Tiffany’s heart rate sped up. She didn’t have any man around her usually and she wasn’t close to her colleagues, so there was hardly anyone to show concern for her. She did not expect Jackson to believe her casual lie and actually take responsibility for it!“There’s no need for that… Don’t worry about me, I can handle it by myself,” Tiffany rejected kindly, the offer very nice for a pregnancy that didn’t exist in the first place. She would expose herself if the topic continued to be discussed.“It’s better to have the abortion as early as possible, since dragging it out won’t be good to you. That aside, from now on, I’ll pack you lunch every day. You need to stop eating at the office’s cafeteria. The food there is decent, but the meals don’t exactly maintain the balanced diet a pregnant woman needs. We’ll make do with the White Waters Bay Restaurant for today.” Jackson was composed, perfecting his plans for Tiffany within minutes.Tiffany would feel worse and worse if she continued ly
When office hours were ending, Jackson texted Tiffany. “I’ve got a dinner to attend tonight so I can’t watch over you. Remember, don’t eat what you shouldn’t.”Tiffany felt bewildered reading the text. Why was the man being so nice? It was as if the baby was his. A sense of frustration clawed at her as she went home after work without replying.Upon arriving home, she found Lillian having fruits on the couch. “Tiffie, I don’t have any more cash. Auntie Renee invited me for mahjong tomorrow. Give me three hundred dollars.”“Three hundred? Just sell me off, okay? Are you still eating? Still turning the AC on? You always lose but you keep going at it. I have nothing to say.” Tiffany changed out of her shoes and went back to her room.Lillian’s face fell as she said in a louder tone, “If that’s the case, do you think Mark will thank me and offer me some reward if I tell him that Arianne is pregnant? I’ve got no choice but to ‘make’ money on my own if you refuse to give me some. Say, he’ll
Arianne was speechless as she walked over to clean the mess. The takeout from two days ago smelled horrible, as if it had started to rot. Being more sensitive to smell now that she was pregnant, she couldn’t help but dry heave. Suddenly aware of the situation, Lillian exclaimed, “I forgot that you’re pregnant! Leave it, leave it, I’ll clean it up. Wash up and go rest! Do you want to eat anything? I can order takeout for you!”Shaking her head, Arianne held her breath and cleared garbage off of the coffee table. “Auntie Lane, Tiffie is tired from work too. You shouldn’t trouble her with minor tasks like these when you can handle them too. The other chores, like mopping the floor or cleaning the house, can be done over the weekends.”Lillian agreed but her eyes were glued to the television, obviously making perfunctory replies.Arianne did not have the heart to say anything else, taking her clothes and going for a shower. She got off work quite early today but still felt thoroughly exhau
His fixation? In Arianne’s life, she had never met anyone who had any sort of strange fixation, so it was hard for her to imagine.As if recalling something, Tiffany suddenly said, “You haven’t eaten, right? What do you feel like having? I’ll check the fridge to see what ingredients we have. Otherwise, we can only order takeout.”Tiffany rummaged through the fridge but could not even find a piece of green. “Ari, we have nothing. I’ll wake up earlier tomorrow to go to the market. What do you want for tonight?”Arianne was worried about the hygiene of takeout. In fact, a lot of shops had inferior cleanliness standards. No one was prepared for takeout either, hence she decided to eat out. “Can we go out for dinner? Anything is fine.”Lillian, who heard their conversation, was the first to express her ardent support. “Yeah, let’s eat out. We have nothing at home, let’s go, let’s go!”Tiffany sniffed the lingering scent in the air. “Mom, you’ve eaten, haven’t you? Can you still stomach more
She had gone slightly overboard with her words. The mother and daughter may bicker most of the time, but this time, Arianne sensed it, the atmosphere was different than usual. It was more sombre, nothing like the explosions that usually happened after a huge suppression.Tiffany did not yell at Lillian, but replied to her in a very calm voice instead, “Yes, I give you $2,000 a month. My pay is $12,000 a month. Once I exclude your $2,000, I have $6,000 to pay for rent. The remaining $4,000 has to be used for water, electricity and a month’s worth of living expenses. Your $2,000 isn’t calculated in the living expenses, and I’ve been paying for your takeout too. Sometimes, you ask me for extra allowance for mahjong games. Have you ever considered how I’ve been surviving?”Lillian did not seem guilty at all. The expression on her face was of fury and disdain.Arianne finally understood why Tiffany’s financial situation was so dire. Actually, when Tiffany and Lillian were the only ones l
She carried the thermal lunch box over to Jackson’s office, asking, “Do you really plan on bringing me lunch every day?” Jackson was in the middle of working on something, glancing over at her when he heard her voice. “Why? Does it taste bad?” Placing the lunch box on his desk, she said, “It’s not that, I just want to know why you’re doing this. Don’t give me any of that crap about a boss being concerned for his employee. There are plenty of pregnant ladies in this office and I’ve never seen you do anything like this for any of them. And don’t say that it’s because Ari is my friend, either, or that you’re doing this for Mark. That’s a lie and we all know it.” Jackson put down his work and stared at her, jokingly asking, “Come on, we’ve ‘slept’ together, haven’t we? After all that, you shouldn’t be concerned about a small matter like this, should you?” Tiffany was in no mood for jokes, continuing on, “You don’t possibly have feelings for me, do you?” Jackson was taken aback, s
Jackson heaved a sigh of relief. “That’s fine. Eat the food, since it’s already here. Next time, if I happen to wake up early and have some spare time, I can make you a meal and bring it over for you, since I’m already doing it. It’s only out of convenience, so you don’t have to feel burdened.”Tiffany heaved a sigh of relief as well. She took the thermal lunch box and left.Tremont Tower.Lillian fanned herself with a flyer while staring up at the large building. After a while, she walked in towards the front desk. “Miss, could you call your CEO for me? Tell him that I’m Tiffany Lane’s mother and that I have something to tell him. Your CEO’s wife is staying at my house.”The receptionist picked up the phone when she heard this, “Alright, please wait a moment.”The call was connected. The receptionist carefully said, “Mr. Tremont, there’s someone here to see you. She claims to be Tiffany Lane’s mother.”“Send her up,” Mark’s apathetic voice responded through the receiver.Once t
“Ari is pregnant. I’ve checked the medical report, it’s been twelve weeks. About three months, I’m guessing. She’s not alone now, and she’s had to work overtime until very late recently. She always looks pale and exhausted when she arrives home, all for the sake of some meager salary. It’s heartbreaking. I don’t know what’s happened between you two. She’s probably refusing to tell you because she doesn’t want to move back home. She’s pregnant, after all. It’s more important for her to remain happy. I’m just giving you a heads up. It’s still best to let her stay wherever she wants. What do you think?” Lillian tread cautiously with her every word as she tried her best to read Mark’s expression.Mark shivered. She’s pregnant again? His mind immediately thought of the day Arianne had been admitted to the hospital, bleeding profusely. He also remembered what the doctor had said — the chances of her getting pregnant again are very slim… Later, they had only made love a few times, and it was