He tries again, voice breaking. “Just… just talk to her. Tell her Mateo isn’t mine. Tell her he’s from someone else. She’ll calm down.”
The request lands like a slap.
You sit up straighter, ignoring the sting in your incision. “You want me to lie so you can marry her?” you whisper. “You want me to erase my child’s father so you can keep your lifestyle?”
Álvaro’s shoulders collapse. “It’s temporary,” he says quickly. “After the wedding, we can figure out co-parenting. I’ll still help. I swear.”
Swear.
The word tastes like every promise he ever made and never kept.
Before you can answer, the hallway erupts with noise. Fast footsteps. High heels clicking like judgment. An angry voice cutting through the sterile air.
“Álvaro!” Lucía’s voice rings out. “Where is she?”
Your nurse peeks in, alarmed. “Ma’am, you can’t—”
The door swings open and Lucía storms in like she owns the building. She’s dressed too well for a hospital, hair perfect, makeup flawless, eyes swollen from crying but sharpened by rage. Behind her is a man in a suit you’ve never seen, probably her brother or a family lawyer, and a woman with a phone already raised, recording.
Lucía’s gaze lands on the bassinet.
Then on you.
Then on Álvaro.
And you can physically see the moment she connects the dots. Her face drains of color. “No,” she whispers, stepping closer. “No, no, no.”
Álvaro moves toward her with both hands raised like he’s trying to calm a wild animal. “Lucía, listen. It’s complicated—”
“You told me you didn’t have kids,” Lucía snaps, voice climbing. She points at Mateo as if the baby offended her personally. “You told me the divorce was clean.”
Álvaro swallows hard. “I didn’t think it mattered. The baby was—”
You cut him off. “Planned,” you say, voice steady. “The baby was planned. The divorce happened anyway.”
Lucía whips her head to you. “Who are you?” she demands, like you’re a stranger sitting in the wrong bed.
You glance at your IV and your hospital bracelet and realize how surreal it is that you’re being interrogated while your body is still recovering from bringing life into the world. You keep your voice calm because calm is power.
“I’m Sofía,” you say. “His ex-wife. And this is Mateo. His son.”
Lucía’s eyes shimmer. For a second, you see heartbreak. Then it hardens into fury. “You’re lying,” she says, but her voice trembles. “Álvaro, tell me she’s lying.”
Álvaro’s face twists. He looks like a man drowning, grabbing at anything to keep his head above water. He glances at you, silently begging for the lie he asked for minutes ago.
You look back, and in that moment you choose your child’s future over Álvaro’s comfort.
You shake your head once.
Lucía inhales sharply, like she’s been hit. “So you used me,” she whispers, stepping back. “You were going to marry me while you hid a newborn son?”
Álvaro reaches for her arm. “Lucía, please. I love you.”
Lucía jerks away. “You love what I come with,” she spits. “My father’s money. My last name. My connections.”
