The bathroom felt too quiet.
Too small.
Too warm.
Lillian stood motionless near the sink, staring downward while Chloe watched her carefully from a short distance away.
Neither of them spoke for several long seconds.
Because now that the possibility had been said aloud—
everything felt different.
The nausea.
The dizziness.
The exhaustion.
Suddenly none of it felt disconnected anymore.
Lillian's breathing remained uneven as she pressed trembling fingers lightly against the edge of the counter.
"No," she whispered again.
But the word sounded weaker now.
Not denial.
Fear.
Chloe softened slightly.
"Lillian."
Lillian shook her head immediately.
"It's stress."
Her voice cracked slightly.
"It has to be stress."
Chloe stayed calm.
Careful.
Grounded.
"We don't know anything yet."
Lillian laughed once under her breath, but there was no humor in it.
"That's not helping."
"I'm not trying to help emotionally right now," Chloe said gently.
"I'm trying to keep you from spiraling before you even know for certain."
Lillian looked away quickly.
Because she already felt herself spiraling.
Her mind kept replaying timelines automatically now.
Sebastian clearing his schedule for her birthday.
The necklace.
That night together afterward.
The breakup the next morning.
A month apart.
And suddenly—
the possibility became terrifying in an entirely different way.
Because if she was pregnant…
Sebastian had absolutely no idea.
Her stomach twisted sharply again.
Lillian closed her eyes briefly.
"Oh my god…"
Chloe stepped slightly closer.
"Hey."
Lillian shook her head again immediately.
"No, no, I can't—."
"You can."
"I can't do this right now."
"Yes, you can."
The firmness in Chloe's voice forced Lillian to look at her.
And Chloe's expression remained steady despite the concern underneath it.
"We don't even know yet," Chloe repeated softly.
"You need confirmation before you let your mind destroy you."
Lillian swallowed hard.
Because Chloe was right.
But emotionally, logic suddenly felt useless.
A quiet sound outside the bathroom made Chloe glance toward the doorway.
Footsteps.
Approaching.
Her expression shifted almost immediately.
Lillian noticed.
"What?"
Before Chloe could answer, Sebastian appeared near the entrance to the hallway.
The moment the atmosphere changed, Lillian felt it instantly.
Her chest tightened painfully.
Sebastian stopped a few feet away.
His expression remained composed.
Controlled.
Cold.
But his eyes immediately moved to Lillian.
And stayed there.
He noticed everything at once.
Her pale face.
The shaken expression.
The way she looked almost frightened now instead of simply sick.
Something tightened sharply in his chest before he suppressed it immediately.
Sebastian looked toward Chloe briefly.
"Is she alright?"
The question sounded calm.
Professional.
But Chloe noticed the strain underneath it immediately.
Lillian did too.
Chloe answered carefully.
"She's not feeling well."
Sebastian's gaze returned to Lillian instantly.
More focused now.
The hallway fell silent.
Lillian couldn't hold eye contact long.
Not now.
Not with this possibility suddenly sitting between them unknowingly.
Because Sebastian stood there completely unaware that everything might have just changed.
Again.
His jaw tightened subtly.
"You should go home."
The words sounded cold.
Distant.
But Lillian heard the underlying meaning anyway.
Concern.
Restrained so tightly it barely survived inside the sentence.
That somehow hurt worse.
Because a month ago he would've touched her forehead, guided her somewhere quieter, stayed beside her until she felt better.
Now he stood several feet away like closeness itself had become dangerous.
Lillian lowered her eyes.
"…I'm fine."
Sebastian's expression hardened slightly.
"You interrupted a board meeting because you nearly got sick."
The bluntness made her chest tighten.
"I said I'm fine."
"And I said you should go home."
Silence.
Chloe looked between them carefully.
The emotional distance felt suffocating now.
Because concern still existed between them.
But neither of them knew how to reach across the damage anymore.
Sebastian glanced toward Chloe again.
"Ensure someone drives her."
Then without another word—
he turned and walked away.
Lillian watched him disappear down the hallway.
And for the first time since Chloe asked the question in the bathroom—
fear hit harder than shock.
Because suddenly she realized something horrifying.
If she was pregnant…
they were completely broken.
Emotionally fractured.
Separated by hurt neither of them knew how to repair.
Her eyes burned immediately.
Chloe noticed.
"Hey."
Lillian shook her head quickly.
"I can't do this."
"Yes, you can."
"No, Chloe, you don't understand—."
"I understand enough."
Chloe stepped closer carefully.
"You need to take a test."
The words landed heavily.
Lillian looked away immediately.
"…Today?"
"Yes."
Her stomach twisted again.
Not just from nausea now.
From fear.
"What if—."
"Then you deal with it," Chloe interrupted gently.
"One step at a time."
Lillian pressed a hand lightly against her forehead.
Everything felt unreal suddenly.
The hallway.
The meeting.
Sebastian.
The possibility itself.
It all blurred together emotionally.
Meanwhile, Sebastian returned to his office.
The moment the glass doors closed behind him, the controlled expression slipped slightly from his face.
Not completely.
Just enough for exhaustion to surface beneath it.
Something was wrong.
Actually wrong.
He walked toward the desk slowly before setting the meeting documents down harder than intended.
His thoughts replayed the hallway automatically.
Lillian's expression.
Pale.
Shaken.
Frightened.
And Chloe.
Chloe had looked tense too.
Not surprised.
Concerned.
Like something significant had happened in that bathroom conversation.
Sebastian exhaled sharply through his nose.
Then reached into the inside pocket of his jacket.
The flask felt cold in his hand.
He unscrewed it silently before taking a longer drink this time.
The whiskey burned harder than usual.
But it didn't settle the restlessness beneath his ribs.
Because despite everything—
despite the breakup
despite the anger
despite the emotional distance he was forcing between them—
his instincts still reacted to her automatically.
And he hated that he couldn't stop it.
Back downstairs, Chloe grabbed her coat from her desk.
Lillian looked at her weakly.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm taking you home."
"I still have work."
"No," Chloe said firmly.
"You have denial."
Lillian almost laughed despite herself.
Almost.
Chloe softened slightly.
"We'll stop at a pharmacy first."
The words made Lillian's stomach drop.
Reality settled heavier now.
Not hypothetical anymore.
Not distant.
Real enough to test.
As they headed toward the elevators together, Lillian glanced once toward Sebastian's office through the glass walls.
He stood near the window now, one hand in his pocket, looking out over the city.
Cold.
Distant.
Untouchable again.
But she noticed the faint flask still resting loosely in his other hand.
And suddenly her chest ached sharply.
Because Sebastian Wolfe was unraveling quietly right in front of everyone—
and he didn't even know yet that their lives might have just become permanently connected forever.