In the dream that night, Aaron tightly held me in his arms at my father's funeral, promising to love and protect me for a lifetime.
When I woke up the next day, my face was covered in tear stains.
I was the only one left in the house and the living room was in complete disarray.
Silently, I packed up all the things I had prepared for the child in the room and donated everything.
In the evening, Aaron called me, "The hospital is having dinner tonight and family members are invited. I'll send you the location."
I didn't want to go, but I thought it might be the final goodbye.
When I arrived at the restaurant's private room, everyone had already taken their seats.
Yvonne was sitting beside Aaron and as I entered, he was serving her some food.
"Ziva, you're here..."
The lively conversation immediately fell silent and all eyes were on me. The atmosphere became awkward for a moment.
It was Darren who broke the silence, moving a chair for me next to Aaron.
"Ziva, please sit. The food just got served."
As soon as I sat down, Aaron quickly served me a bowl of soup, his face full of anxiety and unease.
"Ziva, don't overthink it. Yvonne was just having an exam at the hospital, so I brought her here for a meal." He gently patted the back of my hand, probably worried that I might lash out right there.
In the past, I would have caused a scene, but now I had come to terms with it. I no longer bothered with meaningless arguments.
I nodded and focused on enjoying the soup in my bowl.
I overheard a conversation from a few nurses at the next table.
"What's going on? Why did Mr. Mild bring another woman here and let his wife come alone by taxi?"
"Who knows? Mr. Mildis is really attentive to his junior. Every time she has her prenatal check-up, he's always there, watching over her, all nervous. He's never been this attentive to his wife."
I pretended not to hear and made no response.
At this point, I no longer cared about what happened between Aaron and Yvonne.
A few doctors who were familiar with Aaron spoke up to ease the tension and finally, the atmosphere lightened.
After having a bit to drink, Darren’s face turned red and he stood in front of me with his drink in hand, earnestly saying, "Ziva, don’t be too sad about the baby. You and Aaron are still young. There will be other chances."
Aaron looked confused but asked seriously, "Darren, what are you talking about? What's wrong with the baby?"
Darren immediately sobered up halfway, his hand frozen on Aaron's shoulder.
"Bro, you still don't know? That day, Ziva's water broke and she had a C-section. The baby... the baby suffocated and... couldn't survive..."
