C18 What do I care

Sofia's POV

The room fell into a surpressed silence at Zack's words, and the last beside Alex was already red with fury, tugging at his hands.

"You think because you've gotten ten percent of my share, you can talk to me however you want?" Alex said, his voice with raising in burning anger.

"I don't think Alex, I know, and as Sofia has said to you, put a leash over your dog, if she by any means barks towards me, Sofia, or where father is, maybe a 50 percent deduction will make you come back to your senses," Zack retorted.

The air in the room was thick with the tension of their argument, Alex's presence still lingering like a bad taste. His arrogance and that of the bitch beside him grated on my nerves, even more as they intertwined their hands.

As Alex turned to leave, he suddenly paused, his gaze snapping back to Zack with a mocking smirk. “You know, Zack,” he started, his tone laced with false curiosity, “I’ve been meaning to ask—why do you care so much about her? I mean, it’s not like she’s your responsibility. She's my wife, and one would think she was married to you Instead of me," Alex asked, pulling a string inside me.

Zack’s jaw tightened, his hands balling into fists at his sides and my thoughts raced back to that one night.

For a moment, I thought he might lunge at Alex, but instead, he let out a sharp exhale, his eyes narrowing. He stepped closer to Alex, his voice low and controlled, but carrying an edge sharp enough to cut.

“Why do I care?” Zack repeated, his tone icy. “Because someone has to. And clearly, it’s not going to be you.”

Alex’s smirk faltered for a second, but he quickly recovered, scoffing. “Oh, come on. Don’t tell me you’re—”

“Shut up, Alex,” Zack snapped, cutting him off mid-sentence. His voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.

"Sofia deserves better than your games, and I’m not going to stand here and let you treat her like she’s on the same level as the whore beside you,"

Alex blinked, caught off guard by Zack’s words, and for a brief moment, I thought I saw a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. But he quickly masked it, his expression hardening as he turned to the woman clinging to his arm.

"However long your whore might stick beside you, it still won't change the fact that father doesn't and will never approve of her, that one night that he lost his face because your fiance resorted to stripping herself naked in front of his business associates," Zack said, not holding back on his words.

“Let’s go,” Alex muttered, brushing past Zack without another word. The door clicked shut behind them, leaving the room in a heavy silence.

Zack exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair as he turned back to me. His expression softened as he met my gaze, the anger melting away to reveal a quiet determination.

“Don’t let him get to you, Sofia,” he said gently, his voice steady. “He doesn’t deserve to have that kind of power over you." Zack said, cutting his words at the edge.

I couldn't let Rae get a whiff of what happened between us, not even in the slightest bit.

I wanted to say something, to thank him, but the lump in my throat made it impossible. Instead, I nodded weakly, the weight of exhaustion pulling at me once more.

"The doctor will be here soon," He said and I nodded wordlessly, while I watched Rae toy with her fingers wordlessly.

"Do you have something to say Rae? it seems like you're holding something back from me," I asked.

"I was just unsure of whether or not it was the right time to tell you that your father came, each day since you've been out," She said, making me nod wordlessly as I swallowed the saliva that had formed in my throat.

The door was pulled open and the doctor walked in, accompanied by two nurses behind him.

"How're you feeling Mrs Holmes," he asked, walking closer to me while Rae stood up from the bedside to give him space.

"Good, I'm not sure, I don't know how I'm supposed to feel," I said.

"Are you feeling any tightening in your chest, heart or you're unable to breathe like you always have?" He asked.

"No, my chest hurts a bit but I think that's all, it hurts physically," I said and he nodded, signaling for the nurse to bring an analyser.

"We'll have you stay in the hospital for a few days to monitor your health stats," the doctor said.

"Can you tell me what happened to me, I can't really remember what happened, all I can remember that happened was that I wasn't able to breathe, and my heart was clenching and..." I explained, feeling my chest clench as I tried to explain what was happening to him.

"Take it easy Mrs Holmes, what you had was a panic attack, have you had it before? has anything like that happened to you?" He asked.

"No, I've never had anything like that happen to me,"

"And what do you think caused it, did you see something, hear something or..."

"I had a fight with my supposed husband and he said some pretty bad words, I—I think that's what happened," I explained, pulling the gaze of Zack and Rae to myself.

"The argument must have stimulated you and you must have felt overwhelmed by what you must have been arguing about," the doctor explained.

"But why, I mean why did I pass out for that long?" I asked almost impatiently.

"That was probably because it is the first time that is happening to you or because of the impact it had on you," the doctor explained.