When I opened my eyes, I was already back in the hospital ward. The numbness hadn’t changed, I still couldn’t feel anything below my waist.
Jonah sat beside me, his expression tense. The second he noticed I was awake, his face softened with concern.
He took my hand and pressed it against his cheek. "Greta? You’re awake. Do you feel okay? If anything hurts, I’ll call the doctor right now."
His voice was gentle, his touch careful—just like always. But his eyes… they were empty. It was almost impressive, how well he could fake it.
I gave him a small smile, reaching up to brush my fingers over the rough stubble on his chin. "You didn’t sleep, did you? I’m fine, Jonah. You should rest."
He exhaled, nodded slightly and within minutes, he was fast asleep. I glanced at his phone on the nightstand. Without thinking, I picked it up and unlocked it.
The wallpaper was still the wedding photo we took in advance. It felt ridiculous now.
His message app was still open in the background. At the top of his chats was Naomi. I tapped in. The messages were simple, but each one felt like a gut punch.
[Janelle called for her dad again today. She already knows how handsome you are. She’s going to be trouble when she grows up.]
[Janelle ate the cake you sent, finished every last bite.]
[She won’t stop asking to go to the amusement park with you. I tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn’t listen. Come if you can.]
Jonah hadn’t replied with words, but under every photo, there was a two-hour video call log. I remembered when he once told me he didn’t like kids.
Now I knew the truth. It wasn’t that he didn’t like children. He just didn’t like mine. I checked his gallery. There was a private album for Naomi. The password? The child’s birthday.
Over five thousand photos. Three years of memories that had nothing to do with me. Jonah was there for every holiday, every special occasion.
The second chat in his messages was with the wedding planner. From the very start, he had put Naomi’s name down.
The dress was her size. The invitations had both their names on them. I was never meant to be part of that wedding.
I let out a quiet laugh and closed the app. No point reading any further. Instead, I reached out to my best friend, asking her to find me a hospital abroad.
I filed to cancel all my documents in Tianora. She didn’t question it. She just assumed I had finally woken up, finally seen Jonah for who he was.
She was relieved. Every message she sent was full of excitement, happy that I was finally letting go. I set my phone down and drifted off to sleep.
When I woke up, Jonah was crying. He was gripping a hospital report, his whole body trembling. "Greta." His voice cracked. "The doctor found something during your exam. You—" He swallowed hard. "You were born without a uterus. You can’t have children."
I didn’t react. Just stared at him.
"It’s okay," he said quickly. "I don’t care about that. You’re gonna be my wife and that won’t change. Once you’re discharged, we can adopt. A child will help you recover, I promise. Everything will be fine."
I was the one who had supposedly lost something, yet he looked more devastated than me. His performance was almost flawless.
I didn’t call him out on it. I just let the silence stretch, watching him clutch that report like it was the worst thing that had ever happened to him.
After a long pause, he wiped his tears and nodded, as if making some kind of deep, emotional decision. Then he pulled me into his arms.
"I swear, I’ll take care of you," he whispered. "No matter what people say, I’ll always stand by your side. And once we’re married, I’ll transfer all my assets to you. I just want you to be safe."
His chest was pressed against mine, but our heartbeats weren’t even close to matching.
