Chapter 2

After the surgery, I was wheeled back to the ward.

The anesthesia wore off slowly.

But the pain came back fast.

My abdomen felt like it was being sliced open repeatedly with a knife. I didn't even dare to breathe too hard.

The doctor stood by my bed, his voice very gentle. "We couldn't save the baby."

"It will be very difficult for you to get pregnant again in the future."

I stared at the medical report.

The words on it were clear.

But I stared at them for a long time, unable to process what they meant.

So I had been pregnant.

And that child never even got a chance to be known by their father.

In the next ward, Ethan's voice was more frantic than the doctor's. "Will her wrist scar? Did it damage her tendons? Check it again!"

The doctor explained patiently, "Mr. Vance, it's just a scratch. It doesn't even need stitches."

But Ethan wouldn't let it go. "She's been sensitive to pain since she was a kid. Don't be careless."

I turned my head away.

Through the half-open door, I saw Chloe sitting on the hospital bed.

She had a small Band-Aid on her wrist.

Ethan was bending over, holding her hand, his eyes filled with intense worry.

The nurse came over to change my dressing.

The moment she peeled off the gauze, my fingers trembled from the pain.

She stopped. "Where is your husband? Have him come in and support you."

I looked at the room next door.

Ethan was softly coaxing Chloe to drink some water.

"He's not here."

The nurse was stunned.

She looked at the wedding ring on my finger, then at Ethan in the next room. "Isn't that man your husband?"

I pulled my hand back under the blanket.

The edge of the ring dug painfully into my palm.

It hurt.

"No. He's the family member of the patient next door."

The nurse didn't ask further.

She just made her movements much gentler.

After a long time, Ethan finally came out of the room.

He stood by my bed. Seeing how pale I was, he frowned slightly. "How are you feeling?"

I was about to hand him the medical report.

But Chloe called out from next door. "Ethan!"

His gaze shifted instantly.

That belated bit of concern was pulled back before it could even reach me.

"Get some rest first," he said.

He turned and went right back to her.

I crumpled the report in my hand.

I suddenly remembered the day we got married three years ago.

Chloe had just rejected Ethan.

She told him she only saw him as a brother.

Ethan stood in the pouring rain all night.

The next day, he came to see me.

His voice was incredibly hoarse. "Don't you like me? Let's give it a try."

Back then, I thought I had finally waited long enough.

I even secretly bought a bouquet of flowers.

A small bouquet of baby's breath.

I held it tightly as we went to the courthouse.

But Ethan never looked at those flowers.

When we took our marriage photo, he didn't smile either.

The photographer had to remind him three times.

Only then did he force a faint tug at the corner of his lips.

I comforted myself back then.

He was just hurt.

People can slowly learn to love someone else.

But three years had passed.

Did he move on?

No.

The only one trapped in this marriage was me.

Late at night, the lights in the next ward were still on.

Ethan stayed by Chloe's side while she slept.

He tucked her in, adjusted the AC, and placed a cup of water right by her hand.

I had post-surgery bleeding.

I had to press the call button to get the nurse myself.

While the nurse was changing my sheets, my phone buzzed with a payment notification.

Chloe's full checkups, the VIP suite, and her meals were all paid for by Ethan.

My surgery fee, however, was paid with my own card.

I looked at the payment screen.

Suddenly, I felt so tired.

It turned out a marriage could be split so cleanly.

Where his heart was, that was where his money went.

I folded the abortion report and stuffed it into my bag.

Then I opened my phone.

I logged into our company's relocation system.

In the relocation application reason, I wrote only four words: *Will follow any transfer.*