“But you two are still young,” the doctor tried to lift the mood. “You’ve got plenty of time to try again for a second or even third child. No rush.”
The moment the words left the doctor’s mouth, I saw Nelson physically relax. He even let out a visible sigh of relief.
Just like that, everything changed.§
The moment we left the exam room, Nelson’s demeanor did a complete 180. The man who used to be overly cautious, always holding my arm and watching every step I took, now walked ahead of me like I was a stranger.}
I watched as he leaned in close to whisper something into his mother’s ear. Dorothy’s face lit up, her grin stretching nearly ear to ear.>
Dorothy gave me a long, judgmental once–over, then scoffed. “I knew it the day I met you,” she sneered. “You’ve always had that cursed look about you. A total jinx.“>
“You killed your own parents and now you’re trying to drag our whole family down with you. Just do the decent thing and divorce my son. We don’t need your bad luck hanging over our heads.”}
I’d known better than to expect anything kind from Dorothy, but hearing her throw my parents‘ deaths in my face still struck a nerve.
I had long come to terms with their passing–but in everyone else’s eyes, they died in that car crash because I had begged them to take me to an amusement park that day.
Nelson’s family, especially his parents, never let me forget that. They held onto it like ammunition, ready to fire the moment I stepped out of line.
Out of guilt, I had always tried to be patient with them. I told myself I owed them that much.
All of that and for what? So they could keep pushing me further into a corner?
“Mother…” I murmured.
“Don’t call me that,” Dorothy snapped. “I’m no longer your mother. Not ever.”
Dorothy’s face twisted with disgust as she raised her voice, drawing the attention of every passerby in the hospital hallway.
She pointed at me, shouting for everyone to hear. Telling them I was drowning in debt, probably heading to jail–and worst of all, refusing to divorce her son and set their family free.
I wiped at my tears, playing along with her little show.
There were still good people in this world. Some of the bystanders began murmuring, shaking their heads at the scene. Many told me gently that I deserved better–that I should walk away from a family like this while I still could.
Just as I was wondering how to respond, a passerby voiced the very thought I was holding back,
“If they’re getting divorced, they’d better put everything in writing–who’s getting custody, how the child support will work, how the assets are being divided. Otherwise, it’ll just be a mess even after they split.”
Dorothy’s expression twisted into something unreadable. That single comment must’ve struck a nerve.§
She went quiet for a while, clearly stewing over something and then–probably thinking she’d had a stroke of genius–she sprang into action.
***
That same day, after confirming the baby was a girl, she gathered every relative she could find.
Nelson brought in a lawyer to “keep things professional.“}
So there I was, eight months pregnant, sitting alone at the end of a long table, facing a crowd that looked more like a tribunal than a family.
“Alisha, now don’t say we’re ganging up on you,” Dorothy began, her tone saccharine and self–righteous. “We’re just here to lay everything out clearly, fair and square,”
The Reeds made their position painfully clear here.}
Once the divorce was finalized, Nelson would have nothing to do with my business debts. The child? They wanted no part of that either. No custody, no child support–not even a visit.
“If you want to change her last name or whatever,” Dorothy said with a dismissive wave, “that’s your business. We won’t interfere.” The bottom line was: they were cutting all ties with both me and the baby.
“That’s it?” I asked, stunned. “No emotion, no sense of responsibility?”
“It’s not about lacking emotion,” Dorothy huffed. “You’re the one who brought this mess on yourself. Who starts a business while pregnant and nearly lands themselves in prison? Honestly, who could–or would–stick their neck out for you?”
Dan jumped in like he was auditioning for ‘Most Self–Righteous brother–in–law of the Year‘, “Exactly! If I ever owed that kind of money, no way would I ask my parents for help. They worked hard to raise us–it’d be shameful to drag them into debt! Totally ungrateful.”
Then he threw in one more jab, smirking. “Oh, right. You wouldn’t know about that kind of thing. You didn’t have parents growing up.” Nelson shot him a warning look and Dan finally shut his mouth.
I sat in silence, watching this hypocritical family try to wash their hands clean, pretending to be honorable while gutting me like it was a business negotiation.
A thick packet of legal documents was handed to me across the table. I took it and stared down at the papers in my hands.
