Jessica's hand trembled as she adjusted her stethoscope, and then she replied, "It's unclear, things were chaotic."
Mike exhaled, managing a weak smile. "I hope they're okay. Really, you should've checked on them. My car had airbags; I was fine."
Removing her stethoscope, she noted the readings with a steady hand, her voice steadier, "I didn't think it through at that moment. Plus, the ambulance arrived quickly. They're likely okay."
"All good here. Nothing to worry about. Just stay for a few more days of observation, then you can head home."
After dropping that, she turned to leave.
As she took one step out of the room, Mike called after her, "You came straight to me first... was it because—"
"No," Jessica interrupted him firmly.
Turning back, her gaze was complex, filled with unsaid thoughts as she faced Mike. "I'm married, remember?"
Mike gave a rueful chuckle, "That's just on paper, right? I heard things when I got back. No reason to stay in something that's dead."
Indeed, a marriage on paper only.
Initially, she wasn't keen on dating me during our college days.
But money has a voice, and with her father's medical machine company teetering on bankruptcy, her family practically gifted her to me as a last-resort investment.
She's harbored resentment ever since.
Aware of this, I transferred all assets I could to her name after our marriage.
I hoped all of that could show my heart and compensate her somehow.
I believed that time might soften even the stoniest of hearts.
Yet, when faced with a life-or-death decision, she chose to forsake me, her vows, and her professional ethics.
After her rounds, Jessica retreated to her office.
It felt like my soul was tethered to her, unable to drift beyond ten feet.
I had no choice but to follow her into her office.
Perhaps it was Mike's words that stirred her.
She pulled out her phone and started to type a message to me.
[What's on the menu for tonight?]
She let the text linger in the box for a few long minutes, hesitant to send.
Eventually, she deleted it and typed a simpler message.
[You around?]
Just one word, but she hit send.
It vanished into thin air, unanswered.
She kept waking her phone, hoping for a reply that never came.
"Dr. Harris, texting someone special?" A middle-aged colleague joked as he entered, coffee in hand.
Caught off guard, she slid the phone into her pocket and replied offhandedly, "Just checking in on dinner plans at home."