A 14-day Marriage Contract

JACQUELINE

“I’ve been banging on your door since morning and you’ve refused to come out, eh?” my landlord’s voice thundered through the phone.

“I know you’re in there! Just so you know, you can’t keep living in my house for free! Four years, Jackie! Four years! You’re a chronic debtor! Pay me my money!”

I gripped the phone tighter, my throat suddenly dry. “Sir, I—I—”

“You, you what?!” he snapped before I could finish. His voice roared in my ears, and I closed my eyes tightly, inhaling deeply through my nose.

“I’m sick and tired of your excuses! Pay up or pack out of my house, do you hear me?” And just like that, he hung up.

The silence that followed felt louder than his shouting. I bit hard on my lower lip, my eyes falling to the frail figure lying motionless on the hospital bed.

My daughter.

Eight years old, and her face looked ghostly pale, her lips dry and blood red. My chest tightened painfully at the sight. I reached out with trembling fingers to gently smooth her hair, a quiet prayer echoing in my heart. One of the worst place to be in as a parent is to see your child in extreme pain and you’re not able to help, no matter how hard you try.

Then my phone rang again.

I snatched it up quickly so it wouldn’t wake her. My heart sank when I saw the caller ID: Miss Ana. My supervisor.

I glanced at the wall clock and winced. I was late—again. The doctor insisted I waited for the test results, I pushed the chair I was sitting on backwards and walked up to the window.

Swiping the screen, I held the phone to my ear. “Miss Ana, I—”

“Jackie,” she interrupted, her tone short quick and slightly irritated it was quite obvious she was tired of me,

“This is no longer in my hands.”

I froze.

“You were assigned as team lead for this event, and you’ve been absent the entire time, you’re supposed to be leading the team. I’ve tried to cover for you, but I can’t anymore.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, voice trembling.

“I’ll be there shortly, I promise, I—” A sniffle cut through as fresh tears slid down my cheeks.

“Don’t,” she said curtly.

“The company has decided to let you go. I think… it’s time you focus on your daughter.”

“Miss Ana, please,” I pleaded, my voice cracking. “My daughter and I—we need this job. Please, just give me one more chance.”

There was a pause. Then, with quiet finality, she said,

“I’ll send your termination letter today and ask accounting to process your salary for the month. That’s all I can do.”

“Miss Ana—please! Please, I—”

Beep.

The line went dead.

I lowered the phone slowly, my arms falling to my sides. My knees buckled beneath me and I sank to the floor, my fingers curling into my hair as the sobs broke free. I couldn’t take it anymore. Today was my worse day, not like other days have been any better.

I had held on for too long, pretending to be strong when I was falling apart inside and now I felt… hollow. My daughter was literally dying right in front of my eyes. And I was helpless.

The doctors demanded five hundred thousand dollars to keep her alive.

Five hundred thousand. Money I didn’t have.

Money I couldn’t even dream of having.

The job that once barely kept food on our table and paid for her daily hospital care? Gone. Just like that. And as if that wasn’t enough, the landlord gave his final warning today—pay up or get thrown out.

My shoulders shook as I tried to cry silently, not wanting to wake her.

Then, my phone beeped.

A message.

I blinked through my tears, reached for the phone where it had fallen to the floor, and read the screen.

Jeffery. My boyfriend.

*Babe, I’m sorry. I won’t be able to come to the hospital today. Or tomorrow. Or this week at all. Something came up. I have to travel. I need to stay home and prepare.*

I stared at the words, my throat tightening.

Of course. He was never there when I needed him. Especially when it came to Jessica. He always had an excuse.

A small, weak whisper pulled me out of my thoughts.

“Mom…”

I got up and turned instantly. Jessica’s voice—barely audible.

“Baby!” I rushed to her side and crouched down.

She tried to smile, but she winced immediately like it hurt to smile, and that broke my heart even more.

“Mom… were you crying?” she asked, her voice trembling. She’s so young yet she has learnt to bear so much pain.

“No, baby, mommy’s fine,” I lied, trying to smile. But the lie caught in my throat and burned.

And then— She coughed. Violently.

Blood splattered from her lips.

My heart tightened. My eyes widened in horror. I leaned over her just as she let out another cough, blood trickling down her chin.

“Mom… it hurts,” she whimpered.

“I’ll get help!” I whispered, my voice shaky with panic as I tried to rush out of the room to get the doctors.

She gripped my shirt with trembling fingers, refusing to let me go.

“Stay with me,” she breathed. Her chest rose and fell in shallow, ragged gasps.

“Help! Please! Somebody help!” I screamed, tears flooding my face as I tried to keep her awake, shaking her lightly.

“Baby, stay with me! Jessica!” I begged as I reached for the alarm button and slammed it again and again

But her eyelids fluttered. And then slowly… closed.

“Jessica!” I screamed, clutching her, pressing my ear against her chest.

Nothing. Not even a faint heartbeat.

“No. No. No!” I sobbed, shaking her harder, my cries echoing in the room.

“Jessica! Please, baby, don’t do this to me!”

Then hands—strong, firm—pulled me away.

“Let me go! That’s my daughter!” I shrieked, struggling in their grip as they wheeled her away, not responding to me. No one said a word. No one even looked at me.

They pushed her through the double doors, and a nurse turned to me briefly.

“Sorry, ma’am. This is as far as you can go.”

The door slammed in my face.

My knees gave way. I collapsed to the floor and wailed.

Not Jessica. Not my baby. She’s my life. She’s all I have. She can’t die. She just can’t.

***

Three hours later

“Jessica’s heart condition has worsened, and honestly at this point, I really hope she survives it. Her condition has progressed into the Eisenmenger’s Syndrome. Her lungs are barely holding on anymore. The only option we have now is a transplant”

“A heart- lung transplant. We’ll find a donor ASAP and hope the whole procedure is successful. It’s a 70/30 percent of survival”

“70 percent unsuccessful that is”

“Should you decide to go ahead with the surgery, we have to do it in the next twenty four hours or there would be nothing we can do about it again,”

The doctor’s words echoed in my head like a horror song on repeat, tormenting me mercilessly. I stood frozen across the street, eyes locked on Jeffery’s mansion, this was my only option.

I met Jeffery three years ago, when my company organized his mother’s sixtieth birthday. Jeffery and I clicked instantly. He made me laugh, made me feel seen—and soon enough, we were inseparable. But my colleagues didn’t see us the way we saw each other. To them, I was just another gold digger chasing his wealth. I fought hard to prove them wrong. I never asked him for a dime. I worked long hours, cared for my daughter alone, and he inturn asked for our relationship to be a secret, to protect me from angry netizens.

For two years, I loved him quietly, with everything I had. And in all that time, I never once came to him for help. But today… I was desperate. With nowhere else to turn and no one else to run to, I found myself here.

With trembling fingers, I reached into my bag and pulled out the spare key he’d given me. A shaky sigh escaped my lips as I walked to the gate and let myself in.

The door at the entrance opened upon sending me and I walked in quietly, my heart pounding in my chest. Empty. I didn’t waste time, my feet carrying me toward the staircase—toward his room.

But then I heard voices. Laughter, obviously from the balcony.

I paused, changed directions immediately and walked towards the balcony. I paused, body instinctively pressing against the wall at the entrance of the balcony.

There he was—Jeffery—seated on a could, with Tracy. His cousin, in his arms and his mother on another couch drinking wine.

“I’m glad you guys decided to do your wedding in Horizon Heights,” his mother said with a satisfied smile as she set her glass down.

“There’s just so much bad energy here.” She added.

Wedding? You guys? My stomach clenched.

I watched, paralyzed, as Tracy leaned more into him and smiled with a softness that burned through me.

“I’d get married anywhere as long as he’s my groom” she whispered sweetly.

Her groom? I couldn’t breathe.

And then… Jeffery leaned into her. He kissed her—slowly, lovingly. The kind of kiss that used to be mine.

“I love you, baby,” he whispered.

I think my heart stopped. The wall I was leaning on no longer felt real beneath my fingers. I slowly pulled away as I stumbled back, dazed and sick with confusion. My world spun, my thoughts scattered. This wasn’t happening. I wanted to remove myself from the scenario immediately and I’d like to think I was hearing double, But ..

A sharp crash tore through the entire room.

I turned slowly and realized I had knocked over a vase. Shattered ceramic scattered on the floor at my feet,

I swallowed hard as I balled my hands into a tight fist, When I looked up, all three of them were staring at me.

Jeffery’s eyes met mine, and for a moment, I saw a flicker of something—shock? Anger? Disgust? I couldn’t tell. I couldn’t feel anything except the painful breaking of my heart in my chest.

My lips parted to speak, but I had no words.

And then she spoke first.

“Who the hell are you?”