I wanted to believe her, but the gnawing emptiness inside me wouldn’t let me. “What about Regan?” I asked hesitantly, the words slipping out before I could stop myself. Sheila’s expression darkened, her lips pressing into a thin line. For a moment, she didn’t speak, and I felt the silence stretch out uncomfortably between us. “He came once,” she said finally, her voice clipped. “But I didn’t let him see you. I’m sorry, Ana, but I just… I couldn’t. Not after everything he’s put you through. It’s always him, isn’t it?” Her words hit me like a punch to the gut, but I couldn’t argue with her. Regan was always at the center of my chaos, the storm I couldn’t seem to escape. “It’s fine, Sheila,” I murmured, though the ache in my chest said otherwise. “You don’t have to apologize. It’s true that he was always my chaos”Sheila’s hand covered mine again, her grip firm but comforting. “You don’t have to think about him right now, Ana. Just focus on getting better, okay?” I hesitated, biting
“There’s… something else,” she murmured, squeezing my hand just a little tighter.I frowned, my heart skipping a beat. “What?” The wariness in my voice was undeniable. A hundred possibilities ran through my mind, twisting my stomach into knots.Sheila hesitated as if weighing whether she should say it now or not. Then, with a playful smirk, she shook her head. “Not yet”I narrowed my eyes. “Sheila.”She laughed softly, leaning back in her chair. “Nope. Not telling you yet. I want to do this properly. You deserve a little excitement after all the crap you’ve been through.” “I don’t think I can handle any more bad news”“I know,” she said, grinning. “But trust me, it’ll be worth it. Just wait until this afternoon.”Suspense curled inside me. Sheila wasn’t one to hold back important information, so for her to tease me like this meant whatever it was… it had to be big. I was about to demand more when the door suddenly opened, and a familiar voice rang out.“Anastasia…”I turned toward th
The afternoon sun cast a golden hue across my room, spilling through the windows. The silence had stretched for too long, my mind wandering between exhaustion and the weight of everything that had happened. But when the door suddenly burst open, I blinked in surprise.Sheila stood there, dressed in casual clothes. A loose, comfortable sweater draped over her frame, paired with simple jeans and sneakers. But what caught my attention wasn’t just her sudden change of attire—it was what she carried.In one arm, she balanced a beautifully wrapped box, the soft pastel ribbons tied into an elegant bow. On the other hand, she held a small camera, her fingers gripping it like she had been waiting for this moment all day. And then there was the cake—a decadent-looking one, rich and layered, placed carefully on a tray.“What—” I started, eyeing the assortment of items she carried, but she cut me off with an excited grin.“I could not wait to tell you the surprise I mentioned earlier!” she practi
The world around me seemed to slow down. My hands clenched around the ultrasound, my gaze glued to it, as if afraid that looking away would make it disappear. I opened my mouth, but no words came out—just a sharp intake of breath, my throat tightening with emotion.“I—” My voice cracked.Sheila plopped down onto the chair beside me, an uncharacteristically wide grin on her face. “Surprise!”A strangled laugh escaped me, half-disbelieving, half-overwhelmed. “I-is this real?” I whispered.“As real as it gets.” She nudged me gently. “I found out after your accident. But with everything that happened, I wanted to tell you when you were strong enough.”I placed a hand over my stomach, my mind racing.A baby. My baby.The thought sent another wave of emotions crashing over me—fear, happiness, uncertainty. But above all… love. A deep, unfamiliar kind of love.Sheila let out a playful groan, reaching over to swipe at my tears with her sleeve, shaking her head dramatically. “Oh, come on, don’t
I sighed softly, a faint smile tugging at my lips as I looked at Sheila. “You know, for the first time in a while, I feel… happy,” I said, my voice quiet but warm. “Despite everything, I feel like I have something to look forward to.”Sheila’s face lit up with a gentle smile, her usual no-nonsense demeanor softening. “That’s a good sign, Ana. You deserve to feel happy—really happy. And you know I’ll always be here to support you, no matter what.”Her words filled me with a warmth I hadn’t felt in ages. “Thank you, Sheila. I don’t think I’d have made it through any of this without you.”She brushed off my gratitude with a small wave of her hand. “Oh, stop it. You’ve got enough on your plate without giving me credit. You’re stronger than you think, Ana. You always have been.”I hesitated, my mind shifting to the practicalities of my situation. “Do you think I’m okay to leave? I mean, I feel fine enough to go home.”Sheila gave me a look that was somewhere between affectionate and exaspe
The morning sun painted the hospital room in soft golden hues, casting long shadows against the sterile white walls. I sat on the bed, absentmindedly tracing patterns on the blanket with my fingers, waiting—waiting for something I wasn’t even sure would come. Then, a knock came. Soft yet firm. I straightened. “Come in.” The door creaked open, and there he was. My grandfather. The man who had always been the pillar of our family, the unshakable force that held everything together. But today, he looked… tired. The sharpness in his gaze, the one that had always been filled with quiet authority, was dimmed by something deeper. His movements were slower. For the first time in years, I saw guilt in his eyes. He stepped inside, closing the door with deliberate care. He didn’t speak at first, only observing me as if taking in the damage that had been done. Then, without hesitation, he sat beside me and reached for my hand. His fingers, once strong and commanding, now trembled slightly
Then, he sighed heavily, rubbing his temple. “I should have stopped it,” he murmured. “From the very beginning. I should have—” “Don’t,” I whispered, cutting him off. “Don’t say that.” He couldn’t say that. Because if he did, it meant everything I had sacrificed, everything I had endured, had been for nothing. I forced another smile, my hands gripping the blanket tighter. “I made my choices.” His expression softened, “You shouldn’t have had to.” Another silence settled between us. This time, I was the one to break it. “Regan hasn’t visited,” I said, my voice quiet but firm. He stiffened slightly but didn’t look surprised. “I figured.” “I thought… I thought maybe he would.” He exhaled, shaking his head. “He’s a fool.” “I know.” Another pause. Then, my grandfather studied me closely. Too closely. "Do you still love him?" he asked. The question caught me off guard. Love? Did I still love Regan? The man who had chosen Zarina over me. The man who had begged me for a divorce.
A week had passed since the accident. Since everything had fallen apart.Physically, I was fine—fully recovered, as my doctors had confirmed. But my family still insisted I stay in the hospital a little longer. They hovered, worried and protective as if I was made of glass. A part of me understood. They had lost me once before, and maybe now, they were terrified it would happen again.But no one knew the real reason I was taking extra care of myself. No one except Sheila and my OB-GYN.My pregnancy remained a secret.Since the moment I found out, I had done everything to follow the list of guidelines Sheila and my doctor had given me. I ate healthy, rested properly, and stayed away from stress as much as I could. My brothers and grandfather visited me daily, showering me with attention and concern. It felt strange—having them here, showing they cared—after years of distance. And my father? He never came.I had also noticed something else. At times, when I was half asleep, a faint but
Susan and the maids rushed toward me as I descended the stairs, their worried faces blurring as my vision swam. My legs felt like they weren’t my own, each step unsteady. The world tilted, and for a terrifying second, I thought I would collapse right there on the marble steps.“Miss Anastasia!” Susan gasped, reaching out just in time to steady me. The other maids circled around, their hands hovering anxiously, unsure if they should hold me up or let me go.I swallowed thickly, blinking rapidly to chase away the dizziness. My chest was tight, each breath a struggle against the sobs clawing their way up.“I’m fine,” I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper, but my body betrayed me as I wobbled again.Susan’s eyes filled with tears. “You’re not fine, Miss. Please, let’s get you some water, sit down for a moment—”But I shook my head, my heart hammering in my chest. No. I needed to leave. I needed to get away from this place, from him. The moment I stepped outside, the cool air hit my
I felt sick. I felt so utterly sick."What if I was pregnant too?" the words came out my mouth before I realized it, my voice so soft I almost couldn’t hear myself.Regan’s head snapped toward me. And for the first time, he hesitated. For a single, gut-wrenching moment, something flickered across his face—something almost human—but it was gone as fast as it came.Then, with the same cold finality, the same knife to my throat, he answered:"Then I would ask you to get rid of it."Silence.I stopped existing. I didn’t scream. I didn’t cry. I just stopped.The world tilted. My body felt weightless, my ears ringing so loudly I couldn’t even hear my own breathing. I stared at him—at the man I had loved more than anything—standing there, looking at me as if I were nothing.I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think. I wanted to hate him. I wanted to rip him apart, to throw something, to scream why why why until my throat bled. But I couldn’t do any of it. Because what was the point? He had already ma
The words escaped me in gasps, strangled and desperate. I needed him to stop hurting me. To stop choosing her. To stop breaking me every time he looked at me like I didn’t matter.I gripped him harder, my fingers trembling against his chest. “Why, Regan?” I choked out, “Why did you let it get this far? Why didn’t you—” I couldn’t finish. I couldn’t get the words out. The truth was suffocating me.I lifted my head, looking up at him through the tears streaming down my face. My heart was pounding in my chest, so loud I thought it would burst. My hands shook as I cupped his face, but he didn’t meet my gaze. His eyes were focused somewhere past me, distant. Empty. I didn’t know this man anymore. I didn’t know the man I had loved, the man I had trusted with everything.“I don’t want to hurt anymore, Regan. Please… just make it stop. Please.” My breath hitched, and I clutched him tighter, pressing my forehead against his chest, wishing that I could somehow make it all go away. “I loved you.
I shoved him away with all the strength I had left, my body trembling as I grabbed another shard from the broken vase. My fingers clenched around the glass so tightly I felt the skin break, blood dripping onto the floor. I didn’t care.I couldn’t care. All I could see was her. Zarina. The woman who stole everything from me.She let out a terrified shriek, scrambling backward on the floor, her hands raised as if that would stop me. But before I could move—before I could strike—a force crashed into me. Regan’s arms wrapped around me, pinning mine to my sides. His grip was so strong I couldn’t move.“Stop it, Anastasia!” he roared, his voice shaking with something I couldn’t place.And then, with the force of a sledgehammer, the words that would haunt me for the rest of my life fell from his lips."She’s pregnant."Everything stopped. My vision blurred, and my heartbeat slowed into a painful, suffocating rhythm.Pregnant.Zarina was… pregnant.A deafening ringing filled my ears, drowning
Regan’s body jerked upright. He turned sharply, his expression twisting in shock. His eyes—filled with something that shattered me even more. Calm.For a single, fleeting moment, I saw something else. Something raw.But it was too late. Too fucking late.I didn’t feel the tears running down my face until my vision blurred. My heart pounded so hard it felt like it would shatter through my ribs. The room spun, reality hitting me in full force. The betrayal. The humiliation. The absolute cruelty of it all.Regan scrambled to move, grabbing the nearest piece of clothing, and hastily wrapping a sheet around his waist. He started toward me.“Anastasia, what the fuck are you doing here?”I took a step back, my fingers tightening around the ultrasound picture—until the delicate edges crumpled under my grip.Something inside me snapped.With all the strength I had left, I hurled the picture across the room. The tiny, fragile proof of the life growing inside me, the life he never gave a damn ab
The air turned suffocating, thick with something heavy—dread, betrayal, something I couldn’t name. Susan’s grip on my wrist tightened as if she could physically stop me from stepping any further, from taking another breath in this house that suddenly felt like a stranger’s.Her face was etched with desperation. She was pleading with me now. “Miss Anastasia, please—please just turn around and leave.”But I couldn’t.Something inside me had already cracked. A wound had been carved open the moment she said that name.Zarina.I repeated it in my mind, like a slow, cruel mantra, willing it to make sense. But it didn’t. Nothing did. My stomach twisted violently. A cold, sickening sensation spread through my limbs, making me feel like I was floating—disconnected from my body, from reality. My fingers tightened around the ultrasound picture in my palm. I thought I had prepared myself for everything. For heartbreak.But this?This wasn’t just rejection. This was erasure. This was them taking t
I frowned, closing the door behind me. My voice echoed slightly as I called out, “I’m home.” Silence. My stomach twisted. I blinked, my grip tightening on the strap of my bag. I took a few steps forward, my heels clicking softly against the marble. Where was everyone? “Susan?” I called out, expecting my head maid to appear any second now, as she always did. “Susan, where is everyone?” Still, silence. A chill ran down my spine. Something was wrong. I turned toward the stairs, about to head up, when suddenly— “Miss Anastasia!” The voice came from the hallway. Rushed. Panicked. And then, Susan appeared.Susan rushed toward me in a blur, her usually composed demeanor completely gone. Her once neatly tied gray-streaked hair was slightly disheveled, and her dark housekeeper’s uniform looked as if it had been hastily adjusted. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with an emotion I couldn’t quite place—fear, relief, something else? Before I could speak, she wrapped her arms around me, clut
As we drove, the gentle hum of the car engine filled the silence. I pulled out the ultrasound picture from my bag, holding it carefully in my hands. The tiny image of my baby made my heart swell with a mix of joy and anxiety. I traced the outline with my finger, a faint smile tugging at my lips.My baby.My little one.A soft smile tugged at my lips, but it was a bittersweet one. The joy of carrying this life inside me was overshadowed by the unknown—by him.Would Regan be happy? Would he finally see me? Would he finally choose me?"Are you planning to frame that or something?" Sheila's voice broke through my thoughts.I glanced at her, then back at the picture. "No," I murmured. "I'm going to show it to Regan."Sheila let out a slow exhale, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter. “Of course, you are. You know, Ana…I admire your resilience. Really, I do. But how long are you going to keep giving that man the benefit of the doubt?”I sighed, hugging the ultrasound picture closer
The morning sunlight filtered through the hospital blinds, casting soft golden streaks across the sterile white walls. I sat on the edge of my hospital bed, already dressed in a simple yet elegant beige dress that draped loosely over my recovering body. My fingers fidgeted with the handle of my packed bag beside me, anticipation curling in my stomach.I was leaving.Finally.A mixture of nerves and excitement coursed through me. It wasn’t just about getting out of the hospital—it was about what came next. About whom came next.Regan.I hadn’t told my family I was leaving. They’d try to stop me, insist that I needed more rest, more time. But I was ready. And once I told them I was safely home, they wouldn’t have a choice but to accept it. And today, I was going to see him. Tell him everything.Tell him about our baby. The thought sent a rush of warmth through me, a hope blooming in my chest.The door creaked open, breaking me out of my thoughts.I looked up, expecting a nurse, but inst