Sharmaine had peacefully entered a place she thought she would not see again—Ivan's apartment. His apartment was located in a new place, a new city and populated by new people. Luckily, she was able to go on a vacation-break with the permission of Denzel, which was what Sharmaine thought as strange.
Now that she had a human inside of her, she'll need to be extra careful from now on. As much as she did not want to have kids yet, she couldn't afford to lose one herself. She thought of her situation—Ivan and her made a deal; he'll help her, and in return, she'll give herself to him.
She paced the apartment freely. Nothing had changed at all. Every memory popped up to her head as she saw plenty of items that reminded of her stay.
"Suit yourself, and be careful." Ivan emphasized the 'be careful' part as he also couldn't afford to lose a piece of him. Sharmaine nodded cheerfully as she entered Ivan's bedroom. Nothing had also really changed—even the sheets she stabbed was still there, though it was washed.
Still, she wandered around the apartment looking for more items that could interest her. Suddenly, Ivan came in with all of her bags. He plopped it down beside his closet and stood up, panting.
"Stay here for the time being. And you could stay in your original form while you're here," he said before leaving the room.
Sharmaine still wore her suit and the bandages that wrapped her were getting uncomfortable nowadays. She started to undress herself when suddenly, Ivan barged into the room. Sharmaine screamed in a high-pitched voice as she quickly grabbed the blanket and covered her naked body.
Ivan smirked. "You don't have to be shy. I have seen your body." Arrogance covered his words. Sharmaine felt her blood rushing up to her face as her cheeks burned. She screamed loudly and reached out for things within her range and started throwing it to him; she screamed at him to get out of the room.
Her loud voice echoed throughout the apartment, and maybe through some of Ivan's neighbors. He wouldn't even be surprised if security comes later on. After the shenanigans, Ivan escorted Sharmaine out of his room, holding her hand.
"You don't have to do that. I am no old woman," she said, yanking herself away from him.
Ivan, with a frustrated tone, replied, "Are you crazy? You are pregnant."
That statement silenced Sharmaine until dinner. It was an uncomfortable and heavy feeling. Luckily, Ivan broke the soon-eternal-silence by asking her if Denzel agreed with her plans. Sharmaine paused her happy moment, where she's gobbling up her meal, and nodded. There were just no words to describe what she felt and how she felt. She just smiled and told Ivan to shrug everything off.
Minutes had passed as Sharmaine sat on the living room couch, touching her tummy. She wondered how fascinating it was to grow a human inside of her. She imagined what she'll do once the baby was born, and what the baby would look like.
Ivan gently crept behind Sharmaine and flung his arms around her. Surprisingly, she did not fight back nor struggle.
"Shall we make our rules then?"