Chapter 2

Aspen Donaldson POV:

The world slowly sharpened into focus. White ceiling tiles. The rhythmic hiss of a ventilator, then the soft, steady beep of a heart monitor beside my bed. My eyes fluttered open. A nurse, her face kind and tired, was leaning over me.

"Aspen? Can you hear me?" she asked gently. Her name tag read 'Sarah'.

I tried to speak, but my throat was raw, my mouth dry. I managed a weak nod.

"Oh, thank god," she breathed, a genuine smile spreading across her face. "You gave us quite a scare. Welcome back." She reached out, her hand warm and firm as she squeezed my shoulder. "You're a fighter, Aspen. A real fighter."

Her touch, that simple, unexpected human warmth, sent a tremor through me. It had been so long since anyone had offered comfort without expecting something in return. If only Derek had held me like that, just once, when my parents died. If only he had offered a single word of genuine concern after the car crash, or the miscarriage. Would I have ended up here? Perhaps not. But the past was a bitter, unchangeable landscape.

Sarah helped me sip some water, her movements gentle. She adjusted my pillow. "You've been through a lot, honey," she said, her voice soft. "But you made it. That's what matters."

I closed my eyes, letting the quiet strength of her presence wash over me. I thought back to our wedding day. Derek, handsome and beaming, had sworn to cherish me, to protect me. "Through sickness and in health," he'd promised, his hand intertwined with mine. "Until death do us part." Those vows felt like a cruel mockery now. His heart had changed. Or perhaps, it had never truly been mine to begin with.

Days bled into a hazy week. Derek never showed. Not a call, not a text, not a single flower. He was true to his word. He wanted me independent. He wanted me to deal with it. And so I did. I dealt with the empty bed, the silent room, the gnawing loneliness that threatened to consume me. Sleep became my only escape, a temporary reprieve from the crushing weight of reality.

One afternoon, I drifted in and out of consciousness, hearing snippets of conversation from the nurses' station just outside my door.

"Did you see Mr. Henderson's wife?" a young voice chirped. "She hasn't left his side. Brings him fresh clothes, reads him books. He's so lucky."

Another voice, older, wistful. "Yeah, that's real love. My husband used to do that for me when I broke my leg. Always made sure I had everything I needed."

I felt a bitter laugh rise in my chest. Lucky. They talked about those wives, those husbands, with such admiration, such envy. If they only knew. If they knew the woman lying in this bed, the one who looked like any other patient, was secretly the heir to an empire. If they knew the man who abandoned her was hailed as a self-made genius, his success secretly funded by her own family. Would they still envy them? Would they still call that love?

Dr. Evans, my therapist, visited daily. She was a lifeline. "Aspen, we need to address the underlying issues," she said, her gaze unwavering. "The depression, the trauma. You've endured immense loss. It's okay to accept help."

Before, I would have resisted. I would have put on a brave face, trying to prove to Derek, to everyone, that I was 'strong.' But now, after hearing Derek's words in the ER, after facing death and choosing to live, something inside me had shifted. The desire to please him, to earn his affection, had vanished.

"Okay," I whispered, the single word a monumental surrender and a powerful affirmation. "I'm ready."

I swallowed the antidepressants, let Dr. Evans guide me through breathing exercises. I talked about my parents, about the miscarriage, about the hollow ache of Derek's rejection. The medication slowly lifted the heaviest fog from my mind, not erasing the pain, but making it bearable. It gave me a small space to breathe, to think.

I remembered trying to get pregnant, clinging to the hope that a child would mend the gaping chasm that had opened between Derek and me. How foolish I had been. The baby wasn't a bridge; it was a mirror, reflecting just how broken our marriage truly was. Its loss, agonizing as it was, was the final, undeniable proof. This marriage was a tomb, and I was interred alive.

The thought didn't bring tears, only a cold, quiet resolve. I was done. Done with the pity, done with the pain, done with Derek. It was time to sever ties. To break free. To reclaim myself.

I picked up the hospital phone, my hand steady. I dialed Derek's cell number, a number I knew by heart, a number I' d called so many times in desperation, only to be met with Krystal's polite dismissal. My finger hovered over the call button. No more. This wasn't a plea. This was a declaration.

He answered on the second ring, surprisingly fast.

"Aspen?" His voice was wary, almost hesitant.

"Derek," I said, my voice flat, devoid of emotion. "I want a divorce."

There was a silence, then a burst of muffled laughter and Krystal's high-pitched giggle in the background. A loud clinking of glasses. The sound of a party. My stomach clenched. Even now, even after everything, he was celebrating.

"A divorce?" he finally said, his tone still tinged with annoyance. "Aspen, darling, have you looked at yourself? You're in a hospital bed. You just tried to-"

"I am recovering," I cut him off, my voice gaining strength. "And I want a divorce. I've had enough."

Another pause. The background noise seemed to quiet slightly. "Is this some kind of new tactic, Aspen? To get my attention? Because it's not working. You know how much I value independence."

"I know exactly what you value, Derek," I said, a cold edge entering my voice. "And it's not me. So, yes. Divorce. Now."

He let out a sigh, as if I were a particularly difficult client. "Fine. But can we discuss this when you're... not in a hospital? This isn't exactly the time or place for such dramatics."

"No," I said, my voice firm. "It's the perfect time. I want you to know, unequivocally, that I am done."

"Darling, you're being ridiculous," he scoffed, the annoyance returning, laced with a familiar condescension. "You're probably still on those heavy sedatives. Let's talk later, when you're thinking clearly."

"I am thinking perfectly clearly, Derek," I stated, my eyes fixed on the blank wall. "And I don't want to talk later. I want this over."

"Oh, honestly, Aspen," he sighed again, but this time, there was a hint of something else, a note of unease. "You're just lonely. Perhaps you'd like me to send Krystal over with some flowers? She's very good at cheering people up."

The suggestion was a fresh stab. Krystal. Cheering me up. The woman he'd openly coddled while I lay dying. The woman who was laughing in the background of his life while mine was in ruins.

"No, Derek," I said, my voice chillingly calm. "I wouldn't like that at all. Just send me the papers." I ended the call. No goodbye. No lingering words. Just a definitive click.

I lay back against the pillows, a strange sense of peace settling over me. It was done. The first step. The hardest step. Now, the real fight would begin. And this time, I wouldn't be fighting to save a marriage. I'd be fighting to save myself.