My heart stopped every time the voices rose, and I found myself whispering her name under my breath like a prayer I wasn’t sure the goddess was listening to.
Finally, the door creaked open, and Dr. Kellan stepped out. His face… fuck. His face was pale, grim, tired, his hands covered in gloves that were stained with blood. My legs went weak at the sight.
“How is she?” Mom asked instantly, her voice desperate.
“Is she okay? Tell me my baby is okay!” Grandma cried, clutching Grandpa’s arm even tighter.
Dad’s voice was cold. “Speak, Kellan.”
I stepped forward, my heart in my throat. “Please, Doc. Tell me she’s okay. Tell me my mate is okay.”
Dr. Kellan let out a long breath, pulling the mask off his face. “There’s good news… and bad news,” he said slowly, his eyes shifting from me to my parents, then back to me. “The good news is-Anna is conscious now.”
My heart leapt in relief, but then froze when I saw the way his jaw tightened, the way his eyes darkened.
“But…” he continued, his voice heavier now, “there’s something else you need to know.”RYAN’S POV
“The bad news…” Dr. Kellan’s voice was low, almost hesitant, as if he knew the words would break me. “She lost the baby. And not only that… her wolf. Her wolf was just starting to come out fully, it was still adapting, and now it’s as if it has shrunk back into hiding. That’s why the baby couldn’t be protected. Her wolf should have shielded the pregnancy, but it didn’t.”
The words hit me like knives. My chest tightened so painfully that I had to clutch my shirt as if it would stop my heart from tearing open. I growled so loud the entire hallway shook, everyone flinching at the sound.
My child.
My own baby.
Gone before I could even hold him or her. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, all I wanted was to smash everything in sight, but instead I forced the words out.
“I want to see her.’”
“Ryan-” Dr. Kellan tried, but I cut him off.
“NOW!” I barked, my voice raw with pain. “Take me to her, I don’t care what state she’s in, I just need to see my Anna.”
Mom sobbed softly beside me, Dad’s jaw was tight, Grandma whispered a prayer under her breath, but I didn’t care, I only cared about getting to Anna. Just then the nurses came out, pushing her bed slowly, her fragile body lying there with tubes and wires attached to her, machines beeping, her skin pale but her chest rising and falling, thank the goddess, she was breathing.
“Anna…” I whispered brokenly as I rushed forward, grabbing her hand gently but desperately, kissing it over and over like I could bring her back to me that way. “Baby, I’m here. I’m right here.” My lips brushed her knuckles, her fingers limp in mine, and I kept kissing, whispering against her skin. “You’re alive. That’s all that matters. You’re alive.”
The pain inside me was unbearable, knowing we’d lost our first child, knowing our baby was gone, but even with that pain burning inside my chest, I was grateful that she was still here, breathing, still with me. Because without her, I’d have nothing.
The nurses pushed her into a private room and carefully moved her onto the bed. I sat right there beside her, refusing to let go of her hand, kissing it again and again while brushing strands of hair away from her face. My tears dropped onto her skin, and I didn’t even bother wiping them.
“We can always make more babies,” I whispered to her, my voice shaking. “Do you hear me, Anna? We can always make more babies. Just don’t you ever leave me. Don’t you ever leave me, baby. I love you so much.”
Mom’s hand rested gently on my back, Dad’s firm grip squeezed my shoulder, Grandma and Grandpa stood close, their eyes full of sorrow, but I barely registered them. My world was this girl lying in front of me.
“Come back to me, my love,” I begged, pressing my forehead to her hand. “I don’t know what I’ll do without you. I don’t know how to breathe without you.”
Minutes passed like hours, my eyes never leaving her face, every little sound from the monitor making me flinch. Then, finally, her lashes fluttered, slowly, weakly, but they moved, and I shot up straight.
“Baby… baby, Anna!” I called, my voice rising with hope, my whole body trembling as I kissed her hand again, covering it with desperate kisses. “Open your eyes, love. Please, open them for me.”
And then they did. Her beautiful eyes opened, tired and hazy, but open. My heart nearly burst out of my chest from relief. I smiled so wide through my tears, pressing more kisses to her hand.
“Oh thank God… Anna… baby, you’re awake. I thought I’d lost you. I thought-” My voice broke as I choked on my words. “I love you. I love you so much.”
But then… the words that left her lips shocked the hell out of me.
OANNA’S POV
I opened my eyes slowly, blinking against the bright hospital lights as I tried to figure out where I was. My head felt heavy, my body sore all over, and when my vision cleared, I saw Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa all gathered around me. And then…
“Big bro… you came back!” I breathed out, my voice shaky but full of happiness, because I hadn’t seen him in so many years, not since the day he left for school.
The last memory I could piece together was Mom trying to call him with the big news that I’d been admitted into his school, her voice full of excitement while I could barely stay still from how happy I was. But his calls hadn’t gone through, and I had thought maybe he was just too busy with the company in Nivelle that Mom said he was running now. And yet, here he was, right here, holding my hand so tenderly, almost too intimately.
“Huh?” Ryan’s eyes widened at my words, shock flashing across his face as if he hadn’t expected me to call him that. His hand was still wrapped around mine, warm and steady, but my heart skipped uncomfortably and I quickly pulled away, glancing around to be sure Mom and Dad hadn’t noticed. When I looked back at him, his eyes were still on me, strange, intense, far too heavy for the way a brother should be looking at his sister.
I tried to sit up, but the sharp pain that shot through my body made me cry out, “Ouch!” My hand instinctively reached up to my head, and that’s when I felt the bandage wrapped tightly around it. I froze, realizing not only was my head bandaged but my whole body ached terribly, like I had been hit by something hard.
“What happened to me?” I asked weakly, still trying to process why I was in a hospital bed.
“Baby…” Ryan’s voice was soft but strange, sending shivers down my spine. Baby? Since when did he start calling me that? The last time I remembered, before he left for school, he always called me Anna. Just Anna. Nothing more. And wasn’t he supposed to have just returned? When had we gotten so close that he suddenly used endearments like baby?
I frowned, feeling conscious under his gaze, but before I could say anything, he leaned forward and kissed the back of my hand. My eyes widened in shock as I pulled my hand away immediately.
“Ryan, what are you doing?” I whispered, panicked, though I was more confused than angry. Was he… confused? Had he misunderstood something?
Then it hit me, the confession! The kiss! That one mistake I made before he left for school five years ago. I had confessed to him about my feelings, and in my excitement, I had kissed him. It had been wrong, forbidden, something I thought he’d never take seriously, but what if he had taken it as a go-ahead all this time? What if he thought that was what I wanted? But… We hadn’t even spoken about it, hadn’t even addressed what happened, and here he was, acting like we were something more.
“My princess, how are you feeling?” Mom asked, her tone filled with concern.
“Mom…” I whispered, turning to her for some sort of explanation.
“Are you in pain?” Dad added, his voice gentle but worried.
Grandma and Grandpa leaned closer, their faces etched with deep concern. “Do you feel weak, Anna? Do you want water? Tell us what you need,” Grandma said quickly.
I blinked at them, my chest tightening. They all looked so worried, but I didn’t understand why. I tried to push myself up again, but the pain was too much, and I let out another sharp cry, clutching at my side.
“What happened to me? Why is there bandages all over my body?” I asked, my voice shaking.
“You fell,” Mom said softly, her eyes glistening with tears.
“Fell?” I repeated, confused.
Mom nodded, tears slipping down her cheeks. “Yes, my princess. I’m so sorry.” Her voice cracked as she reached for me, but I shook my head, still trying to process everything.
The only fall I remembered was when I had jumped in excitement after hearing I had gotten admission into
Ryan’s school. Could that little harmless jump have caused this much damage? Bandages on my head and body, this much pain? That didn’t make sense.
“I don’t remember falling like that,” I muttered, my voice low.
Ryan’s hand brushed against mine again, holding it firmly even though I tried to pull away. His gaze burned into me, so intense it made me feel naked under his stare. “Baby, you don’t remember what happened?” he asked quietly.
Again with that word.
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