’d hear you in heaven. The Little Mute, are you willing to give yourself a chance?"

Wyatt Yates just waited for her to nod.

Noelle Sutton didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, she signed, "Is everything with the Yates Family resolved?"

If Wyatt Yates continued to help her, she was afraid Tristan Lawson would keep targeting the Yates Family.

Aunt Rhodes had come to see her personally. She didn’t want to cause Wyatt Yates any more trouble.

"It’s been fine recently. It was just for a day or two, and it’s not like the Yates Group doesn’t have its own countermeasures. Don’t worry about it. If Lawson makes another move against the Yates Group, at worst, I’ll just leave the Yates Family. I’ll take responsibility for my own actions. Tristan Lawson just doesn’t want me helping you. I think, as the leader of such a large corporation, he wouldn’t resort to using underhanded tactics against the Yates Family after I’ve already left."

"But..."

Noelle Sutton signed frantically. How could she let Wyatt Yates leave his family?

"No buts." Wyatt Yates cut her off. "The Little Mute, I know you’re worried about dragging me into this, but don’t you have any faith in me at all?"