Chapter 177
Anastasia held her breath, her nerves kicking into overdrive, heart racing. She stared intently, afraid she would miss something. But as the urine soaked the test strip, it still only showed one line.
Two lines would mean pregnancy. She wasnât pregnant.
But Anastasia didnât give up, holding onto a sliver of hope, continuing to watch the pregnancy test, hoping for a miracle, for another line to appear.
One minute, two minutes, five minutes went by. It still only showed one line.
Disappointed, Anastasia tossed the pregnancy test into the trash can, regrouping before stepping out.
âAna, howâd it go?â Monica, waiting outside, eagerly asked as soon as she saw her
Shaking her head, Anastasia forced a helpless smile. âNothing.â
Monica seemed a bit disappointed too, quickly saying, âNo worries, you guys just got married. Donât rush, maybe next month.
âRight.â
Even though Anastasia was disappointed, she quickly let it go. Having a baby required certain conditions.
âIâll take you home first, then I need to go see my mom,â she said.
Monica replied, âWhy donât you just go to your momâs? Iâll have my boyfriend pick me up. We have a dateâ
âOkay then.â
Anastasia drove back to Salmaâs house, using her keys to enter.
Salma wasnât in the living room: her voice came from the bedroom instead.
Curious, Anastasia walked into the bedroom to find Salma on the phone, asking. âWere all the kids from the orphanage that year sent away? Where did the girls end up? Some were adoptedâ¦
âMom, who are you on the phone with?â Anastasia asked, walking in curiously
Caught off guard, Salma quickly hung up, saying, âIâll call you back another time, thanks.â
After hanging up, Salma asked. âWhy didnât you let me know you were coming back?â
âI canât come back to my own house whenever I want? Anastasia joked. âTheard you talking about the orphanage and adopting kids, whats up?â
Salma tried to cover up. âYou know Gianna canât have kids? Cynthia thought I could help by contacting the orphanage to see if she could adopt
A few days ago, Salma had visited the orphanage where sheâd left Anastasiaâs daughter Coincidentally, she ran into the old director and got his contact info.
Ever since meeting Pattie, Salma had been haunted by dreams of the grand-daughter sheâd abandoned. She was anxious and decided to look into it.
All she wanted to know was where the girl was, and if she was okay.
âMom, youâre always worrying about these things. Gianna can have kids, itâs Joey who canât,â Anastasia responded. âGianna decided to divorce. Sheâs not that old, and sheâll have her own kids one day.â
âYeah, Cynthia called this morning to say Gianna filed for divorce from Joey,â Salma added, âThe Edmunds family doesnât agree, so it wonât be easy for Gianna. Anyway, why did you get back so late?â
âI got promoted today. I just had dinner with Monica and then came to see you. Hereâs some money. Anastasia handed over five hundred dollars from her bag. âMom, when I get my next paycheck, Iâll have more. Iâll give you more then.â
âI donât need your money. Keep it,â Salma declined. âI have enough. You can give me money when I canât move anymore. Now, you should use it on yourself. Buy good food and nice clothes. Donât shortchange yourselfâ
âMom, just take it. You raised me, canât I give you some money to pamper you?â Anastasia insisted, leaving the money on the table âYou can use it however you want. It would make me happy to give you money.â
Salma felt proud. Her hard work raising Anastasia hadnât been in vain.
Just then, Anastasiaâs phone rang. It was Herman
Just
Seeing the caller ID, Anastasia told Salma, âMom, I have to go. Take care of yourself.â
Salma reminded her, âBe careful on the road. Donât drive too fast.â
âI know
apici
In the elevator, Anastasia answered Hermanâs call. âDid you get off work?â
âYeah, are you not home?â Hermanâs deep voice came over the phone. âYou got promoted and got a raise today. I want to take you somewhere to celebrate. Where are you? Iâll come pick you up.â
âIâm at my momâs house. Where are we going?â