Part 2

"How could this happen!" Jacob slapped his forehead hard, his face filled with worry. Of course, he was very shocked; this should never have happened at all. Not only had he violated his code of ethics by using someone's sperm without permission, but to make matters worse, something like this happened.

"We don't understand either. The label said Mr. Lucas's name. So we handed it over as usual. However, when we scanned the barcode, it showed Mr. J's." The nurse, whose face was pale and trembling, looked confused about how to explain it to Jacob.

Although Jacob wasn't a doctor who liked to get angry, the mistake they made was indeed very serious. It was their standard operating procedure to ensure the samples they would use. Just because there had never been anything wrong with the sample labels before, they overlooked this.

"Who the hell is Mr. J?" Jacob furrowed his brow, looking towards the place where they had matched the samples with a photocopy of the labels in their administrative room. It indeed showed the same thing. Jacob was confused. How could the name on the label be different from the one on the barcode?

"We don't know, sir. That's the only thing mentioned here. There's no other information." Another nurse tried to show what was displayed on her computer screen.

The muscles around Jacob's eyes began to twitch and crinkle as he looked at the strange data shown by his nurse. Indeed, there was no information at all about someone named Mr. J. So which one was correct? Whose sperm was this? Lucas's or Mr. J's?

"Doctor, what should we do?" the nurse still looked anxious. Her career could be at risk if something happened.

Jacob took a deep breath, straightening his posture. He held his chin in a thoughtful pose. Calming himself momentarily. "I think this is not our fault either. It clearly says Lucas's name here, but the barcode is different. We don't know if this belongs to Mr. J or indeed belongs to Lucas." Jacob tried to analyze what was in his mind. "Try to find Mr. J's sperm sample, is there any?"

"No," the other nurse said firmly. "I immediately looked for his sample when I found out that this might be mixed up. Mr. Lucas's sample is also not there."

Jacob fell silent again, his face looking pensive. "Perhaps it's just an input data error. Maybe the nurse who received it didn't enter Lucas's data correctly. Who inputted this sample?" Jacob tried to think calmly. This wasn't final yet; there was still a possibility that it wasn't their fault.

"Rosita. But she's not here today." The nurse who had called Jacob earlier answered immediately.

"Okay, then, tomorrow make sure she comes in. Whether there's a schedule or not! She has to meet me. And about this, only the three of us know! Don't let it leak anywhere! Understand?!" Jacob admonished both nurses, whose faces had been pale all along. Their whole bodies felt numb because of this issue.

"Understood, Doctor."

"Besides, the success rate is low. We also don't know if this insemination will be successful or not. Hah! Hopefully fertilization doesn't occur." Jacob took a deep breath. It seemed that doing something wrong always felt very heavy. Strangely, why could people outside there easily commit sins? Just like that, his heart already wanted to detach.

"And find out who the man labeled Mr. J is?!" Jacob said again with all his emotions.

Ah! Even though he already had a reason not to be afraid, why was his heart still uneasy?

***

The almond-shaped eyes with dark brown retinas and eyelashes as delicate as doll's lashes were still open. Staring blankly upwards, timeless even though the day had changed. In the silent midnight, all those memories came flooding back.

Hayle would never forget. Her last dinner with Lucas. It was a peaceful night, not even the rustle of the wind could be heard, but the lightning struck her so hard.

"Let's just end our relationship." Those words slipped out so gracefully, smoothly, as if the man decided to end their 11-year relationship effortlessly.

Hayle, who had just wanted to cut into the medium-rare steak in front of her, suddenly froze. Honestly, her whole world stopped, maybe even her heart at that moment. It felt like a hard object had struck her head, leaving her feeling empty. She forgot to breathe.

"You want to surprise me, huh? Come on, I'm really hungry, two C-section surgeries today have drained my energy." Hayle could still think that Lucas's words were just a joke, even though she had been with this man for 11 years, she knew he wasn't a humorous man.

"I'm not joking. Hayle, we're done." Lucas took a deep breath and stood up abruptly.

Leaving Hayle still silent as if she had received a second wave of tsunami. Her body remained intact, but everything inside her felt numb. Numb, before the incredible pain attacked her body, as if a thousand needles were being pierced into her, every inch of her hurt, and she couldn't even cry, Hayle was incapable.

That night until the next night was a tormenting hell for Hayle. She never knew what the problem was, nor could Lucas explain it even though she asked repeatedly. He just avoided her, and as if a pile of trash from the past, Lucas was disgusted with her. As if those eleven years were just dust.

Until suddenly, on the hospital's anniversary of the day Hayle and Lucas worked together, exactly one week after they broke up. Hayle had to swallow the bitterest pill again. Lucas and Sonia, the daughter of the company's director where they worked, got engaged. At that moment, Hayle almost fainted, and luckily she managed to leave, even though afterwards she really could only collapse weakly in the empty room next to the hall where the man celebrated his engagement with great fanfare. After that, Lucas was like something that had never existed in Hayle's world.

He was happy, and Hayle was devastated, sinking to the lowest depths of pain:

The sound of the door opening made Hayle return to the dim, quiet clinic room. She frowned as she looked at the wall clock ticking slowly, accompanying her night. Almost 2 in the morning. Who suddenly opened the door that was previously closed? She intentionally didn't lock it, because usually some nurses would come in to check on her at the time she should be sleeping, and besides, she shouldn't move too much now.

But the sound of the creaking door was no longer heard. However, Hayle clearly saw a gap in the door. This immediately made Hayle's heart beat faster. She even had to sit down to look towards the door in the dim light of the ward.

"Who's there?!" Hayle shouted hoarsely.

Why did Hayle suddenly feel uneasy?