4

JUNE

When I returned home, my father didn’t say I told you so and that alone nearly broke me again. The moment I stepped through the gates with my suitcase in hand, he walked toward me without hesitation and pulled me into his arms.

I cried like something inside me had finally shattered beyond repair. I knew I was only hanging by a single thread, but I didn't think this was all I needed to finally let it all loose.

Sobs raked my entire being as tears slid down my cheeks, but he didn't pull away.  Father simply held me tighter with one hand against the back of my head like he used to do when I was little.

“It’s okay, darling” he said softly. “You’re home now, everything's okay.”

For some strange reason, that made me cry harder, because nothing was okay. Not really. My life had just been shattered in the blink of an eye, and here he was, comforting me like I still had a tiny bit of hope to hold on to.

I stayed locked inside my room for an entire week afterward, and my father let me.

He didn’t pressure me to come downstairs, didn’t force conversations, didn’t ask invasive questions through the door either. He just waited, his mantra being, “Whenever you're ready.’

The room looked exactly the same as I left it ten years ago. It still held the same cream curtains, the same bookshelf and the same framed degree hanging proudly on the wall.

My father hadn’t changed anything. At first I didn’t understand why, then one evening when he came upstairs to leave food outside my door, I finally asked him.

“You kept everything the same?” he didn't look surprised by my question. “Why?”

He looked at me quietly for a moment before answering. “I knew my daughter would come home eventually.

Those words touched my heart more than he could ever imagine, and after a week, I finally walked downstairs on my own.

My father was sitting in his study reading through paperwork when I entered. He looked up immediately but didn’t overwhelm me with concern.

Instead he simply closed the file in front of him and asked gently. “Tea?”

I nodded, and that was how the conversation started. It wasn't dramatic or angry, just tea between a father and daughter while my entire life collapsed around me, and slowly, I told him everything.

I filled him in on the fake marriage certificate, the lies, Diane, Angel, the bone marrow match, and the years I spent believing I was building a family when in reality I was just convenient.

By the time I finished speaking, my father’s face had gone frighteningly still. He wasn't emotional or shocked, but furious.

“That bastard,” Pure fury simmered quietly beneath his skin as he said softly.

I had never heard my father sound like that before, but clearly he wasn't done.

“He used you.” he hissed. “I should have him dealt with, his company will go bankrupt in no time. I stared down at my untouched tea. “How dare he?” My father stood abruptly and began pacing.

“Dad…” I'd barely gotten any more words out before he cut in again.

“No.” His voice sharpened immediately. “He manipulated you for ten years, June. He has to pay.” I rubbed my temples tiredly. “He isolated you from your career with stupid demands just to keep you in his kitchen, running his house.” He continued. “And now he wants your bone marrow for his daughter?”

The silence afterward felt horrible as my father looked at me with heartbreak in his eyes. That hurt worse than his anger. Angel was a daughter I’d thought I would call my own for life.

“Dad, I have something else to say.” I inhaled shakily before forcing myself to say the next words. “I want to work again.”

“What, really?” His brows lifted slightly and I swallowed.

“I know I’ve been out of the field for ten years, but I’ve been studying.” I looked up at him carefully. “I stayed updated on procedures, advancements, research…”

Because some part of me had known, maybe not consciously, but deep down, I think I always feared losing myself completely.

So while everyone believed I had become nothing but a housewife, I continued learning quietly in the background. I kept late nights studying medical journals, online seminars, case studies, and most importantly, Angel needed me knowledgeable.

My father watched me silently for several long seconds. Then finally, he spoke up.

“I trust your abilities.” Relief nearly knocked the breath out of me, but then he continued calmly “But you still have to prove yourself.”

I nodded immediately.

“There’s a medical evaluation exam next month.” He folded his hands together. “If you take first place, your old position as Head of Surgery will be returned to you.”

My heart stopped at his words.

Head of Surgery. The title I once carried proudly before throwing everything away for love. The same title Rick made sure Diane took from me.

“You mean that?” I whispered smiling despite my heart still aching.

“I don’t hand out favors, June. Prove to me that you still got it, then we’ll see.” He finished and I sighed in relief. There was a chance after all.

And after that, I studied like my life depended on it, because maybe it did. For the next month, I barely slept. Day in and day out, I reviewed surgical procedures until my vision blurred. I practiced diagnostics, and read medical journals until dawn.

There were nights my back hurt so badly from sitting that I had to lie flat on the floor just to rest, but for the first time in years, I felt alive again. I was exhausted and broken, but still alive.

Time blew by faster than I thought and the day I arrived at the hospital for the examination, my stomach twisted with nerves.

The building looked almost exactly the same. I recalled the polished floors, the sharp antiseptic scent and the quiet urgency in the air.

For a moment, memories nearly overwhelmed me. Then someone's voice cut through my thoughts.

“June?” I turned quickly and froze. Two familiar faces stared back at me in disbelief before immediately rushing toward me.

“Oh my God.”

“You’re actually here.”

I laughed shakily as they hugged me one after another. They were my old colleagues, my old friends and people Rick slowly pushed out of my life over the years until eventually the calls stopped coming altogether.

“You disappeared,” one of them complained dramatically.

“Literally vanished.”

“Yeah, I'm sorry about that.” I smiled weakly. “Life happened.”

Their expressions softened slightly like they knew there was more to the story, but thankfully neither pushed. Instead they started rambling excitedly about hospital gossip, surgeries, ridiculous residents, and who got divorced.

For the first time in a long time, I genuinely laughed.

“You better pass this exam,” one of them warned. “We refuse to lose you again.”

“We should celebrate afterward,” the other added quickly.

“Sure.” I nodded before I could overthink it. “I’d like that.”

Then, my smile disappeared instantly, because standing several feet away was Rick and Diane. Rick looked terrible, actually terrible, like a ghost of the man I once knew.

His hair was messy like he hadn’t slept properly in days, dark circles shadowed beneath his eyes, and his clothes looked thrown on carelessly. Not polished and nothing like the man I remembered.

“June?” The second he saw me, his entire body went rigid.

Then he walked toward me quickly, too quickly. I immediately turned to leave, but his hand suddenly wrapped tightly around my arm.

“June.” I flinched instinctively as his grip tightened. I had no idea what he had up his sleeve, but his next words caught me off guard.  “Are you done with this tantrum yet? The house is a mess with you gone, come home right now.”

I stared at him in disbelief. Of all the things he could start with, of all the things he could say, this was all he could think of?

A tantrum? Again?

I stared at him and realized he looked irritated rather than emotional, like my pain inconvenienced him.

“I know why you’re here,” he continued coldly. “You must have heard Diane and I would be here today.” I slowly pulled my arm but he wouldn’t let go.

I said quietly. “You’re wrong, Rick. I’m here to take the exam.”

“What?” The second the words left my mouth, his expression darkened. “Stop this nonsense, June.” His tone turned sharp. “Come home. This isn’t the place for you to act out.” He stepped closer, lowering his voice. “I’ve already given you enough time to cool down. Stop this at once!”

Cool down, like my entire life hadn’t been destroyed. Before I could answer, one of the officials stepped outside the hall.

“All candidates, please proceed inside.”

“Get your fucking hands off me,” I tried to pull back, but Rick yanked me to himself. “You’re not going in there. You're coming with me. You don’t belong here anymore.”

My chest tightened violently. Then he said the one thing that finally killed every remaining feeling I had left for him.

“You’re my wife,” he snapped quietly. “I decide your future.”

Silence crashed through my head, and before I could stop myself, I slapped him. It was so hard the sound echoed loudly enough that nearby conversations stopped.

Rick froze completely while I stared directly into his shocked face.

“If you want to take your wife home,” I said coldly while pointing toward Diane, “then take her.”

For the first time since I met him, Rick genuinely looked speechless. His grip loosened slowly and I stepped back a few steps from him.

“I was never your wife,” I continued, my voice trembling slightly. “So you don’t get to control me anymore.”

Then I turned and walked toward the hall.

“June…stop right there…” Behind me, Diane suddenly spoke sharply.

“The only reason you became number one,” I looked back once as I said quietly, “is because Rick spent ten years holding me down.” I smiled faintly loving the expression on her face. She was afraid. “Not anymore.”

Then I walked inside. By the time the exam ended hours later, my entire brain felt fried, but I felt lighter somehow, like slapping Rick had knocked loose years of buried rage

My friends practically dragged me out afterward

“No escaping this time,” one warned immediately.

“You owe us drinks for disappearing for a decade.”

I laughed weakly, and somehow, I let myself go with them. The bar was loud and crowded and alive when we arrived.  Music vibrated through the floor while lights flashed overhead. At first I just sat there awkwardly nursing one drink.

Then another, then another, and eventually, I laughed, really laughed as I danced badly with my friends. I got teased for having terrible alcohol tolerance now and I forgot myself for a few precious moments.

By the time I stumbled back toward the counter slightly tipsy, someone stepped into my path.

He was tall, with broad shoulders. He looked younger than Rick and unfairly handsome. His mouth curved slowly into a smile as he looked at me.

“Well,” he said smoothly, “we meet again, stranger.”

I blinked at him in confusion as my brain struggled to catch up.