Chapter_144
his eyes hardening when he saw her standing at the door, still lingering in the hallway. Olivia felt a strange mixture of guilt and confusion as Tyler’s gaze swept over her.
“Olivia,” he said quietly, his voice unrecognizable. It wasn’t the protective tone she had once known. There was something colder, more distant in his words now.
She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. Her throat tightened, and for a brief moment, all she could do was stare at him.
Julia, sensing the tension, continued, “She agreed to the IVF, Tyler. We’ve made the decision. Now, we just need to move forward.”
Tyler’s face was unreadable, but there was a flicker of something—frustration, maybe, or exhaustion. He looked away, his jaw tightening. “It’s not as simple as that, Julia.”
Olivia stood frozen, trying to piece together everything. She had no idea what was going on anymore. Her sister was hanging on by a thread, and now they were talking about IVF? What was the rush? Was it for Naomi’s survival, or was it something deeper, something more complicated?
“I’ll do whatever it takes,” Tyler had told Naomi. But those words were starting to sound hollow. What was Tyler really willing to sacrifice for Naomi’s sake? And why did it feel like Olivia was standing in the middle of something she wasn’t meant to understand?
The quiet tension in the air thickened. Olivia finally stepped forward, her voice soft but firm. “What does this mean, exactly?” she asked, her eyes darting between Tyler and Julia.
Tyler didn’t respond immediately. He just looked at her, and in that moment, she felt the weight of his gaze, as if he was seeing her for the first time.
Julia was the one who answered. “We need your consent. It’s the only way Naomi will survive. Time is critical. It’s either this or nothing. Do you understand?”
Olivia’s heart pounded in her chest. Consent? She glanced at Tyler, but his eyes betrayed nothing—nothing at all.
“Is that what Naomi really wants?” she asked, her voice breaking. “To tie our fates together like that?” She had no right to ask, but she couldn’t hold it in anymore. The idea of a child, of tying herself and Naomi to Tyler in this way—it felt like a chain she didn’t know how to escape from.
Julia’s eyes narrowed. “Naomi doesn’t have a choice, Olivia. You’re the only one who can give it to her.”
Olivia turned away, her breath shallow. She felt as if she was being pulled into something dark, something she wasn’t prepared for. She looked down at her hands, her mind racing. She hadn’t asked for any of this. None of it.
The room seemed to close in around her as her thoughts swirled in every direction. She could feel the weight of her family’s expectations crushing her, the heavy pull of a decision she wasn’t sure she was ready to make.
Tyler had left the room earlier with a look that haunted her, and now, all of this felt like it was spiraling out of control. How had things come to this?
“Olivia,” Tyler’s voice cut through her thoughts. She turned to face him, and for the first time, his gaze seemed softer, almost… apologetic. “I know this is difficult. But Naomi needs us. She’s fighting for her life, and this is the only way. Can you understand that?”
Olivia’s lips parted, but she couldn’t find the words. She was trapped in a web of emotions, none of which made sense.
Julia spoke again, her voice sharp, but this time, there was an edge of desperation in it. “You have to do this, Olivia. Don’t you see? If you don’t, we could lose Naomi. If you really care about her, you’ll do this.”
Olivia’s heart ached as she looked at her sister, lying so fragile in that bed. She could barely imagine life without Naomi, but the thought of giving Tyler and their family what they were asking… It felt like an impossible decision.
Everything felt impossible.
“I’ll… think about it,” she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper.
Tyler’s eyes softened, but there was a shadow of something in his expression that she couldn’t quite place. He didn’t respond, just turned and walked away.
And there she was, standing in the hallway once again, her future uncertain, her heart torn between love and guilt.