POLLEN'S POV After a short nap that was supposed to help ease my mind, I woke up in pain instead. My head was hammering like it would split into halves.My eyes were still puffy, with streaks of dried tears hanging on the sides. Not wanting to leave the bed, I lay there for a few more moments, just staring at the roof.Seeing that I might remain in that supine position that felt like a trap, I rolled out abruptly.Laura wasn't in the room; she must have gone to work—the coffee shop down the street.I strode past her bed to the mini wardrobe we shared to get a pair of shorts and shirt. I showered and threw them on before going out to face my mother again. When I got to the living room, there was no one, but a noise from the kitchen caught my attention, and I went there.Laura didn't go to work as I thought; she was at the sink doing the dishes. Her entire body swayed to look at me when she heard my footsteps. “No work?” I asked calmly and reached for the fridge handle. “No. Decided t
RAYMOND'S POV Natasha still had the same long blonde hair; it fell on her shoulders. She was wearing a light blue top over black pants and high heels. Her sassy signature smile brightly plastered on her face as she approached us. When she saw me, her blue eyes sparkled even more.“Raymond!” Her hands flew to her mouth as those blue orbs widened. “I can't believe my eyes!” She squealed and darted towards me.Mother giggled by my side, and I could tell she was ecstatic. She has always had this obsession with me and Natasha being a thing. It was so strong that I ended up believing I was into the girl as well, that she was the one for me. I was confident we were meant for each other, but it was all a mirage that needed a little leap into adolescence for me to decipher. “You look so—” She held her breath to find the right word, but failed. Or maybe she was just too proud to admit what she wanted to say as usual. She has always been an egoistic person who was hard to please, someone who
RAYMOND'S POV “Let's get married,” she sputtered, and I froze. I was too astounded to say a word. “I know this sounds weird, and I am not in the position to say something like this, but—” “But what?” “I am willing to do anything to help you get that company,” she said with so much conviction. “What are you talking about?" I asked, still stunned, that she would propose such a thing. “You don't have to hide it; your mom told me everything,” she explained. “I know she did. Which was why you agreed to the date without a second thought?” “That’s not the case." Natasha paused to observe my face. “I know I messed things up when I chose Daniel, but you are whom I really wanted. And I only realized that when I moved to France.”She left her seat to meet me. “I still love you, Raymond—as a friend and romantically. And I will do anything to make you happy.” “Even bearing me a child?” I scoffed in disbelief. “You deserve to be CEO without this drama you are being dragged into. But sin
POLLEN'S POV It was barely three days after my last messy date, and my mother and Aunt Margaret had fixed another one.To avert what happened the last time, even though it wasn't entirely my fault, my mother drove me to the fine dining herself. “Let me see you walk in,” she said immediately I alighted from the car. When I came out of the car, she turned the engine off to watch me go inside. Her eyes didn't drift from me for a second, as I always found her staring every time I looked back. A text from her popped in when I took my place in the restaurant.“Don’t mess this up,” I read it in her voice. By the time I looked up, I saw her car driving away through the glass walls.I sat at the table reserved for my date, feeling restless and eager to get out of the premises. But leaving immediately will be dumb. I was very sure my mother would be lurking around somewhere to see if I would sneak out. After sitting for a couple of moments while fervently praying for my date not to show up. I
POLLEN'S POV “She hasn't had her menstrual cycle for the past two months and didn't even say a word to me. I had to find out from her younger sister." My mother sputtered to the doctor, who was massaging my stomach with the ultrasound transducer. The doctor, a woman in her late 30s, only smiled as her eyes remained stuck to the screen in concentration. “We suspected it might be some sort of infection causing a blockage, which of course can be embarrassing but—” Mother started again, and I had to interrupt. "Mother,” I muttered between gritted teeth, and she listened temporarily. “I don't understand why she would keep such a vital thing from me." She began again, and I had to struggle not to give an eye roll. “What do you expect?” The doctor smiled warmly. “Kids will always be secretive, especially when they are all grown,” she said, and my mother nodded in affirmation. The doctor paused for a while to have a proper look at the screen; she took the transducer off my belly and re
POLLEN’S POV “What do you mean by that?” My mother’s eyes narrowed in confusion as she asked with a look of disbelief on her face, her voice laced with a deep skepticism. “What do you mean by the man you met on the blind date got you pregnant? You didn’t go on the blind date, remember?” She pushed herself forward in her seat to look at me questionably.I couldn’t even look at her face from where I sat on the floor. “I—I did,” I blurted, bowing my head to fiddle with my fingers. “How?!” My mother yelled; she was losing it already. “Didn’t Aunt Maggie give her the wrong address?” Laura, who pretended to be watching TV but listened intently to our conversation, spoke up from the other couch. “I—” I stammered, looking away. “I went to the wrong address and met with the wrong person,” my mother exclaimed, sounding angry now. Laura, on the other hand, spun to look at me. “You had a one-nightstand with your wrong date?” Laura’s eyes almost popped. “You had a one-nightstand wit
POLLEN’S POV Finding his home was as easy as cheese, but no one warned us about the security men hoarding the premises. I stood at the corner, too ashamed to say a word as Mother fought the gigantic guards protecting the entrance. “You have to let us in!” My mother wailed, pushing against the guards, but none of them paid her any attention. They just stood there, stiff as rock. Her attempt at pushing past the guards to reach the gate and making loud noises made me cringe. When her attacks became unbearable, they tossed her back at every attempt to reach the gate. She kept screaming and cursing, so I held my breath in the corner until she took a recess—Patricia never retreats nor surrenders. She took a few steps away from them before looking at me, “Don’t just stand there! Help me out!” She beckoned me to move closer. “Look at her!” She said to one of the guards, who didn’t look like he gave a hoot. “Do you know who she is?” “No, mother. Don’t do this to me,” I begged, m
POLLEN’S POV My heart seized when I saw him, something I thought would never happen. He was clad in a black tuxedo with his hair neatly gelled back and a surprised expression plastered on his face. The moment I laid eyes on him, all thoughts of the previous night fluttered in my mind. He was a distraction, that’s for sure. A very handsome one at that, and I was not used to seeing attractive men in such an odd yet breath-taking way. “Is that him?” My mother asked, breaking my train of thought. “Yes,” I muttered. From the corner of my eye, I could tell that mother was impressed, but she didn’t show it because it wasn’t the right time. “What are you doing here?” His voice was low, yet still held a commanding undertone. His hostility must have jilted mother back to her senses; the silly look of excitement in her face vanished in a blink. I swallowed as if trying to quench a dry mouth. “I think—I think I’m pregnant,” I blurted. Mother slapped me on the shoulder, and I winced. “Yo