Yuna's breath was still uneven, her hands trembling against the edge of the car door as she tried to steady herself. The argument hadn't faded—it lingered between them, heavy, suffocating. Her eyes lifted slowly back to Ethan, filled with tears that refused to stop.
There was one more question.
One she wasn't sure she could handle the answer to.
But she asked anyway.
"Was Luca involved in this?" her voice came out quieter this time, fragile, like it might break completely if pushed too far. "Did he… did he kill my dad too?"
Ethan didn't look away.
Didn't soften it.
"Yes."
The word landed like a final blow.
Yuna's expression collapsed completely.
Her body gave in before her mind could process it. A broken sound escaped her lips as she staggered backward, her knees losing strength.
"No…" she whispered, shaking her head weakly. "No… no…"
Her vision blurred entirely now. The pain, the shock, the betrayal—it was too much.
Her body swayed.
And then—
She fell.
But she didn't hit the ground.
Ethan caught her instantly, his arm wrapping around her waist, pulling her against him before she could collapse completely.
"Yuna—" his voice broke its usual control for the first time. "Yuna, open your eyes."
Her head tilted slightly, her body limp in his hold.
"Yuna," he said again, sharper now, panic creeping in. "Look at me."
No response.
Her breathing had changed.
Too shallow.
Too weak.
Footsteps rushed toward them.
"Elena!" Ethan called out without looking away from Yuna.
Elena reached them within seconds, her face going pale the moment she saw Yuna's condition.
"What happened?" she asked quickly, dropping beside them.
"She fainted," Ethan said, his voice tight. "She just—she just collapsed."
Elena's eyes moved quickly over Yuna, assessing, noticing things Ethan didn't.
Then something clicked.
Her expression shifted.
"She's pregnant."
The words froze everything.
Ethan looked up sharply. "What?"
Elena swallowed, more certain now. "She's pregnant."
For a moment, Ethan didn't react.
Like the meaning didn't fully register.
Then it did.
"What do you mean she's pregnant?" his voice dropped, confused, almost disbelieving. "Is that—"
He stopped.
Then finished, more quietly, "Is that my child?"
Elena looked at him, her expression serious. "You're the only one who's been with her, aren't you?"
Ethan didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
Elena exhaled sharply. "We don't have time for this. We need to get her to the hospital. Now."
That snapped him back.
"Yeah," he said immediately. "Yeah—let's go."
—
The drive felt endless.
Every second stretched too long.
Ethan held Yuna in the back seat, her head resting against him, her body still too still. His hand supported her carefully, his other gripping her tightly as if letting go would make things worse.
"Stay with me," he muttered under his breath. "Yuna… stay with me."
No response.
Luca drove fast, faster than he ever had before, ignoring signals, cutting through traffic. Elena sat in front, turning back constantly, watching Yuna, watching Ethan.
"We're almost there," she said.
But it didn't feel fast enough.
—
The hospital lights came into view.
Bright.
Cold.
Ethan didn't wait for the car to fully stop.
He opened the door and lifted Yuna into his arms, carrying her inside without hesitation.
"Help!" Elena called out. "Emergency!"
Nurses rushed forward immediately with a stretcher.
Ethan carefully laid Yuna down, his hand still gripping hers for a second longer before they pulled her away.
"Please step back, sir," one of them said.
But Ethan didn't move right away.
"Yuna—" he called, his voice low but urgent.
No response.
They wheeled her away quickly.
Through double doors.
Gone.
—
Ethan stood there.
Still.
His hands empty now.
The silence around him felt louder than anything before.
"What happened?" he asked finally, turning to the doctor who had just arrived.
The doctor moved quickly, checking reports, already focused. "We need to prepare immediately," he said to the staff. "Get the operation room ready."
Ethan stepped forward. "What happened to her? Is she okay?"
The doctor paused just long enough to look at him.
"I don't think so," he said honestly. "Not until we perform the operation."
The words hit hard.
Operation.
Risk.
Uncertainty.
Ethan's jaw tightened.
"What kind of operation?" he demanded.
"There are complications," the doctor said, already moving again. "She's under extreme stress, possible internal issues—we can't confirm without procedure. And with the pregnancy involved, it's critical."
Pregnancy.
The word echoed again.
Ethan's mind struggled to hold onto everything at once.
Yuna.
The baby.
The danger.
"Do whatever you have to," he said, his voice steady but heavy. "Just save her."
The doctor nodded once. "We'll do our best."
And then he was gone too.
—
The doors to the operation room closed.
Red light turning on.
Ethan stood there, staring at it.
Waiting.
For the first time in a long time—
Completely powerless.
Luca stood nearby, silent, his expression serious.
Elena sat down slowly, her hands clasped tightly together.
No one spoke.
Because nothing they could say would make this easier.
Time passed.
Slow.
Painfully slow.
And Ethan didn't move.
Not even once.
Because everything now—
Everything—
Depended on what happened behind those doors.
The red light above the operation room door stayed on, steady and unblinking, marking every second that passed like a silent countdown. The hallway felt too bright, too clean, too detached from what was actually happening behind those doors. Nurses moved in and out of nearby rooms, their footsteps quick, their voices low, but none of it reached Ethan in a way that mattered.
He stood exactly where he had been.
Unmoving.
Unfocused.
But inside—everything was in motion.
Fragments of the night replayed without order. Yuna's tears. Her voice breaking. The sound of the slap. The way she stepped back from him. And then—
You killed my father.
His jaw tightened.
Then another thought forced its way in.
She's pregnant.
His hand flexed slowly at his side.
A child.
His child.
The idea didn't settle easily. It wasn't something he had ever planned for, never something he had allowed himself to even consider. His entire life had been built around control, precision, decisions made without hesitation.
But this—
This was something else.
Something unpredictable.
Something fragile.
And right now, it was inside that room, along with her.
Ethan closed his eyes briefly, exhaling through his nose, trying to steady the tension building in his chest.
It didn't work.
A few steps away, Elena sat forward, her elbows resting on her knees, her fingers tightly intertwined. She hadn't stopped glancing at the operation door even once.
"She'll be okay," she said quietly, though it sounded more like she was trying to convince herself.
No one responded.
Luca leaned back against the wall, arms crossed, but his usual calm was thinner now. His gaze occasionally shifted toward Ethan, measuring him, watching the way he hadn't moved, the way something in him seemed… different.
"You didn't know," Luca said after a while, breaking the silence.
Ethan didn't react immediately.
Then, "It doesn't change anything."
The answer was flat.
But not empty.
Luca nodded slowly. "Still… she didn't deserve to find out like that."
That landed.
Ethan's eyes opened again, his gaze settling back on the red light.
"No," he said quietly. "She didn't."
Silence returned.
He replayed her last words to him outside.
Was any of it real?
His chest tightened slightly.
Because this time—
He didn't push the feeling away.
It stayed.
Uncomfortable.
Unfamiliar.
Real.
Minutes passed.
Or maybe hours.
Time had lost meaning.
Then—
Movement.
The red light flickered once.
Then turned off.
All three of them straightened instantly.
The door opened.
A doctor stepped out, removing his gloves, his expression serious but no longer urgent.
Ethan was in front of him in seconds. "Is she okay?"
The doctor looked at him carefully before answering.
"She's stable."
The words hit like air after drowning.
But the doctor wasn't finished.
"It was critical," he continued. "Severe stress caused complications. We had to act quickly."
Ethan didn't interrupt.
Didn't breathe.
"But the operation was successful," the doctor said. "For now, both the patient and the baby are safe."
Everything stopped.
Then shifted.
"Both…" Ethan repeated quietly.
The doctor nodded. "Yes. She's still unconscious, and she'll need rest. A lot of it. No stress, no emotional shock. If something like this happens again, it could be far more dangerous."
Elena let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, her shoulders dropping slightly.
"Can we see her?" she asked.
"In a few minutes," the doctor replied. "Once she's moved to recovery."
He gave Ethan one last look. "She's strong. But she needs stability now. Whatever caused this—keep it away from her."
Then he walked off.
Leaving them there.
With the outcome.
Ethan stood still for a moment longer.
Then slowly—
He exhaled.
Not relief.
Not completely.
But something close.
His gaze shifted toward the door where Yuna was.
Alive.
And carrying something that changed everything.
For the first time—
Ethan didn't think about control.
He didn't think about plans.
He only thought about one thing.
When she wakes up—
What will she see when she looks at him?