After waking up and making up my mind, I sent a divorce notice to Lucas Turner the very first thing.
Surprisingly, the phone call, which had taken three tries to get through during the car accident, had actually called me back.
As I pressed the answer button, his angry swearing echoed in my ears.
"Mia, are you going to divorce me just because I don't let you mess around? This morning the child was fine, and you miscarried just after I hung up the phone? Are you playing me for a fool?"
"I work to save lives, not to play house with you, it just so happens that today's patient was Bella."
"Can you have some common sense? She slashed her wrist! A slight carelessness there leads to massive blood loss! That's a life!"
"My child and divorce are not your threat chips, stop playing a concubine competition with me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he hung up without waiting for my response.
The hand holding the mobile phone was still on infusion, hanging loosely by my ear.
Three years of dating, one year of marriage, and even a baby who was almost born.
I never thought that everything would end up ruined by his ever loved, Isabella.
In the hospital, when we accidentally ran into each other, she said she would hail a taxi for me due to my difficult physical condition.
I didn't overthink, and even thanked her for her kindness.
The car was running smoothly, then suddenly swerved sharply, which directly caused the truck to hit me, seated in the back.
The driver suffered a few minor injuries and abandoned the car on the spot, leaving me alone in a pool of blood in the middle of the road.
I've never been this scared before.
Scared of dying, even more scared of not being able to protect my child.
Crying, trembling, I finally managed to call my husband, only to be hung up on three times.
He would always answer my calls during work before, since he knew I was pregnant and worried for my wellbeing.
But today, when I really needed him, all I received was a cold, impersonal message.
"Busy in the clinic, do not disturb."
As I was leaving, I glimpsed the hospital's appointment screen and knew he was treating a patient named Isabella.
With a teary and blurred vision, I called him again and again, unwilling to give up.
Finally, he picked up.
I could feel the convulsions in my abdomen and the pain that was tearing at my nerves.
Opening my mouth, I could barely muster any strength to speak, "Darling, I've gotten into a car accident right outside the hospital... Come quickly... I can't hold on anymore..."
I could practically feel the blood gushing out of my body as I spoke.
There was silence on the other end of the phone line, broken intermittently by the faint sound of Isabella's girlish laughter.
Ten seconds felt like a century until Lucas finally spoke,
"I need to help Bella dress her wounds; saving lives and healing injuries is my duty as a doctor! Can you quit being so unreasonable?"
He hung up the phone as soon as he finished speaking, as if he was afraid I would bother him.
How often does such a minor matter as dressing a wound require an expert's personal touch?
The intense pain numbed my body, a bitter smile playing on my lips.
Tears mixed with the blood on the ground.
The moment I gave up on survival, my best friend tossed her coffee and dashed over to me.
After glancing at the message Lucas sent on her phone, she was so infuriated that she immediately sent a voice message back.
"How dare you even count yourself a father with your attitude? To hell with you! Don't ever come to Mia again!"
My life was saved by my friend, but it cost her own child in the process.
Now she was sitting by my hospital bed, still unable to recover from the surgery.
Her face was pale with no trace of color, and her lips quivered.
Tears splattered onto my hand as her feelings of guilt overwhelmed her.
"I'm so sorry, if I had not been so greedy, none of this would have happened. It's all my fault, I should have stayed with you."
She feels sorry for me, but I hurt more for her. Just as I was about to open my mouth, her policeman husband, Henry Turner, made a call, questioning.
"You just criticized my brother? Have you lost your mind? He's a doctor; can he pick and choose his patients? Can you stop being brainwashed by your dimwit of a bestie all the time?”
"You even had a miscarriage, which is so hilarious to me. Do you even know how old your child was? Mimicking others to have a miscarriage? You aren't guaranteed to lose it even if you ran 800 meters!"
"If it wasn't for me being busy fixing the pipes for Bella, I would have taught you a lesson in person! Do you think the word 'divorce' is something to be thrown around casually? If you want a divorce, then so be it. Whoever backs out is a coward!"
The call was abruptly ended.
My bestie looked at the phone screen, unable to snap out of her stupor.
Seeing her weakened state, I gently said, "Let it be. Maybe destiny thinks our marriages are not meant to be. You just had a miscarriage and lost a lot of blood. You should go rest and prioritize your health."
Tears streamed down her face, soaking the front of her hospital gown.
We clung to each other, all our suppressed emotions exploding in a heart-wrenching sob.
Once our stubborn love turned into sharp arrows, they shot right through us.
Thinking back, since the day we decided to get married, maybe this fate was predetermined.
Lucas had deliberately chosen Isabella's birthday to have our wedding, a clear sign of his spiteful intent.
Even the wedding was just a plot by the two brothers to provoke Isabella home, can we even talk about sincerity now?
How laughable it is that Ava and I were like fools being deceived by them.
We even believed that they and Isabella were just normal childhood friends.
We obediently posted our wedding photos on social media, specifically set for Isabella to see.
Until now, although we're clearly in Lucas's hospital, he’s unwilling to spend some effort to search the system for verification.
The balance of trust in my heart has clearly tilted.
Perhaps in his eyes, I was never worth his effort.
This fact, I understood too late.
The price I paid was too great.
Lying in my hospital bed, I was scrolling through my social media feed.
Just as I expected, Isabella once more boasted about her victories on her feed.
A group photo of three, a picture of an intact pipe, a wrist carefully wrapped in bandages tied with a butterfly knot.
"Thanks to my childhood friend, our friendship indeed lasts longer than romantic relationships! Our exclusive memories have added another story!"
I held my breath, turned to my best friend, indicating her to also look at the feed.
She unlocked her phone and laughed sarcastically after two minutes.
"A love triangle, don't they get tired of the crowd? What an interesting exclusive memory."
"Wait until we get divorced, I fear their marriage bed will need to be specially customized, right?"
Isabella not only posted on her social media feed but also shared the same status on other social platforms.
The comment section was filled with envy and longing comments.
"To have such a childhood friend, even in my dreams, I would wake up laughing. And you have two of them?"
"Looking for a how-to guide to rebirth. I've never done harm in this life, let me have a chance in the next one!"
I felt a stinging pain in my dry eyes, my mouth open but no sound came out.
After a long while, I finally managed to say:
"It's all over. I'm going to call a lawyer now to draft a divorce agreement."
When the agreement was printed, I sent it to the hospital, and had the nurse take it to Lucas's office.
Another copy was sent to Henry's office on behalf of Ava.
Even after the delivery sign showed for a complete day, we didn't receive any response from either of them.
I never thought that after four years of love, we couldn't even get a response when we decided to part ways.
A bitter taste started spreading from the bottom of my heart, as the sky outside gradually darkened.
Growing impatient, I was the first to call Lucas.
He seemed busy and it took a while for him to pick up the phone.
Before I could say anything, he impatiently said,
"What is it? You have the audacity to call me even before I've settled the score with you? Why did you send a divorce agreement to my office? Do you want the whole world to know you're childishly jealous and causing a scene?"
Hearing his words, I sighed for myself again.
I had asked the nurse to deliver the agreement; had he taken the time to ask a question or two, he would have known about my traffic accident and subsequent hospitalization.
Obviously, he didn't.
Just as I was about to bring up the topic of divorce, the coquettish voice of Isabella came through the receiver.
"Lucas, the lipstick you gave me last time is so beautiful! I really like it, can you give me another one?"
He quickly covered the receiver, while I laughed coldly.
"No wonder you didn't even have time to sign the divorce agreement, so you are busy. I'll leave you to it."
As I was about to end the call, he became completely flustered.
"Are you ever going to stop? Isn't it because I'm scared you are overthinking? I am with my younger brother! Isn't he fixing Bella's pipes? They invited us over for dinner as a thank you. Are you going to keep suspecting everything?"
"Can't she, a single girl, change her own pipes? Why do you have to call me for such insignificant things? I'm already tired from working every day! Can you be a bit more mature? You're instigating a divorce and dragging your best friend into it. What did my brother ever do to you?"
Lucas's tone was growing more intense, his voice laced with anger.
At this moment, Isabella laughed and comforted him saying: "Don't be upset, it's just that pregnant women tend to be sensitive due to hormonal changes. I am independent because there is no one to rely on, isn't it? Otherwise, I would like to be a delicate girl too!"
Her gentle voice pierced my ears with every word.
Yet, Lucas, as if completely disregarding my feelings, softly told her: "It's fine, if you have problems in the future, just send me a message, I'll be there in no time. We've known each other for so long, don't be influenced by outsiders!"
Hearing this, tears welled up in my eyes.
I hung up the call straight away.
Never once I thought that after four years together, almost having our child, I would be considered an outsider in his eyes!
Filled with mockery, my sanity was drowned. I covered my mouth, crying out in pain.
Noticing something was wrong, my best friend quickly said, "Don't shed tears for such a scumbag! I've already texted Henry. Once we are recovered, we will get a divorce as soon as possible!"
