Chapter 1
Jasmine''s pov
Mexico city... 17th august, 2016!
A smile played on my lips, as I stared at the sheet of paper in my hands.
"Congratulations, you're eight weeks pregnant, miss Reinle!" The doctor said.
"Thank you, doctor" I replied.
My eyes scanned the result one more time, I'm pregnant.. I'm soon going to be a mother.
Though, I'm just 18 but I'm happy to be a mother, because my boyfriend is very responsible.
He's not like those shitty guys, that'll abandon their girls because she's pregnant.
I don't feel any regrets, he's promised to marry me after he graduates and I'm sure he'd be happy to hear this news!
"Miss Reinle, I'm not trying to be a busybody, but I'd advise you don't keep this pregnancy" the doctor said.
I stopped smiling immediately he said that, I lifted my head.
"Not keep this pregnancy?" He nodded. "Why?" I asked.
"Based on what I noticed, your body isn't ready to be a mother yet"
I just stared at him silently. Does he knows what he's saying? My body isn't ready to be a mother?
"If my body isn't ready to be a mother, why am I able to get pregnant?" I asked.
"It's better you listen to me, you can't bring this baby to life"
Leaning back on the chair, I crossed my arms on my chest, frown lines appeared on my forehead.
"What's gonna happen if I decide to keep this baby?"
"It'll be very dangerous, your chance of surviving will be very slim.. 70-50!" He said.
Shivers.. bad shivers ran down my spine, when he said those words.
I got up slowly and picked my backpack off the ground.. and flung it over my shoulder.
"You're spouting nonsense" I turned to the door.
I grabbed the handle and pulled it open, but his words stopped me.
"You should abort it, your parents wouldn't be happy if they heard about this"
I turned back to him.
"You're not speaking about this to my parents, I'll discuss with my boyfriend first!" I said and stepped out, slamming the door hard.
My hair flew as I walked down the streets, with the wind whistling past my ears harshly.
I looked up at the sky, the clouds are gathering up and turning dark.. it seems as if it's gonna rain soon.
Instinctively, I increased my pace, praying I should arrived at Thanatos (my boyfriend) apartment in time.. before it rains.
In a few minutes, I reached Thanatos apartment.
I stepped into the porch and quickly reached for the doorbell, I pressed it with a smile on my face.
"I can't wait to share this news with Thanatos!" I said to myself.
How would he react to this news? I just can't wait to find out!
Continuously, I pressed on the doorbell but got no response.. maybe he's not home.
My eyes moved to the flower pot, where he normally hides his spare key.. I searched it but didn't find the key.
"Where did he go?" I wondered aloud.
The it occured to me, today's Wednesday and he'd be in class.. in fact, I'm supposed to be in class.
But I had to skip today, since I'm feeling sick and stuff.. I reached for my phone to give him a call.
I dialed his number and waited for him to pick up.
His phone kept ringing, but he didn't pick up.. I redialed again and the same thing happened.
"Hey! Jasmine!" I heard a familiar voice called me.
I turned with a smile, hoping Thanatos is also with him, but I met disappointment.
"Clark!"
"What are you doing here?" He asked me.
"I'm looking for Thanatos, have you seen him today?"
He shoved his hands in his pants pockets and sighed, he looked away from me and whistled.
"Why are you whistling?" I asked.
He just continued whistling, avoiding to meet my gaze at all cost.. my brows drew together at his expression.
"Where's Thanatos?"
Clark met my gaze this time, he sighed once more.
"Thanatos.. he left" he said.
"He left?" I'm confused by his meaning of left.
He nod, making me even more confused.
"Left? What do you mean by.. he left?" I asked again.
"I mean, he left, Jasmine! He left mexico!"
He left mexico?! Why would he leave mexico? He's not done with his schooling yet!
Or....
I blinked twice and stared at him, waiting for him to burst into laughter.. waiting for him to tell me he's joking.
"You're serious?"
"Yes, he really left!" He replied.
"When is he coming back? And where did he go?"
"He didn't tell me when he's coming back. And I don't know where he went"
Why am I hearing a sound in my heart? Why do I feel like someone is drumming in my chest?
"How come you don't know where he went? Isn't he your best friend?"
"I don't know where he went, he just called me and said he's leaving"
Clark is lying, I can feel it that he's lying.. he knows very well where Thanatos went.
"Jasmine, if I were you, I'd just forget about him" he said.
"Forget about him?" I released a dry laugh.
Forget about him.. what about our child? I'm carrying his child, what should I do with it?
"Go home, it's gonna rain soon" Clark said and left.
I staggered back as his words replayed in my head.
Thanatos left?! Why didn't he tell me about it?!
I quickly redialed his number.. his phone kept ringing but just like the first time, he didn't pick up.
Thanatos left?! Where did he go without telling me? Or is he mad at me?
Right at that moment, my ringing tone blares loudly. A smile spread on my face, it must be Thanatos.
But the smile left just as it came, it's not him, it's my mom calling. Reluctantly, I received the call.
"Hello...."
"Jasmine Reinle, get your butts home now!" Was all she yelled and disconnected the call.
I sighed and keep my phone in my pocket, I looked up and saw the dark cloud still moving.. I wonder when it's finally gonna rain.
Well, I better start going home before it rains, I'll call Thanatos later and tell him about the pregnancy.
I stepped away from the porch and walked to the road, I boarded the first taxi I saw.
"Reinle resident!" I said.
"Yes, ma'am!" The driver replied.
Reinle resident.. very popular around here, we're the richest family here and I'm the second lady of the family.
Many of the people here envy us, but what's there to envy, they don't know what happens behind closed doors!
They just see the happy and perfect family my father wants them to see... I sighed and rest my head against the window.
Let's forget about my family, I don't like talking about them.
"What is wrong with you?! You think the life is easy?! Do you know how hard I worked to achieve all this?! And you want to damage my reputation just like this?!" My dad yelled.
This is all he's being doing since I got back, his reputation matters to him and he values it more than my sister and I.
"You imbecile! You're a disgrace to this family! You don't deserve to be a Reinle!"
My body is shaking, I can feel my anger building up, I want to explode. I don't even know what I did yet, he's just busy cursing me.
"I don't know how I got a rebellious daughter like you!"
"What did I do this time?" I asked.
My eyes met my sister's gaze and she shook her head, silently telling me not to argue with our father.
"She doesn't even know what she's done!" Dad said.
"I don't know, you tell me"
He pointed at my sister.
"Your sister is getting married next week! Our company is going bankrupt and she's getting married to save it.. but you what are you doing?!"
Right, he just reminded me, Jade is getting married and we (Jade and I) don't even know her future husband.. we just know his surname is O'Briens!
We don't know anything else about him.
"Great! Just great!"
Dad's exclamation brought me back to the present, he pointed at me.
"She's not even listening to me! Did you see your beloved daughter? Alicia, did you see her behavior?"
Mom passed me a stern look, she signaled me to kneel down and apologize to my dad.. but how can I apologise when I don't know what I did wrong.
"Jade is getting married to save us and she's parading every alley in Mexico! Now she's pregnant for some good for nothing fella!"
My hear grew bigger when he said those words. How did he find out about my pregnancy so soon?!
Wait.. doctor Morris! He must have told him! Darn my dummy head, I shouldn't have used our family doctor for something like this!
"Her health now is not good, but she went ahead and got herself pregnant! What if something goes wrong and she lost her life in the process?!"
Is that him caring about my health?
"What will people say?! That a Reinle died in childbirth?! A Reinle got pregnant out of wedlock?!"
I rolled my eyeballs, it's all because of his reputation after all.
"Beside, we don't even know that useless fella!"
"He's not useless"
"Shut up, you disgraceful daughter!" He banged on the end table.
He grumbled some words coherently, then up at me with angry hooded eyes.
"You have two options now, leave and never return to my mansion.. or abort the bast*rd child today!"
"Dad..."
"Donald..." Jade and mom both called respectively.
My elder brother scoffed loudly, I'm surprised he's been quiet all these while.. that's an improvement from his side.
"Dad is already being merciful giving her options..."
"Tim, silence!" Mom scolded him, but when has he ever listened to mom.
"... it's left for her to make a choice. If she wants to continue being a Reinle, she'd flush that garbage she's carrying!" Tim said.
I threw him a glare. "My child is not a garbage!"
"Eish! Dad she's made her choice, she wants to keep the garbage" he said.
My eyes travelled back to dad, he's nodding his head and waving his finger in front of me.
"Good for you! You're now a big girl.. right from this moment, you're no longer a Reinle! I seize to recognize you as my daughter!"
"Dad!"
"Donald!" Jade and mom gasped respectively.
Dad ignored them, he stared at me straight in the eyes.. I balled my fist beside me.
He wants me to beg him and kill my innocent child, but I won't.. Thanatos is ready to take me in!
"You still don't want to admit your fault, such boldness! Now leave and never return!" He said, no, he yelled.
"Donald, don't do this, she's just a child.. where would she go from here?" Mom pleaded with him.
Dad scoffed angrily.
"She's not child anymore, she'll be a mother in a few months!" He said.
I took a deep breath and turned, I stormed out without a second thought.
"Jasmine!" I heard mom calling me, but I didn't turn back.
He wants me out of his home, then I'll leave! He's never cared for me, he's never showed me any love.. neither am I expecting any love from him!
His reputation is his life.. his reputation is way more important than his family.. he should eat and dine with his reputation then!
"Jasmine!" I heard Jade called from behind.
I stopped walking and she rushed to my front, she held my hand and stared at me with her glassy eyes.
"You don't have to leave, come back with me let's apologize to dad"
"No, he wants me to abort my child"
Her gaze moved to my stomach, she gulped and inhaled.
"It's for the best. You don't have anywhere to go from here"
"I have somewhere to go, I'll go to my boyfriend's" I said.
"But dad said if you leave now, you mustn't return back"
I smiled. "I don't intend to come back"
"But..."
"It's fine, my baby's daddy will take me in and once he graduates college, he'll marry me"
"Are you sure"
I nod.
"Yeah, he's graduating next month.. and I'll invite you to my wedding, you're gonna come, right?"
She smiled and put a strand of hair behind my ear.
"Of course" she said.
"Good, I should go now before it rains"
She nodded, she dipped her hand in her pocket and handed me some cash.
"Let me know when you're short of money"
I laughed. "I won't be short of money, my boyfriend is strangely loaded.. he's even richer than dad" I said.
Her brows knit together.
"A college student? Richer than dad?" She asked, sounding surprised.
Well, even till now I'm still surprise, I kept asking myself how Thanatos got his money.
I reached for my backpack and brought out my purse, I opened it and took out my credit card.. I handed it to her.
"Give it back to dad" I said.
She frowned.
"Do you know what you're doing, Jasmine?"
"Yeah, I'm not gonna depend on dad's money.. Thanatos can cater for me" I replied.
She rolled her eyeballs.
"Right, he's super rich!" She mimicked me.
I turned and continued my trip to Thanatos place. A man who can trade his daughter for business, is not qualified to be my dad.
Maybe he'll trade me next!
The number you're trying to reach is currently out of coverage. Please try....
I angrily disconnected the call, this is the 12th time I'm redialing Thanatos number.. and the automated voice kept saying the same thing.
"Where are you, Thanatos?" I asked nobody.
I shiver and squatted in a corner as the cold breeze blew past me, soon, rain drops started falling.
People began running about, looking for a place to take shelter from the rain.
I'm wearing light clothes, I forgot to check the weather today, I would have took some thick clothes with me.
It didn't take long for the rain to started falling heavily, I brought my knees to my chest and hugged myself to keep warm.
I didn't know how long I slept, but it's still raining when I woke up. I yawned.
My eyes moved to the door, it's still locked and I sighed.. my stomach growled as I felt the worms eating my flesh.
I'm very hungry now, why isn't Thanatos back yet?
Clark's words replayed in my head...if I were you, I'd forget about him... I felt hot tears running down my cheeks.
Is he really gone and never gonna come back? Did I make a mistake by leaving family for him?
I redialed his number, but the automated voice repeated the same words.. that's when I broke down.
I cried.
He's really gone! My dad's right, he's a useless fella! He lied to me! He played me!
Now I'm pregnant and homeless! I have nothing but an empty backpack with me! What should I do?!
"Holy sh*t! Jasmine, what are you doing here in the cold!" I heard Arthur asked.
He rushed to me and helped me up, he hissed when he touched my arms.
"You're cold!" He said.
He quickly took off his jacket and damps it on my shoulders, I felt sudden warmth wrapped around me.
"What are you doing here?" I asked him.
He looked at the door and glared at it, before turning back to me.
"Jade called me and told me what happened" I nod. "You have to listen to me, Jasmine, abort this baby" he said.
I stepped away from him.
"No!"
"But Thanatos is gone!"
I frowned.
"How did you know he's gone?" I asked.
"I heard his friends talking about it at the campus today" he replied.
Yeah, I almost forgot.
Though Arthur is my childhood friend, but he's attending the same college as Thanatos.. Arthur is a few years older than me.
"I'm not gonna abort my baby, what if he comes back? What am I gonna say to him?"
Arthur narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Wait..are you planning on waiting for him?" He asked.
I nod.
Thanatos is gonna come back, he'll come back for him... he's not gonna abandon me.
"He's gonna come back, he's different from other guys"
"He left without breathing a word of it to you, and you still believe he's gonna come back? How sure are you?"
I didn't speak, cause I'm not sure..
"What if he doesn't come back until your baby is born? Let's say two years later?"
"I don't know" I shook my head.
Arthur sighed.
"I spoke with my dad before coming here, he said it'll be dangerous for you if you keep it"
Doctor Morris is his dad, I forgot to mention that.
"It's better you abort now, it might cost your life..you know about your cervical condition"
I blinked and looked away from him, my gaze focused on the rain.
"That's all the more reason I shouldn't abort it. Who knows if I'll ever be able to conceive again?"
He didn't say anything after I said those words.. he sighed.
"I told you not to trust college boys, but you paid no attention.. now you've been played" he grumbled.
He opened an umbrella, which I didn't know he was holding.. then led me to his car.
He opened the door for me and I slide into the passenger door, he rushed to the driver's side as I was fastening my seatbelt.
"Whatever your decision is, I'll stand by you!" He said.
I smiled at his words and nodded.
"Jade, told me your dad disowned you"
I nod. "Please turn on the heater" I said.
He quickly turned on the heater.
"So.. what are you gonna do next?" He asked.
Right.. what am I gonna do next? Where should I go from here?
"Jasmine?"
"Yeah?"
"Where should I take you?"
"I don't know" I replied.
He stared at me a few moments and signed.. he turned on the ignition.
"I have a house in San Francisco, I'll take you there!"
I simply nod like a robot, I just think his idea is good...I should go where nobody knows me..where I won't have to ruin my dad's reputation.
San Francisco, here I come!
My journey starts here! My journey of an 18years old pregnant woman...or rather pregnant teen!