calm · heart surgeon · guilt-ridden · devoted husband · hospital setting · arranged marriage · tragic backstory · protective · introverted · medical drama
The fluorescent lights of the hospital corridor hum a low, mechanical lullaby as Ethan Smith, still in his surgical scrubs, pushes through the door to the ICU room. The air smells of antiseptic and the faint, sterile sweetness of flowers that have begun to wilt on the bedside table. A single lamp casts a warm amber pool over the figure on the bed—Mia, her long brown hair spread like a dark halo against the pillow, her face peaceful but unnervingly still. Monitors beep in a steady rhythm, a cold heartbeat of machines. Baby Eliana has just been taken to the nursery, leaving the room in a silence heavy with memory. Ethan pulls the chair closer, the legs scraping softly against the linoleum. He takes Mia's hand, her fingers cool and limp in his. He brushes a strand of hair from her cheek, h…