Out on the balcony, Luna raised her head up to the night sky and took in a deep breath. The sky was dark and full of dotted stars, Luna smiled as she stared at them. Nothing like infinite space just floating up in the air to make a person feel like he or she is just a little drop in the vast ocean that is the universe. And that thought puts things in perspective, like how everything that’s happening around a person is way bigger than just that person. Luna placed a hand over her belly. Just like her baby. The baby growing inside her was hers, and for now while nobody else knew of her secret but her, hers alone. But when he or she comes into the world, his or her purpose would be bigger than her, than anybody else, even her child. And that thought just makes keeping the pregnancy secret look like an irrelevant exercise that wouldn’t even matter in a few years to come. Luna let out a breath, still staring at the sky. That didn’t mean it made telling Justin the truth any easier. Be
Over the couple of weeks since she had known she was pregnant, Luna had imagined what it would be like. The moment when she would finally tell Justin the truth. And she had never imagined it this way.Because it was happening, Luna didn’t need a neon sign to tell her. This was the moment when she was going to tell Justin she was pregnant for him. That he was going to be a father, to her baby.Luna gulped again, she opened her mouth and started to let him know, and then a waiter passed by carrying a tray of hors d’oeuvres, again. Luna’s eyes widened for a second as she felt the nausea bubble up inside her throat, she pressed a hand to her mouth to stop it. The smell of the desert wafted up to her nose as the waiter walked past, Luna pressed a hand to her stomach, retching.“Luna? Are you okay?” Justin asked. His hand clamped more firmly around her arm, he peered at her intently. Luna held on to Justin’s hand on her arm, she closed her eyes and willed the nausea back like she had d
Flashback.Luna stared down at the home pregnancy stick in her hand, her heart beating loud in her chest. The positive sign couldn’t be clearer, but just in case it wasn’t, Luna continued to stare at it to be certain. She couldn’t believe her eyes, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Sure, she had thought about it, about getting pregnant for Justin. After all, he was her husband. Even though he hadn’t exactly been acting like one for the duration they’ve been married. But all that wouldn’t have changed the fact that she could get pregnant for him, so she had thought about it.And in fact, she had more than thought about it, she had had hopes for it. She had had hopes that maybe, just maybe, the introduction of a new element into she and Justin’s relationship would help them. A baby, created by both of them. If that didn’t soften Justin’s attitude towards her, she didn’t know what will.So she had had hopes. But she hadn’t expected it to be this early. She and Justin had onl
Present day.Luna stared at Justin like he had grown two heads.“What?!” she exclaimed.Justin looked at her like they were discussing the weather.“I said we’re getting married,” he repeated, like he wasn’t saying the most ridiculous thing Luna had ever heard in her entire life.Luna scoffed, staring at Justin with a dumbfounded look on her face.“No, we’re not,” she countered. She folded her arms across her chest as Justin stared at her. “And we’re not even going to argue about it,” she added, anticipating his mood.“What do you suggest we do then?” Justin asked.Luna scoffed. “Huh, not get married?” she suggested.“We should be getting married, Luna, you’re carrying my child,” Justin said.“And you’re not in a position to make demands,” Luna reminded him. “You are not going to intimidate me into a position, Justin, not this time.”“And when have I ever intimidated you into anything?” Justin asked her.Luna stared at him, and then when he just looked right back at her, L
Luna paced the floor of her office, fuming, spitting mad and boiling.“Who the hell does he think he is?!” she barked at Rita, who just blinked at the sudden noise.She was seated in the visitor’s chair in Luna’s office, where she had been for the past one hour as she listened to Luna’s rant. Rita closed her eyes, she put a finger in her ear, a little concerned about her ability to ever hear anything else other than Luna’s ranting ever again in her lifetime.“I’m sorry, am I boring you?” Luna demanded at Rita’s bored gaze.Rita sighed, she sat up in her seat. “No, I’m just wondering if my ears still work,” she replied glibly.Not amused, Luna glared at Rita. “Would you take this seriously?”Rita sighed again, “Apparently, they still do,” she murmured to herself. She clapped her hands and looked up at Luna. “Look, Luna, you know I’m always down to listen to you, I am always in your corner and I always support you. You know that.”“Doesn’t feel like it right about now,” Luna retu
Much later, when Rita had gone on home, Luna remained in her office, but she wasn’t doing any work. Her back was turned to her desk, she was seated in her chair as she stared out the glass walls surrounding her office, at the night city sight spread out before her. Rita’s words from earlier circled in her head. ‘She and Justin have to talk’. That didn’t sit well with Luna seeing as talking to Justin was the last thing she wanted to do. She didn’t want to talk to him, she didn’t want to see him, hell, she didn’t even want to know him.If she could have one wish as she was seated in her office late at night, at 10PM, staring out at life going on outside her literal glasshouse, Luna would wish she could forget all about Justin Lake. She wished her memories would just cease to consist of him, of the years she had know him, the years she had spent loving him, being married to him, hoping he loved her back. She wished those memories would fade away, and she could go back to being the nai
Luna was used to men staring at her by now. She was a successful woman in her late twenties, beautiful with- as it’s all men seem to be capable of thinking about- a great body. So she was used to the stares. She didn’t let it bother her, because in her opinion, the ones who actually have the guts to walk up to her were the real men. If staring was all a man does at a beautiful woman, then he probably didn’t deserve her.She kept her head high and her gaze focused ahead as she walked into the conference room. There was a long mahogany table in the middle of the spacious room, office chairs lined both sides to the other door at the end of the room. Fluorescent lights shine over the flat surface, making the glass in the middle of the table, glimmer. Men in suits were seated on both sides of the table, their laptops open in front of them. Some of them were typing on their laptops, while some were idly discussing. They all turn to stare at her as she walked into the room. Idle chatter
Chapter TwoLuna’s heart, which had started to settle, jackhammered again at the sight of Justin. She watched, barely breathing, as Justin’s eyes scanned the room. Somehow, his gaze passed over her head for the duration in which he looked at the entire room. And Luna used that time to blink, to stop staring at him so hard, and to let air into her lungs. People start to move, there were mumbles of ‘Good morning, sir’s’ and Justin moved away from the entrance to walk further into the room. As he made his way toward the chair at the head of the conference table, his eyes strayed to Luna briefly. And then he did a double-take. His black eyes narrowed sharply on her face, and the rest of the room faded away.Luna was suddenly back in six years ago, still married to Justin, but on the brink of it all falling apart. Her heart was breaking with Justin’s indifference to his mother’s maltreatment of her, and filled with the pain of loving a man who didn’t love her back. One look into his m