I immediately shook my head.
His brows rose slightly. “Ms. Calloway—”
My voice came out broken. “I want it terminated.”
He paused. “You’re requesting an abortion?”
“Yes,” I said quietly. “As soon as possible.”
He exCallowayd slowly, like he was weighing every word before speaking. “Aria… with your condition, you know how hard it was for you to get pregnant in the first place.”
I stayed silent.
“If you proceed,” he added carefully, “you may not be able to conceive again. Are you certain?”
My chest twisted painfully, but I still nodded.
He looked at me for a long moment, something like pity in his eyes. “Alright. I’ll schedule it in three days.”
Three days.
Three days to cut the last remaining thread tying me to Julian. Three days to erase everything. Three days to learn how to breathe again.
When he left, I sank back into the pillow, staring blankly at the ceiling as my thoughts dragged me somewhere I didn’t want to go.
—
Two years ago.
I was carrying grocery bags in one hand and school books in the other when I saw her collapse.
Julian’s grandmother—Rosemarie.
I didn’t know her then. Just an elderly woman suddenly falling on the pavement, clutching her chest, struggling to breathe.