A dead silence fell over the crowd. Nobody wanted to see a tragedy like this unfold in real time.
The staff member who had carried me down screamed at the paralyzed crew.
"Well? What are you waiting for?! Get her in the van!"

As the paramedics prepped to lift me into the ambulance, Julian finally snapped out of his daze. However, instead of rushing to my side, he just stood there, looking at me with that familiar mix of skepticism and annoyance.
"Wait!" he shouted, marching toward us. "Elena, seriously? Are you faking it again? There are people watching, for god's sake. Stop doing this embarrassing stuff!"
The nurse who had been checking my vitals looked like she was about to explode. She whipped around and glared at Julian. "Sir, I'm going to need you to step away from the ambulance. Now. We prioritize patients based on who is actually dying, not who's loudest. If you keep obstructing us, I'm calling the cops!"
The crowd of tourists, who had seen the whole thing go down, instantly turned into an angry mob.
"Yeah! Call the police!" someone yelled. "This guy is a total animal. His wife is eight months pregnant and bleeding out, and he doesn't even blink. But his side-piece gets a little dizzy, and he panics? Disgusting!"
"And look at that woman," another voice chimed in. "Clinging to someone else's husband right in front of his wife. Have some shame!"

"I saw her on the bungee platform!" a woman shouted. "She practically forced that pregnant lady to jump. She's trying to kill both the mother and the baby so she can upgrade from homewrecker to trophy wife!"
Lily, who had built her entire personality around being a fragile, innocent flower, could not handle the heat. She buried her face in Julian's chest and started sobbing theatrically.
While the nurse held the crowd back, the paramedics quickly loaded me in and slammed the doors. As the siren wailed and we sped away, I could still hear the faint, manipulative whimpering from outside.
"Julian... hic... Did I upset Elena again? Why would she make those people yell at me? My depression... I can feel it getting worse..."

Julian, who had been staring blankly at the departing ambulance, immediately melted. "It's okay, babe. Don't worry about her. If she wants to pretend to have a miscarriage, let her pretend. Come on, I'm taking you to the hospital right now."
So, while I was fighting for my life, Julian rushed Lily to the ER. The doctors ran every test in the book and found absolutely nothing wrong with her physically. However, since she kept sighing and acting like the world was ending, they diagnosed her with 'major depression.'
Naturally, Julian decided this was all my fault.
By the time I arrived at the hospital, I was fading fast. That fierce little nurse stayed by my side the whole time, shouting into my ear over the noise of the machines.
"Stay with me! Come on! Your life belongs to you! Forget the husband, forget the baby, you have to survive for yourself!"
Maybe her voice was the only thing keeping me tethered to the ground. I felt myself slipping into the void a few times, but somehow, I managed to claw my way back.
When I finally opened my eyes, three days had passed.
"You're out of the woods," the nurse told me, her voice soft. "But I… I'm so sorry. The baby suffocated before you even got here. We couldn't save him."
She looked at me with deep guilt, like she was the one who owed me an apology. I reached out and squeezed her hand, my voice raspy and weak.
"Thank you for saving me," I whispered. "As for the child... that was my choice."
The nurse paused, tears welling in her eyes as if she understood exactly what I meant. "Is there anything else I can do?"
"Yes." I managed a weak, bitter smile. "If anyone asks... tell them the surgery failed. Tell them I died on the table."
I have lived through this nightmare twice. In this life, I wanted absolutely nothing to do with Julian.
The nurse nodded solemnly. "Consider it done."