Chapter 77: Second Chance
Stefan leaned back in his chair, his fingers drumming silently against the edge of the desk. His office was quiet now, the hum of the air conditioner the only sound filling the space.
Morning had come and gone with a blur of meetings and greetings, but he hadn’t truly been present for any of it. His thoughts had been miles away.
They were still back at his house thinking about the ultrasound result he’d stumbled across while looking for his forgotten file.
He took out the scan photo again and stared at the image. He must’ve looked at it a dozen times already, but it still felt unreal. A heartbeat. A growing life. Something so small, yet suddenly it was the biggest thing in his world.
And yet, no one had told him. No phone call. No conversation. No warning. No nothing. He doesn’t even know who it belongs to and if it’s his for real.
He needed answers. He couldn’t sit here and wonder anymore. Not with something this important.
Reaching for his phone, he opened his contacts and scrolled to his doctor’s number. Dr. Sylvia. The same doctor who had been attending to "his wife." He pressed "call" and waited, his heartbeat thudding like a drum in his ears.
Once the call connected, he immediately booked a session even though it wasn’t to check on himself or anything but to get the truth.
Though his session wasn’t until thirty minutes later, he hurried out, unable to wait any longer.
Stefan sat in the backseat of the car, the ultrasound scan resting gently in his palm. His fingers curled around it as if it might disappear. His thoughts had been spinning from the moment he ended the call with Dr. Sylvia.
There were too many questions bouncing around in his head, and none of them came with answers. The scan was nine weeks old. Nearly two months. And yet, Ivy had said nothing to him. Not even a hint.
"Why wouldn’t she tell me? Unless... unless it wasn’t her at all." That thought refused to leave his mind.