Chapter 2: The Truth Between Heartbeats
The operating room lights were blinding.
Everything smelled sterile.
Cold.
Metallic.
A blue curtain separated me from the surgery.
I couldn't see what Ethan was doing.
Only hear his voice.
Steady.
Focused.
Professional.
Yet beneath it, I could hear something else.
Fear.
The same fear I felt.
Minutes stretched into forever.
Then suddenly Ethan spoke.
"Chloe."
I turned toward his voice.
There was a tremor in it.
One I had never heard before.
"I need you to know something."
My heart pounded.
"Not now," I whispered.
"Now."
Silence filled the room.
Then he continued.
"The divorce was the biggest mistake of my life."
I closed my eyes.
The words hit harder than the surgery.
"My mother gave me an ultimatum."
His voice was raw.
"She told me if I stayed with you, she'd cut me off completely."
I remembered those months.
The arguments.
The tension.
The impossible choices.
"I thought I could fix everything later."
A tear slipped down my cheek.
"I thought there would be time."
His voice broke.
"But there wasn't."
For years, those were the words I had wanted to hear.
And somehow hearing them now hurt even more.
Because they came too late.
Then the room suddenly became very quiet.
Too quiet.
My stomach dropped.
"What is it?"
Nobody answered.
"Ethan?"
My voice shook.
"Ethan, what's happening?"
For one horrifying second, I thought I had lost the baby.
Then—
A cry.
Sharp.
Loud.
May you like
Beautiful.
The most beautiful sound I had ever heard.
