Sera stared, wide-eyed in disbelief. Tears blurred her vision, but those two red lines remained unmistakable.
"What is it?" Nate questioned, his voice edged with impatience and curiosity.
Pinching the kit between her trembling fingers, Sera looked up to meet his eyes.
"Pregnant," she whispered, a teardrop rolling down her cheek. Nate, astounded, snatched the kit and scanned the result himself. When the realisation finally sank in, a slow, disbelieving smile lit up his face. A sense of joy filled him.
He was going to be a dad.
Sera sagged against the wall behind her, suddenly drained of all energy. All she could feel was an intense, unbearable pain clenching her insides. This was it. The tragic end of all her hopes.
Three weeks had passed since she missed her period. Today, she had asked him to bring her a pregnancy kit as her suspicion had begun to solidify. Now the truth was out.
First to many more. He was going to treasure this kit. Nate gently placed it beside the sink and reached out for her. Gently gripping her waist, he drew her into his arms.
He kissed her temple and murmured, "You've made me so happy today, mi corazon." His voice echoed with immense happiness.
"I am going to abort it," she declared in a low murmur, and felt Nate tense up. The air shifted— suddenly heavier and darker. He drew away and gazed down at her.
"What did you say?" he asked, daring her to repeat.
Sera raised her gaze to him and repeated, "I am going to abort it." She enunciated every word, her voice steady and steely with conviction.
Just like that, his countenance darkened. His imposing figure loomed over her in deadly menace.
"You will not kill my baby," he stated, each word laced with quiet threat.
"I am not ready for this," she said through her clenched teeth. She was seething, livid. His cruelty had yet again left her reeling. He shamelessly violated her, never used protection, and now that she was pregnant, he was forcing her to keep it.
"We'll figure it out," he asserted, unwilling to even consider ending the pregnancy. Her resentment twisted tighter, sharpened with something cold and cutting.
"I don't want this baby. Not like this. Not yours," she barked, trembling in rage. The hostility in her eyes deepened as she added, "I’d rather never be a mother than raise your child. They'll grow up to be a rapist like you."
His hand shot to her neck, the pressure crushing her fragile airways as he slammed her head against the wall.
"You will watch your tone with me," he hissed, his gaze turning into something cold and deadly. "If something happens to my child, Sera, I'll make sure you regret ever crossing me." The warning overflowed with malice and venom.
Sera returned his glare with her own. She would fight this time. Not for her, but for her baby. She knew bringing this baby into the world would mean sentencing it to a life of never-ending misery, mockeries, and taunts. And if her baby stayed under his shadow, then it would grow up to be a criminal like him.
But another part of her protested. Her baby was innocent in all this. She had never even hurt a fly in her life, so how would she kill her own child? Even though, it would be a product of rape, it still was her child.
Nate let go, but his eyes kept cutting through her.
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