Chapter 1The Delivery Room Departure

Right before I was wheeled into the delivery room, Ethan received news that his ex-girlfriend had been in a car accident.

Without a second thought, he let go of my hand.

"I'm going to check on Chloe. You stay here and listen to the doctors."

I grabbed his arm, begging him not to leave.

He looked down at me, his eyes turning cold, though his tone remained pleading: "You know she was my first love, and she might be dying."

"Just let me see her one last time. Please?"

Later, Chloe survived.

And I died in the delivery room.

That brief exchange was the last time Ethan and I ever saw each other.

* * *

My baby was in a breech position, so I had to undergo a C-section.

Just before I was wheeled into the operating room, Ethan received news that his ex-girlfriend had been in a car accident.

Her condition was critical.

A second ago, he had been patiently comforting me, but now, it was like a switch flipped. He was desperate to leave.

He tried to pull his hand away, but I gripped it tightly.

Ignoring the stares of the medical staff, I asked the nurses to stop the gurney. Enduring the agonizing contractions, I pleaded with Ethan:

"When I come out of surgery, you're the first person I want to see. Can you please stay?"

He hesitated.

Sensing my grip slipping, I placed a hand on my swollen belly. "Your baby needs you too."

Ethan looked down at me, his brow furrowing as his expression turned cold, though his words were phrased as a plea: "You know she was my first love, and she might be dying."

"Just let me see her one last time. Please?"

Before I could even respond, he forcefully pulled his hand from mine, taking the last shred of warmth with him.

He told the doctors to hurry up, then turned and strode away.

I desperately propped myself up on my elbows, calling his name several times as he walked away.

He walked so fast his light gray trench coat billowed behind him like water.

He never looked back once.

His retreating figure suddenly felt incredibly unfamiliar.

I never imagined that Chloe's place in his heart was so absolute.

Even my life, combined with the life of our unborn child, couldn't outweigh her.