Claiming her babies

Ethan’s POV

“Here are the results sir” Doctor Jackson handed me a white paper which I opened, my hands slightly trembling but I couldn’t understand anything I was seeing.

“Can you explain this?” I asked. He sighed as he hesitated a little, staring at with in a mix of emotions which seemed like fear and sadness.

“I have both good news and bad news sir”

“Start with the good news” I uttered instantly.

“The good news is you’re not impotent my eyes widened with disbelief then sparked with pure joy as I could feel my heart race slowly calming down. I could finally catch my breath in peace. My heart raced for joy over what the doctor just said.

“It’s indeed a good day today,” I said to myself, relaxing fully in the soft chair I sat on in the doctor’s office.

“That’s not all sir” the dictionary uttered, his words reminding me of the bad news coming ahead.

“Yes least I forgot, what’s the bad news?” I asked, my eyes on my phone as I started typing on my phone, intending to send a message to Mia that she was wrong about everything she said.

“You have a low sperm count sir and that could result in you never being able to pregnant a woman my hands froze as they couldn’t type anymore.

Raising my gaze to meet that of the doctor, I stared in shock “What did you say?” I asked, uncertain of what I heard from him.

“Unfortunately, it means that while you are not impotent, the chances of you fathering a child naturally are still extremely low,” Dr. Jackson explained, his voice gentle but firm.

My heart, which had just been soaring with relief, skyrocketed back to despair. The joy I felt moments ago vanished, replaced by a heavy, suffocating realization that was a heavy and bitter truth for me to handle. “What are the chances?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

“Less than 5% without medical intervention,” he replied. “There are treatments available and other options too, but they are not guaranteed.”This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.

I felt a sweat break out across my forehead as the realization of the situation slowly sank in. Mia’s words echoed in my mind, getting louder with each passing second.

Despite her deception and betrayal, she had been right about one thing: something was wrong. My throat tightened as I struggled to process every detail I just absorbed.

Relief that I wasn’t impotent clashed with the crushing reality that I might never have a child of my own. “So what was the difference? You said some minutes ago that I wasn’t impotent and now you’re saying I might never be able to father a child?”

“There is a difference sir”

“Do you mind explaining the difference?” I asked, obviously angry that I was just played on by my doctor.

“Being impotent means no matter how you touch a woman, she will never get pregnant but your case isn’t like that Mr Ethan. You can still get a woman pregnant but the chances are extremely low and uncertain”

“Then there is no difference. It’s almost the same thing ” I uttered the last part of my words in anger, using my right hand to remove everything that stood as an obstruction.

The doctor gazed at me, fear flashing through his eyes as he looked at his document and laptop on the floor by his left. I closed my eyes as I tried to calm myself down, trying not to do anything I might regret later.

“What kind of treatments are we talking about?” I asked, forcing myself to focus on solutions rather than anger.

The doctor averted his gaze, refusing to look at me as he swallowed a lump in his throat. “Options such as medication to improve sperm count, lifestyle changes, and potentially IVF, which are assisted reproductive measures. These methods can help, but they are time-consuming and quite expensive,” Dr. Jackson explained quickly.

I nodded numbly, barely registering his words. My mind raced with thoughts of Mia, our upside-down relationship, and the secret she had kept. The betrayal was still fresh, but a small part of me now understood her desperation, even if her actions were unforgivable.

“Thank you, Doctor,” I said, standing up, my legs trembling. “I need some time to process this.”

“Of course, Mr. Ethan. If you have any questions or need support, please don’t hesitate to reach out,” Dr. Jackson replied, his expression one of genuine concern but also of fear.

I left the office in a daze, the air outside doing little to clear my confused mind. The bustling city around me seemed distant and muted. My phone buzzed in my pocket, jolting me back to reality. It was a message from Mia: “What did the doctor say?”

A surge of anger flared within me as I stared at my phone. It took every sensible nerve and self-control in my body not to smash the phone across the road. I couldn’t let this defeat me. I needed answers and a plan.

Finally, back in my car, I stared at Mia’s message for a long moment before typing a response: “We need to talk” I typed then dropped my phone as I zoomed off to my house. I entered my house to see Mia slowly sipping red wine from a glass. I clenched my hands into fists as I glared at her.

“From the expression on your face, I’m certain I was right about the result. Was I?” she asked, finally turning to stare at me, her face expressionless.

“You were right about one thing: I’m not medically fit to have a child of my own,” I said, my voice steady.

Mia’s lips curled into a smug smile. “I told you, Ethan but you didn’t believe me.”

I walked closer to her, my fists still clenched. “You went too far, Mia. You manipulated me, deceived me, and used my condition against me.”

She shrugged, taking another sip of her wine. “I did what I had to do. I wanted you, and I knew Monica was in the way so I had to do what I did just to have you for myself.”

My heart pounded in my chest. “And did it ever occur to you that there were other ways? Ways that didn’t involve betrayal and lies?”

Mia laughed bitterly. “Other ways? Ethan, you were always so focused on having a child. Whenever we were together, you would always talk about how wonderful it is to have a child of your own. You were desperate, and desperation makes people do crazy things.”

I shook my head, disbelief washing over me. “because I was desperate, you think you had the right to ruin everything? I never asked you to give me a child Mia. Yes, I wanted a child but not at the expense of your deception and betrayal” My words made her pause as she thought deeply about her actions.

“I did it for you, Ethan,” she said, her voice wavering as emotions filled her eyes. “I thought you wanted a family.”

“I did,” I admitted. “But not like this. Not built on lies.”

Mia’s eyes filled with tears, and for a moment, I saw a flicker of the woman I once loved. “Ethan, I’m sorry. I was wrong, but I didn’t know what else to do. I just wanted to see you Happy and I wanted you to myself”

I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. “Sorry doesn’t fix this, Mia. I can’t just forget what you did. It still hurts so much”

“So what now?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

I looked at her, feeling a mix of anger, sadness, and exhaustion. “I don’t know. But I need time to think. To figure out what to do next.” Mia nodded, tears streaming down her face.

I turned away, unable to look at her any longer. “I need to be alone right now. To process everything.”

“Then what about Monica?” She asked as her words made me halt in my tracks “It wasn’t her fault that she couldn’t carry a child. It was your fault. You couldn’t get her pregnant”

“Yes, that is true but what should I do now? There’s nothing left to do. I’m barely able to get a woman pregnant and you think I’m happy about it. I feel nothing but guilt, sadness, and anger Mia. I sent Monica out of my house just because you had what I wanted. She was innocent but I still sent her out. Do you think I’m happy with what I’ve done?”

“Are you going to bring her back here or will you_”

“She is already married, Mia. I can’t bring her back to my house”

“So what are you going to do?” Mia asked, her words laced with concern and curiosity.

“I don’t know Mia. Just let me be. I need to think” I uttered as I walked out of the house and boarded my car.

As I entered the car, I felt the weight of the situation crushing me. My mind was a collision of emotions, and I knew that whatever decision I made, it wouldn’t be easy.

Staring at the dark sky from my car, I wondered how my life had come to this point but as the cool breeze from the A. C. washed over me, I knew one thing for certain: nothing would ever be the same between me and Mia again.