The rookie firefighter, Mark, stared down at the simple platinum band lying in the center of his palm. It was warm from my finger, heavy with seven years of broken promises.

When I opened my eyes, the harsh white light of the Intensive Care Unit burned my vision. Monitored heartbeats beeped rhythmically in the background: Beep... beep... beep.

"Lucy? Can you hear me?"

A familiar, gentle hand squeezed mine. I turned my head to see my older sister, Sarah, sitting in a plastic chair beside my bed. Her eyes were red-rimmed and swollen from crying.

My hands immediately flew to my stomach.

"The baby..." my voice was barely a raspy whisper. "Sarah... my baby..."

"Shh, take it easy," Sarah soothed, leaning over to brush my hair back. "She’s okay, Lucy. The doctors stabilized her heartbeat. You had severe dehydration and early uterine contractions from oxygen deprivation, but the baby is holding on. She’s a fighter, just like her mom."

Tears finally spilled over my eyelashes, burning my cheeks. I let out a jagged breath, clutching my abdomen tightly. My baby girl was alive.

Suddenly, the wooden door of the ICU room swung open.

Alex burst inside. He was still wearing his duty pants and a soot-covered t-shirt. His eyes were wild, bloodshot, and filled with an agonizing mix of terror and guilt.

"Lucy!" Alex gasped, rushing toward the side of the bed. "Thank God... oh, thank God you're both okay..."

Before he could reach me, Sarah stood up.

Without a word, she stepped into his path and slammed her open palm across his face.

SLAP!

The sharp crack echoed off the sterile walls. Alex’s head snapped to the side, but he didn't argue. He just stood there, taking the blow, his eyes fixed on me.

"Get out," Sarah hissed through clenched teeth. "Get out of her room before I call hospital security to drag you out."

"Sarah, please," Alex begged, his voice trembling. "Let me talk to my wife. You don't understand what happened—"

"I understand completely!" Sarah snapped, her voice rising in fury. "You left your six-month pregnant wife in a suffocating elevator for seven hours while you carried out your little ex-girlfriend! You chose Valerie over your own child, Alex!"

"I DIDN'T KNOW SHE WAS IN THERE!" Alex roared back, tears finally streaming down his face. "The dispatch said a group of five citizens were trapped! Valerie was at the front door, screaming, hyperventilating! I saw a woman in distress and acted on instinct! If I had known Lucy was in that corner—"

"That’s your excuse?!" I cut in, my raspy voice slicing through his shout.

The room fell dead silent.

Alex looked at me, his chest heaving, his eyes desperate. "Lucy... please."

I pulled myself up slightly against the pillows, ignoring the sharp tug of the IV needle in my vein.

"You didn't know I was in there, Alex," I said, my voice dead, emotionless, cold as ice. "Because you were too busy taking Valerie’s calls all afternoon. I sent you three texts today asking you to pick up my prenatal vitamins. You ignored every single one of them because Valerie needed you to look at her kitchen cabinets."

Alex’s mouth opened, but no sound came out.

"And when you stepped into that elevator," I continued, staring directly into his eyes, "you didn't even look around. You didn't scan the room like a trained firefighter is supposed to do. You ran straight to her. You held her. You called her by her name before you even checked if anyone else was dying."

"Lucy... I'm so sorry..." Alex dropped to his knees beside my bed, grabbing the edge of the mattress. "Please... give me a chance to fix this. I love you. I love our daughter. I’ll quit the department. I’ll block Valerie. I’ll do whatever you want!"

I looked down at his trembling shoulders. Two days ago, this sight would have broken my heart. Today, I felt nothing. The woman who loved Alex Davis had died in that elevator at 7:00 p.m. when his boots walked past her.

"There’s nothing to fix, Alex," I said softly.

I reached over to the bedside table, picked up a pen from Sarah’s purse, and grabbed a piece of paper the doctor had left for my intake forms.

On the back of the paper, I wrote five words:

I WANT A DIVORCE IMMEDIATELY.