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616words2026-01-26 09:05

My daughter collapsed from a sudden heart attack at school. Her body was still and cold when I finally reached her.
I gathered her in my arms, desperate, and frantically called my husband, Daniel Harper.
He was preoccupied at the hospital, tending to his first love, Claire. He ignored my calls.

Later, I managed to tell him our daughter was gone.
Yet he responded me with bitter mockery,
"What a pathetic lie! Do you expect me to believe that?"
...
The phone call from the teacher pierced through my day,
"Mrs. Morgan, your daughter's having a heart attack. Come to the school immediately!"

Panic seized me. I dropped everything and raced towards the school.
"Sweetie, hold on... Mommy's coming!" I whispered uselessly to the empty car.
I arrived as fast as possible. But it was too late.
All I saw was her unnaturally pale face. Her small body had already grown cold on the floor.

"Sweetie, wake up, please... don't scare Mommy..."
Tears streamed down my face as my legs gave way. I collapsed beside her, pulling her into my arms.
Then, a desperate thought pierced the fog -- Daniel could fix this. He was a great cardiac surgeon.
With my hands trembling violently, I fumbled for my phone and dialed his number. It was my last "hope" -- I refused to accept my daughter's death.
"We're sorry, the number you've dialed is unavailable. Please try again later..."
The robotic message echoed my despair.
I pressed redial. Again. And again. Nothing.
On the fifth attempt, the ringing finally stopped. Daniel answered.
"Daniel! Please, you have to come! Our daughter's dying! Please, come back now!" My voice was raw with terror.
"Sophie, have you lost your mind? Have I spoilt you this much that you think you can call me non-stop?"
The coldness in his tone froze my pleas.
"I told you, Claire is sick. She needs me now. Can't you spare an ounce of compassion?"
"We'll talk when I'm home. Stop this nonsense. I'm hanging up."
"No! Daniel, PLEASE! Come back! I'm begging you—!" My scream was cut off by the sharp click in my ear. He was gone.
The irony was a physical blow -- while our daughter lay dying, her father was with another woman
Who was his real family? Who was his wife? I knelt beside my daughter helplessly.
I called him again. Only the familiar robotic rejection answered. I choked on a bitter laugh.
It had been eight years since Daniel and I met, built a life and had our daughter.
The promises he made felt real enough to touch. But I knew the truth: he never loved me. His first and only love Claire owned his heart.
Marrying me was just a concession to his family's pressure.
I understood it all. I'd considered it my fate and accepted it silently.
For eight years, I asked nothing of him. Now, with our daughter lying lifeless before me, he was the only person I could rely on.
Yet he crushed my desperate plea with indifference.
Huddled on the floor, sobbing, I felt something vital inside me tear apart. That was the moment I accepted that I had truly lost my daughter.
Later, after the terrible formalities, I called him again. My voice was unnaturally calm despite my red-rimmed eyes,
"Our daughter is gone. It was a sudden cardiac arrest."
Daniel scoffed, "And? Do you expect me to drop everything and rush back?"
Clutching the death certificate in my free hand, I forced my next breath,
"I'm just telling you about it. Whether you come back or not... that's your choice."
"Sophie!" his voice turned hard, "Don't you dare joke about our daughter's life!"