Between love and betrayal

An unforgettable pregnancy

The Lochley weather was still bright, gracing the sky with a huge sun and birds singing sweet melodies, or at least it was before the clouds suddenly adorned the sky and sealed off the sun's rays.

Layla Delfigalo was sitting on those waiting benches at the Hospital Del Oriente. She swung her legs back and forth as her feet tapped against the floor. She was anxious to know the exact result of her test.

Her period was due more than a week ago, but it was delayed, causing her to be extremely intrigued, wondering over and over again if the result of that test would be what had been on her mind for so many days. So, without waiting another day, she took a taxi and went straight to the hospital to take her blood and analyse it calmly.

Waiting was total torture, her nerves gnawed at her every thought, while she dedicated herself to just praying in her mind, hoping that the universe would hear her and that her test would come back positive.

Layla had been married to Bradley Simons for five years, but for all that time, no matter how hard she tried, she could never get pregnant, and it was killing her inside.

She had been anxious for months about this great adventure. She wouldn't let go of that faint gaze from the small window peeking out from the inside of the hospital lab. He snorted out a heavy sigh and a tremor throughout his body.

—Layla, Layla Delfigalo,— she announced from the loudspeaker perched on the wall.

At last, Layla's name had been announced. She stood up and took the small piece of paper in her hands.

"POSITIVE" Layla was pregnant!

The excitement could not be contained in her soul. She had been trying for more than 3 years to have a child, and finally she was pregnant. It was so splendid that tears welled up in her eyes and trickled down to the floor. But, everything had its process. She hadn't earned that child so easily.

She reached down, and pulled her phone out of her purse. She dialed Bradley's number with excitement. He wanted to give him the good news at once. He couldn't wait another minute.

"Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep."

The phone rang for a few seconds, but, she redialed a couple of times. After several attempts the call was not answered. However, on his last attempt, just as he was about to hang up, the phone was answered.

—Who is it?— he heard from behind the phone, a distance away. It was a faint, soft voice, undoubtedly a woman's voice.

Layla was sure with all her senses that this tender voice came from a woman, so immediately her mood changed from pink to dark and her anger was reflected on her face.

—Could it be that I have made a bad decision,— she asked herself.

From her mouth, between thoughts and annoyance, an apology and the repetition of her question "I have made a bad decision" flowed out and she immediately hung up the call.

I looked at the phone with intrigue, I wanted to dial Bradley again, but why had a woman answered the call? Who was this woman?

The daze in her mind lasted a few minutes, but she came to when she was called on speakerphone. She had to meet the doctor to confirm her pregnancy and give her some routine advice.

She went to the doctor's office and stayed with him for a few moments. By the time he was finished, she was 100% sure of everything that was going on in her belly. She left the hospital and hailed a taxi before the clouds flooded the streets with the heavy rain that was coming.

When the yellow taxi arrived, she climbed into it and looked sadly out of the window. The drops were marking the windows of the car and creating beautiful curtains of water over the people.

It was clear that the rain would not stop for a long time, but his mind was not thinking beyond that phone call and the soft voice of the woman who answered Bradley's phone.

On the way, a traffic light turned red. The taxi stopped and with it the rain gradually subsided. She looked up a little and wiped her hand across the fogged window, when suddenly a car appeared, grey, silver, with smoked windows and rubber tyres. Out of the corner of her eye, disinterested, she saw the unforgettable number plate, 7788B66.

—That's Bradley's car,— she said to herself.

Lochley was a huge town, with businesses everywhere, but Bradley, Brad was a tycoon, known to most of the businessmen in town, so his car was recognisable to anyone with three fingers in front of them.

She is a little intrigued, and widens her gaze a little more, leaning her body forward. There's a woman, yes, she saw a woman with a fair complexion, long dark hair, sitting in the passenger seat of Brad's car.

She could have been a co-worker, but she was hugging him. She was resting her head on Brad's shoulders just as he crossed the car in front of the taxi. She was an eyewitness to this scene so embarrassing for herself.

There was no excuse, it was what his eyes had seen. Her heart was pounding, her skin was paling, her hands and legs began to shake incessantly. It was a tragic moment for her. The lump in her throat came suddenly.

—Hey, miss, are you all right?— asked the driver, looking at her in the rear-view mirror.

She was in a kind of existential crisis, where her thoughts were blocked and her mind did not go beyond the scene she had just seen with her own eyes. Everything fitted together with the call.

He held with both hands the paper on which was written a huge "POSITIVE" and rejected the facts, responding with a simple smile, and sideways movements with his head.

Brad and Layla lived together in a sort of suburban mansion, with huge gardens on either side. Fruit trees lined every corner of the mansion. It had apple-green-tinted pillars, with white walls adorned with light gold stripes and dark sparkles. It was an amazing villa, but somewhat lonely.

They had arrived at the entrance to the mansion, but, in the midst of her mental commotion, she was not acting consciously, and did not grasp the exact moment of how she had stepped out of the taxi, nor how she had entered her house.

She was simply there, inside her house, throwing her things on the sofa on the right, and sticking her bottom on the sofa behind her. He paused for a moment, he was in a trance. He thought about what he was going to say, and what he had just seen inside the taxi.

He sighed deeply a couple of times, picked up his mobile phone and, with great bravery, redialled brad's number.

"Beep, beep, beep.

—Hi, Bradley. I just want to ....,— he said when he heard that the call had been answered.

But, he was hung up on long before he finished the sentence. You could tell they had hung up on purpose. Brad didn't want to answer his call.

A sharp pain flooded Layla's soul, and wrapped her heart in an unfavorable sadness. The excitement of just an hour ago had died in a couple of minutes.

"Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, Dong, dong, dong" the clock on the wall chimed loudly, striking 12 o'clock in the morning.

She was in a trance-like state, where only her thoughts kept her sanity, but at the same time, they were the same ones that plunged her into a strong sadness.

She hugged her legs as she propped her feet up on the sofa and buried her face in her knees, looked up and looked at the clock.

But he couldn't stay like that. His body was asking for a new position, and his spine was beginning to ache, so he soon let go of his legs and stretched his feet until his soles touched the floor. Her legs felt numb, but she managed to stretch all the way out and shrug off the pain.

She was happy about her pregnancy; how could she not be, she had been looking forward to it for years. However, she wanted to share that happiness with Brad, but now, now nothing made any sense.

The minutes passed and the silence overwhelmed her surroundings, only her breathing echoed in her ears. As she watched the result of the medical check-up, behind the front door there was a small noise.

Yes, the doorknob began to turn slowly to the right, at about three o'clock in the morning. The door opened a crack and a man of tall stature, elongated shoulders and stocky build appeared, dressed in a dark suit of delicate fabric with grey borders, he was truly perfect with an exquisite appearance.

He was extremely handsome, his hair short and dark, his eyebrows thin and in perfect sync. His nose reflected a high bridge, his eyes were charming, but he possessed a faint, menacing look.

—Good, you're back,— Layla said.

She wasn't able to seal her feelings, but instead, a strong storm erupted in her aura and surrounded her body.

Bradley, on the other hand, paid no attention to her, just silently thinking and muttering "hmmm". Around them both there was an uncomfortable, hostile atmosphere, with no emotions and no words to speak.

Layla burned with helplessness, but decided to move a little closer to Bradley. She looked up and saw on the side of his neck a kiss framed by the red carmine of his skin. It clearly broke her heart for the debris it had left in its wake.

—I think you should rest, do you want me to fix you something to eat, or better yet, go take a bath to rest,— Layla said with that lump in her throat gnawing at her insides.

Her desire to air her misfortunes was tied to her pride. She decided better to stifle her words inwardly and avoid bringing up her questions.

Bradley's aloofness was noticeable, he was cold and hard-faced. He pulled the phone out of his pockets and placed it on the bedside table in the bedroom. He bent down to pick up the end of his suit and began to unbutton his shirt. When he had it in his hands, he noticed a lipstick mark in the crease of his collar and froze.

He thought for a few seconds and, slyly, went to the washroom and threw the shirt in the washing machine. Then he turned back to the bathroom and stepped into the shower. Layla could hear his footsteps from far away. She heard the water splash against her body and splash onto the bathroom floor.

The vibration of a phone came from the bedside table. He moved closer and could see the glow of the screen for a few seconds.

"I've had a great time. Nice to see you again, Bradley."

A rather revealing text message for her, it altered all her senses, took all her breath away and made her heart race by the second.

"Could it be, could it be her?" she mentioned thoughtfully as she stood there putting her fingers over her mouth and biting her nails helplessly.

She was no fool, she always knew that Francin Cleare was Bradley's first love. He was like a shadow that followed her everywhere, haunting her days and nights since Bradley came into her life.

Francin was back and gnawing at her soul. Layla knew that Bradley didn't love her, that her thoughts were only of Francin and that their marriage was a lie, one that even made Bradley very angry.

Layla went back to her room, the one she shared with her husband, and wept secretly, her heart pounding. The bathroom doorknob rattled and out came Bradley, wrapped in a towel up to his waist.

He went on his way and, out of the corner of his eye, looked at her with a certain indifference.

—Is something wrong? —he asked.

She heard him and noticed the emptiness in his eyes, that disinterest in knowing what was really wrong. She wanted to shout at him and mention her pregnancy, but a simple "No, everything is fine" came from her lips.

She was unsure. After all, the happiness of a pregnancy was only in her, never in him, or at least that was what her mind was taking in at the moment. Bradley just looked away from her and rested his body on the bed.

Layla felt truly broken inside, her heart grew cold and her mind wandered aimlessly. That night, the hours dragged on forever. The sound of the clock was shrill.

She pressed her lips tightly together and lay there, motionless, remembering all that her eyes had witnessed that day. Sleep would not come to her, insomnia gnawed at her insides. But, the body's rest demanded its turn and her eyes slowly closed.

The sun's glare streamed through the windows of the room and beat against Layla's face, waking her from the long nightmare that was her reality. Opening her eyes, she turned her face to the right side and noticed Bradley's absence.

He was gone.

Layla was unwell, mentally attached to something non-existent. She lifted her body a little and leaned her back against the back of the bed, gently slid her hand down and caressed her small belly, still without forming that childlike presence, she felt life forming.

Thoughtfully, she lowered her hand, rested her feet on the floor and went to take a shower. When she came out, she dressed her body and with her hands she stretched that long blind to its ends and looked out onto the balcony of the room.

He sighed deeply over and over again, feeling the freshness of the air rushing in and out of his nostrils. She looked around when suddenly, in the background, a shadow began to appear in front of her, it was Bradley, lying there with a sweaty body and what looked like heavy breathing.

He still had that cold, innate temperament. He was a little uneasy, as if he felt Layla was watching him from the balcony. When suddenly, yes, Bradley turned his eyes upwards and noticed Layla's presence and her gaze fixed on him.

There was a slight change in him, but Layla still couldn't guess what kind of change it was. Nevertheless, she turned around and walked down to the living room.

A delicious aroma flooded her senses, Nana Violet had prepared an impressive feast.

But, despite it being a breakfast of gods, Layla had no appetite and only settled for filling a small plate with a sandwich and a boiled egg. Inwardly she knew she had to feed.

—Come, have breakfast with me,— Layla mentioned to her husband.

He just turned and looked at her and mumbled as he pulled up a chair and sat down in the dining room across from her.

Silence fell over them both as silverware clattered against plates and they ate their breakfast. Layla was not in an appetizing mood, discomfort coursed through her body and her heart was truly broken.

She wanted to speak, to say a word and break the silence, but, as she opened her mouth, right there, the vibration of a mobile phone gnawed at her instinct. Bradley immediately dropped everything he had covered, took a small glance at the screen, stood up and answered the call.

It was her. Yes, he could feel it all over his body. His gaze took in her anger, and his bright eyes turned dark and disappointed. She watched as Bradley paced back and forth and moved his lips, but, she couldn't hear any words.

She hung up the phone and went back to the table, picked up her plate and went straight to the bedroom to shower and change.

In Layla's eyes you could see that sunken, upset look. She watched intently as Bradley headed for the exit and got into his silver car. The pinch of strength to feed herself was over, she couldn't even bring herself to finish her sandwich.

He got up from the dining room and made his way to the sofa bed, but his mobile phone began to ring, catching his attention. It was her stepmother, Merle Backer, the late wife of her father Will Delfigalo, a city sales tycoon.

Layla, she had a bad feeling it was strange, "had something happened?" she wondered. no doubt, something had happened. She picked up her mobile and pressed the little green button.

—Layla, Layla, come quickly. Something is happening. Your father has had a heart attack and is in hospital. Please come,— said Merle, in a tearful, agonised tone.

Just then Layla's heart began to race, her skin tingled and her hands began to shake shamelessly.

—Don, where's my father? Where's the hospital? —she mentioned.

Layla's father was at the East Hospital, right where he had been checked. She hung up the call and immediately grabbed her bag and went to catch a taxi. When she arrived, she hurried down the stairs and ran into the waiting corridors and saw Merle from afar.

It was strange, her father had been fine a fortnight ago, and now, now he lay in a hospital ward, fighting for his life.

—Merle, here I am, where is my father, what happened, what did the doctors say? —said Layla with great concern.

—Layla, Layla, I'm so glad you're here. I... I... I can't take it anymore,— Merle said as he paced back and forth in front of the operating room, his voice agitated and unintelligible.

—I was working with Mr. Martin, but, he was involved in some kind of corruption, and he swindled your father. Now, those affected went home and accused your father of having swindled them. He wanted to clear his name, but, Martin had disappeared, and he had no way to make good on his words,— he said through tears.

—Your father had suffered fits of rage and suddenly his heart collapsed and his blood pressure shot up until he collapsed in a severe blackout. Now... now he's trying to survive,— she added.