Chapter 2: The Name on the Screen
I looked Sylvia dead in the eye, turned to Ethan, and held our daughter out to him.
"Hold her," I said.
Not a question.
Not a request.
Ethan blinked.
"What?"
"Hold.
Your.
Daughter."
The waiting room went completely quiet.
Even the baby stopped crying for a second.
Ethan took her — awkwardly, like he hadn't done it in weeks.
Because he hadn't.
Then I picked up my bag, walked to the front desk, and told the nurse I needed to speak with someone about updating the emergency contact on file.
I removed Sylvia's name.
I added my mother's.
When I turned back around, Sylvia was right behind me.
"You think you're being clever?" she hissed.
"I think I'm being done," I said quietly.
That's when Ethan's phone lit up on the chair between us.
The screen was face-up.
The name on it wasn't his boss.
It was a woman named Dana.
And the preview of her message read: *"Is she still there?
How much longer do you have to stay?"*
Ethan saw me see it.
He reached for the phone.
But he wasn't fast enough.
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May you like
What Ethan said next — and what I found when I scrolled up — broke something in me I don't think I can fix.
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