DEAR EX HUSBAND, YOU LOVED ME TOO LATE

ANIKA'S POV

"I am sorry, Madam Smith, but you lost the baby."

The doctor kept saying more things, but I was not listening from that point on. My hands instinctively wrapped around my stomach, which now seemed empty, and I felt the tears run down my cheeks. Still, I did not say a single word. I could not even blink.

Everything inside me just hurt.

Just yesterday, I still had my son in my belly. I was whispering sweet things to him about how I would give him the world when he was born.

Then there was the incident with Bree, and in the twinkle of an eye, I had lost it all. That yesterday now seemed like a faraway dream.

"I'm sorry, Madam, are you listening to me?"

I blinked once, then twice, trying to come back to reality.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" I asked, my voice cracking at the end.

The doctor shot me a look of pity. I hated that look because somehow it just seemed to solidify everything—how real it was, the fact that I had actually lost my baby.

"I said that you need a family member to come and sign your documents before we can proceed with treatment."

I turned away from the doctor and faced the window.

"I have no one here," I said.

He looked at me with a shocked expression.

"I just saw your husband outside—"

I cut him off.

"You are free to try, Doctor, but I assure you, Simon won't come."

Just thinking about him made my heart hurt even more.

When he found both Bree and me at the bottom of the staircase, I was lying there bleeding from multiple injuries while Bree only had a small scratch. He took Bree to the hospital instead and left me for dead.

I lay there helplessly in a pool of my own blood until one of the housekeepers found me and called 911.

If he had gotten me to the hospital earlier, then maybe my son would still be alive.

But I did not want to think about what could have been. Not right now. It would break me.

My own husband, whom I had been married to for four years—the man who was supposed to love me and protect me—had left me for dead while panicking over my sister.

Another round of tears fell from my eyes without my permission.

Simon did not deserve my tears or my love, but that could not change how painful this was. I had spent countless hours racking my brain over and over again, but I still could not figure out when things got this bad.

When had the lovely smile he once wore whenever he looked at me turned into a look of disdain? When had he stopped caring about me? When had he stopped loving me?

I did not notice the doctor leave, but now he was back in the room, and the look on his face told me I had been right.

He cleared his throat.

"Your husband, Mr. Smith, said that he was busy and should not be disturbed with trivial matters."

I almost lost my mind.

Trivial matters?

I had stitches everywhere.

We had just lost our son.

And to him, this was a trivial matter.

I scoffed.

"I can sign the documents myself, Doctor. I don't need anyone," I said.

"This is against hospital policy," he replied.

"Then do whatever you want. I don't care!" I snapped.

I felt guilty about taking out all my emotions on the wrong person, but at this point, I was too exhausted to even care about my attitude. I would apologize later.

He heaved a sigh before passing the documents to me.

"Please sign."

I took the pen, hissing slightly as it rubbed against my cuts. When I was done, I handed it back to him.

"If that is all, I would really like to sleep now," I said.

He stepped back.

"Okay. You can rest now so that you can recover."

I lay on the bed and turned away from everyone. With my hands on my stomach, I began crying again for all that I had lost until I finally dozed off.

Muffled whispers woke me from my sleep.

"I feel so much pity for this woman. She has just lost her child and sustained multiple injuries from a terrible fall, yet there are no family members here to care for her. Not a single visitor."

"Right. Meanwhile, the patient in the VIP room only sustained a small scratch, and her fiancé won't stop fussing over her."

I sat up and cleared my throat.

The two nurses looked at me like deer caught in headlights.

"I need to use the bathroom," I said.

"Yes. W-we are sorry," one of them replied.

I did not even bother to answer. Suddenly, everything just felt so numb.

The nurses assisted me to my feet.

Since I was in a regular ward, there was no toilet in the room, which meant I had to use the one in the corridor.

On the way there, I passed by the VIP room, and I instantly recognized the laughter.

"You take such good care of me, Simon," Bree said.

"Of course. Your safety is the most important thing to me."

His voice was so tender. It was a tone I could not remember the last time he had used with me. Whenever he spoke to me, he always sounded cold and dismissive.

I wanted to walk away. I knew listening would only hurt me more, but my feet stayed rooted in place.

"Aren't you going to see Anika? She's hurt too. She must be so angry at me."

Simon scoffed.

"She doesn't matter. Someone who made you get hurt deserves to suffer alone."

I gasped, my eyelids burning.

Was this really what he thought? That I had caused this?

I had just suffered a miscarriage, and here he was saying that I did not matter.

In that moment, every ounce of love I thought I had for Simon Smith vanished into thin air. All I felt now was numbness.

I hugged my stomach again.

"Simon Smith, I will never forgive you."