“Kirsty didn’t mean to call me away from your birthday party yesterday. She was a nervous wreck because her Labrador was having puppies. I couldn’t just leave her alone.

“And you want a divorce over something so trivial? You even pushed Autumn to divorce my brother. Is this what marriage means to you?

“When are you going to grow up and be more like Kirsty, Bella?”

I had just barely survived and was transferred out of the ICU when Austin Luther came to my ward, looking grim.

The man who once cared for my every need during my period couldn’t even see my fragility now, even when he stood right in front of me. Instead, he chose to berate me.

Fighting back tears, I looked up.

Still, tears rolled down my cheeks.

I was horrified by the package from Kirsty yesterday. The sight of a dead cat pushed me into early labor.

Autumn rushed me to the ER immediately.

During the frantic car ride, I called Austin in a panic, but my calls went unanswered.

I couldn’t be wheeled in for surgery without consent from a family member. Autumn, also an obstetrician, was willing to take the risk and brought me into surgery.

However, I was hemorrhaging from the amniotic fluid embolism, as if the premature labor wasn’t hard enough already.

The complexity of the surgery was beyond what Autumn or the other doctors could handle.

Gritting my teeth, I called Austin through my tears, hoping for help and to say my last words.

“I have amniotic fluid embolism... I’m bleeding...

“Please help me, Austin... I-I don’t want to die...

“I’m only twenty-five... I still have so much life ahead of me...

“I want to watch our child grow up...

“If I die—”

I hoped for Austin to take good care of himself if my time on Earth was over. He shouldn’t just burn himself out at work.

But Austin cut me off with disdain.

“You have no idea how dangerous it is for a dog to give birth, Bella.

“I’m warning you—don’t harass me with phone calls while I’m helping Kirsty’s dog. Kirsty is very attached to her dog that she has had for two years. I can’t leave them like that just to celebrate your birthday with you.”

Austin hung up on me.

I truly thought my time had come.

However, Autumn shakily assured me not to be afraid and pulled me back from the brink of death.

Still, my baby needed a specific medication to survive.

Autumn’s husband, Aaron, was the CEO of the pharmaceutical company that produced it. Yet he was too busy caring for Kirsty’s dog to save his nephew’s life.

In the end, my baby didn’t make it.

…

“Not again. All you do is cry. What else are you good for?”

Austin was irritated by my tears.

He yanked me. “It’s bad enough that you tricked me into coming here, claiming you were hemorrhaging. I can’t believe your drama continues even in the hospital. There are people who actually need these beds. Get up and get discharged. Medical resources should go to those who truly need it.”

Austin was an obstetrician at the hospital.

He could have asked any of his colleagues to verify if I was telling the truth.

However, he refused to spend even a few seconds of his time on me. He was convinced I was lying.

Autumn stormed into the ward and burst out in rage.

She pushed Austin away, came to my side, and threw the covers off me.

“Drama? What drama? Then explain why her pregnant belly is gone.

“You were busy delivering Kirsty’s puppies while Bella nearly bled out from amniotic fluid embolism. You’re unbelievable, Austin! Bella is lucky to be alive, but your child is dead. Are you happy now?”

Austin stared at my flat tummy with a surprised look, but he quickly furrowed his brows.

“I know you’re good friends with Bella, Autumn. But you shouldn’t play along and perform a C-section on her. You're not fit to be a doctor if you’re recommending unnecessary surgery. Where is the baby? I—”

A call from Kirsty interrupted Austin. According to her, there was still another puppy in the dog’s belly, waiting to be delivered.

Austin was worried sick. “You’ve taken things too far, Bella. We’ll talk about this after I help Kirsty’s dog with the delivery.”

He left in a hurry.

Furious, Autumn tried to stop him for an answer.

Then came her husband, Aaron, stepping in her way.

“You're free to ruin your own life, Autumn, but why did you have to pit Bella against Austin? What do you gain from this? We’ve been together for five years, and I’m not sure how much more of this I can take. Do yourself a favor and stop the madness. I’ll pretend you never mentioned divorce, but there won’t be a next time.”

Aaron caught up to Austin, and they left together.

It didn’t take long for them to show up on Kirsty’s livestream, caring for the dog and her puppies.

The comments started pouring in when the Luther brothers appeared on screen.

[Wow! Kirsty looks great with the brothers.]

[One’s a gentle doctor, the other’s an aggressive CEO. Kirsty’s got both in the bag!]

[The brothers are looking at the puppies like it's their own children.]

[Duh! Have you considered who the mother of these puppies is?]

Kirsty glanced at the brothers, her cheeks rosy. “My fans have no filter. If the comments bother you, I can adjust the camera to just focus on me.”

Austin grinned tenderly. “It’s alright. I don’t mind.”

Aaron shook his head. “I don’t mind either.”

Autumn watched for a moment before turning off the livestream.

She said angrily, “It’s funny how a dog is more important to them than their own son and nephew.”

My eyes were swollen and sore from all the crying. “Well, that dog belongs to their sweetheart.”

Autumn turned to me, her voice sad. “Poor baby. You’ve wanted him for so long.”

“My baby gave his life to show me it’s time to end this tangled marriage.”

I had cried too much; my tears had dried.

Despair replaced the sadness, and the only thing on my mind was separating from Austin.

Autumn was disappointed in Aaron too.

We hired an attorney to draft the divorce papers. However, we couldn’t reach or locate the brothers to serve them.

With insomnia keeping me up at 1:00 AM, I checked Kirsty’s social media updates.

[He said the puppy was his eldest son, so it would be the big brother to their baby. Can I assume his love for my pet extends to its owner too?]

Attached was a clip of Kirsty, dressed in a bathrobe, holding a puppy in her hands. The sound of rushing water could be heard in the background, and a few of Austin’s clothes were on the floor.

My chest tightened.

Kirsty had been on Austin’s mind for years. They always seemed to be in some kind of situationship, so it wouldn’t surprise me if they took things to the next level.

I took a screenshot and sent it to Austin.

[Return my calls, or I’ll claim our separation is due to infidelity. Your choice.]

A flustered call from Austin followed soon after.

“Don’t get the wrong idea, Bella. I just took a shower at Kirsty’s place. Nothing else happened.”

Swallowing my anger, I replied, “You could’ve showered at home or the hotel. Why Kirsty’s place?”

Austin’s panic only lasted for a moment before shifting to anger.

“Can you stop being so unreasonable? Kirsty’s dog wasn’t doing well after giving birth. I stayed to help out. What’s wrong with that? Kirsty and I grew up together. She’s always been like family. Why must you think the worst of us?”

“Are you telling me your neighbor’s dog matters more than your wife and child? Our baby is dead, Austin. I nearly died on the operating table. You value the life of Kirsty’s pet more than us.”

I finally broke down in tears.

Austin hissed through clenched teeth, “Do you honestly enjoy being the villain? Kirsty can’t even get a decent night’s sleep because she’s worried about her dog’s labor. And you? You’re so heartless to jinx the child we’ve longed for. Do you have any shame?”

I had lost the will to argue with him.

“We should just separate, Austin. Autumn is leaving Aaron too. Don’t forget to bring your brother along for the divorce proceedings. If I don’t see you in court, I’ll expose your affair with Kirsty, and we can all be ruined together.”

By threatening him with Kirsty, Austin dropped the smack talk and agreed to the divorce.

It only showed how little he cared for me.

My mind went back to the day I found out I was pregnant. Austin was the first person I wanted to share the news with.

Since he didn’t pick up my calls, I asked his friends and went to him.

Austin was throwing a birthday party for Kirsty’s dog with a group of friends.

The dog was quick to pick up on cues. It pounced on me with just one look from Kirsty.

Slammed to the ground, I felt blood seeping out between my thighs.

Austin criticized me, “Beans doesn’t like you. What are you doing here anyway? You’re scaring it and ruining its party.”

“I just came to tell you that we’re having a baby,” I said, enduring the pain, thinking he would help me up in joy.

In reality, Austin rushed Kirsty’s dog to the vet when Kirsty remarked, “Beans’ belly seems huge. Is it pregnant?”

Someone else felt bad and took me to the hospital.

In fact, I should have moved on then.

Maybe I would still have my baby.

The next morning, Austin and Aaron returned to the family residence.

Kirsty was with them.

Autumn and I handed over two copies of the divorce papers.

Austin looked at me with a frown. “We’ve been together for years, and now we finally have a baby, Bella. I’m giving you one last chance for the sake of our child. Apologize to Kirsty, and we can move on.”

Aaron’s voice was icy. “The same goes for you, Autumn.”

The brothers’ preferential treatment of Kirsty only drained Autumn and me.

Kirsty batted her eyelashes. “Yeah. Unlike you, I’m not petty. All you have to do is say you’re sorry.”

I sneered, “We are nothing like you. You have no shame.”

Autumn uttered, “If you still have a shred of decency, just go through with the divorce, and you can have your little three-way relationship. I couldn’t care less!”

Austin blew up and called me unreasonable.

Aaron smirked.

We went straight to court to file for divorce.

The brothers hesitated a few times, but Autumn and I urged them to put their signatures on the papers.

My friend, dressed in black, waited outside the courthouse.

“Come on, Bella and Autumn. It’s time to give the child a burial. We can’t keep him waiting too long.”

I nodded and took off.

Austin rushed over and grabbed my arm, his voice shaking. “Is our child... really dead?”

“Your puppy isn’t, but my son is, so you don’t get to be sad about it.” I shook his arm off in disgust.

Aaron lost his shit too.

They refused to believe the truth.

Austin called his colleague.

His colleague replied in a daze, “Didn’t you know, Dr. Luther? Your wife suffered a massive hemorrhage from amniotic fluid embolism. Autumn came through and saved her. But your son didn’t make it because we couldn’t get a specific medicine in time.”

Clang.

Austin dropped his phone, the screen cracking into a million pieces.