My Best Friend Took My Leg, My Baby, and My Love Chapter 02

My Best Friend Took My Leg, My Baby, and My Love Chapter 02

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at Riverstone Medical Center.

The first thing I saw was Ethan Sterling’s exhausted face sitting beside my bed.

But this time, he didn’t ask if I was feeling better like he always did.

He didn’t check whether I was in pain.

Instead, he frowned impatiently, his voice low and hoarse.

“Natalie Bennett, enough.”

“You know what happened when you tried to kill yourself? Sophie passed out from fear. She’s still getting an IV in the room next door.”

“Is your life really worth more than hers? It’s been a month already. How long are you going to keep doing this?”

I opened my mouth, but before I could say anything…

The door was suddenly pushed open.

Sophie stormed in and pointed angrily at him.

“Ethan Sterling, who gave you the right to talk to Nattie like that?”

“Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

The cold expression on Ethan’s face disappeared instantly.

He lowered his eyes obediently.

His entire demeanor softened.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Do you need to rest more? I can take care of her.”

Sophie’s anger flared.

“You?”

“What can you even do?”

She walked over to me.

The moment she saw my pale face, her eyes immediately turned red.

“You idiot…”

“Why would you do something like this?”

“Didn’t I tell you that you still have me?”

“We’re best friends. We’ve always had each other.”

I forced a mocking smile.

Sophie didn’t notice anything strange about my reaction.

She continued softly.

“Nattie, you’ve been through so much. Maybe you’ve just been through too much lately.”

“I bought you a cross necklace.”

“The seller said it could protect you from anything bad…”

“Get out.”

I interrupted her before she could finish.

The moment she mentioned the cross necklace, everything they had done flashed through my mind.

Every lie.

Every betrayal.

Every disgusting thing they had hidden from me.

My rationality disappeared under the weight of my anger.

I shoved her away.

I grabbed whatever I could reach and threw it at them.

“Get out!”

“Both of you, get out!”

“I never want to see either of you again!”

Sophie stumbled backward from the force of my shove.

She still wanted to come closer and comfort me.

But one of the things I threw hit her.

She covered her face and trembled in pain.

That was when Ethan finally snapped.

He grabbed my wrist and pushed me aside.

My balance disappeared.

My lower back hit the corner of the table hard.

Pain exploded through my body.

My vision went black for a moment.

Before I could even steady myself, Ethan had already pulled Sophie into his arms.

His voice was filled with bone-chilling anger.

“Natalie Bennett, you’re completely out of control.”

“Soph doesn’t owe you anything.”

“She isn’t your dog. She isn’t someone you can hit or insult whenever you want.”

“What gives you the right to hurt her?”

The words came out of his mouth so naturally.

Like he’d rehearsed them hundreds of times in his head.

Each sentence cut deeper than the last.

This scene felt painfully familiar.

When Ethan and I had first gotten together, I was afraid Sophie would feel alone.

So I made her favorite desserts every day.

Once, I accidentally burned my hand while baking for her.

Ethan had actually gotten angry for the first time.

“Sophie Carter again?”

“You’re not her servant. Why do you keep running around after her every single day?”

When he saw my expression darken, he pulled me into his arms and acted like a spoiled child.

“Babe, I just don’t want you getting hurt because of her.”

“I’d feel terrible.”

“And besides… you spend so much time caring about her that I get jealous.”

But now…

The person he loved wasn’t me.

It was her.

I looked like I was barely holding on.

My face was pale.

My body was shaking.

So Sophie quickly pulled herself out of Ethan’s arms and looked at me with concern.

“Nattie, don’t listen to him.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re just upset right now. I know that.”

But Ethan kept holding her tightly.

He didn’t let her come near me.

After a moment of silence, his voice softened.

“Natalie, please.”

“Soph had a fever yesterday, and today she fainted because of you.”

“Just let her rest, okay?”

Then he grabbed Sophie’s hand and led her out of the room.

The moment they were gone, I bent forward and started dry heaving.

The pain in my chest mixed with the pain in my body.

I felt like I was being torn apart.

After they left, I picked up my phone and opened the security footage from home.

I had installed the cameras years ago.

Back then, Ethan traveled often, and I was scared being alone at home.

The footage loaded quickly.

Within seconds, Ethan and Sophie appeared on the screen.

The picture was crystal clear.

So was the sound.

Ethan pulled Sophie into his arms without hesitation.

Sophie pretended to resist.

She twisted away, pretending to push him back.

But she never really moved away.

Ethan lowered his head toward her.

His hand gripped her waist tightly.

His voice was rough.

“Soph, don’t hide from me.”

“I’ve been holding back for a month.”

Sophie buried her face against his shoulder.

“But Nattie is still at Riverstone Medical Center…”

“How can we do this right now?”

Ethan didn’t answer.

He only held her tighter.

Soon, Sophie stopped pretending to resist.

Her face flushed as she clung to him.

Their voices filled the room.

Every sound cut straight through me.

My tears fell uncontrollably.

I stared at the screen.

Watching the two people I trusted most destroy everything I believed in.