An Open Option?

The sun was already beginning to set by the time Bella stepped out of another office building with her CV pressed to her chest.

The streets were busy with the after-work crowd, people hurrying past in suits and office attire, heading to trendy bars or straight home to their comfortable lives. 

Bella felt like an outsider, drifting through the sea of people, alone and lost.

She pulled her coat tighter around her, shoving her hands into the pockets to keep warm.

 As much as she hated her job, it had been something. It had kept her afloat. Now, she wasn’t sure how long she could keep her head above water.

“What was I thinking?” she whispered, her breath fogging in the cold air.

The satisfaction she had felt that day—telling her boss off, walking out of that toxic place with her head held high—already faded.

Quitting without a plan had been reckless. She could hear her mother’s voice in the back of her mind, chastising her for being too impulsive, too quick to burn bridges.

Her pace slowed as she turned down a quieter street, her apartment still a few blocks away. 

The thought of going home to that cramped, dingy place only made her mood worse. There was nothing waiting for her there but more bills and more worries.

As she walked, Lydia’s words from the night before replayed in her head. “I’ve been hearing about these surrogacy agencies… You could make more in one surrogacy than you’ve made at that office”

Bella shook her head, trying to push the thought away. Surrogacy? It seemed absurd. 

The idea of carrying a child for someone else, especially some rich couple who didn’t want to ruin their perfect lives felt… wrong. She had never even seriously considered having children of her own, let alone being a surrogate.

But the more she thought about it, the more the idea swallowed her.

She had heard the stories, of course. Other omegas—girls she had gone to school with—who had come into obscene amounts of money after signing on as surrogates for wealthy alpha families.

Some of them had even moved into luxury apartments, driving fancy cars and flaunting their new lives like they had won the lottery.

“It’s not like you’re doing anything else with your uterus,” Lydia’s voice echoed in her mind, teasing but not untrue.

Bella bit her lip, her steps slowing as she approached the familiar block where her apartment building stood.

 She paused in front of the building, looking up at the darkened windows of her apartment. The thought of going inside felt suffocating.

She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her messages until she found the conversation with Lydia.

 How serious were you about     

 that surrogacy thing?

It only took a moment for Lydia to reply.

          Dead serious. I know a girl   

          who did it. She made enough  

          money to pay off her student  

          loans and still had enough left  

         over to put a down payment on   

          a house. Why?

Bella stared at the message, her mind racing. Could she really do it? Could she go through with something like that?

Her phone buzzed again.

              If you’re interested, I can   

              send you the contact info for 

              the agency she used. It’s  

              legit. And the money… well,  

              let’s just say it would solve a 

              lot of your problems.

Bella exhaled slowly. She was desperate, that much was clear. But surrogacy? It was a huge commitment, and not just physically. The idea of carrying someone else’s child, bonding with it for nine months, only to hand it over at the end… she didn’t know if she could handle that.

But then again, what choice did she have?

She glanced up at her apartment again, her thoughts tugging in two directions. 

On one hand, she couldn’t deny how badly she needed the money. On the other, this wasn’t just some simple job. It was something that could change her life—maybe for the better, but maybe not.

Her phone buzzed again.

               If you want to talk to my     

              friend about it, I can set it up

              Just say the word.

Bella hesitated, her thumb hovering over the keyboard. She knew this decision would be life-changing, one way or another. 

But with no job, no money, and no idea how she was going to make it through the next month, the idea was becoming harder to ignore.

Finally, she typed a short response.

Set it up.

She hit send, and as soon as the message went through, a strange mixture of relief and anxiety settled in her chest. 

She didn’t know what she was getting herself into, but at this point, it felt like her only option.

She went through hell getting the last job. The life of a poor un-mated omega in their world was hell itself. 

She can't continue like this.

With one last glance at her apartment, Bella turned and walked back down the street, her mind filled with possibilities. 

Maybe, just maybe, this was the lifeline she had been waiting for.