Call am ambulance...Now!
1683 Words
CHAPTER 2
KATHY POV
Six years later.
Six years have passed, and I still can’t figure out what the Reed boys were trying to do that night.
Were they trying to ruin my engagement? I can't quite understand it. That night, I was in a daze as they approached me, and when the crowd started yelling, "Say yes! Say yes!" I lost eye contact with them. By the time I looked to the side where they had been sitting, they were gone.
Part of me was curious and confused about their sudden disappearance, but another part was relieved. I had a strong feeling they were about to cause trouble before they noticed the widow and decided to leave.
To this day, I’m grateful she showed up and that they didn’t act out. That proposal was my only ticket to escape that chaotic family, and I’m glad Hunter married me the following week. I was just twenty when we tied the knot, and now, six years later, I can honestly say it isn’t as strong as I had hoped. But what do they say about marriage?
For better or for worse, right? I know my husband, Hunter, is going through a lot right now. He’s been acting erratically, but I choose to be patient. I believe he will change. His company has been falling through in sales and it's been getting to him lately.
Six years have passed and I wish they did stop the engagement that night.
The traffic light turned green, and everyone started moving. I sighed and pressed the accelerator, driving into our driveway and parking the car in the garage. I glanced at the clock; it was exactly nine o'clock in the morning. Time for breakfast since it was the weekend. Luckily, I had prepared breakfast before heading to the gym, so I just needed to dish it out.
I go to the gym every single day just to look like Olivia—my husband's mistress. She has an hourglass figure that, as much as I hate to admit it, makes her a stunning woman. I feel like I can’t compare myself to her at all. Ever since I discovered that my husband was cheating on me and breaking our marriage vows, I’ve chosen not to confront him about what I saw or heard.
After my last pregnancy, I decided to hit the gym. I struggled with bloating and weight gain after childbirth, but I didn’t care. I just needed to lose it all and look like Olivia. I believed that was the only way to win my husband back. I’m determined to fight for our marriage until my last breath.
As I stepped out of my car, my eyes narrowed at the pink Audi Q8 parked in my space. I let out a deep sigh. Yes, that was her car. The mistress was in my house again, and I was certain Hunter had invited her over, knowing I’d be home with the kids today being weekend.
A tight pain gripped my chest, threatening to explode, but I gulped down a bottle of water to steady myself. I recalled everything my mother had told me about marriage—how challenging it can be, but also the importance of patience when things go awry. Right now, things were getting worse by the day. He started by not coming home at night and constantly complaining about how I looked. The same body he once said he loved—curvy and thick—now seemed to disgust him. I enrolled in a gym class and lost more than half the weight I had gained, hoping it would bring him back. Instead, he brought his mistress into our home.
Every day feels exhausting, especially with the added pressure from his family. I hate going over for family dinners. Each time, my mother-in-law makes sure to invite Olivia, keeping her close to Hunter while sidelining me. They treat me like a laughingstock. Yet, every time I look at Hunter, I still see the man I fell in love with when I was just seventeen.
Gently slamming the door of my car, I made my way inside the house.
Turning the doorknob, the first two people I saw when I stepped inside were Hunter and Olivia, their hands intertwined as she rested her head on his shoulder like a picture-perfect couple. My heart burned with rage and betrayal as I watched them laugh at the TV series on screen.
Next to them was my first child, Leo Donton—a five-year-old who took after his father, not just in looks but also in arrogance.
He sat beside Hunter and Olivia, munching on candies. My eyes narrowed as the realization hit me: those were candies. My maternal instincts kicked in, and I lunged at him, grabbing the sweets from his hands.
“Who the hell let you eat these?” I asked furiously, jolting Hunter and Olivia from the TV.
“Aunty Olivia did,” Leo retorted, his expression angry. “Give it back!”
“No!” I snapped. “You’re allergic to candies; you can’t eat this!”
“Come on, Kathy,” Hunter sighed. “Let the boy have whatever he wants to eat. Why are you always so controlling and making a big deal out of nothing?”
My eyes widened, and I scoffed. “Seriously, Hunter? I’m controlling because I won’t let him eat something I know he’s allergic to?”
Looking at him, my heart heaved with rage, and I felt an urge to smack his face in that moment. He didn’t know anything about our child; all he did was sit there and watch his mistress try to poison our son.
“Mommy!” Leo called out with a frown. “Give it back! Aunty Olivia gave it to me, and Daddy approved!”
“No, you can’t have it, Leo. You’re allergic to—”
Leo interrupted me with a sigh. “Mommy, this is why I like Aunty Olivia. I want her to be my new mommy. You keep controlling everything and everyone!”
I froze, my chest swelling with hurt. My veins felt like they were on fire. My son wanted my husband’s mistress as his mother?
I swallowed hard, trying to push the pain away. Hearing those words come from Leo felt like a betrayal.
He continued, “That’s why Daddy likes Aunty Olivia better. She doesn’t try to control everyone or ration what I eat.”
I felt as if I’d been punched in the gut, and tears began to well up in my eyes, but I refused to let them roll down my cheeks.
“Enough, Leo,” Olivia suddenly spoke up in a calm tone, reaching out to touch him, and he let her.
What the hell? He let her touch him? He wouldn’t let me touch him these days. I had thought he was just as difficult as his father, but now it seemed I was wrong—he had a new mommy.
“Come on, let me make you some new candies if you want more,” she said, and he smiled back at her. That was new; he never smiled at me like that.
“Yes, Mommy,” he replied, and I staggered back, almost tripping over my own feet. He was calling Olivia "Mommy"? And Hunter sat there saying nothing?
I groaned as pain shot through my chest. My muscles felt tight as I watched my son head to the kitchen, just as Olivia had instructed.
“Sometimes we just give them whatever they like; they’re still kids, Kathy. You know how kids can be,” she said, standing up in a low tone that irritated me and made me want to puke.
Such a fake! Here she was, sleeping with my husband right in front of me, pretending to care. Her lips curled into a thin smile, and I felt my frown deepen.
“Are you dumb, or do you just choose to be?” I scoffed. “Leo is allergic to candies, you're trying to kill him!”
Hunter paused the television and stood up, facing me. “Come on, Kathy, be respectful,” he warned. “Olivia is only trying to help with the kids, and you know that. The kids love her, and you see it. Give her a chance so you can learn how to be good with them and be a good mother also.”
My heart shattered into a million pieces as I watched him walk away with Olivia, her smug smirk twisting the knife in my gut.
I made my way to my room, where my daughter was fast asleep. Seeing her beautiful face, eyes closed, made me smile and sent butterflies fluttering in my belly. She was my only bundle of joy that hadn’t chosen another mommy.
Leaning in closely, I kissed her forehead. “Ivy…” I whispered softly so I wouldn’t wake her. She was only three but fierce, hating to be forced awake.
Later that night, I lay in bed, tears rolling down my cheeks and soaking the sheets. I slept in the guest room while Olivia and Hunter occupied our matrimonial bed.
Suddenly, I heard my name called in a panicked tone. “KATHY! KAT…THY!” Hunter screamed from across the room. I jolted upright, quickly slipped on my slippers, and raced down the hallway toward his voice.
As I hurried, my heart pounded in my chest. I rushed into Leo’s room and found Hunter and Olivia standing side by side, panicking near Leo’s bed.
Hunter looked frantic, his eyes wide with fear. “I don’t know; he just started seizing out of nowhere!”
Olivia stood in the background, her face pale and worried. “We have to call an ambulance, now!”
Ignoring them both, I rushed to my son’s side, where he was turning purple, his body convulsing in seizures.
“Oh my God, Leo!” I screamed, kneeling beside him. “It’s the candies! Call the doctor, Hunter! Call the doctor!”
- Writer
