SHATTERED HEART: Because every love story has an ending

**Chapter 7: The Discovery**

Yuvan had always been the kind of man who found solace in the ordinary. He would hum quietly as he cleaned the house, finding peace in the rhythm of everyday tasks. It was one of those mundane afternoons when he decided to tidy up the cluttered study. Irish had left early again, her words vague and her presence distant. As he sorted through the pile of books and papers scattered across her desk, he felt that familiar pang of uncertainty gnawing at him, the same one that had been haunting him for weeks.

The room was quiet, save for the gentle rustle of paper as Yuvan methodically sifted through the documents. But then, something caught his eye—an envelope, half-tucked beneath a stack of notebooks. It was crumpled, as if someone had hastily tried to hide it. His hand froze mid-reach, heart pounding, a sudden heaviness settling over him. He told himself it was nothing, just a stray piece of paper. But something deeper urged him to look. Hesitantly, he pulled the envelope out.

Inside was a single sheet of paper—a medical report. His eyes scanned the words, not fully understanding at first, until one line stopped him cold: **“Termination of pregnancy: 6 weeks.”**

Yuvan’s breath caught in his throat. His mind reeled, trying to grasp the reality of what he was reading. **Pregnant? Abortion?** The words were sharp, like knives slicing through his chest. He felt the room spin, the air around him growing thick and suffocating. How? When? His hands trembled as he read the report again, desperate for some kind of explanation, but the details were cold, clinical, offering none.

The realization crashed over him like a tidal wave. This pregnancy—it wasn’t his. He and Irish hadn’t been intimate in months. His heart clenched painfully in his chest as the truth settled in, each piece falling into place. **She had been with someone else.**

Yuvan sank into the chair, his legs unable to support him. The paper slipped from his grasp, fluttering to the floor. His whole body felt numb, a hollow ache spreading through him. For eighteen years, Irish had been his anchor, his love, the one person he trusted with his whole heart. And now, that trust was shattered, broken beyond repair. **The woman he had built his world around had betrayed him in the most unimaginable way.**

For what felt like hours, Yuvan sat there, staring blankly ahead, trying to make sense of it all. Memories of their life together flashed before him—moments of laughter, shared dreams, whispered promises. But now, every memory felt tainted, laced with the bitter taste of deceit. How long had this been going on? How had he missed it? The doubts he had brushed aside, the late nights, the vague excuses—it all came crashing down on him, suffocating him in a storm of betrayal and sorrow.

Yuvan sat motionless, the weight of the truth pressing down on him like an unbearable burden. His mind raced, replaying the moment he had stumbled upon the report over and over, as if by doing so, he could somehow rewrite the reality of what he had discovered. But no matter how much he wished it away, the cold, unchangeable fact remained: **Irish had been pregnant, and the child wasn’t his.**

He wanted to scream, to shout, to demand answers from her, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, he sat in silence, the quiet of the room amplifying the chaos inside his mind. Every second felt like an eternity, the pain of her betrayal cutting deeper with each passing moment. How could she do this? How could she keep something so monumental, so devastating, from him?

And yet, as the anger surged within him, there was something else, something quieter, more heartbreaking: **He still loved her.**

Despite everything, despite the lies, the deceit, the unspeakable pain, Yuvan’s heart still yearned for the woman he had loved for nearly two decades. His love for Irish had been the cornerstone of his life, the one constant in a world full of uncertainties. And now, that foundation had crumbled beneath him, leaving him to question everything. But even as his world shattered, he couldn’t bring himself to lash out at her. Not yet.

He wiped his damp eyes, feeling the weight of exhaustion settle over him. **What now?** He didn’t know how to move forward, didn’t know how to confront her with this knowledge. And the thought of causing her pain—despite the pain she had caused him—was unbearable. Yuvan had never been one to seek revenge or fuel a confrontation with anger. In his heart, he wanted to believe there was still a chance, still a path to reconciliation. Perhaps, if he waited, if he stayed calm, he could piece together what went wrong without tearing them both apart in the process.

The thought of confronting Irish filled him with dread. **What would she say? Would she deny it, or would she crumble under the weight of the truth?** Part of him feared that confronting her would bring everything crashing down, that there would be no going back once the words were spoken. And deep down, he wasn’t ready to face that finality.

As the hours passed, Yuvan’s mind oscillated between fury and sorrow. He clenched his fists, knuckles white, imagining the confrontation in his head, the questions he would ask, the betrayal he would unleash upon her. But then, almost immediately, his resolve would waver. **What if he was wrong? What if there was more to the story, something he couldn’t see yet?**

He needed time to think. **Rushing into this would only lead to more pain**, for both of them. And no matter how much Irish had hurt him, Yuvan wasn’t ready to destroy her in return. He had always been the quiet, thoughtful one, the man who carefully considered his actions before taking a step forward. This situation, as devastating as it was, would be no different.

Still, the bitterness was hard to swallow. He stood up, pacing the room, his hands running through his hair in frustration. He thought about the years they had spent together, the laughter they had shared, the dreams they had built side by side. Now, all of it felt tainted, like the colors had bled from their memories, leaving only the grays of betrayal and doubt. **What had driven her away?** What had made her seek comfort in someone else’s arms? And why hadn’t she told him?

Despite the growing list of questions, Yuvan knew one thing for certain: **He couldn’t let this break them. Not yet.** He needed to understand before he could act, needed to hear it from her lips. But that would come in time. For now, he had to protect what little was left of their relationship, even if it meant keeping the truth hidden, at least for a while.

That night, when Irish returned home, Yuvan greeted her with a weak smile, his heart pounding painfully in his chest. She looked at him, her face tired but softened by the sight of him, and he felt the familiar ache of love mixed with the sting of betrayal. He wanted to reach for her, to hold her, but the chasm between them felt too wide now. Instead, he settled for silence, letting her pass by without a word about what he had found.

Irish moved through the house, unaware of the storm brewing inside him. Yuvan watched her, every movement, every word she spoke, now colored with suspicion. But he kept it inside, swallowing his pain as if it were a bitter pill. He wasn’t ready for the truth to destroy them—not yet.

As they lay in bed that night, the distance between them felt like an ocean. Irish’s breathing was slow and even, but Yuvan lay awake, staring at the ceiling, the weight of the secret pressing down on him. He knew he couldn’t keep it inside forever. Sooner or later, he would have to confront her, to unravel the lies that had been woven between them. But tonight wasn’t the night.

For now, Yuvan chose to wait, to hold onto the fragile hope that maybe, somehow, they could find a way back to each other. He wasn’t ready to give up—not yet. Even though his heart was broken, even though the woman he loved had betrayed him in the most unimaginable way, **he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her completely**.

And so, he lay there in the quiet, his mind spinning with the weight of the truth, while his heart clung to the one thing he still believed in: love.