The hospital loomed in the distance, its cold fluorescent lights piercing through the rain. As soon as the car stopped, Calvin bolted out, leaving Amber to trail behind with dripping hair and soaked shoes.
The moment Calvin entered the private room, Iris's eyes lit up like stars breaking through a cloudy sky. Her smile bloomed, radiant and sweet, but the second she caught sight of Amber behind him, her expression faltered, her lips curving downward.
Wrapped in a thick quilt, Iris looked like the perfect picture of vulnerability—her pale complexion and doe-like eyes seemingly begging for comfort. She cast a hesitant glance at Amber, her voice soft and fragile. "Calvin, who is she?"
"A driver," Calvin replied dismissively, not even bothering to turn around.
Amber froze, the word slicing through her like ice. A driver. That's all she was to him now. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to accept it. "Fine," she thought bitterly. "A driver it is. It doesn't matter anymore. After today, we're done. We'll be strangers. Less than strangers." She repeated the thought like a mantra, as if it could dull the ache in her chest.