Evaline:
The hospital was feeling strangely quiet as the nurse wheeled me through the hallway for my prenatal checkup.
And I wasn’t alone.
Oscar was walking right beside me, holding the clipboard the nurse had handed over. But what surprised me most was the presence behind me - silent, steady, and somehow more comforting than I was expecting.
Draven.
He hadn’t said a word since we left the room. But he was here.
He hadn’t walked away.
And as the nurse led us into a room, I glanced over my shoulder. He was watching everything - me, the nurses, the equipment - carefully, silently. And not with detachment.
He was present.
They prepped the equipment and applied the cold gel over my stomach, and soon the familiar, fast-paced thudding filled the room. My baby’s heartbeat.
I was hearing this sound for the second time - so small, yet so powerful. And this time, I wasn’t alone.
Oscar let out a breath of pure shock, accidentally squeezing my fingers as he stared at the monitor in a trance.
I turned my face toward Draven, unsure of what to expect... but he was standing still, with his hands in the pockets of his black jacket and eyes locked on the monitor with an unreadable expression. He said nothing. No gasps, no smiles. Just... silence. But his eyes. His eyes gave him away.
There was something in them. Something I couldn’t quite name.
When the doctor came in with the reports later, he explained everything - how my vitals were a little better, how the baby was developing well, and what I needed to look out for. He listed the foods I should avoid, the exercises I could do, and the schedule for the next checkup.
Oscar nodded at everything with the seriousness of a soldier in training.
But Draven didn’t miss a word either. Even in his silence, he was listening. Closely.
And that, more than anything else, made my chest warm.
Because if he didn’t care, if he really meant to sever all ties, he wouldn’t still be here. He wouldn’t be listening to a doctor talk about a child that wasn’t his.
But he was.
We returned to my ward after that and since it was closing to midnight, Draven decided to take his leave.
I watched him approach my bedside, feeling uncertain if he would just say goodbye and disappear again. But he didn’t.
He leaned in slightly. "You should rest properly tonight," he said, his voice low and rough. "Don’t let things get this bad again."
"I’ll try," I whispered, hoping it meant something that he was here, saying this.
Then, to my surprise, he reached for my hand, the one that was attached to the IV when he first arrived. His fingers wrapped around mine lightly, almost hesitantly, like he wasn’t sure if he should touch me. It lasted only a few seconds, but those seconds were enough to make something twist in my chest.
And then... he was gone, leaving me in Oscar’s care.
Since it had been hours since I last ate, Oscar got me a bowl of soup and watched as I emptied it. Then I freshened up with the nurse’s help, and got back in bed as the nurse hooked me up to another round of fluids.
Oscar was preparing to settle onto the couch, already unzipping his jacket, but something in me didn’t want him all the way over there. I was tired, yes. Emotionally frayed and physically exhausted.
But I didn’t want to be alone.
I scooted to one side of the hospital bed and gave him a pointed look.
He blinked. "Are you...?"
I nodded. "Come here."
A wide smile broke across his face, and he stood up quickly. He was careful not to disturb the IV tubes as he settled beside me. And the moment he was in bed, his arms slipped around me, pulling me against him gently but securely.
His warmth wrapped around me immediately.
We had kissed before, made out even, touched and held each other... but nothing, nothing had ever felt this intimate. This vulnerable. Just lying in his arms, hearing the rhythm of his heartbeat and feeling his steady breaths... it grounded me in a way nothing else ever did.
"I have made sure no one at the hospital will say a word about your pregnancy," he murmured against my hair. "Not to Kieran, not to River. Not to anyone else."
I blinked at him. "Thank you."
"And it’s not just that," he added, brushing his lips over my temple. "No one will know Draven and I were here either. Rowan knows, but he’s not going to say anything. You don’t have to worry about anything getting leaked, your privacy... nothing."
That simple assurance made my throat tighten.
How could he be this thoughtful about everything?
He pulled me a little closer. "You are safe now, Eva."
I swallowed past the lump in my throat.
Then he whispered, "I know you have been wondering about Draven."
My body tensed.
"I know he hasn’t said much. He’s always been the quiet one. But he loves you, just as much as I do," he said gently.
"I’m not sure if he-"
"He does," Oscar interrupted, his voice quiet but firm. "He’s just... struggling. He doesn’t know how to deal with this. With you being pregnant. With the fact that the baby isn’t his or mine. He’s nineteen, Eva. He’s never had to deal with anything like this before."
"I know," I whispered. "I don’t blame him."
"And yet, he came," he pointed out. "He stayed. He listened. That’s his way of showing he still cares."
I closed my eyes and breathed in Oscar’s scent, feeling comforted more than I wanted to admit.
"I just don’t want to be a burden to either of you."
"You are not," he said without hesitation. "You are our mate."
My heart stuttered.
"And the baby?" he added. "Whether Draven’s ready or not, I’ll make sure you and the baby are taken care of. You are not alone in this anymore. I promise."
I didn’t respond right away. Instead, I just let the silence wrap around us like a blanket.
He tightened his hold slightly and kissed the top of my head. And I closed my eyes, allowing myself to fully relax, to fully let go of all my worries in the first time in a long time.