I didn’t want him to see fear he couldn’t understand.
I swallowed hard and scrolled to another contact.
Kei.
He answered before the second ring fully finished.
“Hadley?”
His voice was alert immediately. Not casual. Not distracted. Present.
“I’m bleeding,” I said, and the words came out thinner than I meant them to. “Cramping. I… I think something’s wrong. I need to go to the hospital.”
A pause, not hesitation. Processing.
“Where are you right now?”
“Kitchen. Eli’s here. He doesn’t know. I....” My voice cracked. “I’m scared.”
“I’m ten minutes out,” he said instantly. “Stay where you are. Don’t walk around unless you have to. Sit down if another cramp hits. Slow breaths, okay? I’m coming.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
“I’ve got you,” he added quietly before hanging up.
I slid down the cabinets before I even realized my knees were giving out. The tile floor was cold through my leggings. My back pressed against the wood as another cramp rolled through me, not as sharp this time, but deeper, lingering.
My hand moved to my bump again, rubbing small circles over the fabric of my shirt.
“Please be okay,” I whispered. “Please be okay. Please be okay.”
I kept saying it like if I stopped, something terrible would happen.
Footsteps padded into the kitchen.
I looked up and saw Eli standing there, headphones hanging crooked around his neck, tablet forgotten on the counter behind him. His wide eyes bounced between my face and the way I was curled slightly forward.
“Hadley? What’s wrong?”
I forced my mouth into something that resembled a smile. It felt fragile. Fake. “Nothing, bud. Just… stomach hurt. Kei’s coming to take us to the doctor.”
His eyebrows pulled together.
“Is the baby dying?”
The question punched straight through my chest. My throat tightened so fast it burned. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to shake my head.
“No. No, we’re just checking. Everything’s fine.”
He studied me with that unnervingly perceptive little-kid stare.
“You’re scared,” he said softly. “I can tell.”
My composure cracked at the edges. I reached toward him. He came without hesitation, sitting beside me on the floor, pressing his shoulder into mine like he was trying to anchor me.
“I’m okay,” I murmured, though my hand never left my stomach.
He didn’t argue. He just stayed there, small fingers gripping mine tighter than usual.
