Chapter 1 Prologue-Goodbye

Aria's POV

"NO... PLEASE... STAY AWAY! Don't hurt my baby, PLEASE!"

My voice was barely audible, more like a whisper than a cry, yet it was drowned in the cold clatter of surgical instruments.

I curled up in the farthest corner of the operating room, my body pressed against the icy wall. The white dress I wore was wrinkled and stained, as crumpled as the chaos in my heart.

I must've looked like a mess-my hair tangled and stuck to my tear-streaked face, my lips bitten raw, streaked with blood.

But none of that mattered anymore. Not here. Not now.

The doctors moved with sterile precision, dressed in pale blue scrubs, their gloved hands calmly arranging gleaming instruments that shimmered under the harsh fluorescent lights.

The anesthesiologist adjusted the IV bag above me, the silver glint of the needle burning into my vision.

"It's a simple procedure," he said with a professional smile. "It'll be over quickly."

"Liar!" I shook my head violently, as if I could somehow shake his words out of my mind. "You're all liars! Murderers! You're trying to kill my baby!"

That child was all I had left-the only thing anchoring me to this life. How could I just give up on him?

The head nurse stepped forward. Her face was colder than any of the doctors'. She grabbed my wrist with a grip like iron, sharp and emotionless.

She motioned to the two orderlies. "Hold her down."

As they reached for me, something primal surged up inside me. I screamed, broke free with every ounce of strength I had, and shoved her backward.

She stumbled, crashing into the others. The room descended into chaos.

And then-

The door burst open.

For a moment, my heart leapt. Kane? Did he change his mind? Did he finally come to save us?

But no.

It wasn't him.

It was Baron-his assistant.

He stood in the doorway, brows furrowed, his eyes filled with disdain. The way he looked at me... like I was nothing more than a madwoman causing trouble.

Still, I had no choice. I had to try. This was the only sliver of hope left to me.

"BARON! Baron, please!" I threw myself at him, collapsing to my knees and grabbing onto the fabric of his trousers. "Please-don't let them hurt my baby. I'm begging you..."

There was no pride left in me. No dignity. Every ounce of strength I had was poured into this desperate plea.

But he didn't even flinch. Not a flicker of sympathy.

Without a word, he raised his foot and drove it into my shoulder. Pain exploded down my arm as I hit the cold floor, my face pressed against the tile.

"I thought you'd come to your senses by now," he said, his voice like ice.

I couldn't stop the tears. They poured down my face, hot and endless. My voice cracked as I whispered, "I don't understand... why? I just want to keep my baby. The baby hasn't done anything wrong..."

"The boss doesn't want the baby," Baron said flatly.

"I DON'T CARE WHAT HE WANTS!" I choked, my voice raw. "He doesn't have to raise the baby-I'll disappear, I swear. I'll leave and NEVER show my face again. Just... PLEASE, Baron, call him. Let me talk to him. Let me beg him, one last time.."

I clung to his leg, sobbing, but he only looked down at me like I was a lunatic.

"Fine," he muttered. "Then let me show you how things really are."

He pulled out his phone.

Stupidly, I still hoped. I still thought maybe-just maybe-he was calling Kane for me. That maybe he still cared.

But then the speaker crackled to life.

"What if she refuses?" Baron's voice came through.

"Refuse?" That voice...

I'd know it anywhere. Deep, low, once warm enough to make me believe in forever.

Now it sounded like a blade being dragged across stone.

"She won't refuse. She knows it herself."

Kane. My Kane.

The man who used to whisper love into my ear like promises.

Now his words carved through me like knives.

"She is unworthy of being the mother of my child." he said, almost amused.

And just like that-I broke.

I didn't scream. I didn't wail.

Just a quiet whimper escaped my throat, like a wounded animal.

The world around me faded. All I could hear was the thunder of blood in my ears. My heart felt like it had been hollowed out with a rusted spoon.

So this... this is what heartbreak really feels like.

Not a cinematic explosion of pain.

Just... emptiness.

Numbness.

I stood up slowly, legs trembling under me like wet paper. The massive window at the far end of the room caught my eye.

Outside, the sky was the color of lead.

How strange!

The world looked so calm, even as mine crumbled to ash.

The figures rushed toward me again, voices sharp and urgent.

But I didn't hear them anymore.

I climbed onto the windowsill, the wind sweeping my hair back from my face. One last glance at the sterile room behind me-filled with faceless people, masks, gloves, orders.

They were still talking, but it didn't matter.

I'd already made my choice.

"Tell Kane... I'll do what he wants." My voice was clear, almost serene. "Goodbye."

And then I leaned back, surrendering to the pull of gravity.

As I fell, I didn't feel fear.

Only peace.

For once, this choice was mine.

I touched my gently rounded belly one last time.

I'm sorry, baby.

I couldn't protect you.

But at least now, they'll never separate us again.