Chapter 2

"I don't need you to give me anything. You are the best gift heaven has bestowed upon me, Aria. I truly can't bear to see you bleeding. It drives me crazy."

Such sweet words, such exquisite acting.

Caelan glanced at the glass shards, suddenly recalling something.

"Aria, when did you come up here? Were you... in the bathroom this whole time?"

Seeing his probing expression, I felt a twinge of sarcasm inside.

"Yeah."

Caelan immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"Aria, the coach just told me that our team won another award overseas. Even though we've both retired, he still wants to invite us to the celebration dinner. It's at the restaurant downstairs. I've already agreed."

With that, he scooped me up in his arms and headed straight for the restaurant.

Caelan isn't one for lively gatherings. Even for work-related socials, he'd avoid them if he could.

I gazed at his chiseled profile, noticing the joy radiating from the corners of his eyes, as if he was anticipating something.

As Caelan carried me into the private room, our coach and former teammates couldn't help but tease:

"Everyone outside says our President Shaw is as cold as ice, but it turns out when he's with his darling, that iceberg melts into a puddle."

"I say Caelan, do you really need to pamper her that much? Aria's got her own legs, you know."

Caelan smirked:

"The elevator's broken, and there are too many stairs. I'm worried Aria's feet might hurt. She can't strain herself."

Someone chuckled:

"I thought Melody and her husband were sickeningly sweet, but you're even worse. Lucky they're not here today, or I'd be stuffed just from all the PDA."

As soon as those words were spoken, I saw Caelan's smile instantly fade, his eyes betraying an undisguisable disappointment.

The arms holding me suddenly lost their strength, and I tumbled to the ground, instinctively protecting my belly.

My head hit the floor with a thud.

Caelan looked up, his eyes cold as he stared at the person who had spoken:

"Why isn't Melody coming?"

I suddenly understood the anticipation I had seen in Caelan's eyes earlier.

Melody had won an award at an international competition and was returning home today.

It wasn't until everyone looked at him with surprise that Caelan realized how out of character he had just acted.

He quickly helped me up, his usually calm expression now anxious and guilty:

"Aria, are you okay? I'm sorry, I just..."

I interrupted him, providing an excuse on his behalf, smiling as I said:

"I've put on quite a bit of weight recently, haven't I?"

Caelan paused for a moment, then affectionately patted my head:

"Nonsense, you've gotten so thin! You'd be even cuter with a bit more weight. I'm just too weak. I'll make sure to work out properly when I get back. Can't have my precious darling falling again."

Everyone saw that I was fine, so they didn't dwell on this little incident.

It turns out Melody had just gotten off the plane when she suddenly started vomiting uncontrollably. At the hospital, they discovered she was already over two months pregnant.

Orion, worried about his darling's discomfort, insisted she go home and rest instead of coming.

The coach reminisced:

"When you all first joined the team, you were just kids. Now you're about to become moms and dads."

Throughout the entire celebration, Caelan didn't say a word. Despite never being good with alcohol, he forced himself to down two bottles of vodka.

When the coach helped me get him home, Caelan was completely passed out drunk.

I helped him to bed, and just as I was about to undo his tie, I heard him say:

"Melody, why didn't you come? It's been one month, seven days, and fourteen hours since I last saw you. I miss you so much..."

In the morning, when I reminded him that today was our third wedding anniversary, Caelan looked at me strangely and blurted out:

"Didn't that already pass?"

It wasn't until I held up our marriage certificate for him to see that he sheepishly explained:

"I'm sorry, Aria. There's been so much going on at work, I forgot in all the hustle and bustle."