Chapter 4

• Aurora’s Point of View
• My eyelids felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. I forced myself to open them just a little.
• The moment I woke up, I saw a pair of deep, calm eyes.
• It was him.
• The man who carried me out of the bar.
• He was leaning over me, one hand hanging just above my forehead, his fingertips almost touching my skin.
• His hand looked nice, with long fingers, clear knuckles, and a kind of strength in it. It was nothing like Kevin’s hands, which were always touching other women.
• Our eyes met in midair.
• My whole body froze, and my heart skipped a beat.
• He clearly didn’t expect me to wake up that fast. His hand stopped in mid-air, then he pulled it back right away.
• The bright white light made me squint, and the strong smell of disinfectant hit my nose.
• I was in a hospital.
• A sudden pain hit my lower belly.
• My baby!
• Fear grabbed my heart tightly. I didn’t think about anything else and reached for my stomach.
• “Don’t move.”
• A hand pressed gently on my shoulder, stopping me. It was that man.
• His voice was low and calm. “The doctor said you had signs of a threatened miscarriage. You need to stay in bed and rest.”
• My baby… my baby was still with me.
• Relief and fear rushed through me at the same time. Tears poured out, as if everything I felt earlier, pain, fear, sadness, was breaking loose all at once.
• “Thank you. Thank you for saving me and my baby.” My voice shook, and I had no other words besides thank you.
• He handed me a tissue but kept his eyes on my face. “Have we met somewhere before?”
• His question made my heart jump again.
• I forced myself to calm down and, under the bright hospital light, looked at his face closely.
• His features were strong, a high nose bridge, a clear jawline, a face so handsome it almost felt too much.
• There was something familiar about him.
• Especially that clean scent on him, like a memory from far away.
• But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t remember ever meeting him.
• I shook my head. “Sir, I think you got the wrong person. I’m sure I never met you.”
• A small look of disappointment showed in his eyes, but he hid it right away.
• Just as he was about to speak again, my phone on the table started buzzing nonstop.
• The name “Kevin” on the screen felt like a punch in the face.
• I hesitated for a few seconds, then picked up.
• Before I could say anything, Kevin’s angry voice blasted through the phone: “Aurora! Where the hell are you right now? Get back here, NOW!”
• I closed my eyes, too tired to respond.
• “I’m telling you, you better get back here right away! Betty’s hand got hurt because of you, and you owe her an apology, face to face!” His voice was full of anger and impatience. “Don’t you dare pretend you can’t hear me! You hear me?”
• His buddies must have told him everything after he left.
• But not a single word of worry. No asking how I was doing, no asking about the baby. Just blame and name-calling.
• My heart went cold like ice.
• “I’m at the hospital,” I said, forcing all my strength to keep my voice flat and calm.
• “Hospital? What tricks are you trying to pull with the kid this time? Betty’s hand got cut by glass, and the doctor said she might have a scar! How the hell did I end up with such a toxic wife? You’re making me look like a damn joke!”
• Toxic?
• I was shaking with anger.
• The same guy who pushed me onto broken glass, almost hurting our baby, was now holding another woman and calling me toxic.
• The man beside me frowned as he listened to my angry phone call. He looked at my pale face and quietly asked, “Need some help?”
• I took a slow breath, swallowing the shame and anger clawing at me, and shook my head. “That’s my husband. I can handle this myself.”
• “Husband?” The man said the word again, his brow pulling tighter.
• “If that’s the case, get some rest.”
• He didn’t look back and walked out.
• The hospital room door clicked shut behind him, cutting off everything outside, and taking with it the small bit of calm I had felt.
• I stared at the closed door, and somewhere deep inside, it felt like a big part of me had just gone empty.
• Not long after, a nurse came in.
• “You’re awake! How are you doing? When you were brought in last night, it was touch-and-go. You showed signs of a threatened miscarriage; if you had come any later, we might have lost the baby.”
• My hand moved on its own to my belly, fear rising inside me.
• “Mr. Rodriguez, who brought you in, has already covered all the fees,” the nurse said as she changed my IV bag. “And he booked you the best private room in the hospital so you can rest easy. What a kind man.”
• …Mr. Rodriguez.
• It turned out his last name was Rodriguez.
• I lay on the bed, quietly trying to take everything in.
• From that awful bar to this pricey, quiet single hospital room, it had only been a few hours, but it felt like a whole lifetime.
• Kevin didn’t call again. Maybe he thought I had already accepted his blame. Or maybe he was off with his Betty.
• None of it mattered anymore.
• Because I was done with Kevin. I was going to divorce him and end this nightmare for good.
• I reached for my phone, moved through my contacts. My fingers brushed over names that felt both close and distant, until they stopped on a number I hadn’t called in ages.
• I hit dial.
• The phone barely rang once before someone picked up.
• “Oliver,” my voice was still weak, but my tone was rock solid, “would you be willing to come pick up your little sister and bring her home?”