Chapter 2

I stared blankly at the ceiling, the sharp smell of bleach in the hospital room pulling me back to reality.

I sat up, gently touching my flat belly.

A dull, sharp pain rippled through my heart.

My baby died during that miscarriage, and with it, my heart died too.

Even after everything that had happened, Abby was still the only one sitting by my hospital bed.

I picked up my phone and called Zachary.

It rang and rang until it went to voicemail. I was used to it.

But this time, I didn't quietly hang up and wait for him to call me back whenever he felt like it.

I redialed. Again and again.

Finally, he picked up.

Before I could even breathe a word, his irritated voice blasted through the speaker.

"What do you want now? I told you, I'm working! Don't call me during my hours!"

In the background, I could hear high-pitched giggles, splashing water, and Mia’s playful voice teasing Zachary.

A bitter sting hit my chest. I paused, taking a deep breath, and spoke clearly.

"Zachary, let's get a divorce."

The noisy background suddenly went dead silent. Then, he roared.

"Are you out of your mind? Ever since you lost the baby, you’ve been acting so damn dramatic! First, you claim you have postpartum depression and need a therapist, then you throw yourself into a river just for attention. What the hell do you want from me?!"

"I’ve told you a thousand times, Mia is just my student. I’m her coach. Why do you have to be so ridiculously paranoid? Stop playing these stupid games. Honestly, I regret marrying you!"

With a harsh click, Zachary hung up.

I sat frozen on the hospital bed, tears spilling over and soaking the coarse hospital sheets.

I never thought the man I loved for eight years—the one I went from college sweetheart to wife with, the one I stood by when he had absolutely nothing—could say something so heartless.

Was Mia really just a student?

When I was drowning in postpartum depression, he spent every waking hour by her side.

I remembered how the depression had clawed at my mind. I couldn't control my emotions, and I started hurting myself.

I had taken a paring knife and traced it over my arms, over and over.

Only when the bright red blood started dripping down did the numbness in my chest temporarily fade.

When I finally snapped out of it, I was terrified of my own reflection.

With trembling hands, I called Zachary. He hung up five times before finally answering.

But all I got was: "Chloe, do you have any idea how busy I am? I have a class to teach, and Mia is waiting for her private lesson. Stop annoying me!"

He hung up, leaving me in total darkness.

My heart went completely cold. I wandered outside, trying to clear my head.

And that was when I saw them at a local dessert shop, looking like a picture-perfect couple.