ENCHANTED LOVE, VOLUME 2 - Season 9 Episode 67

Sheryl looked at Sue who sat on the hospital bed with her head hung downwards. Though the girl was probably going through personal clashes one after the other with nothing apparently working on her behalf, she still had the strength of mind to choose her priority. Sheryl’s eyes moved down as she gazed at her. She said, “Okay, since you have decided to keep the child, then from now on, you have to rest well and take care of your own body. Only with a healthy body will you be able to survive the process of giving birth. Leave all other things aside. Don’t worry. I will handle them for you.”

“Sher, thank you so much,” Sue spoke with her eyes still lowered. Then she slowly lifted her head and looked at Sheryl with deep gratitude. Indeed, Sheryl had been her only support in the days of despair. And now she had to trouble Sheryl again for the baby. “I really have no clue of what to do without you.”

“Just stop saying that.” Sheryl put up a warm smile and told Sue to sleep. “It’s already late. Have a nice sleep. Good night.”

“Okay.” Sue nodded and closed her eyes. She was so exhausted in both mind and body that she fell asleep in no time. Sheryl sat by her bed waiting for her to fall asleep. It was not until Sue fell into a deep slumber that Sheryl left the hospital. After she reached home, she worked for the entire night to complete her task and mail it to Isla.

By the time Sheryl switched off her laptop, dawn had just started to break. She looked out of the window to see marks of crimson slowly blending into the grey sky giving it a beautiful ombre look. The pleasant morning breeze kissed her face. ‘It’s no use going to bed at this time,’ she thought to herself. Then she decided to use this time to prepare a healthy breakfast for Sue. The very thought of Sue brought a sense of pensiveness in her heart.

When she arrived at the hospital, Sue had just woken up and was getting off the bed to brush her teeth. Looking at the sleep deprived face of Sheryl, she asked anxiously, “Sher, you didn’t sleep last night, did you?” With worries creeping on her face, Sue continued, “You face looks so pale.”

“I’m alright. Don’t worry about me.” Sheryl gave Sue a reaffirming smile. In fact, though she had not slept through the night, Sheryl was feeling invigorated.

Having worked on an important proposal for her own company gave her a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction after a long time. That expelled her sleepiness, powered her up and made her fully awake.

“Go and brush your teeth now. I’ve brought breakfast for you,” said Sheryl. Sheryl knew that an expecting mother should get enough more nutritions for nurturing the baby, so she prepared a bowl of shrimp porridge for Sue. After Sue finished her teeth-brushing, she finished everything Sheryl cooked for her and felt much satiated. Just then, a much annoying intruder walked into the hospital room.

It was none other than Peggy. She came with empty hands. Sheryl was startled to see that she didn’t bring anything for her daughter, no breakfast, no fruits, nothing. If the person lying on the bed was Doris, it might have been a completely different behavior all together.

But that was how Peggy was. She did not have the slightest concern about her daughter. The only thing she had to do with her was just to retrieve money from her and spoil her son with that money.

Before she came, she even peeked through the door seam to gauge whether Sue was in the mood to see her or not. After she saw the smile on Sue’s face, she got confirmed that she was in a good mood. Peggy then took cautious steps inside the room. The moment her eyes met Sheryl, she broke into a smile and thanked her, “Sher, thank you so much. You have been of great help. If I were to take care of two pregnant mothers, I would certainly be unable to cope with it.”

Then Peggy took a deep sigh and continued, “But…. I am wondering… how come Sue became pregnant all of a sudden. It is like just out of the blue.”

Saying this, she shared glances with both Sheryl and Sue.

Sheryl looked at Peggy who just lowered her eyes to avoid eye contact with Sue. Then she spoke in a cold voice, “Mrs. Garcia, after all Sue is your daughter. You have taken care of Doris for quite a while. I believe you should know how to take care of expecting mothers much better than I do. And you just stated that you were taking care of two pregnant mothers, right? Why don’t you bring any breakfast for Sue. You know how important nutrition is to the mother and the baby, don’t you? Or do you mean… that only the baby of Doris is the baby of your family, while the baby of Sue isn’t, just because the surname of the baby is not Garcia?”

“Of course not…” Peggy smiled and began her performance as a caring mother. “Sue is my dear daughter. Her baby is going to be my grandchild. How can I not care for her?”

Darting a glance at Sue and then diverting the glance at Sheryl, Peggy gathered herself and continued, “It’s just… that I knew you would prepare Sue a nice breakfast. That was why I came without any food.”

Sheryl jeered. Neither did she agree, nor did she refute.

Unwilling to continue the conversation with the hypocritical woman, Sheryl stood up and started to clear the cutleries. Peggy took the seat where Sheryl was sitting and placed her hand on Sue’s shoulder and asked with a concerned voice, “Sue, how do you feel now? Do you feel uncomfortable?”

Sue didn’t reply. Neither did she feel worthy of looking at Peggy. Suddenly there was a silence in the room that made it quite uncomfortable for all of them. Peggy glanced at Sheryl from the corner of her eyes and continued, “As a mother, it is my duty to advise you. The first three months of pregnancy are extremely critical. You must take care of your own body. Refrain yourself from excessive movement or work that creates stress on your body. Think of the baby before you do anything. Or else you will regret what you have done if you lose the baby.”

Sue returned Peggy with a cold face and replied in a sarcastic tone, “Thank you so much Mom. As long as Allen stays away from me, everything will be fine. If my baby needs to be protected from someone, it is none other than Allen.”

Peggy’s face darkened immediately at Sue’s daunting reply. She became speechless for the moment. Though she knew it was all her fault, accepting her mistake was not her thing. Hence she tried to get away from it.

Moreover, Sheryl was also there. She eyed at Sheryl who kept herself busy fidgeting with something or the other, pretending not to pay attention to their conversation. Peggy muttered under with sported patience as she explained, “Sue, this… is just an accident. Please don’t be bothered by that.”

“Enough!” Sue shouted, interrupting Peggy with impatience. “Just leave now. I don’t wish to see you anymore.”

Glaring at Peggy with wrath in her eyes, Sue threatened, “Stay away from me unless you want me to call the police. Or else…”

“You…” Peggy could no longer keep the mask of being a caring mother on her face. More so, she had no mood to care about Sheryl’s presence, and revealed her true self. She finally came to the topic she couldn’t wait to talk about. “Sue, I am okay to leave. Just that… you have to promise me one thing.”

“What is it?” Sue questioned back emotionlessly as she stared at Peggy’s face. Peggy was slowly shedding all her masks and bringing out the real greedy side of hers. It was just one thing that she wanted from Sue and she had always been shameless and unapologetic about it. Sue stared straight at her face watching her changing colors. Though she knew what Peggy wanted, she waited for her to snap her obscene demand.

“You have to agree to what I told you yesterday. Plus, you have to give me some more money for Allen to buy a new house at Ylanbu. It is so inconvenient to live at your house,” Peggy stated her conditions in a very point blank manner. Now her face was completely bereft of any trace of concern for her daughter. “This is my only condition. If you promise me that, I will leave right away. If you don’t…”

“If I don’t, then what?” Sue asked out of contempt.

“If you don’t promise me that, I will find Anthony, and ask him whether he is the father of the baby you are carrying or not.” Peggy finally revealed her bargain chip and threatened Sue. Sue’s face went blank immediately.

Seeing the reaction from Sue, Peggy then knew that she had hit the bull’s eye. She could clearly read the horror on Sue’s face. It just told her everything she needed to know.

The new found knowledge about the truth behind Sue’s pregnancy braced her with the right tools to oppress Sue even more. “I know that you do not wish to see me. To be honest with you, if not for Allen, even I do not wish to see your face either. Since we both hate to see each other, let’s just settle this once and for all so that we don’t have to bear with each other anymore. I thought you said that there was nothing between you and Anthony. Alright, I don’t dig further about the relationship between you two. Then where is the baby from? How do you explain that?

Why are you so resistant to the idea of marrying Anthony? He is a rich man, right? If you marry him, all the problems will be solved. How difficult will it be for him to pay back 500, 000?”

Peggy sneered again and continued, “If you are so shy to tell him about this, I am more than willing to do it on behalf of you. After all he is the father of the baby in your womb. And he will be my future son-in-law. It should be a reasonable thing for him to buy his brother-in-law a house, isn’t it?”

“How dare you!” Sue’s face turned red as she heard Peggy pronounce her threat in such a cold and clear manner. She glared at Peggy’s shameless and contemptuous face with blazing eyes. There was a now-try-and-escape-from-me look and a winning smile on Peggy’s face. Sue was turning crazy after she heard that Peggy was planning to reveal about her pregnancy to Anthony. She went absolutely blank in her head and screamed, “If you ever dare tell him, you will not want to know what I will do to you!”

Sue’s voice creaked as she threatened her mother revealing the weakness in her heart. Peggy curved her lips let out another selfish smile and spared a pitiful look at her daughter. Her face was glowing with the confidence that Sue just had no other way than to give in. Peggy rested her hand once again on Sue’s shoulder that made her suffocate all the more. Then she said, “Sue, I will be nice to you and give you some time to prepare the things I demand. So today I will let you go. If I don’t see the money ready by the time I need it, I will show you no mercy despite being your mother.”

Darting a fierce glare at Sue, Peggy continued, “Alright, it has been a long time. I have to cook the lunch for my dear Doris. Take your time to consider my suggestion. Make sure not to make me wait. My patience for you is running out.”

Peggy shot Sheryl a glance before she left. It seemed that she didn’t care about letting others know her true attitude towards her daughter anymore. This glance, perhaps meant more than just a glance. It was like a pre-warning to tell Sheryl to steer clear of her family issues. Sheryl was unmoved by that, and handed Sue a cup of warm water. “Alright, stop being angry now.”

As Sue took the cup with trembling hands, she looked at Sheryl with helpless eyes. Sheryl consoled Sue gently while patting on her back. “This is not the first time you see her true colors, right? She is not even worth your anger. Please don’t be disturbed by such a shameless person. Don’t let anger affect your health. Take care of your body and your baby.” Sue took a sip of the warm water, closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself.