How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Some things, you have to let people handle in their own way.

She wouldn't force her way in.

Esmeralda's words echoed in her mind.

Jarrod remained unresponsive for a long while.

Truth was, he'd been running nonstop the last two days-putting out fires, tidying up loose ends, desperate to make it back sooner. He'd barely closed his eyes.

He thought, at the very least, Elodie would wait for him before making a decision. That she'd respect the fact he was the child's father.

He had rushed, pushed himself to the brink, and still, he was too late.

She hadn't really planned to wait for him.

It was as if she'd never meant to give him a chance at all.

Elodie awoke from the anesthesia quicker than expected.

When she blinked groggily into the sterile light, she felt someone beside her.

Turning her head, she met Jarrod's ashen face. He just sat there, staring at her, expressionless and tight-lipped, as if he'd been keeping vigil by her bedside for hours. She had no idea how long he'd been there, but the air between them was suffocating.

A sharp, hollow buzz rang in Elodie's mind.

Her body felt strangely empty. That fragile thread of life she'd sensed inside her- gone.

She knew it, even before anyone told her.

The child was no longer there.

Even though she'd never intended to keep the baby, losing it so suddenly, without warning, left a bitter taste at the back of her throat. Yet she couldn't show any sadness. She knew, better than anyone, she had no right to grieve.

And so-

She simply met his eyes.

Long seconds stretched between them, silent and unyielding.

It was as if some invisible blade was slicing through both their hearts.

At last, Jarrod swallowed thickly. He reached out to tuck the blanket around her,

his voice so hoarse it barely sounded human: "Are you still in pain?"

He asked as if it were any ordinary day.

But something had shifted between them.

Elodie's hand, hidden beneath the covers, clenched tight, nails digging into her palm. Her face didn't move. "No."

"Why didn't you wait for me?" He didn't look at her, just stared at the blanket.

He hadn't raised his voice, but the accusation was unmistakable.

"Would it have made any difference?" Today's events were still unresolved, and she couldn't even begin to explain herself.

She needed the truth, but she was hurt, too-none of this had ever been her choice.

Jarrod's eyes reddened in an instant. He looked straight at her. "Do you hate me that much? It was my child-our child. Did you really want to get rid of it that badly?"

Elodie felt her throat close up.

She couldn't utter a single word.

"Or is it because of Ivan's divorce?" The question he least wanted to ask finally spilled out, his voice trembling at the edges, eyes searching her face for any sign-any truth. "Did" what happened to him make you desperate not to have this baby?"

The timing was just too perfect.

Perfect like a knife, slipping straight into a wound he'd tried so hard to heal.

Elodie's decision felt like a clear message.

That she didn't hold even the smallest place for him in her heart. That there had never been any love at all.

It was as if her pain-or his-never even crossed her mind.noveldrama

Elodie looked away, staring up at the

harsh ceiling light until her eyes burned "If you've already made up your mind, what's the point of asking me? Even if I say no, would you believe me?"

That was the heart of it.

She knew Jarrod would never believe her now.

He said nothing for a long time.

Finally, a bitter laugh escaped his lips—a sound that tasted of smoke and heartbreak, but he didn't let any of it show. He could only watch as the hope in his chest faded, bit by bit, into cold.

Slowly, he stood. "If this is what you really want, then I won't stand in your way."