Eternity

Chapter 61

As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuhu

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The hours dragged by with an unbearable slowness, the hospital walls closing in on Zayan as he waited for news. Every tick of the clock was a reminder of how little control he had over the situation. His mind reeled, replaying the moments leading up to this nightmare—the doctors rushing Ayzal into surgery, the choice he had been forced to make. He could barely think straight. His entire body trembled with fear, worry, and guilt. He had chosen to save Ayzal, and while he knew in his heart that it was the right choice, it didn’t make the weight of the decision any easier to bear.

Suddenly, he heard the hurried footsteps of his parents. Zayan looked up, and there was his mother, her face streaked with tears, eyes red and swollen from crying. She rushed to him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. The second her arms encircled him, Zayan’s composure cracked. His chest tightened as if the dam holding back his emotions had finally burst.

“Oh, Zayan, my son,” his mother cried, her voice breaking as she held onto him as though she could shield him from the pain. “How is Ayzal?”

Zayan couldn’t find the words. His throat constricted, and his eyes welled with tears that had been threatening to spill for what felt like hours. He could barely breathe, the anxiety clawing at his chest.

His father placed a hand on his shoulder, the weight of it grounding him momentarily. Zayan’s eyes met his father’s, and without thinking, he broke down, collapsing into his father's arms. He sobbed uncontrollably, his shoulders shaking as his father held him tight, his steady presence the only thing keeping Zayan from falling apart completely.

“I didn’t know what to do, Dad,” Zayan choked out between sobs. “They made me choose. They made me choose between Ayzal and our baby.” His voice broke, and he pressed his face into his father’s chest, the grief and fear overwhelming him. “I chose her. I couldn’t—I couldn’t lose her, Dad.”

His father’s arms tightened around him, and for a moment, they just stood there, Zayan’s ragged sobs filling the room. His father didn’t speak, he simply held him, letting Zayan release all the anguish and fear that had been building inside of him.

“I was so scared,” Zayan continued, his voice hoarse from crying. “I thought I might lose them both.”

His mother, standing beside them, wiped her tears with the edge of her scarf, her own heart breaking for her son. She had never seen him like this—so vulnerable, so completely undone. She placed a hand on his back, rubbing gentle circles in an attempt to comfort him.

“We are here now, Zayan,” his father said softly, his voice steady and reassuring. “Whatever happens, we will get through this together. You don’t have to carry this alone.”

Just as Zayan’s sobs began to subside, the door to the waiting room creaked open. Zayan pulled away from his father and turned toward the door, his heart leaping into his throat. The doctor stood there, looking exhausted but calm. Zayan’s legs felt like they might give out beneath him as he took a step forward.

The doctor’s face softened as he spoke. “Mr. Zayan, it was a very long, difficult surgery. But I have good news—we were able to save both your wife and your baby.”

Zayan felt a rush of relief so intense that his knees buckled. His father quickly caught him, guiding him into a nearby chair. Tears streamed down Zayan’s face, but this time they were tears of gratitude, of disbelief. He couldn’t process it—both Ayzal and their baby were alive. They had survived.