Beginning

Beginning

"YOU betrayed me! Of all people, why her? Why my mother? You’re disgusting!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, throwing everything I could get my hands on.

"Hon—"

"Stop calling me honey, you filthy bastard!"

I stormed toward the drawer, yanked it open, and grabbed a pair of scissors. His eyes filled with fear as he slowly backed away from me.

"Rebecca, what are you planning to do?"

"What do you think?"

He swallowed hard. "Are you planning to kill me?"

I let out a bitter laugh. "Do you really think you're worth staining my hands with blood over?"

"Rebecca!" he shouted, his eyes turning red. He sat on the bed and let out a frustrated scream.

"It was a mistake! I was fucking drunk!"

Ignoring him, I walked to the walk-in closet and harshly grabbed the wedding gown I had been excited to wear tomorrow morning.

"R-Rebecca, w-what are you doing?"

Right in front of Tim, I shredded the wedding gown—the same dress worth hundred thousand dollars. We had argued about it before because I was fine with a cheaper one, but he insisted. He said it was because he loved me that much.

Bullshit. This is the kind of love he has for me?

His love was painful.

"We’re done, Tim! Go and be with my mother! Marry her instead!" I screamed, sobbing as I hurled the scissors onto the floor.

"Rebecca, no. Please, no, hon! Give me a chance. We've been together for nine years. Are you really going to throw all of that away?"

I stopped in my tracks and looked at his tear-streaked face. "Weren’t you the one who threw us away first? After you slept with my mother, do you really think I can still give you a chance and marry you? There’s no way I can do that, Tim. No fucking way!"

"Rebecca, I'll kill myself if you leave me!" He clung to my wrist, kneeling in front of me.

"Do it, Tim, I don’t care. Just don’t expect me to show up at your funeral."

I shoved him away and, with trembling legs, walked out of the apartment we once shared. My phone kept vibrating in my pocket, but I ignored it—until I saw the name of the person I despised the most.

"Are you happy now? You ruined my life!"

"Rebecca, let’s talk. I—"

"I hope you rot in hell! You and Tim deserve each other!"

I threw my phone onto the ground and stomped on it. As I headed toward our car, I remembered it belonged to Tim. Enraged, I hurled the keys at the window and kicked the side mirror for good measure.

A sharp pain shot through my stomach, but I ignored it as I made my way to the gate. It was almost midnight, and there were no cabs in sight.

I had no way to book a ride either—I'd just destroyed my phone. Afraid Tim might follow me, I broke into a run, desperate to get away from him.

How could they do this to me?

Tim and I had been together for almost ten years. He said I changed him—from a reckless troublemaker to a respected engineer leading his father's engineering firm. I dedicated my life to him. My world revolved around serving him. Even when my father disapproved of us living together because we weren’t married, I defied him. I never wanted to hold that against Tim because I did it out of love. But now, I couldn't stomach his betrayal.

And my mother—the one I defended against my father and our family despite her shortcomings. Despite all her sins, I accepted her, believing she had changed. But she hadn’t.

Before, all she wanted from us was money. Now, she took my fiancé.

With nowhere else to go, I found myself at the cemetery, standing before my grandmother’s grave—the woman who raised and loved me since I was a child. I let out all my pain and rage there, mourning not only my relationship with Tim but also the pieces of myself I had lost.

When I calmed down, I decided to go back and confront both Tim and my mother. My heart was filled with fury and bitterness. I was disgusted by what they had done. And yet, deep down, there was still a part of me that couldn't fully let him go.

Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t notice the speeding car until it was too late.

The loud honk jolted me, but my body refused to move. I stood frozen, waiting for the impact. I had no strength left to fight. I was exhausted.

I braced myself for the collision, but before it happened, a searing pain shot through my abdomen. Everything went black.

*

When I woke up, a blinding light greeted me. I winced, shutting my eyes as a sharp pain spread through my stomach.

"Boss, she's bleeding."

"Pull over and let me drive, Sigmund."

"Yes, boss!"

"Are you sure we didn't hit her?!"

"No, boss, we were quite far from her."

The pain was unbearable.

"Ahhhhhh!" I screamed, gripping whatever I could.

I felt like something was being ripped from my body.

No… It can’t be!

"Boss, she's losing consciousness again!"

"Don’t let her sleep, Elias—"

My vision blurred, and the voices around me faded. Darkness swallowed me once more.

*

When I regained consciousness, I blinked in confusion at my unfamiliar surroundings.

But as I noticed the IV attached to my hand and the sterile white walls, I realized—I was in a hospital.

What happened?

I touched my stomach, which still ached terribly, as did the lower part of my body.

A terrible sense of foreboding gripped my chest.

The door opened, and a woman in a doctor’s gown walked in.

"Oh, you're awake. How are you feeling? I'm Doctor Sanchez, by the way."

She gave me a sad smile and placed her hand over mine.

"I'm sorry, but you lost your baby. We couldn't save her."

"B-baby?" My voice trembled.

She hesitated. "You didn’t know?"

I shook my head as tears welled in my eyes.

I was pregnant?

How did I not know?

"I'm truly sorry. I’ll give you some time alone. I’ll explain the procedure to you later."

I was betrayed by my fiancé. He cheated on me with my mother. And now… I lost my baby?

A sob tore from my throat as I wished for all of this to be a nightmare.

Just a week ago, I was excited about my upcoming wedding. I was busy preparing for it.

Please, God, take me back to that day.

"Here…"

My crying stopped when I saw a handkerchief in front of me.

Slowly, I looked up at the person offering it.

A familiar face greeted me.

I blinked, trying to clear my vision. His brown eyes looked dangerous.

He was the man I met two weeks ago—the one who gave me a crazy offer that I had immediately refused.

"Name your price. Act with me. Play the role of a loving mother to my children."

"Y-you?"

"Yes, it's me again, Rebecca…"