Chapter 2 Leave or take

(Amara)

I want to speak. I want to say something.

But the words refuse to come.

My eyes stay glued to them instead.

The way she stretches her hands toward him.

The way he rushes to her side, holding her, asking if she’s alright.

The way she nods gently, like a woman loved right, before leaning into his chest and rubbing her stomach.

And me?

Forgotten.

I stand there, watching the scene unfold like a cruel movie I never agreed to star in. My jaw remains slack, my mind struggling to make sense of what my eyes are seeing.

“What… what’s going on here, Felix?” I finally manage to ask.

My voice sounds distant, even to me. My gaze darts between him and the strange pregnant woman, desperately searching for an explanation that isn’t already tearing me apart. Maybe she’s a relative. A cousin. Anything. As long as he says it himself, I’ll believe him.

He turns to look at me.

Properly this time.

His fingers tighten around hers, and my eyes catch the movement. His jaw sets, as though bracing himself. “I never meant for any of this to happen this way.”

He sighs, looks away, then faces me again. “But I’m responsible for it. Selina is carrying my child.”

The words echo in my head.

Carrying my child.

A tear slips down my cheek as memories come rushing back—his gentle reassurances, his quiet promises.

It’s okay, babe. We can always try again.

As long as you’re here with me, I don’t mind anything else.

He’d said those words every time I lost another pregnancy. Every time my body failed me.

Now…

My gaze drifts to her stomach. She instinctively shields it with her hands, as if afraid of what I might do next.

“How could you?” The words fall from my lips, broken. “How could you, Felix?”

My voice rises despite myself.

Immediately, he steps in front of her, pulling her protectively behind him. “Amara, I can explain. You just need to calm down.”

I laugh bitterly. “Calm down?” I glare at him. “You expect me to calm down after coming home to find your pregnant mistress in our house—on our anniversary?”

He says nothing. Just tightens his hold on her hand.

And that silence eats at me more than any explanation ever could.

Without another word, I turn and rush down the hallway into our bedroom. My hands tremble as I drag out a storage box, throwing clothes into it without thought. Dresses. Shoes. Jewelry. Everything within reach.

I don’t know what I’m doing. I only know I can’t stay here. I can’t breathe in the same space as her.

If she’s who he wants, then he can have her.

I grab an emerald green silk dress, but my hands falter as the image flashes again—her stomach, his confession, his child.

A sob rips out of me.

I collapse onto the bed, covering my face with my palms as the pain crashes over me. Maybe it’s the betrayal. Maybe it’s the truth. Or maybe it’s the cruel realization that no matter how hard I tried, I still couldn’t give him what he wanted.

And there he is—standing beside the woman who did.

I hate myself in that moment. For trusting him. For believing him. For loving him so completely.

All those years… the failed pregnancies, the nights I stayed awake wondering if I’d ever give him the family we dreamed of. Every tear, every hope, every quiet surrender of what I wanted—all for him. And now… it meant nothing.

I zip the box shut and drag it out of the room.

When I reach the living room, I pause.

He’s helping her sit down on the couch, his movements careful, gentle. The tenderness I thought belonged only to me.

I don’t let myself dwell on it. I push the box toward the door.

“What do you think you’re doing, Amara?” His voice rings out. “Where are you going?”

He rushes toward me, blocking my path.

“I’m leaving,” I say coldly. “You can’t possibly expect me to stay under the same roof with your pregnant mistress.”

My eyes flick briefly to her.

He scoffs. “You can’t be serious. You’re my wife.”

“And a husband is supposed to respect his wife—not cheat on her!” I shoot back.

He shifts, then exhales. “Amara, can’t you see what’s happening? Selina is carrying the child… and yes, it will be ours.”

I stare at him, stunned.

“So now you’re mocking me?” My voice shakes. “You turn your cheating into a blessing because I couldn’t give you a child?”

I shake my head. “I can’t believe you.”

I try to move past him, but he grips the box, stopping me.

“I’m sorry,” he says quickly. “Yes, I made a mistake. But it wasn’t intentional. When I found out I was going to be a dad, I couldn’t just walk away.”

He swallows. “I didn’t know how to tell you. I was scared of losing you. I didn’t want to hurt you or remind you of… everything.”

He looks at me pleadingly. “It’s you I love.”

“Really?” I cut him off. “If you loved me, you wouldn’t have cheated. And you wouldn’t have brought your pregnant mistress into our home to rub it in my face.”

That’s when she speaks.

“Felix didn’t know I was coming... I didn't know how else to reach him." Her voice is soft. Careful.

She steps forward slowly. “I tried reaching out to him for months, but he wouldn’t respond. I’m close to giving birth, and I didn’t know what else to do.”

She takes a shaky breath. “I don’t want to be the reason your home breaks apart.”

She looks down at her stomach, then back at me. “You’d be a better mother than I ever could be.”

My heart stutters.

“She’ll call you mommy,” Selina continues quietly. “She’ll know you as her mother.”

She brushes her hair behind her ear. “Please… just let me stay until I give birth. After that, I’ll leave. You won’t see me again.”

The word mommy echoes in my head.

For years, I’d dreamed of building a family with Felix. After five failed years, I’d almost given up. Tonight, I’d even planned to suggest adoption.

And now… this.

Hope, dangerous and fragile, begins to creep in.

I look between Felix and Selina, my heart pounding as my mind screams in confusion.

Do I take this chance?

Or walk away forever?