I couldn’t take it anymore. Through gritted teeth, I forced out a plea: "For the baby’s sake, please help me."
"Stop pretending," Hadden snapped, his tone icy. "What? Trying to win sympathy now? If you’re in such a hurry, go to the obstetrics ward yourself. You’re a nurse, aren’t you? Or are you just that bad at your job? If so, I really should report you and get you fired."
He muttered something else under his breath, but I didn’t catch it. My survival instincts kicked in, and I reached out to grab his hazmat suit, but my fingers slipped.
Just like that, they all walked away, sprayed disinfectant everywhere, sealed the windows, turned off the lights, and locked the doors behind them, just like they would at the end of any regular shift.
By then, it was night. The emergency exit signs cast a faint green glow in the dark, barely illuminating the ward.
I had no choice. I dragged my heavy body, step by agonizing step, to the restroom. Once there, I stripped off my nurse's uniform and laid it over the toilet seat. I had to deliver my baby alone.
The pain was unbearable. Without any pain relief, I passed out from the agony, only to wake up again when the contractions hit harder.
Time blurred. I could feel the baby crowning, but then—suddenly—there was nothing. The baby stopped moving.
I knew what that meant. My baby was suffocating, and there was nothing I could do. The floor of the restroom stall was soaked with blood and other fluids, but I pushed one last time, summoning every ounce of strength I had left. Something slid out of me, and then... darkness.
When I woke up, I was lying in the obstetrics ward.
“You’re awake?” The voice belonged to Elise Field, a young intern. She stood by my bedside, her expression filled with unease.
For some reason, my chest felt hollow, as if something vital had been ripped away.
“Miss Nydia, when I came in this morning to open the ward, I found you in the restroom. You’ve already delivered the baby…” Her voice faltered, and I knew what was coming.
Tears blurred my vision before she could finish.
“I brought you here as quickly as I could, but… the baby’s face was blue. It must’ve been deprived of oxygen for too long. It was a stillbirth.”
I didn’t respond. I didn’t cry or scream. I just sat there on the hospital bed, numb.