I have a premature rupture of the membrane when I'm 38 weeks pregnant. I have no choice but to undergo an emergency C-section.

To my surprise and dismay, the anesthesiologist is my ex-boyfriend, with whom I broke up eight months ago.

God, save me! Could I please have another anesthesiologist? It's my ex-boyfriend's child I'm giving birth to, and I suddenly don't want to bring the child into the world anymore!

I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance for a C-section. My mother, Rose Tate, and my sister, Sasha Gray, went with me.

Fortunately, Sasha was an accomplished doctor. I'd been in the middle of administering an IV drip for one of the patients at our family's clinic when I suddenly felt something warm trickle down my legs. Then, Sasha pinned me to one of the patient beds and used a pillow to elevate the lower part of my body.

My pants were already drenched by then. As for my husband… I didn't have one. I was a single mother who'd gotten pregnant out of wedlock.

Unexpectedly, the anesthesiologist during my C-section was my ex-boyfriend with whom I'd called things off eight months ago and the father of my child. If I'd known this would happen, I would've negotiated with my baby and asked him not to be in such a hurry to leave the womb. He was only 38 weeks along, after all.

I had an ultrasound done upon arriving at the hospital. My baby wasn't yet in the right position to be born, but there wasn't enough amniotic fluid anymore. The fetal monitor showed signs of fetal distress and a high risk of asphyxiation.

The doctor immediately concluded that I needed a C-section. In the operating theater, Ian Sadler administered the epidural and stood aside. He monitored the medical equipment while glancing at me. After a while, he forced through gritted teeth, "You have no idea how much I want to increase your dosage, Sadie Gray."

"Don't do it. It's illegal," I said weakly.

He sneered. His voice was icy as he said, "If my memory serves me right, it's only been eight months since our breakup."

I'd already been close to a month pregnant when I unilaterally ended our relationship. I couldn't bear to get rid of the baby, though, especially since it was one Ian and I shared.

"Uh-huh."

Ian could misunderstand me all he wanted. I had no idea how to explain the situation to him, anyway. I wouldn't know what to say if he were to ask me why I'd kept the child, either.

While other people had surgery, the anesthesiologist would chat with them, but Ian seemed wholly against talking to me. We didn't interact throughout the rest of the C-section. Even the rest of the medical personnel could tell something was wrong between us.

Dating Ian was a happy accident. When in my junior year of college, an online game had suddenly skyrocketed in popularity. Like everyone else, I'd followed a high-level player, SaltFist, around, asking him to show me the ropes. Surprisingly, he'd agreed.

He helped me complete my daily missions, level up, and even annihilate enemies from other guilds who were out for my blood.

One day, SaltFist messaged me and said, "Maybe we should meet. I'm in Jilton City, too."

I'd paced my dormitory for half an hour, unable to make up my mind. Ultimately, my dormmates had snatched my phone and replied, "Sure!"

One dormmate, Monica Court, said, "SaltFist has an amazing voice, Sadie. I bet he looks good, too!"

Another dormmate, Pansy Snow, said, "I think so, too! If you're scared something will go wrong, we can sneakily follow you."

Just like that, I was half-forced into meeting SaltFist at a cafe near college. When Monica, Pansy, and I arrived at the cafe and saw Ian there, we were stunned. He sat at a table by the window while sipping his coffee and enjoying the view.

Ian was a graduate student in the department of anesthesiology in the medical faculty and a prodigy. He was renowned on campus for being unattainable. Rumor had it that he'd never dated anyone throughout his seven years in college.

Ian Sadler, who had never been involved with other women, was my in-game partner!

Pansy pushed me from behind, giving me a thumbs-up for encouragement. I staggered forward, appearing before Ian. "Uh… Are you SaltFist, Ian?"

"Yeah. Are you Souffle?"

"I am."

The legendary Ian Sadler, the unattainable campus beau, was seated across from me and sipping his coffee. We chatted about the game and our studies. I sat there like a child, my back straight and feet together. I didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

We chatted happily for a while. When I got up to leave, Ian suddenly called my name.

"Sadie," Ian said.

I stopped and looked at him.

He continued, "I think our relationship can go beyond the game."

"Huh?" For a moment, I didn't understand what he meant.

When I later left the cafe, my hand was in Ian's. I saw that the tips of his ears were a little red. Meanwhile, my face was as red as a tomato.

As we walked past Monica and Pansy, they stared in disbelief, not taking their eyes off us until we were gone.

Just like that, I, Sadie Gray of the nursing department, became a legend on campus. Everyone kept guessing at how Ian and I had gotten together.

I had to admit that no one could resist a man like Ian—myself included. I'd sneakily gone to the anesthesiology department a few times in the past to see what Ian looked like.

…

At the beginning of my senior year, Ian and my in-game guild were preparing for an offline meeting. He'd been busy with his graduation dissertation then.

"Let's go, Ian!" I'd clung to him and pleaded with him to attend. Unable to say no to me, he'd rubbed my cheeks before caving.

The other guild members congratulated us upon learning that we'd started dating in real life. They also wished us well. I was happy, and as expected, I got drunk that night.

It was already past midnight. Ian dragged me to a nearby hotel so we could rest for the night.

Once someone was drunk, it was hard to tell what they would do. All I remembered doing that night was shoving Ian onto the bed and tugging on his clothes. I'd also nibbled on his ear and collarbone.

Initially, he'd only laughed at my antics. Suddenly, he was the one pinning me to the bed.

When we woke up the following day, he'd given me an aggrieved look while pointing at his collarbone. There were two neat bite marks on them, courtesy of me.

"Well… I'll let you bite me back…" I mumbled in embarrassment while pulling the covers over my head.

Once these things were started, they couldn't be stopped. And so, we went at it again.

Later, Ian suggested I move to his apartment and live with him. I happily packed my things and moved in with him.

…

One day near graduation, Ian's advisor brought him to another city for an academic conference. I remained at home alone to stress over my graduation dissertation.

A woman named Connie Durban rang the doorbell and said, "I'm Ian's mother."

She didn't beat around the bush—she told me all about the Sadler family's background. It turned out the Sadlers had been in the medical field for over three decades and had upscale private hospitals all over the country.

I thought she was going to tell me to leave Ian because of the disparity in our social status, but she gave me an envelope instead.

"You're Tom Gray's daughter, right?" she asked.

"Yes." Tom was my father.

Connie chuckled. "Have fun reading those things, then. I'm leaving."

She put down her glass of water and elegantly left.

I opened the envelope in confusion, not understanding what my father had to do with the Sadler family. After reading the documents in the envelope, my blood ran cold.

In my memories, about 20 years ago, Mom and Dad had always been busy with work. At the time, our family had lived in a large house with a beautiful garden and a swing.

There was also an endless supply of snacks, various dolls, and princess dresses.

This all changed one day when Dad told Sasha and me that we were moving.

My family moved to a smaller two-room apartment in the suburbs. Mom and Dad were no longer busy all the time. Instead, they opened a small clinic.

It was only after growing up that I realized the change had come because Dad's business had failed, and we couldn't afford to live there anymore.

The envelope's contents pointed to one thing—Ian's father, James Sadler, had caused all this. I couldn't imagine how Mom and Dad would react if I were to bring Ian home one day and introduce him as James' son.

I knew nothing about trickery in the business world, but years of reading romance novels taught me that the Sadlers were my parents' sworn enemies.

My head spun when I got up from the couch, probably because I'd been seated for too long. My abdomen hurt a little, too. I checked the date and realized my period was coming soon.

Ian was away from home; I didn't know when he would return.

I packed my things and hired a moving company to send them and me home. Once I arrived home, I lazed around while waiting for graduation day to come. I also took the opportunity to cure my heartbreak.

I texted Ian on WhatsApp. "Let's break up, Ian. Don't come to me or my dormmates. I just don't want to continue anymore—think of me as a jerk. I don't want to see you anymore. I wish you well."

Then, I blocked him everywhere without waiting for a reply. After that, I texted everyone in my dormitory's group chat and told them Ian and I had broken up.

My graduation dissertation went smoothly, but I didn't eat and sleep well in the two weeks leading up to it. So, I lost a lot of weight.

Mom thought I was stressed because of my dissertation and kept encouraging me. She also cooked various delicious dishes for me. I was the only one who knew my period was over a week late.

This made me anxious. I ran to a pharmacy several miles away from home to buy a pregnancy test. To be safe, I bought one test from each brand.

As I sat on the toilet bowl and stared at the pregnancy tests before me, all showing positive results, I was stunned.

Why had something as stereotypical as getting pregnant after a breakup happened to me?

Still, I decided to take the honest route. That night, I told my parents about the pregnancy. Before doing so, I asked Sasha and her family to join us at home.

When they entered the house, my three-year-old niece, Natalie Johnson, ran to me and rubbed my belly. She said happily, "There's a little boy in here, Aunt Sadie!"

I was taken aback, as were my parents and Sasha. Children had the sharpest instincts.

Sasha was the first to snap to her senses. She asked, "Did Nat just say you're pregnant, Sadie?"

Everyone's eyes landed on the pregnancy tests that I laid before them. No one said anything.

Dad was the first to break the silence. His lips trembled with rage as he snapped, "Where's the little bastard? Does he know about this? Are you two going to marry?"

"We broke up on the day I came home," I answered.

He was so angry that he had to pinch himself to keep from fainting. Fortunately, I was allowed to keep the child after pleading desperately.

Because of the accidental pregnancy, I didn't sign up for an internship with any hospitals. Instead, I followed in Sasha's footsteps and started working at our family clinic.

After 20 years, we'd gone from living in the suburbs to being closer to the city center. The clinic had also gone from being less than 500 square feet to having two stories. We had almost ten doctors on the roster; we were more like a small private hospital than a clinic.

We had a family of doctors, so I was well cared for throughout my pregnancy.

Still, accidents would always happen. For instance, the premature rupture of the membrane led to me going into labor earlier than expected.