欧美专区小说区

It was still fresh in his mind how he walked into the living room to find his wife on the floor, balled up like a child, sobbing as if in pain. At first, he thought she might have slipped and had an accident, but when she saw her eyes, he recognized her dilemma immediately.

She was not in physical pain but trapped on an emotional roller coaster due to the psychological trauma of losing their child. The therapist reminded him that her depression could still come and go.

“Jacky, I hope you will let me help you.” He whispered in her sleeping form, wishing she would listen to him through her subconsciousness.

He knew that she was trying her best, but there were times that she did not want to share the burden with him. It was like she did not want to bother him with her problems.

No matter how he tried to convince her, it was ok. He could take any punch thrown his way, but she still would not let him be a part of what she was going through. But he was not giving up. He would find a way to help her.

“I love you, Jacky.” He said repeatedly. He would not get tired of telling her how much he loved her if that would prove to her that he was not going away. “I will always be here for you.”

.....

He was not saying that losing a child was easy. On the contrary, he could not even imagine what Jacky might have gone through when it happened. He did not carry their child in his body, yet he felt the devastation of losing something he did not even know existed until it was gone.

Between the two of them, it was Jacky who wanted a child immediately. He did not mind waiting for a year or more, but he could feel her excitement to have someone to care for beside him.

So, he understood why she was more devastated by the loss of their child than he. Besides, they said the mother had a greater connection with the child than a father.

He moved out of bed, unable to sleep as his mind swirled around finding a solution to a problem. He was not an emotional person, usually dealing with a problem logically. He just had to look for the correct answer if there was a problem.

He grabbed his phone from the table and walked outside the balcony. Outside the glass partition, he could talk without waking up Jacky. At the same time, her wife would still be in his line of sight.

“Hey, man. I am sorry if I woke you up.” He immediately said as soon as his call connected on the other line after several rings. He could hear somebody breathing on the line, but it appeared he was catching his breath.

He assumed his friend might be sleeping by then. But he badly needed help. So, he still tried to call him. Now, he wondered if he had interrupted him doing something else, judging from the unusual sound coming from the receiver.

“I...” He was about to make some excuse and hung up the line when someone finally said something.

“Hi, Marcus. I was in the bathroom and had to rush inside to answer the phone.” Then, she breathed again before continuing. “Is there something wrong?” She asked immediately. “Is Jacky alright?” Adding the last part with a worried tone.

Now, he knew he had made the mistake of calling his friend Alex. He did not mean to disturb Dani, who was in the delicate stage of her pregnancy. He could not abruptly end the call without assuring Dani that her friend was ok. He could not let Dani worry about her too.

“Yes, of course. I was looking for Alex about a business matter.” He quickly concocted an excuse, hoping Dani would not find him lying.

The last thing he wanted was to cause any harm to Dani’s condition. He heard that she had to go on leave from work due to her health. The doctors did not want to stress her out. Therefore, he could not add to the burden she was already going through.

“At this hour, is there an emergency in the company?” Suddenly, her voice sounded alarmed, which would be no different if he had told her about Jacky.

Suddenly, he was also panicking as if he was doing more damage than containing the situation. “No,” Marcus hurriedly said. “Nothing like that. I only want to get updated with what is currently happening in the company.”

He felt like he was burying himself from one lie to another. But it was a necessary evil in this case.

“Oh! You got me slightly worried there. First, I thought it was about Jacky when I saw your name on the screen. Then, the company.” She breathed a sigh of relief, hearing that it was nothing serious.

“Sorry about that. But I better call again tomorrow when Alex is awake.” He hurriedly said, not wanting to keep Dani up so late.

“Actually...” Dani paused and took a deep breath. “Do you mind telling me the truth? How is Jacky?” She could tell that something was wrong with her friend. She had been aloof in most of their conversations.

She could tell that Marcus was not fine from his tone. Call it an instinct. But she was not fooled by his excuses. She knew he called to confide in Alex, but she also wanted to help. She was pregnant, not an invalid.

“She is good most of the time, but she is still trying to get better.” Marcus knew he could not lie anymore. He just hoped he was doing the right thing by telling Dani about her friend.

He told her what happened during their vacation and how he thought that Jacky had recovered from what happened. But then again, she had a breakdown again earlier that night.

It was a difficult situation. Something that Marcus wished he could manage with numbers and some arguments. But this was more complicated than any of the cases he had handled during his career.

“Tell me if there is something I can do to help.” Dani offered, wishing that there was something she could do more for her friends who were going through tremendous difficulty in their life.

“I will.” Marcus was about to say goodnight to his dear friend when an idea went through his head. “Come to think of it. I might need your help on something.” He continued, explaining to Dani what she could do to aid his situation.

It was an idea that he thought might help them. But there was no reassurance until he had tried it. He just hoped that it would work. But as the saying goes, no pain, no gain. So, he had to try.

“Sure, I will work on it first thing in the morning. I will call you once I have some details.” Dani excitedly informed him, glad she had something to do even if it was not much.

“Thanks, Dani. I appreciate that. I will wait for your call in the morning. Kindly tell Alex that I might not come in yet to work.” He knew he could not leave Jacky in her current situation.

Although both of them agreed that they had to return to work, he doubted it was time. Maybe a day or two more to be sure that Jacky was fit to return to her stressful career.

“Now, go back to sleep,” Dani commanded on the line, telling him what he should do. He could only smile at his friend.

After hanging up, he felt more relaxed, knowing he had something planned to help them both. Suddenly, he could not wait for the morning to come, excited to tell his wife about his new surprise.

She might have sensed him when he returned to bed. She suddenly stirred in her position, stretching her arms upward before slowly opening her eyes. Then, when her eyes landed on him, she smiled, seemingly happy to see him.

“What time is it?” She sleepily asked as she wrapped her arms around his shoulder, pulling him closer to him. She believed it might still be midnight, catching the shadow of the moon’s ray by the window.

“It is time to go back to sleep,” Marcus mumbled as he kissed his wife gently on her soft lips before wrapping his arms around her body.

Then, he was spooning her under the sheet, feeling her warm back against his chest. Somehow, the steady rhythm of her breathing was enough to lull him to sleep.

Soon, he was in dreamland, thinking of the future he wanted to build with the love of his life. It might not be a Kingdom, but it was a home that they would cherish for eternity.