Ryan asked instinctively, “Then what do you like?”
Before Sarah could answer, a group of kids lit sparklers.
One slipped from a child’s hand, sending sparks raining into the crowd.
Chaos erupted. Sarah and I were knocked to the ground, my head slamming against the pavement as the world spun.
Flames licked my body as sparks set my clothes on fire. The searing pain tore through me.
Then, a sharp kick to my stomach. Warm blood gushed down my thighs, agony ripping me apart.
Barely conscious, I cried out with the last of my strength:
“Ryan… save me… save our baby…”
Ryan hesitated, then turned and lifted Sarah into his arms instead, his choice stabbing me through the heart.
“Honey, I have to save Sarah first. You wait for me…”
It felt like a hammer to my chest. I laughed bitterly. Why even ask the question when I already knew the answer?
At that moment, Sarah whispered her answer to his earlier question.
“Ryan, what I’ve always liked… is you.”
The next thing I heard was the urgent voice of a doctor.
“Quick! The patient’s hemorrhaging—we need surgery now!”
“Call her husband!”
A nurse shouted, “Can’t reach him!”
I whispered weakly, “I’ll sign myself.”
Ryan, we’re truly over.