A Lifetime of Regret for Unattainable Dreams

The driver took me to the hospital on time. Two hours later, Vanessa finally arrived. We completed all the examinations together under the doctor’s arrangement.

Just after the examination, Vanessa left in a hurry again. She used the excuse that she had something urgent at the company. Meanwhile, I sat on a bench in the hospital corridor, staring at the colored Doppler ultrasound report the doctor had just handed me.

In the black-and-white image, there was a small white dot. It was our baby with the size of a peanut. The doctor said it was my child.

I gently stroked the report, my heart aching with an emotion I couldn’t name.

Then, Addison’s text came again.

[Addison Blythe: I just need to tell her that my child misses his mother. Trust me, she’ll drop everything to come to me. And that includes you.]

Attached to the message was a photo.

Vanessa sat on a sofa, holding a little boy dressed in cow-print pajamas. His small arms wrapped tightly around her neck with his face full of trust and dependence. Vanessa looked down at him with a soft, indulgent expression. It was a tenderness I had never seen before.

A warm family scene. I had imagined this moment countless times. I just never expected to see it like this. Even though I could have blocked Addison, I didn’t.

I kept reading his messages over and over, forcing myself to remember. I reminded myself that the happiness I thought I had in my marriage was nothing but a lie. The only thing I could do was to wipe away my tears and carefully folded the ultrasound report.

Then, I called my driver.

"Go back without me. I have something else to take care of."

I remained seated on the hospital bench, waiting.

I didn’t have to wait long.

Another message from Addison. This time, it wasn’t just messages. It was a video.

[Addison Blythe: Enjoy it. We’ll be at the hospital soon. The child you’ve been waiting for these past five years? She can’t wait to get rid of it.]

My hands trembled as I clicked play.

Vanessa appeared on the screen. Her expression was wild, while her movements were desperate. The room was filled with scattered lingerie and sex toys littered across the bed and floor.

I stared at the screen, taking in every painful detail, forcing myself to see a side of Vanessa I had never known. For five years, she had always been gentle and reserved even in our most intimate moments. I had never seen her like this.

I had no idea of how long I sat there, watching the video of betrayal that was done by my wife.

"Sir, are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?"

A nurse’s voice pulled me from my trance.

Only then did I realize I had been crying.

My body was trembling, my hands so unsteady I could barely hold my phone. My reflection in the hospital window looked pathetic. I was broken. And yet, even after everything I had seen, I realized something shameful.

I still loved Vanessa.

Vaneesa wasn’t just a woman I could throw away when she betrayed me. She wasn’t something I could simply discard. In the end, she was still my wife.

For five years, people believed she was the one who loved me deeply. But how could they not see? I had loved her just as much. Frankly, I might love her even more.

I couldn’t let go. Not of her. Not of the child growing inside her.

I thought of the tiny life on the ultrasound image and took a shaky breath, wiping my tears. I knew that I wanted to give Vanessa one last chance. So, I dialed her number.

"Vanessa," I said, my voice thick with emotion.

"I don’t feel well. Can you come back? I miss you."

For a moment, there was silence.

Then, Vanessa answered. Her voice was strained, breathless.

"Carl, I’m not done yet. Wait a-"

A muffled moan cut through the call. Then, nothing but the cold, mechanical beep of disconnection. It really broke my heart.

It was that moment that made me realize that I had to leave her for good.