Chapter 198

Chapter 198

A week later, I flew back overseas with my uncle's family.

When I got back to my apartment, it was quiet across the hall. Gabriel hadn't returned yet.

I was a bit curious about what kind of illness Azure had that required such a long hospital stay.

But honestly, Gabriel not being back was fine by me. Peace and quiet.

After a quick wash-up, I was exhausted from the all-day flight and just went straight to bed.

---

The next day, I woke up to several missed video calls from Ceria on my phone.

Rubbing my eyes, I called her back. "I know why Azure was hospitalized," Ceria said immediately.

"What for?"

Honestly, I was pretty curious.

"I heard it's a heart condition."

"A heart condition?" I was confused.

Whether in my past life or now, I'd never known Azure had a heart problem.

"Apparently she has a congenital heart defect. Can't handle stress," Ceria explained.

Apparently one of Ceria's underclassmen knew a friend of Azure's.

What a small world.

Seeing me zone out, Ceria continued, "But I'm not sure how reliable this is. You know Azure—she makes mountains out of molehills."

Actually, verifying this wouldn't be that hard.

Steven had been with Azure for years. He'd definitely know.

I sent Steven a message: [I heard Azure has a congenital heart condition?]

"Yeah, but she usually takes medication and doesn't do intense exercise, so she's barely had any episodes," Steven replied quickly.

So it was probably a mild heart condition.

I didn't reply to Steven. I was planning to go back to sleep.

But the next second, someone knocked on my door.

Annoyed, I got up and opened it to find Nason standing there.

"What's up?"

I frowned at him.

If I remembered right, Nason had also gone back home to visit graves a few days ago. I was surprised he was back so soon.

"Did you know Azure was hospitalized?" Nason asked directly.

"Yeah. So are you here to yell at me?" I had a feeling that by now, the whole world probably knew Azure was in the hospital.

"So you know she has a heart condition?"

Nason pressed on.

"Yeah."

"It's just a mild heart condition, right?"

I said slowly, feeling like everyone was making too big a deal out of this.

"Apparently she needs a heart transplant," Nason said quietly.

I was stunned. "Wait, I thought it was mild. Why does she need a heart transplant now?"

So this was why Gabriel kept dragging things out with Azure.

This was the thing Gabriel said he needed to handle?

"Ember, are you okay?"

Seeing me not respond for a while, Nason asked carefully.

My chest suddenly started hurting. Then everything went black, and I collapsed.

---

When I came to, I was in the hospital.

I heard the doctor telling Nason that I was pregnant and couldn't handle emotional stress.

Nason nodded repeatedly like a bobblehead. Finally, the doctor left, and he came back to my bedside.

"Nason."

I called out hesitantly, my voice hoarse.

"So you're pregnant with Gabriel's baby?"

Nason asked slowly.

I couldn't read his tone.

I nodded. There was no point hiding it anymore.

"If you're already pregnant, why didn't you tell him?" Nason asked.

Then he added, "Not only did you not tell him, but you're letting him be with another woman..."

Nason stopped mid-sentence.

He probably realized that under the circumstances, saying these things to a pregnant woman wasn't appropriate.

I gave a slight smile. "Thanks, Nason, for being considerate of this pregnant lady's feelings."

Then I continued, "I found out I was pregnant after Gabriel and I got divorced."

"I really want to keep this baby, but I don't want any more entanglements with Gabriel. So I..."

I looked at Nason. "So, can you understand?"

My ridiculous logic seemed to make Nason angry.

"Ember, do you even hear yourself?"

"If you don't want to be with him anymore, why keep the baby? Don't you think that's unfair to the child?"

Nason wasn't wrong. I looked at him resolutely. "I've already prepared myself to be a single mom."

Nason let out a bitter laugh, then pulled up Azure's latest social media post to show me.

Just her and Gabriel being lovey-dovey.

I thought I'd be unbothered like before.

But today, for some reason, seeing Gabriel being affectionate with another woman made my emotions spike irrationally.

"Kids have feelings too. How do you think your baby will feel seeing their dad with another woman?" Nason stared at me.

He had a point. I was at a loss for words.

Seeing me waver, Nason continued, "Gabriel's probably bringing Azure overseas for the heart transplant surgery soon. Are you sure you want your baby to grow up without a father's love?"

My hands clenched into fists. My chest felt so tight I could barely breathe.

"Nason, I'm sure. I can't lose this baby."

I stared at him hard.

The doctor had told me before that with my physical condition, it would be very difficult to get pregnant.

If I gave this up, I might never have the chance to be a mother again.

Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones, but my emotions kept swinging wildly.

Tears started falling uncontrollably.

Nason sighed and reached out to wipe my tears. "Fine. I support your decision."

"Nason, thank you."

I looked up at him.

"Can you please keep this a secret for me?" I asked slowly.

Nason nodded. "Don't worry, I won't say anything."

Then he added, "Besides, even if this needs to be said, it should come from you."

After chatting with me a bit longer, Nason left.

---

I stayed in the hospital for three days. Once all my hormone levels stabilized, I was finally discharged.

As soon as I got home, I was too lazy to cook and just ordered takeout.

When there was a knock at the door, I was thinking how fast the delivery was. But when I opened it, Azure stood there looking pale.

"Weren't you in the hospital?"

"You got discharged?"

I stared at Azure suspiciously.

"I was supposed to have surgery, but my physical condition isn't stable enough yet. So I came back for now," Azure explained.