Chapter 6

Monday morning, my inbox was filled with new project assignments. When I thought I'd catch up, another task landed on my desk. Pregnancy or not, he didn't care. My workload kept on increasing.  

At first I thought it was a coincidence, it became a pattern and now, it feels like punishment.  

Zara the board file.

Zara the Martins project

Zara ensures to beat deadlines. Two hours for what should take a day.

My phone buzzed and it was Ethan.

I sighed and picked up. “Hey. Aren’t you supposed to be in class?”

“I’m on break,” he said. “And you didn’t call last night. Mom said you were exhausted again.”

I rolled my chair slightly away from my computer, giving my brain a moment to breathe. “I was fine, Ethan. Just busy.”

“You always say that.” He scoffed lightly. “I can hear you typing while talking to me, Zara, are you sure you’re resting? You sound tired.”

His voice was calm but filled with concern and protective worry he tried to hide.

I smiled faintly. “Look at you, sounding like the older sibling.”

He hummed, unconvinced. “Just take care of yourself. Drink water. Eat actual food, not snacks.”

By mid-morning the email dropped in my inbox.

SUBJECT: Immediate Transfer — Westwood Branch

Effective: Monday

I was angry. I felt really bad.

Westwood wasn’t just “another branch.”

It was two hours away, uphill traffic, no direct bus route, and far from my clinic. My prenatal appointments would become impossible.

My body, already stretched and aching, reacted with a sharp twist under my ribs.

I stood and walked so fast, all I heard was my pulse.

This wasn’t a reassignment.

It was a message: Leave. Break. Quit.

I marched to Sebastian’s office before I could talk myself out of it. I knocked once then pushed the door, and stepped inside.

He looked up slowly, unbothered.

“I received a transfer notice,” I said, “To Westwood.”

“Yes,” he replied, turning a page in a file. “Report there on Monday.”

“I can’t.” I said. “The distance, my clinic is here. My checkups. My health.”

“Your health,” he repeated softly, eyes lifting to mine. “Is not the company’s concern.”

“You know I can’t commute that long. I’m pregnant”

“I’m aware,” he cut in.

“This transfer is unreasonable,” I said, voice shaking but steady. “It’s punishment.”

“It’s restructuring,” he corrected. “If Westwood is too far, you may submit a resignation letter instead.”

Exactly what he wanted. But if I'm to resign it's gonna be my decision, definitely not like this. I said to myself. 

I pressed a hand against my belly. The babies shifted faintly, as if listening.

“I’m not resigning,” I said quietly.

His jaw ticked. “Then you’re transferring.”

“Call it what you want,” I said, stepping back. “But I’m not endangering this pregnancy.”

I left before he could say anything further.

I placed a hand on my stomach.

“We’re not moving,” I whispered. “They’ll have to drag us out.”

And for the first time since the demotion, I felt bold.

I never knew Mrs. Kurt had been observing Sebastian’s unfair treatment towards me. One of the oldest and dedicated staff.

She had been watching.

When I entered my office, she stepped in.

“Zara,” she called gently.

Her eyes were soft the moment she saw how shaken I was from the confrontation with Sebastian. 

“Listen to me carefully.”

Her voice was low and almost protective.

“This company does not punish pregnant women. And it certainly doesn’t hide them.”

She continued:

“If there is something going on between you and the CEO, that is not my business, unless it affects your treatment.”

“I didn’t ask for the transfer, ma’am. And I… can’t take it. The stress, the travel, the pregnancy.”

“Leave it to me.”

She placed a gentle hand on my arm.

“You don’t deserve to be pushed around. Not in this company. Not by anyone.”

Suddenly, I felt the sting in my chest easing, the tiny breath of safety in a place that had been choking me for months.

Someone saw me.

Someone finally spoke.

And for the first time in a long time… I didn’t feel alone, I felt safe.

I had barely finished the lunch Lily brought me when Chris from the finance department walked in urgently. 

“A missing reconciliation report is causing a minor panic, we've checked every file, the error has not been identified. We need someone competent to fix it.” Zara please.

I remembered my salary advance request that was rejected. The frustration bubbled beneath my skin.

I hesitated. “I… I really shouldn’t,” I muttered, massaging my temples. My body ached, the twins inside me kicking as if sensing my stress.

“Zara, please,” Chris pressed, urgency in his voice. “You’re the only one who can resolve this before it escalates to Sebastian.”

I nodded reluctantly. “Fine. Send me the files.”

Hours blurred as I worked through the numbers, eyes straining, back aching. Each corrected formula and reconciled report was a battle against exhaustion. Sweat dampened my blouse. My legs cramped.

I rubbed my eyes, feeling the flutter of movement inside me, my body protesting. Still, I kept working, refusing to slow down. Sebastian doesn't entertain excuses let alone mistakes. more spreadsheet. I identified the missing roll and it was corrected.  

“That was impressive, I knew I could count on you. ” Chris said.

When he left. The room immediately went blurred, the papers slipped from my hands. A cold wave rolled over me, and my knees buckled.

“Zara!” someone shouted.

Heat and darkness collided as I hit the floor, my vision narrowing to a pinprick. Lily’s voice cut through the haze. “Zara, hold on! Don’t move!”

Hands lifted me gently, firm but trembling. My back ached, my pulse racing in terror and fatigue. I couldn’t speak, couldn’t think, only felt the weight of exhaustion and the tiny life inside me thrumming insistently.

“You need to rest,” Lily whispered, urgency sharp in her tone. “The doctors warned you. This… this is too much.”

I thought I could manage, but my body refused. I had to meet the deadlines, Sebastian’s impossible expectations, the relentless pressure crashed over me.

For the first time that day, I let myself go. I let someone else take over. And as I closed my eyes, the office around me faded, leaving only the quiet, steady reminder of the tiny lives I carried and the stubborn determination that even if I fell, I would rise again.

And then it hit me, a wave of dizziness, stronger than before. My vision blurred. The chair wobbled beneath me.

“Zara!” a voice shouted. I barely registered Lily’s hand gripping mine, steadying me as I collapsed against her.