Chapter 3

As Aaron fell, the paper in his hand fluttered beside Willow's feet like a withered leaf. She could see the three people depicted in the paper. There was Aaron, Willow, and… Zayn. Aaron had always wanted a dad. He had only denied it because he was scared that she would be upset. He had even written a few crude words earnestly next to Zayn's drawing. 'My greatest hero'. Willow's tears fell silently. In Aaron's heart, Zayn was his hero. But to Zayn, Aaron was a bastard that he looked down upon the most. It was such a tragic irony. Once again, Willow's heart was engulfed in throbbing pain. She held Aaron closely in her arms as tears streamed down her face. "I'm sorry, Aaron. I'm so sorry!" she wept. Willow dared not allow the slightest delay. Holding Aaron tightly, she drove to the hospital in the old van for a blood transfusion. Aaron had severe thalassemia major. Even if he were to undergo surgery this time, the doctor had warned that he still wouldn't make it past age five. But without the surgery, he wouldn't even make it past this winter. Aaron was only three and a half years old. He was such an obedient and mature child. Willow couldn't accept the fact that his precious life would end in this desolate winter. "Hang in there, Aaron. I won't let anything happen to you!" she swore. All of a sudden, a red sports car rushed out at the intersection in front of the hospital before colliding viciously with Willow's van. Willow turned the steering wheel, but the sports car still crashed into the van. At that deafening moment, Willow clearly saw the vile and twisted look on Skyler's face. "Aaron!" Willow screamed. Willow could clearly feel her body bleeding, but she could no longer care. As she carefully picked up Aaron who was covered in blood, Willow rushed toward the hospital. Aaron was sent to the emergency room as soon as they arrived. Willow felt an unprecedented panic as she stared at the light outside of the room. Willow prayed over and over again in her heart. Nothing would happen to Aaron. "Willow!" Hasty footsteps echoed behind her. Zayn had pressed her body against the wall before she regained her senses. "Zayn…" she muttered. Willow's consciousness was already in a daze. Her face was pale from the loss of blood. Zayn's heart ached when he saw Willow covered in blood. However, his demeanor quickly changed when he recalled Skyler's words just a while ago. "How dare you crash into Skyler intentionally? She's pregnant! Do you want both her and the child dead?" he seethed. Skyler was pregnant? Willow's heart tightened in suffocation. All of a sudden, she remembered the words he said on her eighteenth birthday. "You're the only person I want in this lifetime. Whether it's my body or my heart, you're the only person I'll give it to. You're my one and only, Willow," he promised. His vow still existed, but he had gotten someone else pregnant. The tips of Willow's fingers trembled in pain. It was as if her lively, beating heart had withered in an instant. She was no longer his one and only. "Speak up!" he snapped. Zayn strangled WIllow by the throat ruthlessly. "Even if Skyler wasn't your biological sister, she had still addressed you as such for more than 20 years. Why would you harm her?" he questioned. "I didn't do it, Zayn. It was Skyler! She intentionally crashed into Aaron and I. She wants to kill him…" she explained. "You really won't change, huh, Willow? Why would Skyler regard her own child's life lightly just to crash into you and that bastard? The doctor just told me that they can't save the child!" he seethed. Zayn's eyes reddened. Although he had never looked forward to the child, he still felt the urge to tear Willow apart when he thought about her vile deeds. "You've killed both my children. You owe me two lives. You're truly despicable, Willow," he snarled. "Zayn, I really didn't do it…" she pleaded. The doctor hurried over. "Mr. Carter, Ms. Dawson and Mr. Aaron's blood types are both Rh-negative. Both of them need an urgent blood transfusion. "However, the hospital's blood bank only has enough blood for one of them…" the doctor spoke out. "Let Skyler have the blood transfusion!" Zayn said. Zayn's sharp gaze flitted past Willow's face. "As for that bastard, he should've been dead a long time ago!"