His face fell. “God, I hate this. Being stuck here, leaving you to handle everything alone…”
“Hey, that’s part of marriage, right?
Through sickness and health?” I tried to make light of it, but my voice wavered. Ethan smiled faintly, yet there was a preoccupied look in his eyes, like his mind was racing somewhere else. “You okay?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.
“You seem… off tonight.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” He started fiddling with the corner of his blanket. “How are the kids?”
We made small talk for a while, and I peeled an apple for him—his favorite snack. Yet, I couldn’t shake the sensation that something was wrong.
Ethan’s responses were unusually brief. And he kept sneaking glances at the door. “Remember when we first got together?” I reminisced, trying to dispel the awkward silence.
“You used to bring me apples every day because you believed that whole ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’ saying.”
He chuckled, but it sounded forced. “Ethan,” I tried again, this time grasping his hand, and he allowed it. “Tell me.
What’s going on? Are you in pain? Should I call the nurse?”
“No!” he blurted, then quickly softened his tone.
“No, really. I’m fine. Just… tired.”
I convinced myself I was reading too much into it.
Maybe he really was just exhausted. Surgery can be draining, after all. Then, as I stepped outside to throw away the apple peels, I ran into Carla.
Carla, one of Ethan’s nurses, was always warm and chatty—the type of person who made you feel at ease. We’d spoken before, but today, she seemed uneasy. She stepped into my path, glancing nervously down the corridor before whispering, “Can I speak to you for a moment?”
“Of course.
What’s wrong?”
Her hands trembled slightly as she fiddled with her ID badge. “I shouldn’t be doing this. We aren’t supposed to meddle in patients’ private matters, but…”
“Carla,” I gripped her arm, my pulse quickening.
“You’re scaring me. Is Ethan okay? Did something show up in his tests?”
She shook her head hurriedly.
“No, no, it’s nothing medical. It’s just…” She bit her lip, glancing toward Ethan’s room before lowering her voice even more. “Listen, I don’t want to alarm you, but… check under your husband’s bed when you go back in.”
I frowned, confused.
“Under his bed? Why?”
“Just trust me,” she urged, her face pleading. “You’ll understand once you see.”
“Carla, please,” my voice wavered.
“If there’s something wrong, just tell me. I can handle it.”
“I can’t,” she whispered, eyes darting over her shoulder. “But you have to know.
Just… look.”
Then she walked off, leaving me frozen in place, my stomach twisted in knots. What was she talking about? Was there something I hadn’t noticed about Ethan?
Was he hiding something from me? “Wait!” I called after her, but she had already disappeared down the hall. I inhaled deeply and returned to the room, forcing myself to act casual.
My hands trembled so much I had to shove them into my pockets. Ethan was back to scrolling on his phone. “Everything okay?” he asked as I sat down.
“Yeah. Just threw away some trash.”
But my mind was spinning. Carla’s warning played on a loop in my head: “Check under his bed.”
I needed an excuse.
Something subtle. I grabbed the apple I had been peeling and deliberately let it roll to the floor. “Oops,” I said, crouching down.
That’s when I saw them. My heart slammed against my ribs. A pair of eyes… staring directly at me.
For a moment, I thought I was imagining things. But no. A woman was curled up beneath the bed, her wide eyes locked onto mine, looking as startled as I felt.
“What the—” I jumped to my feet. “Who the hell are you? Why are you hiding under my husband’s bed?”
Ethan’s heart monitor started beeping rapidly.
“Wait, wait… Samantha, it’s not what you think—”
“Don’t even try it!” My hands shook as I reached for my phone. “I’m calling the police. What kind of sick joke is this?”
The woman scrambled out, face flushed.
She looked absolutely humiliated. “Please,” Ethan pleaded, his voice desperate. “Just listen.”
The woman, barely able to meet my eyes, murmured, “I’m a wedding planner.”
I blinked.
“A… what?”
Ethan sighed. “I was planning a wedding. For us.
A real one.”
And just like that, the entire night took the most unexpected turn of my life.
