I and Cherish ate in the sitting room and she watched me closely. "Aunty Caty, if I were you, I will run away from this house".
I was shocked to hear her say that. "What do you mean?".
"My brother always told us that he married you because he was the only one that could tame your bad character. It has been three months now of living here but I still see the way you look after him like your life depends on it. You even bleed when you overwork yourself".
"Why do you think your brother hate me?".
"He knows you are smarter than him and he is always looking forward to you using that against him. He will always try to blame you if he is not meeting up because he knows that you are the only that can tolerate him. If you ever get better than him and slap it on his face, he is going to kill you".
"He wouldn't go that far ".
She chuckled. "Now that you have time, leave before you wouldn't be able to leave again".
I patted her. "I love your brother, Cherish. You have nothing to worry about. I believe if I completely satisfy him, he will grow to let his guard down".
***
I woke up that morning and my brain hurt when I remembered it was one month already.
Richard was grinning when I woke up."Cherish did well in her Mathematics mock exam. Thank you for being intentional about her".
"You are welcome Richard".
He frowned slightly. "You don't wake up early anymore for a week now. You used to wake up by 4:30am but ever since this huge break of one month, you wake up almost five thirty ".
"I only woke up around 5:21 twice. Why are you calling it one week?".
He slapped me hard on my head. "I always tell you to stop asking me disrespectful questions! You are always so rude!".
I got out of bed and started my morning routine.
After breakfast, he drove us to work.
I remained silent, questioning if eight months was enough to realize you were married to a monster.
While typing in my office, the secretary informed me the boss had called for a brief meeting.
Panic set in as I feared my boss might have decided to fire me.
When I arrived, everyone, including Richard, was already seated.
I found an empty chair near the door and sat, anxiously watching.
He cleared his throat. "Now I am going to straight to the point so that you all will go ahead with your unfinished tasks. After a month, we all noticed that we had a replacement for the account department and we saw how the work load of the organization has been placed on one person and we didn't even know it all these while. Since the manager role has been vacant for five years after we lost Alex, I am hundred percent convinced that our seven years accountant who has been underrated in the while has proven that she is fit for the position. Today, I hereby place Catarina Craig as the new manager of Bower bound".
A round of applause filled the air, with Richard Craig smiling from ear to ear. He looked genuinely happy for me.
I struggled to hide my shock at the unexpected turn of events, tears filling my eyes.
I had been utterly exhausted, but my boss had other plans.
My colleagues congratulated me, telling me I deserved it and that my absence at work had been deeply felt, as my contributions carried much of the workload.
At closing time, Richard came to call me.
He drove us home in silence.
Once we arrived, I heated up some food from the freezer.
When I brought his meal to the room, I saw him tearing up for the first time since we got married.
I set the tray aside and joined him on the bed. "Richard, what exactly happened?" I asked.
He swallowed bitterly. "Right from when I was in high school, I have tried to convince myself that I was not a failure. I worked so hard . Now I am grown, thinking that the failure era had ended, working my ass out for ten years. But guess what? You have only worked in Bower bound for seven years and you were chosen over me. What does that tell you? I am a failure. Big one at that".
"You are not a failure. The fact that I was chosen over you doesn't make me better than you".
"I can't stay here in Bower bound, calling you my boss. My ego will definitely be bruised for life".
"You are taking this too far, Richard ".
"I am resigning. I don't expect you to resign for me. Afterall I am not even worth you giving up your position. I am a terrible husband with nothing to show for it". He swallowed bitterly.
"You cannot resign, Richard!".
"Then will you resign?".
"Resign? I just got promoted!".
"I can't stay in the same roof, feeling beneath a woman I call my wife!". He cried out.
"What then do you want me to do!!!".
"I am not asking you to do anything, just leave me to resign!!!".
"You can't resign!!!".
"I am resigning tomorrow morning!". He walked out of the room.
It hurt so much that moment.
Giving up something I treasure so much for someone that didn't even value my existence was the hardest thing.
But it would be harder for me if he gave up himself.
I would be more miserable because he would be.
He would make me pay for allowing him give up.
With a heavy heart, I wrote out my resignation letter and submitted it via the company email.
The next morning, I woke to the smell of coffee.
Richard was there, humming happily with a coffee in one hand and bread and eggs in the other.
It was the first time he had ever served me breakfast in bed since we got married.
He had obviously found out that I had resigned, and he seemed so happy.
He gently made me sip the coffee. "For the first time, I realize that I am truly loved by someone," he said. "I never believed in love because of my toxic family. But you gave up a position you treasured so much because you couldn't bear to see me cry. You are the only one in the world who understands me, Catarina."
I glanced at my phone on the bed and saw twenty missed calls from my boss.
Richard cleared his throat as he handed me a piece of bread. "Boss called about the decision. Can you believe he had the audacity to ask if I was involved?"
"What did you tell him?" I asked weakly.
"I told him you were struggling with the workload because of your illness."
"Illness?" I repeated, surprised.
"Yes, your frequent nosebleeds. That could be a sign of hypertension. It wasn't entirely a lie, right?"
"You knew about my nosebleeds?"
"Of course. You're a strong woman. Despite the workload at home, you still put in so much effort at Bower Bound. By the way, you've been sleeping more these days."
I coughed, feeling a wave of fever wash over me. Could I be pregnant? "Richard, I think I might be pregnant."
To my shock, he glared at me. "You can't be pregnant."
"Why not? We haven't used protection in two months, and I thought you were doing it on purpose." I searched his eyes, trying to decipher his mysterious behavior.
"Even without protection, you won't get pregnant, so just forget about it."He said nothing more as he got dressed and left for work.
As soon as he was gone, I rushed to his sister's room. "I told your brother I might be pregnant, and he freaked out. Cherish, is there something I don't know?" I asked, my voice trembling with fear.
She sighed deeply. "Promise me you won't tell anyone what I'm about to say."
"I promise."
"Fifteen years ago, my brother accidentally killed my twin sister in a car crash. It was his first time driving, and he was messing around with our father's car that morning. He had no idea my sister was squatting behind the car, playing. He lost control of the brake and hit her. Afterward, he was consumed by guilt and tried to end his own life. He sped onto the road, hoping for the worst. He survived the crash, but he didn't walk away unscathed—he lost the ability to have children. He never dated anyone after that, until you. You were the first person he ever told my mother about."
Her words hit me like a tidal wave, and I had to grip the door handle to steady myself.
"Why didn't he tell me he was infertile before we got married?"
"If he had, would you have still married him?"
"I'm getting a divorce."
"Why don't we find out if you're pregnant first?"
"That's impossible after what you just told me."
"Still, let's check."
Reluctantly, I agreed.
I took out the pregnancy test, and after a few tense minutes, the result was clear.
It was positive.