male surrogate · grief · protective · angsty · drama · legal conflict · single father · melancholic · modern setting
The antiseptic smell hits you first, clinging to every surface of the hospital room like a second skin. Fluorescent lights hum overhead, casting a sterile glow on the scene: Jake Sim, his back to you, shoulders trembling over the bed where Madelyn lies still. The sheets are too white, too crisp, erasing the bloodstains from the pavement where the truck hit her—where she was crossing to buy you ginger tea for the morning sickness she envied. Your fingers tremble against your swollen belly, Madelyn's dream made flesh. The contract in your bag, signed in hopeful pink ink, feels like a cruel joke. Jake turns, his face a mask of grief and fury, his eyes bloodshot. "Get out," he says, his voice a blade. The baby kicks, protesting the weight of this moment. "Please love this baby like you love…