When my phone rang abruptly, I did not even glance at the caller ID. I answered out of habit, my voice carrying the exhaustion of work. “Hello.”
“May I ask if this is Melody, a family member of Ms. Nove?”
The voice on the other end was calm to the point of stiffness. Behind it came the faint beeping of medical equipment and blurred human voices, as if separated by a thick layer of glass.
My heart tightened for no clear reason. My fingers froze. “Yes, this is Melody. Who is calling?”
“This is the emergency department of City First Hospital.”
The caller did not pause for even a second. Every word struck my heart like a heavy hammer.
“Your mother suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage half an hour ago. She was already in a deep coma when she arrived. Her vital signs are extremely unstable and she is currently being resuscitated. Could you come immediately? The situation is not optimistic. We may need you to sign a critical condition notice.”
“What?”
My voice split apart, like a string snapped without warning.
I jumped up from my chair. My ears buzzed violently. All that remained were the repeated words echoing in my head. Critical. Resuscitation. Come immediately.
I rushed to beg Cassian to take me to the hospital. He was reluctant at first, but seeing how desperate I was, he finally agreed.
The car had been moving for less than five minutes when his phone suddenly rang.
The screen lit up, and without even leaning closer, I could clearly see the name on it. Thalia.
Cassian’s hand paused on the steering wheel. Then he answered without hesitation.
A soft voice came through the phone, gentle and ingratiating, filled with dependence and a closeness I had never received.
“Cassian, I’m not feeling very well. Can you come over? I really need you right now.”
Her voice seeped into the air from the speaker, like a smiling blade, sharp enough to make breathing hurt.
A surge of unease rose in me. “Cassian, my mom is still being resuscitated. Can you please take me to the hospital first?”
He frowned, as if I had interrupted something far more important. “She’s in an emergency too. Don’t forget, she lost the baby because of you.”
“My mom is in an emergency as well.” My voice trembled. I was almost begging.
“Please. Just twenty more minutes and we’ll be there. Take me to the hospital first, then you can go. Please.”
The rain fell harder and harder, pounding against the windshield, as if smashing the last of my hope.
From the phone came a soft, delicate call. “Cassian…”
That single, spoiled whisper was like a spell.
The next second, he slammed on the brakes.
My body lurched forward violently. My heart felt as if it stopped along with the car.
“Get out.”
His voice was cold, completely devoid of warmth. “I have to go now.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “This is the highway. It’s pouring outside. How am I supposed to go?”
He did not even bother to look at me. He only repeated, “I said, get out.”
Then he reached over and opened my door.
Wind and rain rushed in instantly, icy and biting.
Before I could react, he shoved me out without mercy.
“Cassian, you can’t do this. My mom…”
“You figure it out yourself.”
He shut the door as soon as he finished speaking and stepped hard on the accelerator.
The taillights sped away into the curtain of rain, along with my last shred of illusion, crushed into nothing.
I stood there in the rain, miserable like a discarded joke. Water streamed down my face. I could no longer tell which drops were rain, and which were tears.
