Kyla was silent for a moment.
âJust let me know if youâre facing any trouble. Iâll help if I can,â said Grace.
Kyla touched her belly with both hands.
âKyla⦠Are you pregnant?â Grace hesitated but asked without beating about the bush.
Kyla quivered before calming down. âYeah.â
Perhaps it would be good to talk things out. At least, she could talk to Grace about some things on her mind.
The secret had upset her so much these days. She could not tell her mother, let alone Nelson.
She could only pretend as if nothing was wrong in front of her dearest family.
âWhat are you going to do about it?â asked Grace.
Kyla confessed, âI havenât decided yet. The baby is Martin Weissâs, but I donât want to get involved with him again. If I give birth to this baby, Iâm afraid Iâll only get more and more involved with him.â
Grace pressed her lips together. âKyla, if you want to give birth to the baby, then Iâll help you handle Martin Weiss. He can forget about forcing you to do anything.â
Kyla looked gratefully at Grace. âGrace, thank you.â
âYou donât have to thank me for anything. Weâve known each other for so many years. I only have two best friends, you and Lina!â said Grace.
âBut Kyla, are you sure you wonât give Martin Weiss another chance?â added Grace.
Kyla smiled bitterly. âYou know best what has happened between him and me. Could you do it if you were me?â
Grace was speechless because she had no idea if she would be able to get back together with Jay if he did those things to her.
During the weekend, Kyla was looking after the store when she saw her mother come back looking angry.
âWhatâs the matter, Mom? What happened?â Kyla asked hurriedly.
âNothing, I just argued with Aunt Zhang.â Mrs. Corbyn snapped.
Kyla was speechless. âWhat did you argue with Aunt Zhang about?â
âItâs about Widow Liu. She said she got pregnant when her husband hasnât even been dead for two years. No one knew whose baby it is. She called her unvirtuous or something, so 1 said no one cares about virtue nowadays. She made it seem like itâs the womanâs fault for getting pregnant. Widow Liuâs husband is dead. So what if she found someone else and got pregnant? Itâs her business. Who is Aunt Zhang to comment on someone elseâs matter?â
âAnd then what? Did you argue with her?â asked Kyla.
âThatâs because she said you have a child out of wedlock too. Iâ¦â Mrs. Corbyn paused at that.
Embarrassment flashed across her face. Then, she laughed and said, âAlright, enough about that. Letâs stop talking. Iâm going to cook dinner.â
Mrs. Corbyn said and entered the kitchen.
Kyla lowered her head. There was a bitter taste in her mouth.
There were people everywhere who liked to gossip. Her mother had argued with others for her before.
If she did give birth to the baby in her belly, there would probably be even more gossip!
Her mother and Nelson would have to live with all this gossip!
Kyla bit her lip at that thought. It was as if she had made up her mind.
She touched her belly gently and whispered, âIâm sorryâ¦â