Elena's POV
The clinic smelled like antiseptic and blooming lilies from the vase at the front desk. I sat nervously on the edge of the examination table, the paper crinkling beneath me. My fingers wouldn't stop tapping my thighs.
This was supposed to be just a routine checkup. Just another appointment. Just another way to monitor how fast the countdown clock was ticking.
But something… something felt different today.
When the doctor walked in, her face wasn't tight with pity like usual. It was soft—glowing even.
"Elena," she said, sitting across from me. "I have two pieces of news."
I braced myself.
"The first…" She handed me a black-and-white image. "You're pregnant."
The world fell silent.
I blinked. "I'm what?"
"You're going to be a mother."
The sonogram in my hand trembled. I stared at it, breath caught in my throat.
A baby. Zayden's baby. Our baby.
I pressed my hand to my stomach—flat, warm, still mine. But not for long. I wasn't just living for myself anymore.
"And the second?" I choked out.
The doctor smiled wider. "Your recent tests show progress we didn't expect. The treatment is working better than projected. We're officially extending your prognosis… Elena, you have two years now."
Tears welled up instantly, overflowing before I could catch them. I sobbed into my hands—not because I was sad. Because for the first time in months… I could breathe again.
Two whole years.
Two years to love. To live. To give this child a father who'd fight the universe for them.
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That Night – Lake House
Zayden's POV
The door creaked open, and there she was—Elena—glowing like she'd swallowed the moon.
"Elena?" I set down my keys. "Everything okay?"
She didn't speak. She just walked toward me with careful steps, something clutched in her hand.
"I have something for you," she said.
She placed the sonogram in my palm.
I stared at it. My vision blurred.
"Elena…" My voice broke. "Are you serious?"
"I'm pregnant," she whispered.
And then she smiled. That radiant, fiery, soul-consuming smile.
"You're going to be a father, Mr. Wolfe."
I was on my knees before I knew it, hugging her waist, pressing my forehead against her stomach. My throat burned with a hundred emotions at once.
But then—then—she knelt too, and cupped my face.
"I have more to tell you."
I held my breath.
"The doctor says I have two years now, Zayden. Not one. Two whole years."
I broke. Just broke.
My arms wrapped around her tightly as joy, disbelief, and overwhelming love tore through me.
"Elena, you just gave me the world. Twice."
We stayed like that for minutes, wrapped in candlelight and the soft sound of our hearts finally beating in relief.
---
Later that night, I held her as she lay against me, her fingers trailing lazy patterns on my chest.
"We're having a baby," she whispered.
"And we have two years," I whispered back, kissing the top of her head. "That's 730 days to make you laugh, 730 sunrises to wake up next to you, and 730 chances to fall harder."
She smiled, her eyes glassy. "Let's do everything on the list."
"All of it," I promised.
"And more," she whispered. "Because now, we're not just writing our story… we're writing theirs too."
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