Chapter 34 Something Change

Sierra felt nauseous as she looked at the food on the dining table. She had to hold her breath for a few moments and found herself increasingly uncomfortable being there.

"Are you okay, Sierra?"

She was startled when the first person to notice her unease was Axton—not Callie or his mother.

"I…" She glanced at the array of food before her. "Actually, I'm feeling a bit full. I think I’ll just sit here and eat later tonight before bed."

Callie looked up. "Are you sick?" she asked. "Don’t try lying to me. Are you still feeling nauseous?"

Axton’s mother turned her head toward Sierra. "Are you unwell, Sierra?"

Sierra wasn’t used to receiving so much attention. Still, her heart warmed at their concern. "I’m just feeling full. It’s not a big deal," she replied calmly, even as she fought back the nausea with all her might.

"If you don’t want to eat, you can rest in your room. I’ll ask the maid to save your dinner, and you can warm it up yourself later when you’re hungry. Does that sound okay?"

Sierra nodded. "Great! In that case, I’ll head to my room."

***

As usual, she brought her laptop and phone to the backyard to continue her work. She enjoyed working there at night. However, the past few weeks had disrupted this routine because… well, she had been spending her evenings with Axton.

But Sierra could return to her old habit with Axton’s mother staying over for the past week.

Nothing felt better than breathing in the fresh air while tackling the pile of work that left her neck stiff.

This time, she didn’t just bring her usual cup of hot chocolate; she also carried a plate of spaghetti prepared by the maid, hoping to fill her stomach before bed. She was grateful she could ask for help in the kitchen because she felt nauseous every time she was near it, and she didn’t know why.

"Axton?"

Sierra frowned when she saw Axton sitting in her usual chair during her nighttime routine. He was smoking with a cup of coffee by his side.

Axton turned his head, and Sierra regretted calling out to him. Now, she had no choice but to walk over and sit next to him.

"When did you get here?" Sierra placed her plate of spaghetti on the table and sat down, balancing her laptop on her lap.

She had never seen Axton smoke before, so the sight surprised her.

"Do you come here often?" Axton asked in return.

"Yes," she nodded. "I prefer working out here rather than in my room."

Silence enveloped them, but she didn’t mind. She reached for her plate and began eating her spaghetti.

The nausea returned, but she forced herself to swallow it. And… she managed. It wasn’t as bad as it had been at the dining table two hours ago.

"Are you sick?" He stubbed out his cigarette and placed it in the ashtray. He took a sip of his coffee and leaned back in the chair, facing the dark backyard surrounded by tall trees.

"I don’t think so."

"You look miserable just trying to eat. You’ve been holding back nausea at the dining table, around my friends, and even now, you look paler than usual."

Sierra raised her hand to examine her skin closely. Did she really look pale?

"Maybe I look pale because I’m not wearing makeup," she suggested.

"Do you think I’ve never seen you without makeup?"

Sierra didn’t have an answer.

Damn. He had turned her words against her, leaving her at a loss for what to do.

"If you’re sick, you should tell Callie. She’ll take you to the hospital."

Sierra nodded. "I’ll let her know if I’m really sick. But I’m not."

She furrowed her brow, realizing her plate of spaghetti was empty, even though she’d been there for less than five minutes.

"I can ask the maid to make more. Would you like that?" Axton seemed to notice, too.

Sierra shook her head. "I think I’ll just go to bed. I’m tired." She packed up her laptop, feeling foolish for coming out only to finish her dinner. "Goodnight, Axton."

Axton remained silent, watching her walk away.

Sierra slightly regretted saying goodnight to him. She wouldn't have bothered if she’d known he would ignore her.

"Goodnight, Sierra," Axton murmured softly just as she reached the back door.

***

"Alright, I can’t help but worry about you since you’re skipping breakfast again, Sierra," Callie complained as Sierra declined the breakfast options prepared by the maid.

Sierra took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I’m still full from eating so late last night. I think I’ll have breakfast at the office like yesterday."

She lied. And it surprised her how easily the lie slipped from her lips, as though she’d been doing it her whole life.

"Would you like something else, Sierra?" Axton’s mother asked.

Sierra didn’t know why, but her heart always felt touched whenever his mother showed her kindness. It felt like the care she used to receive from her late mother. And she missed that.

She would never have let her life become such a mess if her mother were still alive.

"No, it’s not about the food. I just feel full."

"That’s a terrible excuse, and I don’t like it," Callie said with a frown. "You’ve been doing this for two days now."

Sierra sighed in defeat and finally scooped some soup into her bowl. She watched the steam rising from it, hoping she could swallow it even though the smell alone was already making her nauseous.

"Good girl!" Callie exclaimed as she returned her attention to her plate of breakfast.

Sierra forced herself to swallow the soup, closing her eyes and lowering her head so no one would notice her struggle. When she finally looked up, she found Axton staring at her intently.

Ignoring him, she quickly scooped another spoonful of soup. However, just as she was about to swallow it, nausea hit her again, and she couldn’t hold it in anymore. She stood abruptly and ran toward her room like she had done the previous morning. Unfortunately, this time, she wasn’t fast enough, and she ended up vomiting right at the dining room doorway.

Everyone watched what she had done, and she felt utterly terrible.

She had ruined their breakfast by doing something so revolting.

“I’ll clean it up,” a maid rushed over with a bucket and mop as they realized what had happened.

Sierra shook her head and took the mop. “Let me do it. I’m sorry,” she said softly.

“Miss,” the maid looked at her incredulously.

“Sierra, what are you doing?” Callie hurried over to her, trying to stop her.

“Step aside. I’ll clean this, Callie,” Sierra said, avoiding her.

Unfortunately, the nausea returned, making her stomach churn again. She couldn’t hold it and bent over to vomit once more.

This was worse than anything.

She could feel tears streaming down her face and couldn’t understand why she was crying at a time like this.

“Sierra,” Callie pried the mop from her hands and handed it to the servant. “Let’s go to your room.”

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled, wiping her tears.

“What are you talking about?” Callie guided her away from the scene. “You don’t have to say sorry.”

Before leaving the dining room, Sierra caught sight of Axton’s mother watching her with concern while Axton rose from his seat, his face rigid.

Normally, she could read his thoughts as if they were an open book. But this time, she couldn’t decipher the meaning of his gaze.

***

Miraculously, Sierra still went to work after all the chaos she caused.

She left with Axton as usual, and Callie made her promise to return home if she felt unwell.

The problem was she only felt sick when she faced food. Without food, she was perfectly fine.

The second problem was that she was hungry after skipping breakfast again.

This is crazy.  

“Why are we stopping here?” she frowned when Axton turned the car toward the same restaurant they had visited yesterday morning.

“You’re hungry, aren’t you?”

She nodded. “I’ll mess things up here, Axton. Don’t you remember what I did at the breakfast table?”

“Then I’ll just have the staff clean their floors,” Axton replied. “Don’t worry. Let’s go in.”

Hesitantly, Sierra got out of the car. In the end, she followed him inside and ordered the same breakfast as yesterday.

Amazingly, she didn’t feel nauseous at all.

Damn, something was wrong with her.

“Why do you keep working if you’re unwell, Sierra?” Axton sipped his coffee and cut into his toast.

Sierra looked up, her mouth full of eggs. “I wouldn’t know what to do at home. I think Callie needs time with your mom to improve their relationship a little.”

Axton paused, looking at her for a moment before returning to his meal. “You know their relationship isn’t great.”

“That’s very obvious,” she replied. “I think Callie just misunderstood because, as far as I’ve known your mom, she seems very caring toward her.”

Axton nodded in agreement. Then, he slid his plate over to hers, pouring all his toast onto her plate. “Eat,” he said, gesturing toward the plate in front of her.

“Actually, my mom caused the misunderstanding, which is why Callie has never been able to accept her to this day fully. You know how quick Callie is to form judgments about people from their first meeting, right? If her judgment is positive, she’ll like that person forever. But if it’s negative, she won’t change her mind, even after years.”

Sierra nodded in agreement. She was well aware of this as someone who had known Callie for years.

“My mom made her uncomfortable during their first meeting, so this is the result. My family also struggled to accept her when they found out she was ill and would have difficulty having children. But I’ve ensured they accept my decision now, and no one pressures Callie anymore,” Axton sighed. “But Callie’s judgment hasn’t changed, has it? What I’m doing now is just to please her. You are doing the same, aren't you, Sierra?”

Axton’s question didn’t receive an answer. Sierra remained silent, pondering his words.

Even minutes later, when they were back in the car, she was still thinking about what Axton had said.

They made a brief stop at a drugstore because she felt... she needed to buy something. Then, they continued to the office, working professionally as usual.

But something weighed on her—a nagging feeling that began to haunt her thoughts because she might not truly know her best friend.

What if everything Callie had said was just in her head, not what had actually happened?

What if, all this time, no one had pressured her to have children, and Sierra was just caught in her friend’s thoughts?

She wasn’t sure what to think. For a moment, she doubted Callie after everything they had been through over the past years.

She couldn’t believe she was questioning it now. But she realized something had changed within her—from her eating habits, sleep patterns, and mood to her disordered thoughts lately. All of this led her to one possibility…

She closed her eyes for a few seconds before looking at the result of the pregnancy test she had bought earlier.

The moment she opened her eyes, she felt her heart stop for a few moments, her hands trembling as she held the test.

Oh God, her life was about to change forever.