Scarlet blood trickled from my thigh as I clutched Arvin Owen's hand.

"My belly... It hurts so much..."

He shook off my hand indifferently. "Come on, I know it's chicken blood you are using. Debby just suffered abuse from her husband and is now in the hospital without anyone to care for her. Don't be so spoiled!"

But what flowed from me was not chicken blood. It was my life slipping away.

A Severe Hemorrhage

Scarlet blood trickled from my thigh as I clutched Arvin Owen's hand.

"My belly... It hurts so much..."

He shook off my hand indifferently. "Come on, I know it's chicken blood you are using. Debby just suffered abuse from her husband and is now in the hospital without anyone to care for her. Don't be so spoiled!"

But what flowed from me was not chicken blood. It was my life slipping away.

Arvin's face turned dark as he left, saying, "Don't use the baby as your tool to get my attention. You just disgusted me!"

With that said, he slammed the door behind him, leaving me sitting frozen in place. Lacking the strength to even rise, I couldn't even reach across the table to grab the phone and call for help.

Little did I know that at that moment, the phone screen suddenly lit up with a faint buzzing sound indicating an incoming call.

In fact, even if I had known, I couldn't hold myself to answer it. Watching the bright red blood on the floor, I slowly inched towards the table with sheer willpower.

As the blood gathered on the floor, I had a premonition that my baby would be gone soon.

A wave of grief engulfed my mind.

I knew my life was already a tragedy, but I had never expected that my baby would meet his end in such a ridiculous way.

Perhaps I had foreseen the outcome early on, so when I hovered above and peered down at the woman drenched in blood below, my heart felt nothing.

She seemed to taunt me, saying, "Look what kind of a man you've loved for eight years."

I deserved my bad ending.

Could ghosts feel dizzy? In a moment of distraction, when I opened my eyes again, I found myself in the hospital.

In the hospital room, Debby weakly leaned against the head of the bed, casting a worried glance at Arvin.

"I'm sorry to trouble you to come all the way here in the middle of the night. I'm safe now. It's just that I don't know many people in this city. You are the only one I thought of, so..."

She bit her lower lip. "It's all my fault. I knew Letty was pregnant, yet I still bothered you. I thought... I thought you wouldn't come. I was afraid she would misunderstand us."

Arvin handed her a peeled apple. "You two were close before, so you should know that she's tough on the outside but soft inside. She won't blame you. As for me, I've said to you that I'm your support. You never need to apologize to me."

Tears welled up in Debby's eyes as she listened, and she nestled into Arvin's embrace.

"Arvin, you're the best."

Arvin tensed, lightly patting her back.

If there was any remaining hope in me towards Arvin before, it vanished when he accused me of deceiving him with chicken blood, abandoned me and our unborn baby to rush to Debby, and called me disgusting.

So now, as I watched them "confide in each other," I felt no sadness at all. It was like a wound scabbed over, appearing terrifying. But when I peeled off, I just realized it wasn't that scary at all.

People came and went past the ward door, so I heard whispers of nurses.

"That woman. What's her name... D... Debby? Or something like that. She only got a few mild bruises on her hands and feet, but she comes here every other day, acting like she's seriously ill. What's strange is she grabs anyone she sees to help make a call, claiming she's hospitalized again."

"So, she wants someone to come see her. Last time Gloria got caught by her, and this time Nydia. I try to finish my tasks quickly and leave when I go to her ward. Otherwise, it's hard to refuse her. I just don't want to say those insincere things for her."

"Yeah, last time she asked me to say she was hospitalized and in poor health. Every time she comes, she claims she can't walk, feeble in mind, insisting that the doctor should arrange for her to be hospitalized."

...

Listening to these words, I found it hard to believe yet not surprising.

Debby's goal was clear: winning over Arvin by any means necessary.

But if she truly loved Arvin, why was it me who married Arvin two years ago?

She didn't love him. She simply couldn't stand the lack of complete devotion from her original admirer.

His Fragile First Love

Outside the ward, Arvin asked the doctor about Debby's condition.

The doctor, holding Debby's medical records, glanced coldly at Arvin.

"She's in good health. The bruises on her hands only need some anti-inflammatory cream. She doesn't have to frequent the hospital."

Arvin stood frozen in place. "Bruises... Aren't her injuries severe? She had bandages on just a couple of days ago."

The doctor faltered, seeming somewhat speechless. "It was a minor sprain, not..."

"Arvin, Arvin!"

Hearing the sharp cry, Arvin hurriedly rushed back into the ward before the doctor could finish.

"What's wrong? Are you in pain somewhere?"

Hearing that, the doctor shook his head.

Watching Arvin take good care of Debby, I couldn't help but find it amusing. When I mentioned my pain in the belly before delivering the baby and the blood all over, he refused to believe it, accusing me of deceiving him.

Yet, with Debby having just a few bruises, he was so concerned.

I knew about the sprain the doctor had just mentioned. It happened last Tuesday. I remembered it so vividly because I felt guilty about it for days.

That night, Arvin touched my belly, educating the baby while telling stories and chatting with me.

Since I got pregnant, he tried not to work overtime as much, spending more time with me every day. The careful attention and companionship made me believe he loved me.

I enjoyed those moments as well.

However, everything changed after a phone call shattered that peace.

Arvin glanced at the caller ID, then at me, holding my hand. As if to show there was nothing unspeakable between him and Debby, he put it on the speaker.

Debby's voice came through, sounding pitiful.

"Ar... Arvin..."

Arvin furrowed his brow. "What happened?"

"Dominic got drunk. I... I just wanted to help him to bed, but he... He pushed me away and I twisted my foot. I can't move... It hurts. Why did he... Why did he do this to me...?"

"Where are you?"

After Debby reported an address in fragments, Arvin decisively got up.

I instinctively grabbed his sleeve. "You're not a doctor. If she can't walk, just call an ambulance. Why does she need you?"

Since I got pregnant, Debby had started causing all sorts of trouble and frequently argued with her husband. In the end, it was always Arvin who cleaned up the mess for her.

I couldn't bear Arvin going to bars every few days to pick her up, rushing to her house in the dead of night, arranging hotel rooms for her now and then, and taking her out for relaxation.

All these things weighed heavily on me, making me lose my temper.

Arvin was tender and caring towards Debby but couldn't stand my bad attitude.

"Letitia Smedley, why are you so heartless? You two were friends before. Is this how you treat a friend?"

At that time, I felt aggrieved every time Arvin got angry and called me by my full name. It was all because of Debby. Was the first love really that important?

I shouted back, "How do I treat my friends? Should I let Debby constantly call my husband day and night for comfort and help? I'm not as shameless as her!"

Arvin's face darkened. "You are unreasonable!"

Later, when I calmed down, I reflected on whether I had gone too far. I even felt the peak of guilt in a picture Arvin sent.

It was a screenshot of feet wrapped as thick as a book.

I even asked myself, "Maybe Debby wasn't lying. She just saw Arvin as a good friend and asked for his help. Am I being overly jealous?"

I convinced myself at the time, but now it all seemed like utter nonsense.

Going Further to My Home

Debby leisurely watched TV and ate fruits on the bed, while Arvin busied himself with the discharge procedures.

During this time, he would occasionally unlock his phone, swipe a few pages, then lock it again.

Every time he received a message, he would quickly read it.

I knew he felt uncomfortable because I hadn't taken the initiative to "make amends."

Normally, after I argued with him, I couldn't resist finding him with a humbled face because I was afraid of losing him, afraid he might rekindle his old flame with Debby. I was always on edge, unable to eat due to worry.

Now, looking back, I felt like the brainwashed supporting female character in a novel, treating love as everything, constantly revolving around Arvin.

Now in death, I was finally enlightened, realizing how despicable I had been.

But Arvin wasn't any better, loving Debby in his heart yet seemingly unable to forget me.

How ironic.

But as for his chat page with me, it would never light up again because the dead could not send messages.

Debby pouted her mouth, complaining of leg and back pain, asking Arvin to carry her outside.

He hesitated for a moment and refused.

"We shouldn't cause a scene in the hospital. Let me support you," he said.

Debby forced a smile. "That works too, although my previous leg injury still bothers me. I guess it won't worsen."

Upon hearing this, Arvin didn't hesitate to pick up Debby and walked straight out.

Debby leaned on Arvin's shoulder, wearing a triumphant smile.

Inside the car, Debby made a suggestion.

"Arvin, I don't want to go back to that house for now. Can I stay at your place for a few days? Letty is pregnant and has difficulty moving around. She definitely needs someone to talk to."

Arvin slightly opened his mouth, probably wanting to refuse. But after a few seconds of hesitation, he agreed.

After the sadness, all that remains in my heart now was amusement and curiosity.

When they saw my lifeless body after returning, what expressions would they have?

Arvin walked quickly while Debby walked slowly due to her "wound."

However, I wondered to whom he planned to show his anxiety.

I followed along, drifting into the elevator and then into the house.

Before Arvin invited Debby in, the latter was already familiar with where the slippers were kept and took them out of the shoe cabinet.

"Letty, Letty, I've come to see you," she called out eagerly while walking.

She acted so passionate as if our friendship hadn't been strained for many years.

The house was eerily quiet, causing Arvin to furrow his brow.

"Letitia?"

I rolled my eyes. I had spoiled him too much in the past. No matter how late it was or whether I was asleep or not, whenever he came home, I would always be the first to greet him.

But today, I unexpectedly didn't do that, which seemed to make him a bit uneasy.

Debby had already entered the room in search of me. I was eager to see her reaction upon discovering my lifeless body, whether it would be one of shock or joy. However, when she emerged from the room, her expression remained unchanged, devoid of the expected reactions to encountering a corpse.

If my memory served me right, I perished in that room while reaching for my phone, experiencing a painful demise.

I floated into the room in astonishment, but there was no trace of my body. The floor tiles shone brightly, devoid of any bloodstains.

What on earth had happened?

Where had my body vanished to?

I was taken aback and bewildered by the situation, while the two of them stayed composed.

After a thorough search inside and out, Debby assumed responsibility with a guilty look. "Arvin, Letty might have gone out to clear her mind. It's my fault. I haven't been caring enough. Perhaps you should search for her outside?"

Arvin furrowed his brow and clenched his fists, only loosening up at the sight of Debby.