Chapter 41 :
"Ahh… there they are," said the MC as he pointed to both Maria and her husband.
"Maria, you're looking lovely as always," said the MC as he drew her into a hug.
"Meet me in the garden in ten," he whispered quickly before pulling away.
Maria watched nervously as the MC walked over towards her husband and did their bro hug.
All she wanted to do was to sit down and have a glass of water. She felt bad for hiding problems about her health from her husband.
'It's better this way,' she thought dejectedly as she looked at the purple blotches on her skin.
"Hey, babe, what are you doing over there? Come over," her husband called while motioning for her to come.
She tried not to wince as she stood up. Her muscles were aching, and it was getting very difficult for her to maintain her balance with the heels she had on.
The feeling of something colliding with her leg cause Maria to release a loud wince and closed her eyes as her muscles screamed in agony.
"Aunty M!" she heard a voice screamed while jumping on her toes.
"H-Hey little fella, how are you doing?" she asked in a gentle tone as she ruffled his hair.
"Mom said I can go home with you guys next week to play with Luca," he said excitedly as he gave her a toothy grin.
"That'd be great," she said as she searched for his mother, "Dario baby, can you please show aunty where your mother is?" she asked in a childish voice as she looked him in the eyes.
The little boy nodded feverishly as he took a hold of her hand and pulled her in the direction where his mother is.
On her way towards her destination, Maria shopped once every minute to talk to the other guests in the name of being polite.
The feeling of nausea and light-headedness crept upon her as she was speaking with the server.
"Ma'am are you ok?" asked the server as he watched her stumble into a passerby server causing the contents on his tray to clatter to the ground.
This drew the attention of the many guests that were at the event.
Giving a nervous smile, Maria looked for her husband and saw that he was glaring at her before a flash of worry passed through his eyes.
"S-Sorry... I-I stumbled a bit," she apologized while giving a nervous laugh before quickly turning to the exit.
'Where is it,' she thought as she searched for the entrance to the garden?
They considered the garden a sacred place, every time they held the Yahontov ball.
Something about keeping tension from disturbing the peace and happiness that is to come.
'Traditional family and their ways,' she thought while shaking her head as she walked towards the silhouette leaning on the wall at the gate.
"You're late," was all he said before he pushed himself off the wall and walked into the garden.
The two walked in silence towards their destination... Well, that was before the MC broke the silence.
"Have you told him yet?" he asked in a tone that was borderline threatening and affectionate. The wind sang into the night as the two stopped and stared at the stars.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" asked Maria as she ignored the question.
"Hmm," he agreed while tapping his Rolex impatiently as he waited for her answer.
"Look, Trevor," she sighed, "I'm my own person and I don't need to tell him everything that happens in my life."
'He doesn't deserve it,' she thought as she continued to watch the stars.
"Ria," he groaned, "He's my best friend, dammit."
"And I'm your best friend too... please don't tell him, I'm asking you as your best friend," pleaded Maria as he held his hands.
It was getting harder for her to move her muscles, and she estimated she didn't have enough time to go through this pregnancy.
"I-I'm sorry... I-I can't do that to him," he said while shaking his head. This caused Maria to release her grip on his hand and a sigh of defeat.
"But, I can't do that to you," he announced as he pulled her into a hug.
"So, what happened at your checkup?" Trevor asked, still hugging her.
"Nothing really, just the usu-" she started but stopped when she heard a phone ringing.
"Shit," hissed Trevor under beneath as he pulled out his phone.
"What are you doing?" asked Maria as she tried to control her breathing.
"Someone was listening to our conversation," he said, his voice filled with panic.
"Oh my gosh, please tell me this is not happening," she said in a frantic voice as she paced up and down.
"Ria... please calm down. Maybe it was a stray cat," suggested Trevor as he tried his best to calm her down.
'You've got to be kidding me,' she thought bitterly as she glared at him. "Don't tell me to fucking calm down, Trevor!" she shouted as walked up to him and gripped his shirt.
"What if he finds out? Or worst, what if the world finds out?... they would pity me and I'd be like a fragile doll," she sobbed, "I-I just want to be me for once... without the press and everyone else in my life."
Maria felt something warm trailing from her nose but paid no attention to it.
"What are you looking at?" she asked when she saw how pale Trevor was.
"You're bleeding," he said as he pointed a trembling hand to her nose.
The feeling of confusion quickly clouded her thoughts as she raised her hands towards her nose.
'What?' she asked herself as she felt the warm liquid from earlier.
"Is this?" she finished out loud as she stared at the blood on her hands.
"I-Is this blood?" she asked in a shaky voice as she tried to control her breathing. Like one problem after the other, Maria slowly felt the control she had on her muscles slipping as she fell to the floor.