**Chapter 7: Bullying and Isolation**
I woke up to the sound of machines beeping and the smell of antiseptic burning my nose.
My body felt wrong, heavy, empty, aching. A dull throb between my legs reminded me why before my eyes even opened.
The baby.
I jerked upright, panic clawing up my throat. Tubes tugged at my arm, monitors screamed. Hands pushed me gently back down.
“Easy, Elena. Breathe.” Mara’s voice, soft but firm. She was sitting beside the bed in a plastic hospital chair, silver hair messy like she’d slept there.
Victor stood at the foot of the bed, arms crossed so tight his knuckles were white. His eyes were bloodshot, jaw covered in days of stubble. He looked like he’d been carved from rage and grief.
I couldn’t look at him yet. I looked at Mara instead.
“Tell me,” I wh
