Chapter 14 Let's Go to the Hospital

• Victoria felt like she had fallen into a frozen lake the moment she saw that message.
• Abortion? Let's part on good terms? She laughed hysterically as she read that message while tears rolled uncontrollably down her cheeks.
• She should have known that Alaric only had Claudia in his heart while she was just someone unimportant. Where did I find the courage to tell him I'm pregnant? It only earned her a cruel reply from Alaric to ask her to abort the baby.
• Dusk fell, and Victoria, who was immersed in sadness, heard her phone ring again with an incoming message.
• She jumped up and picked up her phone swiftly. For a moment, she hoped that Alaric regretted his decision and would ask her not to have an abortion. However, the light in her eyes dimmed as she read the message.
• It was from Summer. 'What's your decision? Did you tell him?'
• Victoria stared at her phone for a long time before letting out a self-mocking laugh. She knew it would come to this but just couldn't give up. She just had to ask him, but his words felt like a blade that stabbed her in the heart. It was so painful that she couldn't speak. It was then that she realized how cruel the man she loved was. Perhaps he was only cruel to everyone else but Claudia. He had probably told Claudia about her pregnancy. What would Claudia think of her in the future?
• Suddenly, Victoria felt as if all her energy was drained from her body.
• That night, she merely had a few bites of her food before losing her appetite.
• At around 9:00 PM, there still weren't any incoming messages on her phone. Unwilling thoughts would occasionally flash across her mind. She would stare intensely at her phone hoping that Alaric would regret his words, or that he would come home to discuss what to do about the baby with her.
• Later on, she put on a jacket and went downstairs. Hector, who hadn't gone to rest, stood up when he saw her walk down the stairs. "Mrs. Cadogan, it's late. Why don't you rest?"
• She glanced at the empty door and asked, "Alaric isn't home yet?"
• Surprise flashed in Hector's eyes as he explained, "Sir's assistant called to inform us that he has something important to attend to tonight, so he won't be returning."
• Hearing that, Victoria's heart continued to sink.
• Hector showed some concern at her pale face. "Mrs. Cadogan, are you alright?"
• Victoria came back to her senses and gave him a forced smile. "I'm fine."
• Then, she turned around to go back upstairs to her room. When she entered her room, her phone rang. The name on the screen made her pupils constrict.
• Alaric. He's finally calling me. What will he say to me? Will he regret asking me to abort or urge me to abort the baby?
• Victoria sucked in a deep breath and prepared herself before answering the phone.
• "Victoria?" However, Claudia's familiarly feminine voice came through the phone instead. "Al asked me to tell you that he won't be returning tonight. He has something to attend to. You're still sick, so you should rest early."
• At that moment, Victoria felt her throat close up, her heart drop, and her limbs go numb. Alaric asked Claudia to call me. What does he mean by this?
• "Victoria? Are you listening?" Claudia continued to say sweetly. It felt like the devil's sweet whispers in her ears. "Al also said that you should handle what he told you to do in the morning. Don't pester him with such a small matter."
• A small matter? Victoria suppressed the tears in her eyes. So, going to get an abortion is just a small matter in his eyes. She came to her senses and replied to Claudia with a strained voice.
• After that, Victoria couldn't control herself anymore and hung up. Claudia let out a sigh of relief at the ending tone of the phone. Then, she saved Victoria's phone number into her phone before returning Alaric's phone.
• "Al, I'm done with the call."
• "Okay." Alaric had just finished an online meeting. He took off his earphones and looked up to grab his phone. As if he thought of something, he asked, "Is she asleep?"
• "Not yet."
• He frowned at that and clicked his tongue before muttering, "She's so sick but not resting. What do I do with her?"
• Claudia was right beside him when he said that. Her face went pale, and she bit her lower hip while her hands that were by her side trembled. Perhaps even he didn't realize the doting in his eyes when he said those words.
• "Are you done saving her number?" Alaric asked out of the blue.
• She came to her senses at his question. "Yes. I'm done. Al, can I ask her out next time?"
• "Yes. I don't want her to just focus on work."
• Claudia could only smile awkwardly. A fierce look filled her usually gentle eyes as she turned around.
• …
• The next morning, Victoria found her eyes swollen when she woke up, so she iced them to prevent people from noticing them.
• Then, she looked at her phone to find a few people had messaged her.
• Noel texted, 'I've settled work, so you don't need to worry and rest well. If you're unwell, remember to go to the hospital.'
• 'Are you awake? How are you feeling? If you need it, I can accompany you to the hospital.'
• The first message was sent after she fell asleep last night while the second message was sent that morning.
• Next, she went on to read the message of her best friend, Summer.
• 'Boo, you've not replied to me for so long. Did something happen? I'm sorry. I shouldn't have given you that bad idea.'
• Summer's following few messages were filled with her concern for Victoria, which made Victoria guess that Summer probably didn't sleep well. And so, she replied to Summer, 'I'm fine. Don't worry.'
• After that, she messaged Noel to thank him for picking up after her and told him she would treat him to dinner.
• Noel replied to Victoria quite quickly, while Summer didn't reply.
• 'How are you feeling?'
• Just as she was about to reply, he called her.
• Victoria hesitated for a moment before answering him, "Hi, Noel."
• "Hi. Feeling better?"
• "Yup."
• "You still sound like you have a stuffy nose. You're still feeling unwell."
• Victoria was speechless. Noel was unusually quick to catch on when it came to her health.
• After a moment of silence, he continued, "Didn't Alaric bring you to the hospital?"
• She was stunned at the sudden mention of Alaric and wanted to avoid the topic.
• "It's nothing serious. I took some pills and rested for two days, so I'm fine now."
• However, Noel started sighing. "Victoria, you're still so headstrong. If your dad knew, he would be heartbroken."
• Victoria just pursed her lips. "That's not true. I'll see a doctor if I'm sick. Don't worry."
• After chatting for a while more, they hung up. Summer called her right after that.
• "Victoria! How are you feeling? You didn't reply to me yesterday, and I waited past midnight before sleeping. I would have continued sleeping if it wasn't for your message."
• Victoria felt a little guilty that her message woke Summer up. I should have replied to her later.
• "But I'm relieved to get your reply." Summer let out a breath of relief before asking with a hint of hesitation, "You've told him, right? What did… Alaric say?"
• Victoria felt her heart ache at the mention of Alaric's name again. She was fine until his name was mentioned.
• She then looked to the other side of the bed. He didn't come back last night.
• She told herself, He decided not to have the baby when I told him I was pregnant. He didn't even have the patience to talk to me face-to-face.
• She averted her gaze and replied calmly, "Summer, Alaric asked me to get an abortion. He said to part on good terms."