My hand trembled; the phone almost slipped from my grasp.

"That's great—oh, by the way, my brother is just doing an internship. Why don't you make him your assistant?" Hillary's voice was sweet and bright.

Without hesitation, Tristan agreed. "Sure."

"But..." She lowered her lashes, feigning just the right touch of worry. "Meredith's mood has been all over the place lately. What if she gets impulsive and divorces you?"

Tristan tightened his arms around her and answered with absolute certainty, "Don't worry. She's been with me for seven years—she can't live without me. But if she dares make things hard for you again, you don't have to endure it. Protecting yourself comes first."

"Got it..." she purred.

I stopped listening after that. A heavy weight pressed against my chest—not just grief, but the bitter sense that seven years of my life had been wasted.

No matter how I tried to smother it, a sharp, relentless pain kept surfacing, just as fierce as when I first fell helplessly in love with him.

Tangled and numb, I rushed back to the hospital—and still I was too late. They were already wheeling my brother into surgery.

I sat on a bench in a daze, adrenaline giving way to exhaustion.

Silently, Tristan sat beside me and handed me a cup of warm milk. "Drink a little. You need to keep your strength."

I took it without answering—not because my heart softened, but because I needed energy to wait for my brother to come through.

We sat in cold silence until the surgical light dimmed and a doctor stepped out. His face was grave. "We've stabilized him for now, but his condition is critical. He's extremely weak... he may not wake up. The family should prepare for the worst."

My heart sank to the floor.

Just then, a doctor who had been looking down sprinted forward. I caught the familiar features, and he looked shockingly like Hillary.

I lunged, grabbed him, and shouted, "Stop!"

Ignoring his struggle, I ripped the mask from his face. It was Hector—her brother.

"It's you! You did this to my brother!" I lost control and shook him. "Give my brother back to me!"

He panic-breathed and opened his mouth without forming words. Tristan suddenly wrapped his arms around me from behind. "Meredith, calm down. This isn't anyone's fault."

Taking advantage of the moment, Hector slipped away.

Tristan still tried to soothe me. "Don't worry. You have me. I'll find the best doctors—"