Chapter 4

I was in a deep, dreamless sleep in the middle of the night when a sharp, urgent ringtone suddenly yanked me out of my slumber.

I fumbled for my phone, my voice thick with sleep. I asked, "Hello?"

A doctor's urgent, anxious voice came through the line. He said, "Is this Lucas's family?"

I closed my eyes, forcing down my annoyance at being woken up, and replied, "Yes, I am."

"Lucas's surgical wound is badly infected, and he's suddenly started bleeding in his stomach. It's critical; we need to operate right away. Please come as soon as possible to sign off on the surgery," the doctor said.

I almost blurted out a refusal, but then the System's familiar, grating alarm exploded in my head, making it clear I had no choice.

I took a deep breath, bit back the words on the tip of my tongue, and said to the doctor, resigned, "Okay, I'll be there right away."

After I hung up, I gazed out at the heavy night outside, feeling cranky and frustrated that my sleep had been ruined.

When I arrived at the hospital, Lucas was hunched over in agony on the bed, coughing so hard it looked like he might tear himself apart. Suddenly, he hacked up a gush of blood, splattering his hospital gown with red.

When he saw me, a flicker of light flashed in his lifeless eyes. He struggled to say something, but the blood rising in his throat made him choke, his coughs harsh and broken.

I instinctively stepped back, trying to avoid the disturbing sight. I called out to him from across the room, "Don't talk. Let the doctors handle it."

He finally seemed to relax a bit, closed his eyes, and let the nurses rush him into surgery.

I was half-asleep, nodding off on a bench in the hallway.

After what felt like forever, the surgery was finally over.

When Lucas was wheeled back into his room and woke up, the first thing he saw was me, playing along with the System and pretending to nap by his bedside.

A spark of surprise and joy suddenly lit up his eyes.

But then, as if remembering how cold I had been to him lately, that light faded away.

His pale lips moved slightly, his voice hoarse with a hint of disappointment. He said, "Babe, I really thought you'd given up on me."

I looked up, plastering on a perfect smile, and answered, "No way. You're my husband, after all; how could I ever not care about you?"

Hearing that, Lucas's eyes, still dull from blood loss, immediately lit up with a smile.

He reached out his uninjured hand and gently placed it on the back of mine, his fingertips icy cold. He said, "Babe, when I get out of the hospital, let's go see the aurora, okay?"

He paused, a flicker of memory and a hint of guilt in his eyes. He said, "You told me on our last wedding anniversary that you really wanted to go."

Yeah, I wanted to go ever since our last anniversary.

It was a trip I'd been dreaming about for ages, but in the end, it never happened.

Because right as we were about to board, Nina hit us with another one of her emergencies.

That day, Lucas didn't even blink; he just ditched me at the packed airport, looking all panicked as he ran off to find her.

By the time he finally came back, not only had our aurora plans gone up in smoke, but he lost an arm and was on death's door.

I nearly used up all the points I had left in the System just to heal his arm.

Now, his eyes sparkled with anticipation, still waiting for my answer.

It was as if that missed trip and his serious injury were just a passing hiccup in our story.

I met his expectant gaze and felt nothing at all. If anything, I found it a little ironic.

But in the end, I just pulled up a barely-there smile and answered quietly, "Sure."