Mary was entering the second trimester, and she couldn’t be happier. The first trimester came with terrible morning sickness, weird cravings, and fatigue. But Gone were the morning sickness and fatigue. But that didn’t mean it didn’t come with its own flaws; she was like a ravenous wolf, and it felt like her stomach was just an empty hole.Mary had passed in front of the mirror as she was dressing up, and she came closer. To her horror, she discovered her stomach had lines of stretch marks running about it. Same with her buttocks. She released a deep breath, having long accepted it as a sign of pregnancy.Pregnancy 101 has been her regular YouTube channel, and it has been helpful for her as a first-time mom. It had helped her maintain some level headedness during her pregnancy.And there was no more hiding it now, as her stomach was more pronounced. But nevertheless, it had been a blessing; people were soft in terms of pregnant women, especially young ones, so when they saw her stomac
"We should go shopping," Amy suggested as they left the hospital. The sun shone and cast its bright golden rays on them, as it was still summer, although it was coming to an end in a few weeks. "I don’t think so; we need to go back to the house." Mary spoke, her eyes searching for an empty taxi. There were no bus terminals around, hence the taxi. "Yeah, we do." Amy linked her arm with Mary and began to drag her in the opposite direction. "Walmart is just 5 minutes walk from here, and you need exercise. Have you forgotten what the doctors said?" "I haven’t forgotten, but we have no time for that, nor do I have the money. I am on a budget right now." "Don’t worry. It is my treat. Plus, you really need some new clothes. You have already outgrown a lot of your clothes, and they are already bursting at the seams. You need something comfortable. Beside, your son needs clothes too." Mary looked at her friend and sighed. "I know, but it is going to be expensive." "Don’t worry, it is my t
"How do you feel?" Amy asked her friend as they came out of the salon. Gone was the blonde hair that cascaded down her back. In its place was brown hair, the shade of ground coffee. Mary had taken the advice of her hairstylist and had chosen that color. "Like a million bucks." Mary beamed at her friend. They had arrived at the salon a little late, so they were the last customers, and the intensity of the sun had reduced. "Yeah, you do. Although this will take a little time to get used to, I am used to seeing a freaking Barbie, and now you are just plain Jane. But nevertheless, you are still beautiful." Amy smiled, the corners of her eyes crinkling. She felt like a proud mom. "I know, right," Mary said, flinging her hair at her friend. "I feel beautiful." This past month with Amy has boosted her self-esteem, plus the attention she has been getting from people just has a way of making you feel good. Gone were those baggy clothes she had on from the convent; they were replaced with c
Mary stood behind Amy, her arms folded. She didn’t know why her friend had insisted she tag along when all she wanted to do was curl up in her bed, soak her leg in warm water, and sleep.Then her stomach growled. Okay, maybe she would just get something to eat before she went to sleep. But nevertheless, the last place she wanted to be was here.Amy opened the door of the restaurant, and they were met with stark darkness, which was strange. Although today was an off day for the two, Mary could recall that the restaurant had been opened that morning.She was sure she saw the open sign in front, but everywhere was completely dark. She squinted her eyes as she tried to make out Amy in the darkness."Amy?" Mary called, unsure, her hands stretched out and circling the area as she tried to find her way to a nearby switch. And then…"Surprise!" The screams pierced the air, and the lights were turned on. Mary shielded her eyes with her hand as the sudden brightness overwhelmed her senses.She
Everyone had retired to their beds only after cleaning up, of course. If they still wanted to keep their jobs, they were sure to clean up, because that was one thing Jack wasn’t going to stand for.He was fine with them using the restaurant even during working hours, although Lincoln had actually paid him to rent the hall for a few hours.But one thing he wasn't going to stand for was littering. Hence, once they were through, they had both joined hands to arrange the chairs and table in place until the hall looked like its former form. A restaurant.Meanwhile, as they cleaned up, Mary had been taking trips to their room to keep the gifts she had been given. Everyone had brought wonderful gifts that would be useful to her and the baby, and she was truly grateful.She was carrying the last batch of left-overs when Amy ran to meet her. "Let me help." And without warning, she snatched the items from Mary's hands, and together they climbed the stairs.It was fruitless to argue with Amy, so
The next day was Thanksgiving, and the two friends woke up early to prepare for the day. The dinner starts at 4 p.m., and Amy had said she wanted to go a little late or else she would be forced to cook.So they spent the morning in their room, lounging around, and eating a light breakfast. At about 30 minutes to the time of 12, they started getting dressed so they could catch the 12:00 train.Apparently, Amy had seen a nice dress in the mall and bought it for Mary as a gift. But they have been choked by a lot of activities, and she had forgotten to give it to her. But it has come in handy now.The dress was a dark green ribbed knit bodycon maternity dress with long sleeves and a side slit, the length stopping way past her knees. The weather was chilly, so Mary paired it with a brown knit cardigan and a brown boot. She had let her hair down, and it cascaded down to her back.Amy wore a white cardigan with dark blue jeans and knee-high boots. She had completed her look with her dark gla
Mary remained in the living room with Amy’s younger sister and father. Their father had taken the white sofa just as Mary predicted, and he had turned on the television, content with watching football.So Mary was left with the younger sister, who had a knack for asking questions."So how did you meet my sister? She had never talked about you during our talks." Lauren asked, perched on the arm of the sofa."We are colleagues and roommates." Mary curtly answered, praying she wasn’t going to ask any questions again. In order to ensure that, Mary pulled out her phone and started scrolling through her pictures.And it worked because Lauren stopped bothering her; instead, she brought out her own phone and started using it.Mary had never been the social media type, and she didn’t feel the need to create any since her social circle is small. Hence, she was scrolling through her gallery. She continued swiping left until she stopped at a picture Amy had taken of her.Her stomach had been more
Fall had come and gone, and winter was in the air. The night was long and cold, and the morning was the same, except that the streets were filled with snow.Thanksgiving dinner has been a success, and by the time they left the house, they were each holding a bag of takeout that Amy's mother had packed for them.Christmas was approaching, and all the cities had been decorated with Christmas lights and decor.Stores were not left out either; everyone had a lot of Christmas decorations and a Christmas tree in front. Wherever you go, Christmas jingles fill the air.Neither was Jack’s restaurant left out. They had ditched their regular uniform for one that had all the Christmas colors. But not Mary; Jack had been considerate enough to give her maternity leave.So while the others slaved away in the restaurant, working their asses off, Mary would be in her room munching on some fruits, watching videos on parenting, or just generally watching movies.Her stomach had grown so big as she neare
Mary didn’t end up getting a divorce.No matter how she tried, Nicholas refused to sign the papers. But they got separated.She had moved out of the mansion to get her own accommodations in a bid to find herself. She had gotten a new apartment away from the hustle and bustle of New York City.She was willing to start afresh, and she hoped that the new environment would help.His friends have been against it, especially Helena, seeing she had moved there in search of her and was given a job by Nicholas.But Mary had reassured her that there was no need for all that. Helena had no issue with Nicholas, so there was no need to try to quit her job.But Mary had refused Nicholas help; I mean, there was no need to when she had his credit card and did whatever she wanted with it.But she had chosen to spend it wisely.She had gotten a job as a model for a small clothing line that deals with curvy ladies, and Mary liked every bit of it. She got free clothes every now and then, so it was an adde
The next day, Mary was no better; no matter how much Nicholas had tried to seek an audience with her, she always found a way to escape. Gone are the days when she was the one begging for his attention.She didn’t have such time; instead, she had taken to exploring—a harmless one, though.It began when Nicholas had come back from work rather early, unlike his usual self, and he found a strange lady sitting in his living room and his son playing around the house.Nicholas was alarmed, and he entered quietly in order not to startle the lady while his hands reached for his phone to call 911."Oh, you are back. Good evening, Mr. Harrington. I will be taking my leave now." The lady stood up to go, but Nicholas prevented her."Who are you, and why are you in my house?" Nicholas asked; he still had the police on speed dial and was ready to call them if necessary."I am the babysitter your wife hired. Here." She stood up and handed him something that seemed to be a card. Nicholas eyed the card
"Oh fuck." Mary cursed as she saw the doctor approaching her. The only time she decided to unwind and let loose was when he decided to be here.She sighed, lifting her eyes to the sky; only there was a ceiling preventing her. Why was the universe out to get her?"Well hello? Mary, is it?""Oh hi. Lewis." Mary greeted him cheerfully, still slightly tipsy from all the drinks. "Fancy seeing you here?"Lewis chuckled, finding her assuming. "I should be asking you that. I live here, and I am familiar with some people here. You are the one that is sort of a stranger here.""Yea. I live.." She gestured outside the door and frowned. Where exactly did she live again?"Let me pour you a drink." The bartender said to Lewis, already reaching for a bottle of wine on the shelf."There is no need for that. I am not staying long." He refused the drink."Oh, that is alright. You can pour me his share; I would take it." Mary offered and swerved to grab the glass. But a firm hand stopped her."I don’t t
Mary stormed to her room, bolting the door as she got in and headed straight for the sofa. She dumped herself on it and continued eating from her bowl of fruit, but she was seething inside.The audacity he had. How dare he come back home after so long? The only thing he could say was, "Hey, I got your message."Mary was seething in her seat. Has he always been this nonchalant and uncaring, or has she just been ignoring it all this time? She couldn’t help but wonder.Well, it didn’t matter what the answer was because it ends today. She was done being the doormat he could just toss aside. Starting today, it was a new Mary.She stilled as she heard footsteps coming close to her door, and her ears perked as they listened for movements. But the footsteps stopped just in front of her door, and there was silence.The footsteps resumed, but this time away from her, and Mary sighed in frustration.He was such a coward.If she could have her way, she would have spent the rest of her day in her
The surgery was successful, and they removed her appendix, but Mary was required to stay in the hospital for monitoring for another day. It was to be for two days, but she had refused, threatening to leave on the same day, so they came to a compromise, and it was for an extra day.She had been away from her son for so long—the first of a kind—and she was starting to get worried. She could imagine he would be crying his tiny lungs out, and she couldn't bear to think of that.She had woken up from the surgery with a foggy head and tenderness in her abdomen, and as usual, she was alone. She didn’t bother checking up on her phone for any messages from Nicholas because it was already obvious he didn’t care.He had yet to reply to her message from two days ago, so there was no way he would be here.With nothing to do, her mind began to wander to different places, but most especially to Nicholas, or rather, her unfortunate relationship with Nicholas.After minutes of deliberating about the a
The kind doctor, whose name Mary hadn’t bothered to learn, had taken an interest in her, and he had been helping her run the hospital stuff.He was lucky enough to be able to fix an operation for her with the surgeon the next day, so she had to be hospitalized.Mary spent most of the day sleeping in; the drug they had given her was making her feel drowsy, so she didn’t know when time passed by.But the young doctor had taken it upon himself to look into her case, especially when he found out she had no one with her.He had taken it upon himself to always check in on her when he wasn’t so busy, making sure she was well covered and the pillow was comfortable for her, and Mary appreciated the gestures.Her head had been fuzzy from all the drugs they had been pumping into her, and she was slippy in and out of consciousness.She had woken up later in the evening to see her phone swimming in a sea of messages and calls. All from Amy. Mary didn’t hesitate to call her, and she waited as the c
The mini-get-together ended on a high note, and it was safe to say that the three had become best friends, and Mary couldn’t be happier.It was easy since Helena and Amy had similar characteristics and were able to get along easily. She was happy that she had two females she could rely on, and Cole had two aunties who loved him dearly and would spoil him rotten.Everything was slowly looking up for her; even her academics have been going well. It wasn't as easy as it felt, but with time it had gotten easier for her, and she dare say she was enjoying the classes.But one thing was still stagnant. She and Nicholas were yet to make any headway.In fact, it had become so bad that she couldn’t remember the last time she and her husband saw eye-to-eye. It was Cole who had been keeping her company; otherwise, the house would become too suffocating for her.At least she had Netflix, and there was always food around, so she used that to comfort herself.Mary has been feeling some pain in her s
While Helena may not be living with them, the girls were still communicating as Helena was able to get a new phone and they had gotten really close.Mary had been the happiest since Amy came back, and she was happy to have her friend close by. Everything seems to be looking up for her.It was just to introduce her friends to each other that was left. Amy had no idea how Helena looked, and neither did Helena. Although Mary has mentioned them to each other, she has been planning how to bring them closer so it would be a sisterhood.It was the weekend, and that means Nicholas was out of town for a meeting. I mean, when is he never out? Mary barely sees him nowadays, so she arranged the meeting at her house.She was preparing the meal that they were going to have, all while praying that they liked each other. It would make her life easier if it were so. At least Cole would have two aunts, and he could be taking turns passing the night at their house.She had put the last batch of muffins
Helena is here.The words were something Mary thought she would never hear, and it was as if they weren’t true, but her childhood friend turned sister was in the living room, sitting and waiting for her, and Mary didn’t know how to act."Get your act together, Mary; it is just Helena." She said to herself as she stood in front of the mirror.It had all begun when Cameron called her that one Helena was in his home and wanted to see her. She hadn’t believed it at first and thought he was playing a fast one on her, so she had asked him to bring her over.And it turned out he wasn’t lying. Helena was actually heard.But she saw them as they were getting out of the car, and she panicked and ran to her bedroom."It will be fine. It is just Helena." She said to the reflection of the mirror, and she heard Cole huff as if in agreement with her.She went towards her son, who was attempting to stand on his own, and she picked him up. He let out a cry, angry that he was disturbed. But Mary ruffl