Chapter Forty-Seven
Mindy
"Mindy!" Betty squeals, practically tackling me as I walk in. "Get over here, for a big old girlfriend hug!"
“Whoa Bets!” I laugh, stumbling backwards. “I missed you too, but let your girlfriend breathe.”
"Sorry, sorry," she grins, not looking sorry at all. "But look at you! Did you rob a fashion magazine again?"
I strike an exaggerated pose. "What, this old piece of cloth? I just threw it on."
Betty snorts. "Yeah, and I just 'threw on' a gourmet feast. Speaking of which..." She sniffs the air dramatically. "Do you smell that?"
"Mmm," I inhale deeply. "Is that Aunt Betty’s infamous, calorie-laden, diet-destroying carrot cake?"
"Don’t forget about waistline-wrecking." Betty winks. "Now, park your cute little ass on that couch and tell me everything. How's life with Mr. Eyebrows?"
I burst out laughing. "Mr. Eyebrows? That's a new one."
"Well, have you seen those things move? They're like two caterpillars having a party on his forehead."
I'm wheezing now. "Oh my God, stop it! You're killing me."
“No, seriously! That smolder is to die for.” Betty flashes a mischievous grin. "Now spill, girlfriend. I want all the juicy details about life with your brooding bad boy."
"Oh boy," I say, wiping tears of laughter from my eyes. "Where do I even start?"
"How about at the beginning?"
"Alright, then… all is good."
"That’s a nice summary." Betty gives me a side-eye. "And how does he feel about the baby?"
“Well,” I force a smile but my hands are suddenly fidgeting nervously in my lap. I know Betty’s about to give me a hard time for keeping my pregnancy a secret from Maron. "Actually, he doesn't know about the baby yet."
Betty’s mouth drops open. "What? You’re entering your third month, girl! How does he not notice?" She glances at my stomach.
“I eat a slice of your carrot cakes every day.” I joke, but Betty doesn’t play along.
“I’m serious, Mindy. Don’t you think he has the right to know?”
I let out a sigh, twirling my dress fabric. "You’re right, he does. I'll tell him soon. I'm just… getting ready for it."
“Ready for what?” Betty’s eyes flash with a mischievous glint. "Ooh, is it going to be a grand romantic gesture with fireworks and champagne?"
“Maybe.” I giggle. “And a crazy sex marathon to celebrate the good news." I wink at Betty, grinning from ear to ear. "Don't worry, Bets, he’ll know soon enough. Besides, he wants a child anyway. And this baby is a blessing. My chances of getting pregnant naturally were almost non-existent, and yet... this little bundle of joy chose me as its mom." Tears start welling up in my eyes. "Sorry, Bets, it’s just that my hormones are going wild and I’m so damn emotional these days. It's still hard to believe that this is real. This baby is truly a miracle."
“Oh my gosh, Mindy,” Bettymoves in and gives me a bear hug. "Of course, it is a miracle. Which is exactly why you have to tell Maron. Seriously, I don’t understand how he hasn’t noticed. I mean hasn’t your tummy started growing? What do you tell him when you disappear to the bathroom for a puke break?"
I lean back on the sofa and stretch my hands above my head. "Well, I don’t really get nausea anymore. Today was actually the first morning in weeks that I felt crappy."
She furrows her brow. "Like hangover crappy or sick crappy?"
"Just a little cramp while I showered. But I missed you too much to bail on you because of a little belly cramp."
“Aww, stop it!” Betty gasps dramatically and clutches her chest. "You know I miss you too, babe. It's just not the same here without our daily gossip sessions." Her eyes light up, and she leans in conspiratorially. "Speaking of gossip, did you hear the latest scandal in the marketing department?"
I gasp, my interest piqued. "What? No! Spill the beans, girl!"
She grins, clearly relishing the opportunity to share some juicy news with her bestie. "Well, rumor has it that a certain someone was caught kissing with a certain someone else in the supply closet."
I nearly choke on my laughter. "No way! Who was it? You can't leave me hanging like that!"
"You know the rules, Mindy. Company policy. I can't reveal my sources. But let's just say it involves a certain redhead and a certain tall, and handsome someone from accounting."
I stare at her. "You and Nate? You’re together?"
“Yep,” she says, beaming. “And the sex is amazing!”
"No way! Are you serious?" I almost jump up in excitement. "Since when? You never even mentioned liking him."
Betty shrugs. "Well, it just happened. We were both working late one night and ended up in the break room at the same time. We started talking and one thing led to another..."
I can't stop smiling. Betty really deserves to be happy, and it sounds like she finally found herself a great date. Nate is a nice guy and I’m sure he will treat her well, unlike her previous boyfriends.
"Anyway, enough of my crazy love life," she says. "Let’s go for some carrot cake, shall we?"
"Sounds like a plan," I reply. "Let me go wash my hands."
As Betty makes her way to the kitchen, I rise from the couch and my gaze lands on a disturbing blood stain. How the hell did that get there? Was it under me all along? It must have been. How did I not notice it?
Hold on a second, Mindy.
A bloodstain under you?
My expression quickly shifts from surprised to concerned as a realization dawns on me. Panic sets in as I understand that this could mean something terrible. And a few seconds later, my body proves that I’m not wrong. The room starts spinning and I suddenly feel lightheaded. "Shit," I mutter under my breath as I collapse back onto the couch.
The soft fabric under me feels abrasive against my skin, every nerve ending hypersensitive. The metallic scent of blood fills my nostrils and my stomach churns. I can taste the bitter tang of fear in my mouth and my heart pounds so hard I can practically feel it in my eardrums.
"Ta-dam!" I hear Betty's voice as she walks in, balancing a large tray in her hands. As soon as she sees me, she stops in her tracks and stares at me. "What's the matter, Mindy?" She asks, her forehead creased with worry. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
I take a shaky breath, struggling to articulate the terrifying feeling taking place inside my body. "I… I'm sorry, Bets," I manage to choke out. "I started bleeding and I stained the couch."
Betty sets the salad bowl on the table and rushes to my side. "Screw the couch, girl, what’s wrong?" She hands me a glass of water. "Here. Have a drink."
Even as I take a sip of water, I feel the blood draining from my face and my skin turning clammy and cold. The room is spinning around me as I try to hold on to the last shreds of my composure. I try to take another sip, but I can’t even keep my hands steady enough to do so. The cool surface of the glass begins to slip through my fingers, feeling impossibly heavy.
My baby.
Betty's eyes widen in horror as she processes the sight before her. "Oh my God, Mindy," she gasps, her hand gripping mine with a bone-crushing force. The pressure of her grip is the only thing that feels real. "You're in your third month and... we need to call nine-one-one right now."
The panic in Betty’s voice sends a surge of dread through me. She’s right. This is bad. Very bad. Everything's becoming a blur as I struggle to stay conscious, desperately clinging onto my bestie’s hand for support.
All I can do is nod as another wave of cramping pain seizes my abdomen. It feels like my insides are being twisted and torn in a searing agony that steals the breath from my lungs. I can feel my own blood soaking through my underwear, a warm, sickening sensation spreading across my inner thighs. The coppery smell grows stronger, making me gag.
No!
I can't lose this baby.
I want to scream, but I don’t have the strength. My voice is trapped in my throat and my mouth is as dry as sandpaper. Tears begin to stream down my cheeks, hot and bitter, as I curl up, clutching at my stomach as if that could somehow save the tiny life that's slipping away from me. The fabric of my dress clings to my skin, wet and sticky.
Please don’t.
Please don’t make me lose this precious miracle.
The thought pierces through my heart like a blade, shattering my soul into countless irreparable pieces.
Please, my baby, stay with me.
I love you more than anything.
As another wave of agony crashes over me and I gasp for air, the world around me starts blurring into a distant haze. The edges of my vision darken, and Betty’s voice around me becomes muffled, as if I'm underwater.
“Yes, she’s bleeding. Over two months pregnant.” I can hear her from a distance, speaking into the phone. “Yes, very urgent. Please come right away!”
Her voice continues to echo around me for several minutes. I can hear it in my ears even as I’m lifted onto a stretcher. The cold metal beneath me seeps through my clothes, a sharp contrast to the warmth of my blood. I can feel Betty holding my hand as I'm placed into the back of an ambulance. But it’s all a blur. Her touch seems distant, like it's happening to someone else.
Then, a door is shut closed behind me and I hear snippets of fragmented sentences: "losing blood… get her stabilized… could be a critical case." It all feels distant and numb to me. The sharp smell of antiseptic mixes with the metallic scent of blood, making my head spin even more.
My remaining consciousness is slipping away like a fading dream. Betty's face, etched with fear and concern, seems miles away now. The memory of her voice is nothing more than an echo in the void I am falling into. A void where time and space blend into one and my dreams of motherhood and a happy family both shatter into tiny pieces. The only thing left is loneliness, an eternal, all-consuming loneliness.
The beeping of medical equipment fades into a single, continuous tone.
And then, darkness sets in.