The morning after
1601 Words
(Sloane)
I didn't sleep.
I spent the entire night sitting on my couch, staring at the wall, replaying the scene in Vaughn's office over and over in my head. Every grunt, every giggle, every word he'd said about me to that blonde nurse.
*She's too busy with her precious hearts to even notice I'm gone.*
The betrayal hurt less than I expected. What hurt more was the humiliation. The fact that I'd been so blind, so trusting, so stupid.
By the time the sun came up, I'd already called my lawyer. Rebecca answered on the third ring, her voice groggy.
"Sloane? It's six in the morning."
"I need a divorce," I said. "Today."
There was a pause. "What happened?"
"I caught Vaughn cheating. In his office. With a nurse."
Rebecca was quiet for a moment, then I heard rustling on the other end. "I'll draft the papers this morning. Can you come to my office at noon?"
"I'll be there."
I hung up and stared at my phone. Part of me wanted to call Vaughn, to scream at him, to tell him exactly what I thought of him. But I didn't. He wasn't worth the energy.
Instead, I got up, showered, and got ready for work. I had a surgery scheduled at eight, and I wasn't going to let Vaughn ruin my career along with my marriage.
When I walked into Seattle Grace Memorial at seven thirty, the hallways were already busy. Nurses rushed past me, residents huddled over charts, and the smell of antiseptic filled the air. This was my world. Not Vaughn. Not our marriage. This.
I made my way to the locker room and changed into my scrubs. As I tied my hair back, the door opened and Dr. Mara Sullivan walked in. She was one of the ER doctors, and we'd worked together on a few cases.
"Morning, Sloane," she said, then paused. "You okay? You look tired."
"I'm fine," I said, forcing a smile. "Just a long night."
She gave me a look that said she didn't believe me, but she didn't push. "Well, good luck with your surgery today. I heard it's a tough one."
"Thanks."
I grabbed my white coat and headed to the surgical floor. My patient was a fifty two year old man with a damaged mitral valve. It was a standard procedure, but it required precision and focus. Exactly what I needed to keep my mind off Vaughn.
I scrubbed in, put on my gloves, and entered the operating room. The team was already prepped, the patient under anesthesia. I took my position at the table and got to work.
For the next three hours, nothing else existed. Not Vaughn, not the divorce, not the humiliation. Just me, the patient, and the rhythm of the heart monitor.
By the time I closed him up, I felt better. Calmer. More in control.
I stripped off my gloves and headed to the scrub room to wash up. As I dried my hands, the door opened and Kieran walked in.
He was still in his scrubs, his hair damp like he'd just finished a surgery too. He looked at me, his green eyes searching my face.
"How are you holding up?" he asked.
"I'm fine," I said automatically.
"Sloane."
I sighed and turned to face him. "I'm fine, Kieran. Really. I have a meeting with my lawyer at noon to file for divorce. I'm moving on."
He studied me for a moment, then nodded. "Good. You deserve better than him."
"So you said last night."
"I meant it."
There was something in the way he looked at me that made my chest tighten. Something that felt dangerous and comforting all at once.
"I should go," I said, breaking eye contact. "I need to check on my patient."
"Sloane."
I paused at the door and looked back at him.
"If you need anything," he said again, his voice firm, "I'm here."
I nodded and left before I could say something I'd regret.
The rest of the morning passed in a blur. I checked on my patient, reviewed charts, and avoided Vaughn at all costs. I didn't see him in the hallways, didn't run into him in the cafeteria, and I was grateful for it.
At noon, I drove to Rebecca's office. She was waiting for me with a stack of papers and a sympathetic expression.
"I'm sorry this is happening," she said as I sat down across from her desk.
"Don't be," I said. "I should have seen it coming."
"You trusted him. That's not your fault."
I didn't respond. I just wanted this over with.
Rebecca slid the papers across the desk. "I've drafted everything. Since you don't have kids and most of your assets are separate, this should be straightforward. You'll need to serve him, and then we wait for him to respond."
"What if he doesn't sign?"
"Then we go to court and force him to. But most people don't want the hassle. He'll sign."
I picked up the pen and signed my name on every line she pointed to. It felt surreal, like I was signing away four years of my life with a few strokes of ink.
"I'll have the papers served to him today," Rebecca said. "At the hospital."
"Good."
I left her office feeling lighter. Not happy, not relieved, just lighter. Like I'd been carrying something and finally set it down.
When I got back to the hospital, I went straight to my office and closed the door. I needed a few minutes to myself before I went back to work.
But before I could sit down, my phone rang. It was Vaughn.
I stared at the screen for a moment, debating whether to answer. Finally, I picked up.
"What do you want?"
"Sloane, please. We need to talk."
"There's nothing to talk about."
"I made a mistake," he said, his voice desperate. "I know I messed up, but we can fix this. Please, just give me a chance to explain."
"Explain what?" I snapped. "That you've been screwing a nurse for months? That you laughed about me behind my back? That you blamed me for your cheating because I work too much? There's nothing to explain, Vaughn. You made your choice."
"It was just s*x, Sloane. It didn't mean anything."
I laughed, the sound bitter. "That's supposed to make me feel better? That you threw away our marriage for meaningless s*x?"
"I love you," he said. "I know I screwed up, but I love you. Please don't do this."
"You should have thought about that before you cheated."
"Sloane, please."
"Goodbye, Vaughn."
I hung up and blocked his number. My hands were shaking again, but this time it wasn't from rage. It was from relief.
I sat down at my desk and took a deep breath. It was done. I'd made my decision, and there was no going back.
A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked up to see Kieran standing in the doorway.
"Bad time?" he asked.
"No," I said, motioning for him to come in. "Just dealing with Vaughn."
He closed the door behind him and sat down across from me. "What did he want?"
"To beg for forgiveness. To tell me it was just s*x and didn't mean anything."
Kieran's expression darkened. "And what did you say?"
"I hung up on him."
A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Good."
We sat in silence for a moment, the tension between us thick and undeniable.
"I filed for divorce today," I said finally. "He's being served this afternoon."
"How do you feel?"
"Honestly? I don't know. Part of me feels relieved. Part of me feels angry. Part of me just feels tired."
Kieran leaned forward, his eyes locked on mine. "You're doing the right thing, Sloane. He doesn't deserve you."
"You keep saying that."
"Because it's true."
I looked at him, really looked at him, and for the first time, I let myself wonder what it would be like. To be with someone who saw me, who valued me, who didn't take me for granted.
"Thank you," I said quietly. "For being here."
"Always."
The word settled between us, loaded with promise.
Before I could respond, my pager went off. I glanced down at it and sighed. "I have a consult in the ER."
"I'll walk with you."
We left my office together, and as we walked through the hallways, I couldn't help but notice the way people looked at us. Whispers followed us, eyes tracked our every move.
By tomorrow, the entire hospital would know that Vaughn cheated on me.
And honestly? I didn't care.
Let them talk. Let them gossip. I had nothing to be ashamed of.
As we reached the ER, Kieran stopped and turned to me. "Dinner tonight?"
I blinked. "What?"
"Dinner. You've had a hell of a day. Let me take you out."
"Kieran, I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why not?"
"Because people will talk."
"Let them."
I stared at him, my mind racing. Part of me wanted to say yes. Part of me wanted to throw caution to the wind and let myself feel something other than anger and betrayal.
But the other part of me, the rational part, knew it was too soon.
"I need time," I said finally. "To process everything."
Kieran nodded, understanding in his eyes. "Okay. But the offer stands. Whenever you're ready."
"Thank you."
He walked away, and I watched him go, my heart pounding in my chest.
This was just the beginning.
- Writer
