Maya

I clutched my stomach, folding into a tight ball on the bed, assaulted by scenes of them together with another woman—it was happening again. They were doing it...again.

Watching them having sex with another woman, a face unfamiliar to me, intensified the anguish. She was just another random whore, likely picked up from the streets. It had to be it.

This must be the dire consequence they warned me about...

The thought of getting an abortion crossed my mind in that tumultuous moment—should I really get an abortion?

A stifled sob escaped me, a searing sensation crawling up my body. Tears blurred my vision, my heart raced while their images of fucking her flashed vividly in my mind.

This pain was more unbearable than before.

"Please, stop..." I pleaded, my voice choked with sobs, the agony coursing through me becoming overwhelming.

Should I just end it all? Would death help me in avoiding the pain?

I sat upright, my hands gripping my stomach, tears streaming down my cheeks unchecked.

It was scary how alone I was in this world and how everything and everyone was against me. The crushing weight of loneliness enveloped me, a suffocating reminder.

"Why me?" I met my own gaze in the mirror—a wretched sight, disheveled hair, tear-streaked cheeks, and bloodshot eyes. They had succeeded in making me utterly miserable, just as they intended.

"Why me?!!" I screamed, seizing a nearby vase and hurling it at the mirror. Shards scattered, creating a mosaic of destruction across the room.

Images of them with that woman in the hotel room flooded my mind. Leonardo's lips locked onto hers, Maximus trailing kisses along her neck, sandwiching her between them with a fervor that cut through me. The echoes of her moans reverberated in my ears.

This was absolutely fucking painful—that was just the least of what I could say.

My breaths turned into gasps, fingers clutching the bed sheets tightly. I squeezed my eyes shut in a futile attempt to banish the haunting scenes, yet closing my eyes only intensified their vividness.

Desperation forced my hands to cover my ears, attempting to block out the escalating sounds.

"Please, make it stop!" I sobbed. It felt as though an invisible force plunged knives into my chest with every sound and scene—an anguish akin to death itself.

Why wouldn't they just simply kill me rather than put me through all of this? Why?!

Unable to endure it any longer, I stumbled off the bed and staggered towards the bathroom. With trembling hands, I flung open the door and rushed inside, hastily turning on the shower.

The cold water cascaded over me like a downpour, an icy deluge that clashed sharply with the wild untamed heat of my skin. Steam seemed to rise from my body as the contrast overwhelmed me. This is so fucking painful....

Sobs continued to wrack my frame, the water offering a fleeting respite from the searing sensation on my skin. Yet, the sounds, the haunting scenes, the agony persisted. They didn't recede. At all

"I hate you..." Leaning against the tiled wall, I slid down to the floor, arms wrapped around my knees, my face buried in despair. "I fucking hate you," the words escaped between sobs, "Monsters. Heartless monsters."

It hurt me to simply confront the truth—I was here, carrying their child while they callously fucked another woman, finding pleasure elsewhere, inflicting unbearable torment upon me—finding pleasure in my torment. How could anyone be so cruel? It tore at me, for I couldn't fathom such heartlessness, no matter how grievously they wronged me.

Rejecting them would end it all, wouldn't it?

If I rejected them, would the pain cease? Would it?

Perhaps, I should reject them.

I raised my hands to my face, sweeping aside strands of hair as I drew in a deep breath.

"I, Maya Campbell, Reje—" The words faltered, caught in my throat, just there.

The agony I endured now was familiar, but what about the relentless ache I might carry for a lifetime after rejecting them? I was aware of the irrationality of my thoughts, yet they persisted and I knew they wouldn't leave me.

I didn't have the courage to utter the words. Maybe if they did it, it'd be easier.

I shook my head, bringing myself to speak again as the flashes of them with that woman persisted before my eyes.

"I, Maya Campbell, Reject the Sterling Twins, Alpha Leonardo, and Maximus as—" The words felt like venom, coiling around my throat, suffocating me as I struggled to speak.

"I..." I drew a breath, attempting to continue, but my voice failed me. Another sob escaped as the realization dawned that I couldn't bring myself to do it.

I was a coward. Rejecting them seemed beyond my capacity.

God knew what fucked up connection this was but I couldn't severe the matebond.

I buried my face in my hands, the cold water drenching me, enveloping me in its chilling embrace. Moments ticked by, the haunting images persisting until gradually fading and finally ceasing.

As those fucked-up scenarios halted, I slowly rose from the floor, drained of all energy.

All that remained was an unsettling ache and the bitter realization that I was utterly alone in this world—with my child.

Should I really abort my baby?

It wasn't just theirs, was it? This life was a part of me as well, and it was my responsibility to safeguard it.

What would be there to distinguish me from my mother if I followed the same path of abandonment? Or worse, if I chose to end this life, knowing it was fucking wrong.

Snatching a towel, I wiped my face, standing before the sink, my body still soaked, clothes clinging damply, water pooling at my feet. Tangled wet strands of hair veiled my face, but this time, my reflection in the mirror didn't trigger the urge to shatter it.

Slowly, my hand moved to my belly...

Within me was a life, growing, breathing alongside me...

I was no longer alone.

Someone depended on me now—a life I had to safeguard and nurture.

"I won't let you slip away," I whispered, a single tear tracing a path down my cheek. "I won't be the one to take your life. Maybe your dads don't want you, but I do. I won't let you go," I choked back a sob, shaking my head.

"And I promise not to shed any more tears," I vowed, wiping my eyes and forcing a smile. "No matter what comes our way. I won't let you feel sadness. Babies sense their mothers' pain, don't they? I won't let you be sad," I tenderly caressed my stomach.

It was still hard to believe that I was really going to be a mother.

"I have another promise for you, my baby," I sniffled, gazing at my belly, my other hand cradling it. "I won't be like my own mother—I'll give you everything I never had. You'll become my entire universe, surrounded by the love I never received. No one will hurt you. You'll be safe in my embrace. I will keep you safe, totally safe, far away from demons and monsters."

Yes... I couldn't let my baby go.

It might not be the best-accepted choice given my circumstances, but for me, it was the only choice. This baby was a part of me, and I refused to be a killer...of my own baby.

But to keep this baby I had to go far away from these monsters. I had to run away. Far away.