When Peppa finally left, I was left alone to live with Kevin and it felt like hell. At least most of the time it felt like hell. Days felt like weeks and weeks felt like months and before I even knew it, I was five months pregnant with the child of a man that did not love me.
I was unsure of whether I was happy or sad that Kevin spent as little time around me as he could. But then again, it is what the doctor suggested. Two days after Peppa left, Kevin and I went for our first checkup because he did not believe that the baby was fully healthy. Another offense they threw at me that's what I had to endure.
We found out the baby was still as healthy as ever but mentally, I, the mother was not in the right space. The more stress and anger I would feel, the higher chances it would affect my baby and what made me feel the anger and stress was Kevin around me. The doctor suggested he spent as little time around me as possible but still enough time for the baby to recognize it's father. Of course the doctor did not think much of my distaste for the father of my child other than that that's how some pregnancies are.
People on the internet were burning to know the woman carrying the child of famous CEO and Miami's finest bachelor, Kevin Jr Williams. His family decided not to speak about it until today, a press conference was in session so the rumours such as I was being used as a surrogate would die down and I would be able to go to public in peace.
I was really uncomfortable in the situation I was in and indeed it was uncomfortable since I had to lie to hundreds of people if not thousands. We couldn't exactly be honest about our encounter so our cover story was that the two of us had been in a long term relationship in secret but now the relationship had turned to only a friendship so we can be co-parents.
"How are you feeling?" Kevin asked for the third time since we were here. His father was still announcing the reason for the conference.
It's true that Kevin and I had finally succumbed to being friends. I decided it's better if I let my heart forgive because if it was bad for the baby then I would compromise but still Kevin insisted on giving me a lot of space.
"I'm better." I replied with a soft smile as my hand squeezed his.
We looked at each other in the eyes for comfort. Kevin could handle the pressure of journalists but I couldn't because I was new to this. Not to mention the things that were said about me on social media had me crying on top of pregnancy hormones. I was hysterical.
"Kevin? The stage is yours." His father says suddenly before he moves away from the podium.
Many journalists were shouting his name for his attention as soon as he made his way at the front and he picked a man from the crowd.
I'm still not over the fact that these people are hold-a-press-conference-to-talk-about-my-personal-life type of rich. But then again they are famous.
"Mr Williams, would you say this woman was just a one night stand gone wrong?" He asks flatly as if that was a normal question. I cringed at it.
These people considered no one's feelings and I get they are just doing their job but how do you say that with little to no remorse? I guess not all of them can be respectful.
"No, it was not." He said, confidently. "Fiona and I were together for a while and our love for one another like any young couple resulted in us being reckless. It was not just a meaningless one night stand." He continued, lying like he had been trained to his whole life. Who am I to judge? I have trained myself to lie my whole life as a survival instinct.
The crowd started booming once more until he pointed for another journalist, a young woman.
"Yes! Mr Williams, you and the mother of your child are no longer together? Why is that?" She asked with much enthusiasm and excitement like she had been waiting for an opportunity which was quite cute.
"We decided we were not happy with each other, but we are still friends nonetheless and we will work on being a team." He says smiling towards me of which my chest felt heat towards it as I returned the smile. Yes it is true we had started to get along and we were going to coparent. I really wish that was why, it's way better than saying he had zero to negative feelings for me but he still could bed me like I'm a sex worker. Maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration.
The crowd continued to flare until he points at another man.
"Mr Williams, this question is for Miss Ivanov." The young man says.
The attention moved from Kevin to me but I had not expected it at all. My heart started hammering so fast it gave me a mini migraine. Kevin turned to me also and extended his hand so I can come to him. I hesitated to get up but still I did with my hand on my now very visible baby bump, I walked calmly towards Kevin. Taking his warm hand on mine but this time had a different feeling to it, like a foreign but good spark. I brushed it off as I kept doing ever since I started being friends with him.
"Miss Ivanov," The man says as soon as I was in front of the podium. "Is it true that Mr Williams asked you to abort the baby?"
The crowd started going wild at the unexpected question. I couldn't even have time to react to it because I was so shocked I froze at his words. Loud murmurs and more questions filled the crowd as I looked towards Kevin whose face seemed to pale at the question but somehow he kept it still, no reaction was painted in his features but I could tell it bothered him. I took a deep breath realizing if I'm carrying his child then his reputation is as important to me as it is to him.
"It's not." So I did a noble thing and once again, risked my whole image for another. "I wanted to terminate the baby because I was not ready to be a mother and I know that is selfish of me." I said raising my hand before they spoke. "But I am a woman who is allowed to make decisions about my body and I had a raging fear of disappointing my parents. Kevin convinced me it is better this way and that he was going to be there for me all through the pregnancy and I couldn't agree more." I said confidently even though now I was fuming and was reminded of why I even hated him in the first place.
My feelings seem to be going up and down it was confusing as shit.
The journalists kept talking and I decided to point one of my own.
"Miss Ivanov, when you were with Mr Williams, did you have love for him or did you get pregnant because he was monied?" The person asks.
I huffed at the question because it now amused me that so many people think a woman is stupid enough to tie herself to a man not knowing whether or not that man was going to be present in the baby's life.
"Funny you should ask, many people have been asking that." I chuckled which unexpectedly made everyone laugh along side me. "I did not intentionally get pregnant BUT I will say I am happy that it was with a man who cares for both me and our baby, whether or not he has money. Preferably he does because... I mean I wasn't planning to raise my children in poverty."
Everyone laughs loving the response which made me ease up a bit. I was not offended or freaked out about the question as his family expected me to be but I was sure Kevin's mother was fuming about the fact that I said I wanted to abort the baby.
The family drove back to Kevin's parent's house to join his brother and mother. His father was completely quiet as his chauffeur drove the three of us. There were various reasons the other two couldn't be in this press conference. Julien couldn't shut his mouth even though he can also lie, Kevin said he no longer trusts him. Kevin's mother couldn't hide her distaste for me because she does not like the fact that I am not of a rich family. In a very funny way, she's an actress but she's very bad at hiding her feelings, that's if she tries. Not to mention, I refused to speak about my family to anyone even Kevin.
As soon as the three of us got inside their house, I excused myself to go to the bathroom. I was greatful the morning sickness was gone but my b
ladder was the new problem. Meanwhile the Williams family had started speaking or more like Mrs Williams was fuming after seeing the live conference.
~~~
"Kevin! How idiotic could you be to impregnate a stupid girl like this? You heard what she said, she was after your money and you didn't hear it?!" Gabriella shouted of which Fiona heard from the bathroom. She wanted to get out of the bathroom as she was done with her business but now she was more interested in hearing more of what the family would say about her without her presence.
Kevin groaned in annoyance because he expected his mother to be like this.
"Oh come on mom she was being realistic with that, who would want their kid to grow up in poverty? Besides she sold the story well." Julien defends and he indeed was right. He doesn't usually get into his brother's problems but he had developed a friendship with Fiona.
"Making her a sneaky little liar!" She stated, Fiona thought about the fact that the whole family had just lied so she really wasn't different from them now was she?
"What about the fact that she wanted to get rid of a baby? What kind of sick, twisted person does that? She's a good for nothing sl-" The more she spoke, the more Fiona's heart broke and the more tears fell down her face. It reminded her of home, she was reminded of her mother.
She was reminded of the insults thrown at her before she even knew what the word "slut" meant. It made her revisit all her traumas and all the days she was forced not to cry because it made her "look ugly". All the years she was silenced and she couldn't breathe because of the bile that stuck in her throat wanting her to scream the pain out.
"ENOUGH!" Kevin shouted immediately silencing his mother. Fiona flinched even though she was still far but the sound had not been expected. She's never heard Kevin shout before. "You do not have the right to say those things about the mother of my child. She wasn't the one who suggested aborting the baby it was me. I did because I panicked, she was protecting me, okay?"
"What?" She says gently to him. Her voice was barely a whisper as she spoke in disbelief. "Kevin.."
"Fiona and I are gonna go home now. Fiona?" Kevin says taking his keys and going to look for Fiona.
Fiona comes out of the passage with her face already pink, eyes bloodshot and lips thick and pink, swollen from biting them trying to stop the tears from coming but they did either way. She had heard all the things said about her and this time, she was already an emotional wreck. Unlike when she and Gabriella first met, she was mad at the world then and her emotions were not as controlled by her pregnancy as they are now. Now she couldn't handle the insults, she wanted nothing more than to bury herself, how could she live when so many people hate her?
~~~
I did not want to look at them because I did not want to be reminded of my family even more. Speaking of my family, my sister had been trying to get ahold of me ever since they realized I was famous now, even if it wasn't for the good reasons, even my mother did. I ignored them like they used to when I needed something because they loved seeing me suffer.
I am confused as to why they even texted me because it's not like I had money or anything, I was just pregnant with someone who will have money and I had nothing to do with it.
A million thoughts were crossing my mind as Kevin drove us back to his suite. I could feel his eyes on me every once in a while but I did not want to say anything, his mother had said everything and more. His gaze made me feel even less comfortable because he wanted to speak but he wasn't saying anything. My right hand kept wiping the free falling tears off my cheeks. Even though I was not sniffling and making a sound, the tears still fell. My eyes I was pretty sure were bloodshot red and my nose could be that of a clown.
He reached out his right hand to touch my left hand but I moved it away before he could, not because I was mad at him but because I was mad at myself. I had been for a long time and it still doesn't seem to go away. I couldn't just be okay, my heart was in pain and it had been in pain ever since I could understand what pain was. Ever since I was a child, I wanted nothing more than to give my baby a great life and love.
The small ounce of love that was left in me, I still had to hold on to it to give to my child. They deserve it.
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