On the day of my miscarriage, Brian's unforgettable first love Jessica Clark posted a baby photo on Instagram.
Caption: [Thank you for accompanying me through all the dark days. From now on, our family of three will always be happy!]
The silhouette inadvertently revealed in the photo is Brian Graham, my husband who has slept with me for seven years.
Before entering the operating room, I called Brian, but all I got was his unreserved humiliation.
"Grace Lewis, you are already 18 weeks pregnant. The fetus is already stable. How could something happen? Stop making trouble."
"Jessica is a single mother. It's not easy for her to raise a child. As a mother, can't you show some understanding and not ruin everyone's mood by being jealous at this time?"
They were busy sharing the joy of the arrival of the newborn on Instagram, but on this day, my baby turned into a small handful of ashes.
——
Touching my suddenly flat belly, I couldn't come back to my senses for a long time.
I pulled out the needle and went home alone.
The furnishings in the house were still the same, and Brian hasn't come back.
I stumbled and opened the door to the baby's room, holding those tiny clothes and curling up in the corner.
At this time, they should be playing with the baby and making him laugh, right?
Brian, who never posts on Instagram, even updated a post.
In addition to the baby, the picture also showed a large urine stain on the front of the suit.
[Thank you for the first gift from the baby!]
That suit is Brian's favorite, and he only wears it on important occasions.
I touched the urn containing the baby's ashes, but my vision blurred and I couldn't focus.
My phone rang, it was Brian calling.
"Is your stomach still hurting?"
"No, it's not hurting anymore."
"Hmm... I consulted Jessica at the confinement center and she said the stomachache might be because you just felt fetal movement and it will take some time to adapt. It's not a big deal."
It turns out that when I had a miscarriage and cried in despair, in Brian's eyes, it was just "not a big deal".
The confinement center is only ten minutes away from home, and he didn't even want to leave for a moment to come back and see me.
Grace, this is the man you insisted on marrying in the first place. I thought.
This is your retribution.
I didn't want to argue with him anymore and hung up the phone.
Less than a minute later, Brian called again.
"Grace, I did explain the reason to you. What's with your childish temper?"
"Quickly prepare the things according to the text message I sent you and bring them over."
He ended the call in a commanding tone.
Brian always does this, demanding me at his command.
But in these seven years, I have also been happily immersed in it.
Because he assured me that his concern for Jessica was based on years of friendship and sympathy for Jessica becoming a single mother.
He assured me that I am the only person he loves.
But what is the reality?
During the ten days I was in the hospital for a threatened miscarriage, he said he was busy and not available to visit me.
But he could go back and forth to Jessica's place for three meals a day for three consecutive months.
When I was alone in the hospital and fainted due to low blood sugar during a prenatal check-up, he said he couldn't get away because of a business trip.
But at the same time, he could drive back from another province just to listen to the baby's heartbeat during Jessica's prenatal check-up.
Even when I was lying in the cold operating room of the hospital, enduring the pain of losing a child, he was still texting me, asking me to send clothes to Jessica's baby.
Everything is my own fault.
Chapter 2After packing up all the baby's things and burying them properly, I went to the confinement center.
There were only two divorce agreements in the bag.
Brian looked at my empty bag with a frown on his forehead.
"Didn't I tell you to bring more clothes? The baby's skin is sensitive now and can't wear diapers."
"There are no clean clothes left. What do you want the baby to wear?"
I gave him a cold glance.
"What does this have to do with me?"
Brian's breathing became rapid with anger. After all, I had never argued with him before.
I was about to take out the divorce agreement when Jessica ran out of the house and grabbed my arm.
"Grace is here! Come in quickly, it's cold outside."
"Brian, really. I said to order takeout, but he insisted on you coming in person."
"Don't be angry. Let me talk to him properly!"
She raised her hand and playfully pounded on Brian's chest.
She had a smile on her face, but her eyes were full of provocation.
"Grace, the baby is unlucky. Dad passed away before he was born. Fortunately, there is Brian as his godfather. He can be as happy as a child born in a normal family in the future."
"Grace, you don't mind, do you?"
I looked at the baby sleeping soundly and lost my train of thought. I didn't hear a single word from Jessica.
He was soft and sticky, and the breath he exhaled was milky.
If my baby were still here, would he be like this too?
My vision blurred again.
I can't help but want to touch him, but he cries when I touch him gently.
Brian angrily came over and pushed me.
"Grace, no matter how jealous you are, you shouldn't hurt the baby."
"I am the baby's godfather, and you are also the baby's godmother. If you don't love him, it's fine. But you also bully him. You are really cruel!"
I was weak just after the miscarriage. I fell to the ground, and a tearing pain came from my lower abdomen. The pain was so intense that I didn't even have the strength to argue.
Perhaps feeling that he was a bit excessive, Brian was momentarily flustered.
He reached out his hand to me, but I pushed it away.
"I never wanted to be a godmother. I came today to divorce you."
Brian's attitude suddenly turned cold.
"With so many people here today, are you sure you want to be so unreasonable?"
"The trick of 'playing hard-to-get' doesn't work on me. Don't even think about divorcing me."
"Grace Lewis, you even want to compete for favor with a child. You really disgust me."
Jessica walked to the middle of us, holding the baby who had stopped crying, breaking the deadlock.
"Brian, don't be like this. Grace didn't do it on purpose."
"After all, she is just pregnant and has never really been a mother. Maternal love has not been triggered yet. She will understand after giving birth to the baby..."
It's ridiculous to think about it. They still haven't noticed my flat belly until now.
Jessica pulled me up and put the baby against me.
"Come, hold the baby more. You will like him!"
Looking at the cute baby, I lost my focus again.
Suddenly, Jessica screamed and deliberately fell to the ground with the baby.
The baby cried heartbreakingly, and Jessica's tears followed suit.
"Grace, I kindly spoke up for you, but if you don't appreciate it, how can you push me and the baby?!"
"I know you hate me, but you should never lay a hand on the baby no matter what!"
"He's just a child, how can you be so heartless!"
Hearing the crying, passing nursing staff rushed in.
"What's going on? Even when holding such a small child, you should be careful. How could you drop him?!"
"What kind of parents are you?! Allowing all sorts of bad influences in!"
The baby cried louder and louder, his face turning purple, his mouth wide open but no sound coming out.
Brian stared at me fiercely, without waiting for me to speak, he raised his hand and slapped me.
"Grace, you are truly heartless!!"
"I see that you are beyond redemption!"
"Get lost! Get lost right now! Don't ever appear in front of her again!"
Brian put a lot of effort into this slap, and I felt dizzy and fell to the ground when I turned around.
The voice in my ears gradually became unclear, but I could still hear Jessica's heart-wrenching cry and Brian's cold roar.
"Grace, what are you pretending to be here? You did something evil and still want to pretend to be innocent, right?"
He shook me desperately, who was completely limp, and his eyes were fierce as if he wanted to devour me.
I wanted to shake off his hand, but I couldn't exert any strength.
A warm stream surged from my thigh, hot, and my consciousness became increasingly blurred.
Suddenly, a piercing scream sounded in my ears.
"Blood! Blood!"
"Someone died!!"
It's the nurse from the confinement center.
Brian only noticed the large pool of blood under my body.
It seemed like he suddenly realized something and placed his hand on my belly.
In the last moment before completely losing consciousness, I saw Brian's terrified expression.
"Grace, where's the child?"