Chapter 2
When she saw my hand pressed against the baby's neck, Emily came rushing in, her eyes red and brimming with tears.
She snatched the baby away, sobbing loudly, "Grace, he's your child, too. You carried him for nine months and gave birth to him. How could you be so heartless?"
I dropped my eyes, staring at the bit of fuzz clinging to my finger. With a bitter, broken laugh, I pulled my hand back. "Me? Heartless? Emily, my child is the one who died. Tell me, who's the real heartless one here?"
Emily staggered. "You found out?"
She stammered, desperate to explain herself. "G-Grace, it's not like that. I wanted to help you.
"The doctor said you were already dealing with depression. Your mom ended up taking her own life because your dad cheated on her while she was pregnant.
"I was scared Richard might do the same. That's why I wanted to step up for you. I wanted to make sure you'd be alright."
She knew exactly what my deepest pain was, and this was her idea of helping me.
She knew Richard and my child were all I had left, and yet she made me lose them.
I heard footsteps outside the door.
Instinctively, I looked over, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Emily flash a sarcastic grin.
She silently mouthed, "Serves you right."
The last shred of my sanity finally snapped.
I yanked out the IV, gripped it tight, and lunged at that mocking grin.
Sharp beads of blood and Richard's furious roar burst out in the room at the same time.
The next second, I was shoved with brutal force, my stomach crashing hard against the railing.
My wound tore open with a sickening rip.
Searing pain, ice-cold dread, and the echo of my heart breaking all tangled together in the chaos.
Emily pulled her hand back, her gaze flickering nervously to the blood on Richard's back, her voice choked with sobs. "Richard, you're hurt. Does it hurt much?"
Richard shook his head, then turned and wrapped Emily and the baby tightly in his arms.
He turned to look at me, a flicker of pity and reluctance in his eyes, but his voice was icy cold. "Grace, if you're angry, take it out on me. Don't go after Emily."
He paused for a moment. "I'm the one who let you down, not her.
"She endured hundreds of painful injections in her stomach, all so she could stay your best friend forever and finally have this child.
"And you? What have you ever done for her in return?"
I looked into his eyes, seeing him defend Emily, and my heart turned to ice.
I kept replaying every detail of their affair behind my back, torturing myself over and over.
They exchanged a tacit look when the internet-famous restaurant for couples was mentioned.
Emily stumbled accidentally into his arms, their bodies closing in intimate contact.
Now, for Emily's sake, he rebuked me coldly.
I let out a bitter laugh, realizing how clueless I'd been, so dumb that I actually wanted to die with him back then.
Back during that huge 7.8 earthquake, we were trapped together for five days. Richard was injured and passed out, barely hanging on without water.
I gave him my own blood to keep him alive.
We loved each other like crazy, but in the end, that was all it amounted to.
I wiped the smile from my face, and with it, took back every ounce of feeling I'd ever had for Richard. "Let's get a divorce. You two disgust me."
Richard shot me a deep look, then pulled Emily close. She looked like she wanted to say something, but couldn't. Together, they walked out.
Even with the door shut, I could still hear Emily sobbing and Richard patiently trying to calm her down.
It felt like I was the one who'd made Emily suffer.
It felt like all the energy had been drained from my body.
I stumbled toward the window.
The gloom I'd been fighting finally surfaced in my eyes.
I lowered my gaze, looking down out the window.
It was the second floor, not high at all.
If I jumped, it'd hurt like hell, but it wouldn't kill me.
Ever since I married Richard, those suicidal thoughts had disappeared. But now, they started haunting me again.
I didn't know how much time had passed before the door opened.
When Richard saw me standing by the window, he frowned, set the folder down, and pulled me away from the window.
He moved with practiced ease, pressing me back onto the bed.
If this were before, I would've pressed myself into his arms, clinging to him like he was my only lifeline.
But now, I had changed, and so had he.
Richard tucked the blanket around me, looked at me, and let out a sigh. "I knew you'd do this. That's why I chose the second floor for this very reason."
As he spoke, he opened the folder, pulled out the divorce papers, and handed them to me. "Grace, if you hadn't targeted Emily, we wouldn't have ended up like this.
"Now, this is what you wanted."
"It could have been anyone, but why did it have to be Emily?" I asked.
Before Richard came into my life, Emily was the only bright spot I had.
All these years, I always worried Richard might cheat, but never in a million years did I think Emily would be the one to stab me in the back.
Richard flicked the lighter, and the cigarette caught.
He took a deep drag, exhaled, his voice low and heavy. "Grace, you know I've always owed my sister so much. It was I who let her slip away.
"Emily reminds me so much of her. It breaks my heart to see her cry. I want to protect her."
From his words, I finally heard a version of the story I'd never known before.
At first, Richard really did treat Emily like a little sister, always watching over her.
But whenever he saw someone bullying her, he couldn't help but feel protective.
Especially when he saw other men hitting on Emily, he'd get this strange, jealous irritation he couldn't shake.
He was already thirty-five, not some clueless kid anymore.
He knew exactly what that meant, so he gave in to his feelings.
And the more he took care of her, the deeper he fell.
And like that, he ended up sleeping with her.
I clenched my fists, stubbornly holding back my tears, at least not in front of Richard.
"If that's what you want, I'll let you have it." I gripped the pen with all my strength, then signed my name right on the last page. "We're done. We don't owe each other anything anymore."