Part 03 # Consideration

The ambulance arrived promptly with its sirens blaring. Bi Yani panicked as she opened the door and showed them the sofa where Ms. Lara was lying.

"Move the patient!" one of the paramedics shouted to his colleague. Bi Yani cried and felt anxious, fearing that Ms. Lara might miscarry.

"Ma'am, come with us, okay?" one of the paramedics said, and she nodded. They immediately headed to the hospital, which was not far from Ms. Lara's residence. There, Ms. Lara was already awaited by the attending doctors.

***

"Where's the operating room?"

"Down the second hallway, follow me!"

A nurse quickly led the medical team to the operating room. Their footsteps echoed alternately, creating a tense atmosphere in the hallway.

"Be careful!" The hospital nurse and the medical team on duty pushed the stretcher at a controlled speed. They looked calm even though their steps were heavy, moving with the precision of cavalry on a battlefield.

The nurse and medical team made their way through the quiet hospital corridors in a hurry. Bi Yani, accompanying them from behind, struggled to keep up but didn't give up. She ran to follow the people in front of her, panting.

"Turn here," They then entered the operating room. After that, the doctors took over everything.

"Oh, God. Please, save Mrs. Lara," Bi Yani whispered, raising her hands in prayer, seeking protection. She hoped God would hear her prayers.

"Please wait in the waiting room," a nurse said, pointing to a row of chairs not far from the operating room.

"Okay," Bi Yani sat there as instructed and once again prayed for Ms. Lara's safety, both her and her unborn child.

She didn't expect that the arrival of that strange woman at Mrs. Lara's house could bring such danger. Who was she, really?

Bi Yani hadn't anticipated that the married life of the wealthy could be so complicated and unhappy. Then again, even the married life of the poor like her was often the same. The difference was, Mr. Seno never hit Mrs. Lara. Unlike her husband, who often beat her.

So, what was the problem?

"Could it be, he's cheating?" Bi Yani started to speculate, thinking that the presence of the strange woman was similar to a television drama when confronting the legitimate wife of her lover.

But she admired Mrs. Lara. Instead of crying and asking for an explanation, she simply drove away the home-wrecker and slammed the door shut. After that, Mrs. Lara cried, but the home-wrecker didn't know that Mrs. Lara's heart could also be hurt.

"Thank goodness, she's not like the wives in those soap operas," Bi Yani thought, maybe because Ms. Lara was more beautiful than the home-wrecker who wore thick makeup and cheap clothes.

Mrs. Lara was graceful and very charming. Bi Yani couldn't understand why Mr. Seno would be attracted to a cheap woman like that girl. Her style was like a love peddler commonly found at red-light intersections. Her level was indeed different from Mrs. Lara's!

"Hhh... What am I thinking?" Bi Yani hit her head, feeling she was too bold to meddle in other people's marriages. One thing she didn't understand about Ms. Lara's principles was that she didn't want to divorce.

When she asked her the reason, Mrs. Lara said divorce would only damage her child's mental health. Then, what about Mrs. Lara's mental health? Was she happy?

Talking about others was more enjoyable than talking about oneself. Until now, Bi Yani hadn't divorced her husband either. Even though he was old, unemployed, and a wife-beater! They also didn't have children. What made her hold on? She didn't know.

"Unpleasant rumors, maybe?" Bi Yani began to consider divorce. A man like her husband, shouldn't he be rotting in jail? She didn't know. She wasn't someone with wealth or power. She was also old, 50 years old. Unlike Mrs. Lara. Mrs. Lara should be able to pursue her happiness more.

"Should I call Mr. Seno?"

Bi Yani started to wonder about her next move. Shouldn't her husband know about Ms. Lara's condition? But, they were fighting. Should she just keep quiet?

Ah. If only she could think faster, she wouldn't have been fired.

***

"You audacious! How dare you not call me! Damn servant!"

Mr. Seno's voice thundered through the hospital corridor, slicing through the tense atmosphere like a sharp blade. Bi Yani flinched at the venom in his words, the weight of his anger pressing down on her like a physical force.

"Mr. Seno, please calm down," she pleaded, her voice trembling with fear. "I did what I thought was best for Mrs. Lara—"

"Best for her?" Seno's laughter was bitter, devoid of any trace of humor. "You have no right to make decisions for my wife! She's my responsibility, not yours!"

His words struck Bi Yani like a slap to the face, igniting a spark of defiance within her. "Your wife needed help, and I acted quickly to get her the assistance she needed," she retorted, her voice trembling with anger. "If you had been here instead of gallivanting around with your mistress, none of this would have happened!"

Mr. Seno's face contorted with rage, his fists clenching at his sides. "How dare you speak to me like that, you insolent wench!" he spat, his words dripping with contempt. "You're nothing but a servant, and you will address me with the respect I deserve!"

But Bi Yani refused to back down, fueled by a newfound sense of determination. She must have lost her mind. "Respect is earned, Mr. Seno, and you've done nothing to deserve it," she shot back, her voice ringing with defiance. "Mrs. Lara deserves better than a husband who cheats and neglects her, and if you can't see that, then you're even more blind than I thought!"

For a moment, silence descended upon them, thick and heavy with tension. Seno's chest heaved with fury, his gaze boring into hers with a searing intensity.

Then, without warning, he lunged forward, his hand raised in a threatening gesture. Instinctively, Bi Yani recoiled, her heart hammering in her chest as she braced herself for the blow.