The Bond Between Us (Anastasia and Herman)

Inside the hospital.

Anastasia woke up from her unconscious state in the early hours of the morning.

She opened her eyes and saw Herman, hunched over on the couch nearby. A deep, indescribable pain filled her chest.

Licking her dry lips, she thought of the baby they had lost. Tears welled up in her eyes.

She didn't say a word, just stared blankly at the ceiling while tears streamed quietly from the corners of her eyes, crossing her nose bridge, trickling from one eye to the other, and finally soaking her pillow. The pillow was already drenched.

Noticing that Anastasia was awake, Herman immediately stood up. His voice was hoarse as he asked, "Anastasia, are you okay? Are you hungry? Thirsty?"

Herman hadn't rested for a whole day and night. He had traveled to New York for business, pulling an all-nighter. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked worn out.

Anastasia just gazed at him, not wanting to say a thing.

Herman reached out to wipe her tears, his own eyes misting up. He kissed the back of her hand, whispering, "Anastasia, this too shall pass."

Anastasia let out a bitter laugh. "Our baby was in my womb for five months. I could feel him moving around. He was real. How could I ever get over that?"

The silence in the hospital room was deafening.

The night was chilly, and Herman was at a loss for words. Their shared grief was too profound, and no words could heal their wounds.

Anastasia sniffled, the tears never ceasing. Her voice barely audible, she asked, "Did you find out who's responsible for our baby's death?"

Herman couldn't bring himself to say it was Grandma Anita. He avoided Anastasia's gaze, saying, "The doctor says you need to rest more. Try to sleep a bit, I'll be here with you."

Seeing his evasive response, Anastasia gripped his arm tightly, her gaze fixed on him, demanding, "Who hurt our baby? This wasn't an accident, was it?"

Her voice rose, her tone insistent, clamoring for an answer.

Herman knew he couldn't hide the truth from Anastasia forever.

He looked at her, his gaze intense, his lips tightly pressed together.

She held his gaze, her heart plummeting into an abyss along with his deep-set eyes.

Anastasia shook his hand, her voice almost pleading, "Herman, tell me! Who is it?"

It took him a while before he finally uttered, "Grandma."

Anastasia was taken aback. She was frozen in shock, thinking for a moment that she was hallucinating.

How ridiculous.

And she did laugh, a laugh that bordered on hysteria. Suddenly, everything made sense to her. The tragedy was clear.

"People's prejudices are like insurmountable mountains. No matter what I do or don't do, I'll never be accepted. Even at the cost of my child's life. How ridiculous. I tried so hard to protect our baby, only for your grandma to kill him. Herman, it was your grandma who killed our baby..." Anastasia's emotions escalated, her voice filled with despair and sorrow.

Herman pulled Anastasia into his arms, "It's my fault. I'm sorry, Anastasia. It's all my fault."

"Oh!" Anastasia pummeled Herman with her fists, crying out in pain. Her entire body ached, despair spreading from her heart to every limb, "Herman, it hurts so much. I want our baby back." Anastasia had the urge to storm into hell and bring back their child. At that moment, she longed for a miracle.

For their child, she was willing to believe in anything: hell, angels, devils, all sorts of miracles. She was ready to delve into the depths of hell, dig three feet into the ground, and bring back their baby. As long as their child could come back, she was willing to do anything, believe in anything.

Together they wept, unable to overcome their shared grief.

In the end, Anastasia cried herself to exhaustion and fell asleep once more.