Babies and Departures

I woke up to the sharp scent of disinfectant filling my nostrils.

I jerked up, instinctively reaching out to feel my stomach, and was left thunderstruck when I felt flatness.

My baby! Where was my baby?!

Even as my face turned pale, and I was about to get out of bed, a nurse hurried into the room toward me, handing a tiny bundle into my arms.

My fingers were trembling as I looked down, my heart calming when I saw my baby's sweet little face.

-

Meanwhile, Quentin was pacing around restlessly in another end of the hospital after rushing Kelly over—the sight of me collapsing on the floor and crying out in pain seemed to echo in his mind.

There was a dull ache in his heart, the sense of foreboding only growing stronger as my tear- covered face was all he could think about.

A trace of guilt would show on his face as he vividly remembered the way I fell so violently and got burned.

And I was pregnant too, but he simply walked away despite my clear distress.

Even so, whenever he reached for his phone, Kelly would lean on him, clutching her belly and gasping in pain. "My tummy hurts… What should I do if the baby gets hurt? I honestly just wanted to apologize… I didn't know she would snap at me like that."

And with that, Quentin put down his phone and assured her, "It's not your fault—I've spoilt her too much. I'll make sure she changes that attitude."

Still, he hung his head and sighed in regret. "It's true that she shouldn't have hurt you, but she got her just deserts when she got hurt too. If anything, it's my fault—she's pregnant too, and I should've been more considerate of her. If I had been, then maybe she wouldn't have been so upset."

Seeing that Quentin really felt guilt over what he did to me, Kelly's eyes briefly flashed in resentment.

Still, she soon sighed miserably as she said, "I didn't want to tell you, but I think Jolin might be insane. She threatened me to leave, or she'd kill my baby..."

Quentin did a double take, as he knew for a fact that I wasn't that ruthless.

That was when Kelly simply showed him his phone, and what good opinion he had of me vaporized as he dropped it angrily.

Still, he reasoned, "Maybe her hormones are causing her to be so emotionally unstable during her pregnancy, and that's why she'd go that far. Don't worry, as long as I'm around, she won't hurt you or the baby… If she dares try anything, I'll kick her out of my house."

Behind Quentin, Kelly smiled triumphantly again.

-

A couple of days later, I arrived at the airport, holding Bonnie, my baby, tightly in my arms.

When my flight departure was announced, I boarded the plane without looking back.

Meanwhile, Quentin and Kelly stayed in the hospital for a week, and once they were sure Kelly was fine, they returned home together.

However, Quentin opened the door to find the house strangely empty, all my possessions nowhere to be found.

His face dropping, he whipped out his phone and finally called me, but all he heard was static beeping.

He snorted angrily, thinking that I was just being petty and hiding from him.

We had been together for so long after all—he'd never believe that I would give up on us so easily.

However, when I still didn't return after another week, Quentin started to panic.

He would call me repeatedly, but the number remained dead.

After searching the whole city but still finding no sign of me, he finally broke down and sent all his men to find me.

Eventually, one of them arrived gingerly with a report and some documents. "Sir, you're officially divorced, so you're not legally allowed to call for a search… There's even copies of divorce papers with your signature on it."

"What?!" Quentin exclaimed, incredulous.

Seeing that he was ready to kill, the man quickly added, "But wait! I've already searched for her and found her name registered on an airline manifest. She left the city on Flight WB123 just two weeks ago, but it crashed with no survivors… I think we lost her, sir."

Quentin was left standing there, thunderstruck.