When Quinn lifted her head, her eyes were filled with disappointment. "I'm not threatening you, Harry. I'm informing you."

Harry turned away indifferently and coldly said, "Do what you want."

Quinn and I stared at the two men before us in disbelief. They weren't like this when we fell in love and got married.

Though stern and rarely smiling, my husband, Chuck, was always considerate. In private, he would even clumsily try to braid my hair.

Meanwhile, Quinn's husband, Harry, was a gentle and patient man. He was always willing to yield to her strong-willed nature.

When we got married, people praised us for finding the perfect partners.

But why had they changed so much in just one short year? Or had they been like this all along, and we just didn't see it?

I couldn't wrap my head around it.

As the pain from the bomb became unbearable, I screamed and clutched Quinn's hand. We huddled together like two helpless, wounded creatures, trying to comfort each other.

In the last moment before I blacked out, I saw Chuck carefully holding Melinda, carrying her out the door while murmuring comforting words to her.

A thought flickered in my mind as consciousness slipped away. It seemed like everything started to fall apart the moment Melinda returned from abroad.

…

I could vaguely hear Melinda's voice over the phone, sweet yet tinged with a hint of triumph. "Chuck, is Scarlett throwing a tantrum again? It's all my fault. It's because I was so scared that I had you to myself.

"Scarlett must be upset because of that. She didn't really mean it when she asked for a divorce. Go and comfort her. My foot is fine now."

Chuck's voice softened slightly. "Don’t say such childish words. A sprained ankle needs proper care, or it'll leave lasting problems. Don't worry about Scarlett. She's just acting out."

After he finished speaking, he casually hung up the phone.

I stared blankly at the phone, listening to the beeping sound. After holding myself together for so long, I could no longer stop my chest from tightening. Tears began to roll down my cheeks.

Just as my call ended, Quinn's phone rang.

Harry's impatient voice came through. "Quinn, when are you and Scarlett going to stop with this farce? This whole situation started because of Chuck's and my work.

"Since Melinda got caught up in it, why is it a problem if we take better care of her? You're two grown women throwing a fit over a young lady. How childish can you be?"

Quinn closed her eyes in frustration, trying to remain calm, but she couldn't help reminding him, "Harry, are you and Chuck even human? Melinda only twisted her ankle, but Scarlett and I ended up in the ICU because of the explosion.

"It's bad enough you two are fawning over Melinda. How dare you blame us now? Have you ever considered that we just got married?"

Harry scoffed. "You two are alive, aren't you? Listening to you, one would think you were dead. When we got married, Chuck and I warned you that our jobs were dangerous. Being with us meant taking on risks.

"Do you remember what you said back then? You said you weren't afraid, that you'd support our work. Now, what's changed? Is it just because of Melinda? Why are you two acting crazy otherwise?

"And pregnancy? I didn't even know you were pregnant! Quinn, if I remember correctly, you took the pill every time we did it. You said you were afraid having kids would affect your career."

Quinn was trembling with anger. Worried about her injury, I glanced at her with concern.

I had never seen Quinn cry before. However, her eyes were now red, though she tried hard to keep her voice steady. "Harry, I didn't take the pill last time. I'm pregnant."

Harry gave an ambiguous laugh. "Sure, if you say you're pregnant, you're pregnant. Whatever you say, Don't bother me before Melinda's mood gets better."

Harry was about to hang up when Quinn stopped him in a hoarse but firm voice. "Wait. Before the bomb exploded, I told you we're getting divorced."

"And I said,"—Harry's tone turned cold—"do what you want."

Both Quinn and I were pregnant, but not only did Chuck and Harry not believe us, they didn't even care if we were injured during the explosion. The fact that we lost our ability to have children meant nothing to them.

Quinn turned to me and insisted, "Scarlett, no more tears. We're getting divorced."

I wiped my tears and nodded resolutely.

…

On the day we were transferred to the general ward, we had our lawyer deliver the divorce papers to Chuck and Harry.

However, both of them were furious upon seeing the documents. They kicked the door open and stormed into the ward.

"Are you two out of your minds? Do you want a divorce?"

Quinn remained calm. "That's right. That way, you'll have room for Melinda."

Harry's eyes flashed with barely restrained anger. He pulled out a lighter from his pocket and was about to light a cigarette when the doctor walked in, frowning.

"What are you doing? No smoking in the ward."

After saying that, the doctor handed two documents to Quinn and me. It was a notice regarding the handling of our unborn children.

"The aftermath of the explosion was too severe," the doctor explained. "We've preserved the remains of your fetuses as much as possible. You can choose to let the hospital take care of them, or you can take them home."

I forced myself to sit up and calmly replied, "We'll take them home. Thank you, doctor."

The sound of a lighter dropping to the floor echoed from the doorway. I looked up to see Chuck and Harry's faces filled with disbelief.

Chuck's voice wavered when he asked, "Doctor, what did you just say?"

The doctor turned, looking confused at the expressions on both Chuck and Harry. "And who are you two?"

Harry's gaze flickered between Quinn's and my pale faces. He instinctively answered, "We're their husbands."

Hearing Harry's response, the doctor wore a disdainful and disapproving expression. "Both patients have been hospitalized for a week. Why haven't you shown up until now?"

Just then, Melinda peeked out from behind Harry, timidly looking at Quinn and me. "Scarlett, Quinn, it's all my fault. The explosion a few days ago left me with severe emotional trauma. Harry and Chuck were just taking care of me. That's why they couldn't come to see you."

Her voice, so delicate yet laced with subtle provocation, made me clench my eyes shut in frustration. Despite my efforts to hold back, I couldn't contain myself any longer.

"Chuck, can you take your sweetheart and get out of this room?"

Chuck, still trying to process the news he'd just heard, instinctively defended Melinda. "She didn't say anything wrong. She's just trying to comfort you.

He added, "Scarlett, do you really have to act like this? I never realized you were this kind of woman."

His words ignited a storm of bitterness and anger in my heart. I thought of the child I had just lost and all the times Chuck had defended Melinda.

I now looked at him with a mixture of resentment. "Does it even matter to you what kind of person I am? We're getting divorced anyway."

Chuck seemed to finally notice the hatred and resolve in my eyes. He only stood there, stunned.

This was the first time I had openly shown my emotions. In the past, I always looked at Chuck with eyes filled with admiration and warmth. It was as if nothing he did could ever anger me.

Chuck opened his mouth slightly and asked, "Scarlett, are you mad? Is it because you and Quinn miscarried?"

His voice was hoarse, perhaps because the mention of two lives that had never fully formed had finally made him feel guilty toward me.

"It was a pressing decision for Harry and I. You and Quinn are already married to us, but Mel isn't married. If something happened to her, how would she get married in the future?

"Can you be more understanding? When you said you wanted to marry me, I warned you about the risks of my job. You said you weren't afraid of any danger."

I bit down hard on my tongue, and the metallic taste of blood slowly spread in my mouth.

Ignoring the doctor's attempts to stop me, I threw off the blanket. Without warning, I ripped open the huge bandage on my stomach, exposing the ugly, crooked stitches that resembled worms crawling across my skin.

A tear fell as I asked, "Chuck, do you even have a heart? Quinn and I barely survived that explosion. We lost our children, and we lost our ability to have children.

"What right do you have to ask us to be understanding? We're talking about four lives here. But to you and Harry, are they worth less than a scratch on Melinda's finger?"

Chuck was speechless. However, his guilt made him more irritable and impatient. "What do you want, then?" he spat. "You and Quinn have miscarried anyway."

Quinn sat silently in the bed beside mine, but I knew she was a woman of even greater resolve than I was. My words, sharp and fierce, were merely a façade. Inside, I was in unbearable pain.

Harry understood Quinn. He remained quiet, simply watching the unfolding situation.

I didn't know what was going through his mind, but the air in the hospital room felt like it had thickened, making it hard for everyone to breathe.

Quinn and I faced Harry and Chuck. We were sitting, while they stood.

In that moment, it became clear to all of us that the issues between us weren't just about the times they had abandoned us for Melinda or the small compromises we had made. It was about two innocent lives lost.

I noticed Chuck and Harry's expressions wavering. They were about to apologize when Melinda bit her lip and quickly interrupted them.

"Chuck, Harry, don't be sad." She offered cheerfully, "Even though you can't have babies anymore, I can do it!"