Vanessa:
My father turned to face me. I inhaled deeply, letting my head hang low as I stared pointedly at the ground, wishing it would open up and let me in—anything to escape this misery to save me from this misery the universe bestowed upon me without a choice. But it didn't.
The next words that came out of my mouth were ones that would change the trajectory of my life.
"I…I'll do it."
A satisfied smile plastered across his face as he sauntered to where I was standing.
I wiped my tears. "When am I getting the money?" I asked in a low voice.
"Don't worry about that, I'll make a deposit when I get to the office, and I'll have Arthur take care of the rest right after the wedding," he replied.
"Wait, you're seriously going to give her the money?" My stepmother asked, raising her hand in disbelief.
My father turned to face her and nodded.
"Of course, you're going to give her. She always gets what she wants. Daddy's favorite little princess." She mocked.
Instead of denying it, he simply smiled.
"I'm sick of this!" she yelled and trailed up the stairs, leaving me alone with him.
"I can't believe you would make me do this," I blurt in disgust.
"This way we could both get what we want, Vanessa," he explained. "I get to merge my company with that of the Greysons, and your son will get his treatments. It's a win-win."
I rolled my eyes and wrapped my arm around my chest.
What does he think I am? A pawn?
Using me as a bargain to expand his business.
It might have been one of his dreams to get investors such as the Greysons to fund his company–but I had dreams, and getting married was not one of them, at least not at this time.
He tried to cup my cheek with his hands, but I took a step back to isolate myself from his comfort.
He shot me a smile, reading the resentment in my eyes. He knew I was not happy with the decision I had just made."Sometimes, we have to make some tough choices— not for ourselves, but for the sake of the people we love," he added before patting my back and walking away.
I didn't bother entertaining his words, but it left me grappling with questions I'll never get answers to I took my time as I wiped my remaining tears and adjusted my dress before walking to the exit of the house.
As i twisted the door knob, the door being pushed open from the other end, hitting me square on the forehead, and making me stumble backward.
"Ouch!" I whimperered in pain, stroking my forehead.
"Well, well. Look who we have here." A female voice drawed my attention. I raised my head to see Helena, standing in front of me.
She looked better than what I remember. Her porcelain white skin stood out from the beautiful black dress she wore, which showed an inappropriate amount of cleavage.
Her honey-blonde hair was styled gracefully.
The cunning smile she shot me could make even a security guard stand on higher alert.
"What are you doing here, you b***h?" She asked, her tone coming off rude.
"Why I'm here is none of your business. Now get out of my way," I said, giving her shoulder a nudge as I try to walk past her.
"I'm not done talking," she said, grabbing me by the arm and making me turn around. "Whatever your reason is, I don't care. We don't need you here; you are as good as dead to us," she spat, her words shooting venom at me.
I couldn't break down in front of her. That would make me look more pathetic than I already was.I opened my mouth to speak, but the sound coming from my phone beat me to it.
Sliding the answer button, "Hello," I say into the phone without checking the caller ID."Miss Vanessa Brown, we need you at the hospital. Your son, Elvis, is having a serious nosebleed,"
A woman's voice said from the other end.
"What?" I exclaimed, "I'm on my way." I hung up. Immediately, I turned on my heels and left without saying another word to Helena.
She said something when I slammed the door behind me, but I couldn't care less, as I had more important things to take care of. My son needed me, and that was all that mattered.
**********************************************************
Arriving at the hospital, I headed straight to the room he was in, and on getting there, I saw my boy, Elvis, lying helplessly on the hospital bed.
I stood at the entrance as a nurse cleaned his face and changed his hospital gown, which now had some stains of blood on it.
"Mummy", he said weakly when his eyes landed on mine.
"It's okay; I'm here now, my love,"I replied, walking to the side of the bed and keeping my purse on the bed. I sat on the chair close to the bed, taking in his fragile form.
His long black hair spilled unto his forehead. His face was paler, and his blue eyes masked the amount of pain he was feeling.
F**k! I wish I could take his pain away.The nurse was done, and she turned to me. "The doctor will be with you shortly, ma'am," she announced, and I nodded in response, thanking as she walked out.
Turning my head back to my son, I cupped his small hand in mine and kissed it. My eyes welled up, but I tried my best to hold back the tears forming at the fringe of my eyes.
"Mummy?" he whispered. "Am I going to die?"
His question pierced through my heart, leaving a hole in it. I burst out a sob as my eyes failed me, and the tears rushed down my cheeks.
"No love," I caressed his hair, "You'll be okay", I told him, kissing his hand again, and the tears from my eyes touched his hand.
Don't cry," he said gently.
"I'm not crying," I lied, looking away from his eyes.
The doctor walked in on us and cleared his throat before greeting me. I stood and wiped my tears, taking some steps away from the bed—away from Elvis and ready to take in whatever the doctor has to say.
"The latest test results show that your son's leukaemia is rapidly progressing, and I'm afraid if we don't start chemotherapy anytime soon… it will get worse," he said.
Even though I knew less about how threatening the disease he said Elvis had was, I could tell from his expression that it was nothing to joke about and I might have just made the right decision by accepting my dad's proposal.
I slapped my hand over my mouth as fresh tears trailed down my cheek. I heard my phone beep back on the bed Elvis was lying on, but I ignored it.
The doctor took a step closer to me and heaved a sigh. "Look… we are trying to give him the best possible care, but without chemotherapy, all our efforts will be futile," he informed me.
"I'm trying, Doctor," I said weakly.
"I know," he said gently, rubbing my hand before leaving.
I wiped my tears and reached for my phone.
A missed call from Dad.
I opened a message notification beneath it—
$500,000.