02
After a great deal of fuss, I finally left the hospital.
Derek’s father, Fredric Sherman, drove the car, glancing at me with curiosity. “Angeline, why the sudden change of heart? You were set on a C–section, and we went through all that trouble to get an appointment with the doctor.”
Derek, who always stuttered when nervous, fumbled through his explanation. “M–maybe a C–section sounded too scary, and Angeline g–got nervous.”
Derek’s mother, Grace Sherman, rolled her eyes at both of them. “Why are you men meddling in how a woman gives birth? Whether Angeline chooses a natural birth or a C–section is none of your business, understand?
Pregnancy is exhausting and painful enough. Do you really need to add to her stress?”
“We didn’t mean anything by it, we were just asking, Fredric said sheepishly.
Grace let out a cold huff. “You’re not a woman, so you don’t get to just ask.”
Fredric quickly apologized.
Grace pulled me into a gentle embrace, her voice soothing. “Angeline, don’t be scared. No matter what you decide, we’ll support you. Just ignore whatever nonsense Fredric says.”
Beside me, Derek was already on his phone, calling around to find the best hospital for a
natural birth.
Their words filled my heart with warmth, and I finally began to feel at ease.
The four of us went to grab something to eat first. Afterward, Fredric drove Derek and me back to our apartment. He left after watching us enter the elevator.
Before I got out of the car, Grace took my hand once more and said kindly, “Angeline, you’ve only just reached full term. It won’t make a difference if you give birth a few days later. And if you change your mind about the C–section again, just say so. We won’t think you’re being fickle, so
don’t feel embarrassed.”
Derek nodded quickly in agreement.
Grace’s words made my eyes sting with emotion.
The mother who gave birth to me despised me and wished I would die sooner, yet Fredric and Grace doted on me so much. Even when I made a fuss, they didn’t get angry, they only
cared about how I felt.
I thought to myself, “Just how blind was I in my past life to mistake wolves for family?”
The moment we arrived home, I stopped in my tracks at the door.
“Come in already. There’s still a bowl left in the pot. Derek, hurry and get it for Angeline.” Celeste was holding a bowl of chicken soup and handed it to Lessie.
Lessie’s belly was round and high, showing that she hadn’t given birth yet.
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She sipped the soup in small gulps, her expression tinged with lingering fear. “I had just le down on the delivery table when I heard the nurse say you’d backed out. How could I go through
with it after that? So I climbed off the bed and came home.”
Celeste wasn’t as calm as lessie She sounded irritated “Angeline this whole thing makes
12:50 Wed, 26 Feb པདཔ པ‘ཡབཅ་
ཅདད༦ པ་“ ་ ་ “ ་ ་“་ སྤུས།-
་ཕད བད་བ་ ཕ་
༔ད་ཕཕ དཁཔ་ ་ཕ་
down on the delivery table when I heard the nurse say you’d backed out. How could I go through with it after that? So I climbed off the bed and came home.”
Celeste wasn’t as calm as Lessie. She sounded Irritated. “Angeline, this whole thing makes me so mad. You were the one who chose that doctor. How could you back out at the last minute and leave Lessie there alone? What were you thinking?”
Lessie, however, spoke up on my behalf. “Maybe Angeline just didn’t think it through. I mean, I was already in the operating room. But since everything turned out fine, let’s just drop it.”
In my past life, I would have thought Lessie was defending me.
But I had already died once. If I still couldn’t hear the meaning behind her words, I’d be a fool. I let out a cold chuckle. “I had always planned for a natural birth. You were the one who insisted I have a C–section on the same day as you. What’s wrong with changing my mind?”
Celeste’s eyebrows shot up, and in an instant, she was in my face, nearly jabbing a finger at me. “How can you talk to Lessie like that? She’s a pregnant woman! What if you scare her?”
The sudden aggression startled me, and before I could react, Derek stepped in front of me protectively. “Angeline is pregnant too. Aren’t you afraid of scaring her?”
His words were logical and irrefutable, leaving Celeste with nothing to say. She scoffed but didn’t push further. Derek continued, “Lessie, you misunderstood. Angeline just wants a natural birth and doesn’t want a C–section, which is why she left the hospital. That doctor was the best
one available.”
Lessie’s face changed. “What? You want a natural birth?”
She exchanged a glance with Celeste before quickly trying to persuade me. “Angeline, don’t listen to those awful men. They just don’t want you to have a C–section because then you’d have
to wait three years before having another baby. They’re forcing you into a natural birth so you
can be a breeding machine!”
Celeste, no longer scowling, immediately chimed in. “She’s right! Natural birth is awful. There’s tearing, episiotomies, and even the risk of uterine prolapse. It’s too dangerous.”
Growing impatient, I cut them off. “Whether I choose a natural birth or a C–section is my decision. If you think a C–section is so great, then go ahead and have one yourself. Why does it
concern me?”
The two of them opened their mouths to argue, but I quickly added, “If you don’t think our
doctor is good enough, go find your own.”
It was the first time I had ever spoken to them in such an exasperated tone. They were
stunned silent, momentarily forgetting to argue back.
Celeste hesitated before speaking in a stiff voice. “Lessie and I were just looking out for you.
Why are you snapping at us?”
I rolled my eyes internally. I was exhausted from the long day and had no patience to argue. Besides, Lessie was further along in her pregnancy than I was, she would definitely give birth
“You two should head home. I’m tired and need to rest.”
Lessie’s eyes flickered as an idea struck her. She clutched her belly and said, “Angeline, how about we stay at your place for the next few days? Your home is closer to the hospital, so it’ll be
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I rolled my eyes internally. I was exhausted from the long day and had no patience to argue. Besides, Lessie was further along in her pregnancy than I was, she would definitely give birth first. “You two should head home. I’m tired and need to rest.”
Lessie’s eyes flickered as an Idea struck her. She clutched her belly and said, “Angeline, how about we stay at your place for the next few days? Your home is closer to the hospital, so it’ll be more convenient if anything happens.”
Celeste might not have known what Lessle was planning, but she instinctively nodded along. “That’s a great idea! Your place has plenty of rooms, and I can take care of both of you at the same time,
You said before that you wanted slow–cooked ribs, right? I can make them for you tomorrow.”
