He Defended Her, I Married His Billionaire Rival

Chapter 4

When I woke up again, I found myself lying in a hospital bed. Thick gauze was wrapped around my neck, and the wound throbbed with waves of pain.

The door opened, and a nurse gave me a smile upon seeing that I was awake. "Your husband just left," she said. "He came to see you twice while you were unconscious. Each time, he only sat for a little while before leaving. He seemed very busy."

I said nothing. The nurse looked at me, seemingly wanting to say more, but ultimately just sighed and turned to leave.

The room fell silent once more.

Staring out the window, I recalled the final scene before I lost consciousness. Ethan had been running toward me, but Serena was clutching Leo, and the child was screaming in pure agony. Ethan's footsteps had faltered as he glanced back. It was just a fleeting second of hesitation, and then he had continued running toward me, but that moment was already etched into my brain.

It was just like every other choice he had ever made. It wasn't that he didn't love me; it was just that there was always someone in a more desperate situation, someone who needed him more, and someone who should be prioritized. And I was always the one who could wait.

Thankfully, I was no longer that foolish girl who would stand exactly where she was left and wait for him forever.

I contacted a lawyer and had a divorce agreement drafted.

On the third day of my hospitalization, Ethan finally showed up. He looked even more haggard than before, with a scruffy beard and bloodshot eyes. He was holding a thermos.

"Martha made some soup," he rasped. "Drink it while it's hot."

I didn't move.

Ethan sat in the chair by the bed, clasping his hands together and keeping his head lowered. "The kidnappers were caught," he mumbled, as if giving a work report. "They were family members from a previous case. They said I caused the death of their son, so this was payback. Serena and Leo were deeply traumatized by the incident, and Leo has been having nightmares for the past couple of days. He needs someone with him, so I..."

He trailed off, leaving the sentence hanging.

I listened with a blank expression. After all, I had anticipated this explanation long ago and had heard similar ones countless times before.

Ethan looked up at me, his eyes filled with guilt, exhaustion, and a deep sense of helplessness. "Tessa, that day, I..." he swallowed hard. "I had no other choice. Leo is only six. If anything happened to him, I'd never be able to live with myself for the rest of my..."

"I know," I interrupted him calmly. "You made the right choice."

Ethan froze.

"I would have chosen the child too," I continued, meeting his gaze. "So I don't blame you, Ethan. I really don't."

I paused, enunciating every word clearly. Then, I averted my gaze to look out the window. "You can go now. Go be with Leo and handle the things you need to handle. I'm fine here."

Ethan sat there motionless. He looked at me, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, no words came out. After sitting for about ten minutes, he stood up and said softly, "I'll come see you later."

I listened to his footsteps fade away before slowly sitting up and insisting on discharging myself.

An hour later, I was back at the apartment, packing my belongings.

A framed photo of us still sat on the nightstand, taken on our first anniversary. In the photo, my eyes were crinkled in a bright smile while Ethan wrapped an arm around my shoulders, his chin resting gently on the top of my head as he looked at me with tender affection.

I walked over, picked up the frame, and stared at it for a moment before opening the drawer and tossing it inside. The matching toothbrushes, cups, and pajamas I had specially bought for us were all unceremoniously tossed into a large box and hauled down to the dumpster.

Finally, I stood in the middle of the living room, taking in my surroundings. The apartment was large, spacious, elegantly decorated, freezing, and entirely devoid of warmth.

Just like the love Ethan had given me. In the beginning, it had been a whirlwind romance, a knight in shining armor story that made everyone else jealous. But stripping away that glowing exterior revealed nothing but calculations and a sense of responsibility and guilt that would always take precedence over me. I had tried to warm that coldness, only to realize I was the one being drained in the process.

I pulled out my apartment key from my bag and set it gently on the coffee table. The keychain had a tiny bear charm on it; it was a gift from Ethan. He had said it was cute, so I had carried it with me ever since. Now, I was giving it back.

Next, I slipped off my wedding ring and placed it next to the key. We had picked out the design together, and he had promised to trap me for life. Now, I was giving that back too.

As the door locked shut, I locked three years of my marriage, love, and expectations inside as well.