Bella's POV
Years had passed since everything changed, and here I stood on the sidewalk with my whole world wrapped around two of my fingers. Toby's small hand clung to mine, sticky from the remains of his morning cookie, while his other hand clutched his favorite picture book against his chest.
"Mum," he said, using that sweet voice that could melt steel, "is it vacation time yet?"
The word had become his obsession ever since spending time with Fiona recently. Every morning brought the same hopeful question, the same wide-eyed anticipation.
I couldn't help but laugh, watching him squint up at me through the morning sunlight. The heat was already building, creeping through my jeans and making the concrete shimmer ahead of us. We needed a ride, and soon.
"Not yet, sweetheart. You need to sleep many more nights first. Maybe so many nights, then we can go see Grandma."
His mouth formed a perfect circle of surprise. "So many? That's a lot!"
"It really is," I agreed, grinning at his expression. "You'll have to use all your fingers to count that high."
Immediately, he released my hand and held up both palms, wiggling his tiny fingers like he was ready to start the impossible task right then and there. "I'll count every single day, Mum. Every single one."
"Good plan, baby. And when we reach that many, we'll bring Grandma the biggest cake we can find."
"The biggest cake ever?" His eyes lit up with pure joy.
"The absolute biggest," I promised, watching him process this wonderful future possibility.
My mother's declining health had driven me to make desperate choices some time ago. The surrogacy seemed like a simple solution - one contract, collect the payment, and disappear to care for her properly. But life had other plans. Life gave me Toby.
The memory still felt surreal. Every ultrasound, every doctor's appointment had confirmed the same thing - I was carrying a girl. I'd prepared everything in pink, bought delicate little dresses and tiny shoes with bows. But when the moment came, Dr. Thomas's shocked face said everything.
"It's a boy, Bella," he'd whispered, his voice filled with disbelief as he held up my son.
Even through the exhaustion and pain that had consumed every nerve in my body, I'd reached for him instantly. The moment his small form pressed against my chest, his heartbeat syncing with mine, everything else faded away. His cry wasn't demanding or harsh - more like a gentle protest against leaving his warm hiding place.
In that instant, despite feeling like I'd been torn apart and put back together wrong, complete peace washed over me.
He was mine. Completely and forever mine.
Now, watching him stand beside me with his wild ginger curls dampened by sweat, clutching that worn book he couldn't actually read but loved anyway, I marveled at how quickly time had flown. He'd sit on our apartment floor for hours, pointing at random pictures and declaring, "That's me!" whether it showed a cartoon elephant or a spaceship.
Everything about him fascinated me - the way he copied my gestures when I talked, how he tried to walk with my exact stride, his habit of tilting his head just like I did when thinking. My entire existence revolved around this little person, and I'd never apologize for that truth.
A violent screech shattered my thoughts - rubber burning against asphalt, the sound of something going terribly wrong.
I spun around just as a red sedan came barreling toward us, moving far too fast for the narrow street. The driver had lost control, and we were directly in the path of destruction.
Time slowed to a crawl. There was nowhere to run, no time to think.
Pure instinct took over. I grabbed Toby and spun my back toward the approaching vehicle, wrapping him completely in my arms. The impact hit me like a freight train, sending shock waves through every bone in my body. The force launched us both through the air until we crashed into something solid and unforgiving.
All the breath left my lungs in one violent rush.
For a moment that felt like eternity, the world went completely silent. No sound, no sensation, just floating emptiness.
Then I heard it - a small groan from the bundle in my arms.
"Toby?" My voice cracked with terror as I forced my trembling hands to check him over. "Baby, look at me."
His eyelids fluttered open slowly. "Mum..."
That single word released every ounce of tension from my chest. He was alive. He was conscious. He was going to be okay.
But as relief flooded through me, the pain hit like lightning. My spine screamed in agony. My head pounded with such intensity that my vision blurred. The entire left side of my body went from tingling to completely numb.
Something warm and wet trickled down my back - blood, definitely blood, though I couldn't determine how much or from where.
Terror crept in, not for myself, but for him. What would happen to Toby if I didn't survive this? He was still so young. He didn't know his father, had no other family except me. Who would sing his favorite lullabies or understand his made-up words?
"Someone call for help! This woman is seriously injured!"
An elderly woman's voice cut through my panic. Footsteps rushed across the pavement. People shouting. Car horns blaring in the distance.
Please, God, someone protect my son.
I tried to speak, to call out, but only air escaped my lips.
Gentle hands pulled Toby from my arms.
"No," I managed to whisper.
"We have him, don't worry," a calm male voice said near my ear. "Get the boy secured in the car, make sure he's comfortable."
Then strong arms lifted me carefully but quickly. Warm, steady, capable arms.
"Dear Lord, she's losing too much blood," someone cried behind us.
"Drive to the nearest hospital immediately," the man commanded. "And hurry."
I needed to see Toby, had to make sure he was really okay. I forced my eyes open, but the sky above spun wildly. Bright spots danced behind my eyelids like scattered stars.
Stay conscious. Just stay awake long enough to see him safe.
But my body had other plans. Each breath felt like swallowing fire. My limbs refused to respond to my desperate mental commands. Everything felt distant and wrong, like I was slowly separating from myself.
The darkness crept in gradually, wrapping around my consciousness like thick velvet curtains.
And then it claimed me completely.