When He's by Her Side

The day my father dies, my boyfriend, Heath Summers, is accompanying his true love for her prenatal checkup.

I lose hope in him and ask for a breakup, but he thinks I'm just being jealous. He says, "Naomi's already miscarried thrice—it hasn't been easy for her to conceive this child. Stop being unreasonable."

I've been with him for seven years, but it turns out I can't compare to his childhood sweetheart.

My father had suddenly suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the emergency room. I anxiously waited outside the operating room and trembled as I called my fiancé, Heath Summers.

I was hoping he would come to the hospital and stay with me. But before I could even speak, Heath interrupted me.

"Naomi, you finally decided to call me. Don't take what I said to heart. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me, will you?" On the other end of the line, Heath kept repeating Naomi Wright's name over and over.

I felt like the blood in my veins had frozen.

In the past, whenever Heath and I argued or gave each other the silent treatment, he never apologized—it was always me swallowing my pride to make amends.

I had thought his refusal to apologize was simply a matter of pride, a stubbornness he could never overcome. It turned out that he was only prideful when he was dealing with me.

I had no time to dwell on the hurt or to think about our relationship. My mind was consumed by the image of my father in the operating room.

It wasn't until 8:00 am the next day that the red light above the operating room door finally went off. I rushed forward with trembling legs as I asked, "Doctor, how's my father?"

The doctor cut me off apologetically. "I'm sorry. We did everything we could."

I immediately collapsed to the floor. Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably. I grew up in a single-parent household. My father had raised me alone, and he had poured his heart and soul into making sure I had everything I needed.

Just as I'd started working and was finally in a position to care for him, life had taken him away from me.

As I stumbled downstairs in a daze, I turned a corner and saw Heath standing there. For a moment, my aching heart felt like it had found a place of solace and a place to heal.

Just as I was about to rush over and hug him, to let myself cry in his arms, I saw a slender hand looped around his arm. He was leaning down and whispering softly into Naomi's ear.

Seeing this, I felt a surprising calm wash over me. I walked over mechanically and asked Heath, "You abandoned me so you could be with her?"

Heath's work kept him busy with constant overtime and late nights. Unless it was something urgent, I rarely dared to call him.

However, today was Monday. It was a regular workday,