CHAPTER 4: Agony Inside

"What?!”

Demetria’s voice rang through the room like a firecracker.

Penelope flinched, “I…keep your voice down!” she hissed, glancing instinctively toward the door, as if the walls themselves might carry the secret away.

But Demetria was already pacing.

“No, no, no—wait!” she spun back around, pointing at Penelope like she had just uncovered a crime. “You mean to tell me… the CEO? Calvin Dawson? The tall, brooding, ‘I-look-like-I-own-the-world’ man… is Shirley’s father?!”

Penelope pressed her lips together and pinched her glabella, “…Yes.”

Demetria let out a strangled noise and dragged both hands down her face.

“Oh my God.”

Silence followed. But it wasn't calm. It was the kind that buzzed with too many thoughts and too many questions clawing for space.

Then,

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Demetria asked, quieter now, but no less shaken.

Penelope’s shoulders dipped, “I didn’t think it mattered.”

That earned her a look. One that said that answer was unacceptable.

“Didn’t think it mattered?” Demetria repeated, incredulous. “Penny… that is not something you forget to mention.”

“I didn’t forget!” Penelope snapped, the words escaping before she could soften them. “I just…I didn’t think I’d ever see him again.”

Her voice dropped, “It was one night.”

She paused. Then quieter, “One reckless night.”

Demetria studied her.

“…One night,” she repeated, but this time, there was no judgment in it. Just trying to understand.

Penelope nodded slowly. Her gaze drifted somewhere far beyond the room.

“I didn’t even know his full name.”

Demetria stilled, “What?”

“We met at an event,” Penelope continued, her tone distant now, as if she were narrating someone else’s life. “I wasn’t supposed to be there.”

A faint, brittle smile touched her lips.

“But my mother…” She inhaled sharply, steadying herself. “Her condition was getting worse. The bills kept coming. And I…”

Her hands clasped together in her lap tightly.

“I ran out of choices.”

Demetria’s voice softened, “…What do you mean?”

Penelope didn’t answer right away. Instead, she rubbed her arms slowly, like she was trying to steady herself.

Then, “I offered myself.”

The room seemed to shrink and Demetria didn’t move.

“I… don’t understand,” she said carefully. “You told me it was just a one-night stand. A game. Truth or dare –”

“I lied.”

The words came out clean this time, with no hesitation as if she was already tired of holding the burden of the secret.

Demetria stared at her bewildered.

Penelope’s fingers curled slightly against her skirt. “I lied,” she repeated, softer now. “Because it was easier than explaining this.”

A moment of silence passed and Demetria didn't even know what to say.

Slowly, she sat before Penelope.

“There was an auction,” Penelope continued.

Demetria’s eyes trained on her, “…What kind of auction?”

Penelope swallowed, “The kind where people are… bought.”

Her voice dropped further, “For a night.”

Demetria gasped. What?

“He was the highest bidder,” she added quietly, “And I offered myself.”

“If I hadn’t done it…” Her eyes lifted slowly to meet Demetria’s, “…my mother wouldn’t have made it.”

Demetria’s expression softened immediately, “Oh, Penny…”

“I needed the money,” she said, almost defensively now, like she still had to justify it, even after all this time.

Demetria moved closer, kneeling in front of her.

“You don’t have to explain that to me,” she said gently. “You survived. That’s what matters.”

Penelope let out a shaky breath. But the tension didn’t leave her. Her eyes rimmed with tears.

“I hated myself for it,” she admitted, voice barely above a whisper. “Afterward. Every second. I felt…dirty.”

Her fingers tightened, “And then I found out I was pregnant.”

Demetria bit her lip and looked down.

“I lost everything,” she continued. “My education. My plans. Everything I thought my life would be.”

Her lips trembled.

“How was I supposed to tell anyone that? And risk being reduced to… nothing?”

Demetria didn’t interrupt. She just allowed her free herself. She just listened.

“I found out weeks later,” Penelope went on. “By then, he was gone. No name or contact.”

She gave a hollow laugh, “Nothing at all. I was pregnant for a man I didn't know.”

Demetria watched her softly, “…And you kept the baby,” she said quietly.

Penelope nodded, sniffing. This time, her expression shifted to something warmer.

“I couldn’t not keep her.”

A small smile formed, fragile, but wholesome.

“Shirley… she’s the only thing that made any of it worth surviving.”

Her voice steadied, “She saved me.”

Demetria squeezed her hand, “I know, Penny.”

For a moment, the room felt softened again. But it didn’t last.

“…Does he know?” Demetria asked and Penelope’s body went still.

“No.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes,” she said too quickly. “He didn’t react or say anything.”

But her mind betrayed her. That look and pause. What if it meant…

Her stomach twisted and Demetria noticed.

“…Penny.”

“What?”

“You’re not convinced.”

“I just—” She exhaled sharply. “I don’t know. If he knew, wouldn’t he have said something?”

“Not necessarily.”

Penelope frowned, “What does that mean?”

Demetria leaned back slightly.

“It means men like him don’t react immediately. They observe and wait.”

A chill slipped down Penelope’s spine.

“No,” she said quickly. “You’re reading too much into it.”

“Am I?” Demetria tilted her head. “Because he called you back.”

That ... that was true. On a normal day, it was impossible. She failed, she failed. She wasn't even qualified for it. Then, why did he…?

Penelope stilled.

“That’s not normal,” Demetria continued. “You said you messed up.”

“I did.”

“And yet, he wants you back?”

The silence that followed felt… different. Like something was shifting into place. Whether she liked it or not.

“I don’t like this,” Penelope whispered.

Demetria hesitated. But then said anyways, “There’s something else.”

Penelope looked at her, “What?”

“…He deserves to know.”

Everything in Penelope locked up.

“No.”

“Penny—”

“No,” she repeated, firmer this time. “We’re not doing that.”

“That’s his child.”

“And she’s my daughter!” Penelope snapped, her voice cracking. “I carried her. I raised her. I went through everything alone!”

“I know that!” Demetria said quickly. “But that doesn’t erase him.”

“It does for me.”

Demetria sighed, “He needs to know he has a child somewhere.”

“What if he doesn’t want her?” Penelope whispered. Her voice trembled now, “What if he looks at her and sees a mistake?”

Her breath hitched, “What if he…takes her away from me?”

That fear…that was the truth beneath everything.

Demetria’s expression softened instantly, “He won’t.”

“You don’t know that,” Penelope said, gripping her tightly. “He’s powerful. People like him take what they want.”

Demetria pulled her into a hug, “He can’t take your child.”

“But what if he can?” she whispered. “I can’t risk it.”

“Oh, Penny…”

“I'm sorry, Demetria. But, Shirley is out of it. I'm not risking it.”

And that was it. The line she wouldn’t cross.

Demetria sighed softly.“…Okay. Fine, not now.”

Not ever, Penelope thought as she relaxed a bit.

“But you still have to go tomorrow.”

The tension returned immediately, “I don’t want to.”

“I know. But you have to.”

“I’ll mess it up again. And I don't want to meet him.”

“Penny, just give this a try. And you're possibly not the only woman he's…had sex with. Even if he remembers.”

Penelope looked at her, “Even if I were to accept, I don’t still feel like myself.”

Demetria smiled gently, “Then pretend.”

“What?…Pretend how?”

“Yeah,” she shrugged. “Borrow confidence. Fake it if you have to.”

A small breath escaped Penelope, “It's not that easy.”

“That's why you have me. To cheer you on,” Demetria offered her a smile and Penelope sighed, returning it faintly.

“…Okay, fine.”

“Good,” Demetria said, already standing. “Tomorrow is war. And I'm going to prepare you to conquer Calvin!”

Despite everything, Penelope laughed and Demetria pulled her into a hug.

“Everything will be fine, okay?” Demetria whispered to her and she nodded, grateful to have her in her life.

“Thank you, Demi.”

Later that night, sleep didn’t come. Penelope lay still, staring at the ceiling. Her thoughts circling relentlessly around her mind.

Tomorrow waited and she was so unsure of what the outcome would be.

Her hand reached for her phone and she unlocked it.

Shirley’s face immediately lit the screen. Bright and innocent, with her cute smile adorning her face.

Something in Penelope’s chest softened, and hardened at the same time.

“I’ll protect you,” she whispered.

It was a vow she had made. Shirley was her whole world and no one was taking her away.

Her thumb brushed lightly over the screen, “I’ll protect you, My Love…even from him.”