All Chapters of Her Principles Saved Everyone But Me: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

I liked the remarriage video.Less than thirty seconds later, Claire Bennett called."Evan, don't get the wrong idea. That was just one item on Julian's wish list. We're not actually getting remarried."He and I never had a wedding when we got married. I owed him a ceremony, and today I was just making up for it."I stared at the huge diamond ring in the video and asked quietly, "Weren't you supposed to be out of state?"There were two seconds of silence on the other end."I didn't want you to overthink it, so I didn't tell you the truth."Your medicine is on the nightstand. Remember to take it on time. I'll come home and stay with you as soon as I'm done here."I picked up the pill box on the nightstand.It was medication for stomach pain.I had sudden sensorineural hearing loss, and the doctor had said the best window for treatment was only fourteen days.Today was day ten, and the hearing in my right ear was still getting worse.Claire couldn't even remember what I was s

Chapter 2

"There must be a mistake in the registration."I handed my phone to the nurse, straining to make out her words with my left ear.She checked the system and shook her head."It's not a registration error. Ms. Bennett came in last night and said Mr. Shaw is your family contact. From now on, he'll be the one communicating with your doctors."She also canceled today's pre-op testing for you. She said you weren't feeling well and wanted to push it back a week."I gripped the corner of the counter."Why didn't anyone ask me?""Ms. Bennett said you were emotionally unstable and that you'd authorized her to handle everything."The nurse gave me a complicated look."Mr. Reed, you can't put off sudden hearing loss. You've already lost more than seventy percent of the hearing in your right ear. If you miss the treatment window, the chances of recovery will keep dropping."I rebooked the testing and changed my emergency contact on the spot.I'd barely walked out of the hospital when Cla

Chapter 3

It wasn't a wish from years ago.It was a brand-new promise Claire had just written.I zoomed in on the photo and saw Julian's blood smeared on the bottom right corner of the page.At the hospital, they found my eardrum hadn't ruptured, but my hearing had dropped even further.My doctor, Dr. Collins, managed to reach an overseas specialist who happened to be in the country for an exchange program and was willing to operate on me the next day."This is the best chance you've got right now."Dr. Collins slid the consent form across the desk."I can't promise how much you'll get back after surgery. But if you keep putting it off, you could lose all hearing in your right ear. You need to decide soon.""I'll do it."As soon as I'd signed, my lawyer, Daniel Brooks, sent over the divorce agreement he'd drafted.I wanted none of the assets in Claire's name.In the past three years, I'd composed seventeen scores for her arts company.The best known of them, "Echo," was the piece I'd

Chapter 4

Claire followed me backstage and draped her coat over my shoulders.My body stiffened on reflex, but I didn't push her away.This would be the last time.I asked quietly, "Will you be there for the surgery?"She looked at me, her voice certain."Yes. I'll take Julian home tonight, and at eight tomorrow morning I'll walk you into the operating room."I nodded.She seemed relieved and reached up to smooth my hair.But Julian called to her from a few feet away."Claire, I can't find our wedding rings."Claire pulled her hand back at once."Evan, you head back first. I'll come find you once I've sorted this out."I watched her walk toward Julian.She didn't look back once.At seven the next morning, I changed into a hospital gown in the pre-op room alone.A nurse came in to confirm my information."Mr. Reed, we haven't been able to reach your wife. This surgery carries some risk. You can sign for yourself, but it'd be best to have a family member or friend here with you."

Chapter 5

The surgery never happened.Claire had taken Professor Feldman to Julian's party, and the original medical team couldn't carry out the treatment on their own.The hospital gave me an injection that could only keep my condition in check for now.By afternoon, a faint ringing had started in my left ear too.By the time Daniel came to pick me up, I'd already packed."The divorce papers get filed today. The earliest we could get a court date is about a month."You're really sure you don't want any of Ms. Bennett's property, shares, or income from the marriage?"I typed on my phone."No. But I'm taking back the copyright to 'Echo' and the other sixteen compositions. All of them."Daniel nodded."Last night's evidence is more than enough. Julian Shaw publicly claimed authorship, and Bennett Arts forged an authorization. You can demand the event organizers pull the work immediately and pursue damages."I also sent him the record of the theft of my signature stamp.When I got home,

Chapter 6

Before my flight took off, Claire sent me forty-seven messages.I didn't read a single one.The hospital abroad arranged a sign language interpreter and a dedicated nurse for me.The test results weren't good. The auditory nerve in my right ear was badly damaged, but there was still hope for my left.The doctor recommended a cochlear implant."Recovery will take a long time, and it won't be exactly the same as before."The interpreter wrote the doctor's words down for me.I nodded.At least this was my own choice.Before the surgery, Daniel sent me a message.Claire had refused mediation, claiming our marriage hadn't broken down. She'd also submitted a medical report saying I'd been emotionally unstable during my illness.The report came from the Bennett family's private hospital.Daniel asked me, "Do you want to go public with the evidence that she pulled your surgeon?"I replied, "Go public."Two hours later, the full email and the hospital records hit the news.Musici

Chapter 7

Claire didn't leave the city.Every morning she sent a bouquet of flowers, and every evening she sat in the hospital hallway.I didn't see her once.On the day my cochlear implant was switched on, the doctor spent a long time adjusting it.The first sound was harsh and unfamiliar.Like metal grinding on metal, or something coming through very deep water.I heard the nurse say, "Mr. Reed, try saying your name.""Evan... Reed."It came out garbled, but it was there.My eyes stung, but I didn't cry.When I walked out of the audiologist's office, Claire was standing outside.The moment she saw me, she teared up."Evan, can you hear?"I didn't answer.She caught up with me and held out a thermos."When you were in the hospital before, I promised I'd make you chicken soup every day. I didn't do it then, so I'm making up for it now."I took the thermos.The moment hope lit up in her eyes, I dropped it into the trash can beside us."It's expired."She froze."Evan, I know o

Chapter 8

On the day of the shareholders' meeting, I attended by video.Claire sat at the far end of the long table with the empty thermos in front of her.She'd fished it back out of the trash.The shareholders didn't spare her."Because Julian Shaw falsely claimed authorship, the company's payouts have already topped three million dollars."You misused the company's PR resources to clean up after a personal relationship, and you paid a huge sponsorship to an overseas specialist. All of it has seriously damaged this company."Twelve partners have pulled out, and our core creative team has resigned en masse. Why should the company pay the price for these so-called principles of yours?"Claire didn't defend herself.She only looked at me on the screen."I agree to return Evan's shares."Daniel pointed out, "Not return. Confirm that they were his all along."Claire swallowed."Yes. They were his all along."The results of the vote came in quickly.My shareholder status was restored.

Chapter 9

When the divorce case went to court, Claire agreed to it.She didn't ask for mediation again, and she didn't try to use my illness against me anymore.When the judge asked about the division of property, she offered me half of the shares in her name.I refused."I'll only take what's mine."Claire said quietly, "It's compensation.""I don't need it."She raised her head.Even through the screen, I could see her eyes were bloodshot."Evan, I always thought you'd never leave."When you needed me, I thought it didn't matter if I came home a little late. When I missed our anniversary, I thought I could make it up next year. When your surgery got delayed, I even thought that as long as you were still alive, it wasn't that serious."I took every step back you ever made for granted."She paused for a moment."It's not that I didn't love you. I just loved you too late."The judge reminded her not to make statements unrelated to the case.Claire lowered her head and signed the di

Chapter 10

One year later, I gave my first concert centered on hearing loss at a new music center.When the performance ended, the audience applauded me in sign language.Countless hands waved silently beneath the lights.Looking out at that quiet applause, I suddenly thought back to the time when my hearing had been at its worst.Back then, I thought not being able to hear was a terrifying thing.Only later did I understand that there was something more terrifying than losing sound: hearing every hurtful word perfectly well, and pretending again and again that it didn't matter.My assistant brought over a bouquet of hydrangeas."Mr. Reed, there's no name on these. Should I send them back?"I knew the handwriting on the card well.Evan, good luck with the show.I took the card off."Give the flowers to the backstage crew."Claire hadn't shown up once all year.I heard that after leaving the company, she sold most of her shares and used the money to compensate the partners who'd been

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