You know I won’t let him starve.” Amelia covered her face in her hands. What felt like a minute later, she began to release her sadness that had been repressed for so long. The weeping gradually amplified and turned into wailing, as though she wanted to vent all the grievances she had suffered all these years in one go. Tiffany’s heart instantly softened. Carefully, she held the woman in her arms and gently patting her on the back. She whispered to Amelia, “Shh… it’s okay, don’t cry. You’re with child now. If you get too emotional, it’s not good for fetal development.
Didn’t the doctor say that? Your body can’t really accommodate an emotional roller-coaster at the moment, so… for the sake of your baby, don’t cry, alright? You should know that Oscar isn’t your best match from the minute you marry him. The two of you are destined to live in two different worlds. It’s perfectly fine for you two to go your separate ways right now. Babe, come on. Don’t cry.” Amelia continued to whimper in Tiffany’s arms. That went on for some time, then she started to choke in between sobs. “Tiff, do you think I’m a special kind of coward?
I admit I am, but even so, it still hurts. I feel this tightness in my chest, like it’s been ripped into shreds many times over.” She hiccupped once and then continued sobbing. “I know things won’t work out with Oscar, but I’m such a fool. I can’t help falling in love with him, and I’ve fallen in too deep. I often ask myself, where did I go wrong? Why can’t he love me for who I am? Everyone says that I’m Cinderella, that I’m nothing more but a gold digger, but I’ve been working so hard in order to be recognized as the Clintons’ daughter-in-law. I studied etiquette. I took up piano, chess, and art lessons. I even went through the hassle of learning how to read sheet music. But everyone ignored my efforts.
Even the Clintons said I’m not a good match for Oscar. Why do they say that? Where did I go wrong? Why is everyone excluding me? Tiff, let me tell you something. It’s tough being the Clintons’ daughter-in-law. No matter how hard I tried, everyone thinks all of the above are kinds of stuff that I ought to do, and that if I’m not smart enough to handle all that, I don’t deserve to be their daughter-in-law!” Tiffany empathized with her sorrow. She felt sorry for everything that the silly woman had been through, and yet still failed to gain recognition. “Silly girl. You’re great just the way you are. You don’t have to change that just to cater to others.”
Amelia shook her head vigorously and, when she spoke again, her voice sounded even more bitter. “Tiff, the Clintons mean a lot to me. It’s impossible for me to cling onto them just for their wealth. Mrs. Clinton feels so much like my mother to me. Among the Clintons, apart from Oscar, she’s the one whom I can’t bear to leave the most. I finally have a home, Tiff, but why does happiness never stay long enough for me to enjoy it?” Tiffany shoved Amelia a little further apart. “Hey, look into my eyes.” Amelia did as she was told. “Amelia, you’re doing great. In fact, you’re the best.
You’re kind. You respect your elders. You’re sensible, beautiful, gentle, and considerate… Frankly, you have all the fantastic qualities that men look for in women.” Amelia smiled faintly and responded, “Tiff, I’m grateful to you. Truly, I am. No matter what happens to me, you’re always standing firmly on my side. How nice it’d be if you were a man! The two of us would make a wonderful couple, and I won’t have to work so hard.” Tiffany snorted, amused by her remark. “Babe, keep your imagination to yourself.” Amelia leaned into her arms again. She felt good after venting her frustrations. “Do you feel better?” Tiffany asked. Amelia nodded. “Tiff, this is going to sound really dramatic, but I just want to thank you.
Thank you for tolerating me all this time. Thank you for being by my side during my downtimes.” Tiffany pretended to shudder after listening to her cheesy speech. “Babe, you have got to stop that. I think I’m about to forfeit last night’s dinner. Amelia chuckled. Certain that Amelia was in a better mood now, Tiffany turned to her friend, ready to part a stern advice. “Babe, if you really do love Oscar, you have to win him back. I don’t believe that he’s a heartless man. You’ve remained sincere and faithful towards him for five years. How can a few short months with that woman compare with that?
Even if they had dated before, you’re the one who’s stuck by him in the past few years, the one who cared about his wellbeing, and the one who satisfied his biological urges. Don’t look at me like that. I’m just telling you the bare facts. Now, you’ll go to the hospital and take care of Cassie on his behalf. Let him see how capricious that woman really is!” Amelia hesitated. “Is that really okay?” “What’s wrong about that?” Putting on a stern face, Tiffany added, “You’re his wife. A wife wouldn’t volunteer to take care of her husband’s mistress. You’re the only one who would do it.
If he has any sense at all, he should be grateful for your thoughtfulness. Listen to me. Go to the hospital to watch over Cassie. I’ll help you do that too. She likes to pretend she’s vulnerable, doesn’t she? Well, let’s show Oscar how unreasonable she really is.” Amelia remained hesitant about the plan. “Babe, you have to be brave, unless you want your baby to be born fatherless. Think about it. When your child grows up and attends preschool, elementary school, junior high, all the way to high school… and throughout all these years it’s always you, the mother, who goes to pick him up. It’s always you who attends the parent-teacher meetings. When the classmates ask about his father, do you want him to say that he doesn’t have one?
That he grows up in a single-parent household? Even if you’re able to provide him with a lavish life, you can’t make up for the absence of a father figure.” Tiffany’s statement seemed to strike a chord with the mother-to-be. Eventually, Amelia gave a firm nod. “That’s the spirit, babe! Dare to pursue the one you love! Even if we fail in the end, at least we have tried our best,” Tiffany encouraged her. In the end, Amelia, egged on by Tiffany, decided to get a change of clothes and head out.
Tiffany offered to be her driver. Along the way, they passed by the florist and the fruit store, where they purchased some flowers and a heap of fruits respectively. After that, they headed straight to the Principal General Hospital. When they got there, they asked the front desk for directions to Cassie’s ward. Then, they took the elevator up to the designated floor. They knocked on the door politely and could hear Elizabeth’s voice coming from inside the room. “Who is it?” Neither Amelia nor Tiffany answered. Shortly after, the door opened from the inside.
Elizabeth was apparently taken aback when she saw Amelia at the door. “What do you want?” she muttered. Amelia put on a decent smile as she greeted the older woman, “Oscar told me that Ms. Yard had an accident, so I’m here to pay her a visit.” Elizabeth was evidently repulsed by her statement. “Cassie’s doing fine. Spare me your crocodile tears, and leave!” Tiffany sneered, and when she spoke there was a hint of mockery, “Mrs. Yard, is this how you treat your guests? If so, I’d surely question the Yard family’s definition of manners and courtesy. Hmm, turning away guests at your door… I guess that’s just what wealthy families do.” Elizabeth froze when she heard that. Eventually, she relented and invited them into the ward.
“Fine. Come in.” “Mom, who is it?” Cassie’s voice rang from further inside the room. She sounded lively and energetic. Mrs. Yard cast a glance at them before strolling into the room without a word. When Cassie saw Amelia and Tiffany walking behind her mother, she froze for a moment. A shadow slipped across her face. “Why are you here?” she blurted. Tiffany placed the fruits and flowers on the table before she turned to reply the patient, “We heard that you’ve been admitted to the hospital due to some kind of accident, so we wanted to pay you a visit. What’s wrong, Ms. Yard? Are we not welcomed?” Cassie merely looked towards Elizabeth. “Mom, why did you let them in here?” Tiffany chortled again.
She gave up playing the part of a courteous guest. “Now that Oscar’s not here, has Ms. Yard decided to show her b*tchy side so quickly?” Lying on the hospital bed, Cassie retorted. “I’ve always been like this towards people I don’t like. If there’s nothing you need then you might as well leave. You’re not welcomed here!” Tiffany led Amelia to a seat. “What’s the rush? Amelia hasn’t even met her husband. How can she leave now?” Tiffany quipped. Then she intentionally brought up her friend’s pregnancy, if only to spite Cassie. “Amelia misses Oscar, you see. The baby also wants to meet his daddy too. Oh, right, I almost forgot. You’re pregnant too, aren’t you, Ms. Yard? I wonder, how far along are you?”
Cassie’s whole body started shaking at the mention of that. Her face turned much paler, while her mouth trembled violently. Elizabeth urgently brought her into her arms. The mother glared fiercely at Tiffany. “You did this on purpose! You knew Cassie’s just had a miscarriage and yet you brought it up anyway! You’re deliberately sprinkling salt on her wounds. How heartless can you be? Get out of here this instant, or I’ll personally take you out with a broom!” Tiffany faked a look of surprise. “Oh dear, Tiffany’s had a miscarriage? I thought she’s hospitalized because she slipped on the glass. How did that become ‘miscarriage’ all of a sudden? Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I really didn’t know.”
Whenever the word ‘miscarriage’ was mentioned, it was like sprinkling salt on Cassie’s open wound. Elizabeth was fuming. She pointed at the door and shouted at the women. “You two! Leave at once!” Cassie briefly let go of her mother’s arms. She stared daggers at Amelia as though her eyes had been soaked in poison. “Amelia, you’re so smug now, aren’t you? It’s all your fault I lost my baby. If you hadn’t invited me to Starbucks to talk over things, I wouldn’t have fallen down from the stairs! You’re such a jinx! Now, not only have you lost me my child, but you’re allowing your friend to humiliate me too! Why are you so evil?
Aren’t you afraid that karma will come for your baby?” Amelia, though riled up, only smiled in return. She had seen her share of blatant liars, but she had never seen someone lie through their teeth so outrageously. Did Cassie just say that I’m the one who asked her to come to Starbucks? But she’s the one who invited me! Tiffany scoffed at the woman on the bed. “Ms. Yard, you’ve got it all wrong. Did you forget? You were the one who asked Amelia to meet you at Starbucks. The heavens decided that they’ve had enough of you, the arrogant home wrecker, and thus arranged for you to fall down the stairs. You lost your baby because of your carelessness. What does that have to do with Amelia over here?
Geez, you ought to find a better excuse before you pin the blame on someone else.” That did it. Cassie’s face grew even paler as she got purple with rage. The wound from her previous surgery began to throb and ache, and she eventually fainted from the pain. Elizabeth’s agonizing shriek echoed in the chamber. Cassie was quickly taken into the operating room again. While that was happening, Elizabeth cast a murderous glare towards Amelia and Tiffany. She swore, “If anything happens to my daughter, I will never let you off!” Tiffany did not expect Cassie would faint either.
She seemed to have gotten under her skin a bit too much, causing Cassie to faint. Amelia hoped that her friend had not just brought upon ill fate in spite of her good intentions. Tiffany glanced apologetically at Amelia. She whispered, “Babe, I’m so sorry. I think I might have overdone it.” Amelia grew uneasy too. Right then, Oscar appeared. He was walking at a brisk pace towards their location from the other end of the corridor. When he saw Amelia there, he froze in his steps, if briefly, before he approached. “Amelia, why are you here?” Oscar asked, out of concern.
