Did you take any abortion pills?

Aurora’s pov

  Last night was dreadful, and all I needed was to force myself to sleep. The conversation between Lucas and Marian downstairs was unbearable. My gut feeling suggested that Marian might have intentionally added extra salt to the food, but there was no evidence. If I were to mention this to Lucas, he might think otherwise. I still couldn't understand why Marian was with Lucas and why she kept calling his phone.

  Reluctantly, I found myself sitting on the edge of the bed, breaking away from my usual routine of reaching out to my husband on the other side and embracing him. Lucas was still fast asleep, making me wonder if he hadn't left Marian's company on time or if I had woken up unusually early.

  The thought of Lucas and Marian being together filled me with fear that my husband might be unfaithful. I got up and went to the bathroom, taking a seat on the toilet. The first thing I noticed was my pregnancy test kit. With hesitation, I picked it up using my right hand. Lucas and I had been hoping for a pregnancy. I hope my recent weight gain isn't affecting our chances. I inserted the pregnancy kit and lost track of time as my mind wandered. When I finally removed it, I couldn't believe what I saw.

  "Could I be pregnant?" I exclaimed. Doubt still lingered, wondering if leaving the pregnancy kit inside for too long had affected the result. I decided to do another test using my urine. As I pulled out the pregnancy strips, I saw two red lines.

  "I'm pregnant!" I exclaimed with excitement. This is what Lucas had been longing for. As I stepped out of the bathroom, Lucas was still fast asleep. I immediately thought of going to the kitchen, surprising him by making our morning coffee and sharing the good news. Preparing the coffee myself and breaking the pregnancy news would be a delightful surprise.

  As I started descending the stairs and placed my hand on the handrail, I was startled to hear Marian on a phone call. Intrigued, I decided to listen further.

  ".... Charlotte, guess what? Lucas, my sweetheart from high school and college, has managed to get me a job at his company. Our old feelings always resurface when we're together. Although he's married to a fat woman, I believe he only married her out of pity. She's not what he truly desires because Lucas loves slim ladies. Lucas is embarrassed by her in public and has convinced her to be a full-time housewife,” she giggled with her phone against her ear and she continued. “If you want to keep your fiancé, watch your weight. A plump woman won't always be able to keep her husband's attention.  One day, I'll invite you over so you can see for yourself. One of her cheeks is like a doughnut..."

  The word "doughnut" slipped from Marian's lips, causing me to lose my grip on the handrail, and she heard my foot hit the stairs, making a sharp sound because I wasn't prepared to descend.

  When she noticed me, she immediately stopped talking about me and pretended she was referring to someone else.

  The question of whether Lucas was truly ashamed of me kept nagging at me, until I descended the stairs and Marian chuckled before heading towards her room. Her sarcastic giggle felt like a barrage of needles pricking my skin, but my pregnancy was about to change everything.

  I swiftly prepared two steaming cups of coffee and hurried back to the room. I was certain that this was the moment I had been waiting for. Just as I reached for the doorknob, Lucas opened the door, about to step out and get the coffee.

  "Wow! You caught me off guard," he exclaimed, widening his eyes and smiling. Then he took his coffee and lovingly kissed my forehead, making me forget about his time with Marian yesterday.

  "How was your night, honey?" he asked.

  "It was the best night because I have some wonderful news for you."

  "What news?" he inquired, his other hand gently holding my waist.

  "I'm pregnant."

  "Pregnant?" he exclaimed. I didn't even realize when he placed his coffee on the stool and effortlessly lifted me off the floor, despite my weight. His joy was palpable.

  "Careful now! There's a precious life inside me," I laughed, and we shared a smile. This was the man I knew before Marian came into our lives. I felt a surge of happiness coursing through my body.

  "This is what we've been waiting for, finally," he said, taking a deep breath, likely from the unexpected exertion of lifting me.

  "If it's a girl, I'll name her Emily."

  "And if it's a boy, I'll name him Luke."

Just then, his phone started ringing, and he turned to answer the call.

  "Lee, call me later."

  "Sir, I'm about to tell you something important..." His secretary replied.

  "There's nothing as important as what I'm having right now. Call me in an hour," he ended the call, unaware of the immense joy his response brought me. I became his top priority. This was the moment I wanted to express my desire and put Marian to shame.

  "What are you thinking?" he caught me off guard.

  "Honey, I want to work at your company, to be by your side and support you," I said.

  "How many times do we need to discuss this?" His demeanor immediately changed.

  Internally, I reasoned that if I resorted to nagging, he might reconsider and allow me to work at his company, especially now that I was pregnant with his child.

  "I want to work at your company. What's stopping me? Are you ashamed of me?"

  He didn't answer. Instead, he grabbed his phone and left the room.

Nagging had never been my approach with him since we got married, but due to my desires and Marian's comments to her friend, I was willing to manipulate the situation. This marked the first time I stopped having meals with him, and after three days, he spoke to me.

  "It's been three days since you stopped eating with me..."

  "You know what I want," I replied, crossing my arms and avoiding eye contact as he stood in front of me in our room. I noticed the tension in his eyes as he turned his back to me, seemingly distraught. Without concluding our conversation, he left the room.

  On the sixth day, I hoped he would have changed his mind by then, but something unexpected happened. It was 4 a.m., very early in the morning when I suddenly experienced a sharp pain in my lower abdomen.

  "Honey! Honey!" I shouted, and he turned himself on the bed to hold me. Then swiftly, he took me to the hospital. Before we even reached the hospital, I was already bleeding from my vagina. After the medical test results came out, Lucas walked into the hospital room. He wasn't wearing the same expression he had when he rushed me to the hospital. He paced around the room with his right hand in his pocket.

  "Did you take anything like abortion pills?" His tone was unfamiliar.

  "Abortion pills? No… What happened?”

He looked at me for a while, gripping the edge of my hospital bed with his right hand. His breath was filled with anger. What was making him so furious?

  "Honey, what's happening?" I asked again as I took my legs off the bed and placed them on the floor. He wasn't ready to answer me, judging by the anger in his eyes. Had the doctors or one of the nurses provoked him? Then he asked me the same question again.

  "Did you take any abortion pills?" This time, he didn't wait for me to answer before walking out of the room. His attitude made me uneasy as I waited for him to return. Why was he asking me about abortion pills? I wondered.

  After waiting and waiting, with only the nurses checking on me, I asked one of the female nurses.

  "Where is my husband?"

  "Ma'am, your husband left the hospital several minutes ago."

Why would he leave without telling me? I immediately stood up as the nurse was about to administer a drug to me. I dialed Lucas' phone number, but it rang and rang, and he refused to answer. I called again, and when he continued to ignore my calls, I knew something was wrong.

  "Ma'am, you need this medication."

Without wasting a second, I left the nurse behind. When I arrived outside, his car was gone. I took a taxi and went home. On the way, I kept calling, but he still refused to pick up.

  I rushed out of the car, and it was around 10 a.m. As I approached the door, Marian's voice reached my ears first.

  "Why would she do such a thing? She must be heartless. What has an innocent baby done to her that she killed with pills? Is this the kind of woman you want to spend the rest of your life with?"

  I immediately pushed the door open, determined to defend myself against whatever Marian might have said about me. But the man I loved so deeply was the one who shattered me with his words.  

  "What are you doing here?" I thought I was in a different house, but right in front of me stood the man I loved wholeheartedly.

  "How could you betray me like this, Aurora?" He called me by my name, something he had never done before.

  "Why would you take abortion pills?"

  "I never took abortion pills, I swear."

  "It wasn't just the hospital’s test that found it in your blood; I also found them in your wardrobe in our room." He showed me the abortion pills.

  "What?” I shouted. “Something must have gone wrong," my lips trembled. “I never did something like that…”

  "You killed my baby. I never knew you were so cruel. Just because I didn't allow you to work in my company, you went ahead and killed our baby. Something we both had been waiting for.”

  “Why will I kill the baby of my womb?” 

The allegation was too big and tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

  "Believe me, something must have gone wrong," I pleaded desperately, forgetting to notice Marian’s presence. But when I heard the sound of luggage being rolled down the stairs, I looked and saw Marian bringing down my belongings.

  "This is a calculated plan. I'm divorcing you," Lucas said without remorse.

  "Divorce?" My eyes widened as my dream life had fallen apart. "How am I going to cope without you?"

  "You should have thought about that before taking the life of your own child," Marian said sarcastically.

  It would have been psychologically easier if Lucas had been the one bringing down my belongings, not the person who had tried to steal my man in the first place. 

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Author’s pov

  It had been a year and a half since Lucas divorced Aurora. A few days later, she left the country and made a firm resolution never to depend on anyone else for her financial well-being. Embracing her new life and freedom, she pursued her dreams and enrolled in the professional exams Lucas, her ex-husband never wanted her to take. However, this time, in honor of her late mother, she used her name. Aurora's determination paid off, as she emerged as the top graduating accounting student. Soon enough, one of the respected financial firms offered her immediate employment.

  Aurora's transformation wasn't limited to her education; she also focused on improving her physical appearance. Shedding pounds of fat, her waistline now boasted an elegant curve, creating a captivating hourglass figure that demanded attention. Her legs appeared fresh and elongated, having shed excess weight. With almond-shaped eyes framed by long, dark lashes, each blink held an irresistible allure. Aurora's sensuous lips, perfectly shaped nose, and radiant chin added to her captivating beauty. Her past marriage had taught her the importance of caring for her skin and maintaining a healthy body shape.

   Aurora was still lying down when the sound of her phone ringing woke her up. It was morning, and she had stayed up late working on some accounts the previous night. As she woke up, her gaze immediately fell upon the calendar.

  "I have the day off today and tomorrow, so why is my boss calling me?" she wondered.

Without delay, she picked up the call before it ended.

  "Hello, Miss Daisy. Our firm has secured a major contract with Macpet Investment, and the board of directors has unanimously agreed that you are the best candidate for the job. They want us to conduct an audit of the company's accounts."

  "Macpet?" Aurora's voice quivered with surprise.

  "Yes, it is owned by a billionaire called Mr. Lucas Rutherford.”