After three years of infertility, my husband and I tried IVF for a year. Finally, I successfully got pregnant with quadruplets. The pregnancy was brutal. I threw up for months, and my belly swelled up like a giant balloon. The doctor suggested reducing the number of fetuses for my own safety, but my husband refused instantly. "Scarlett, they are all our babies. I can’t bear to lose a single one of them." Pale and exhausted, I touched my belly and nodded. I couldn't bear to let them go either. When I was six months pregnant, my husband’s bros set up a betting pool on the babies’ genders. It turned out to be three boys and one girl. My husband won the bet and made ten million dollars. Later, I accidentally overheard a conversation between Carter and his friends. "Carter, your plan was pure genius. You got Scarlett to carry babies for four different women at the same time." Carter’s voice was indifferent. "Since I can't give them the title of Mrs. Sterling, the least I can do is give them a child. Scarlett is occupying the position, so this is her duty." My blood ran cold. The four babies inside me... none of them were mine.
"Carter, you're amazing. You solved the kid problem for four women in one go," Tyler chimed in. "And the mothers are all gorgeous. The kids are going to be stunning." Tyler sighed. "It’s a pity about Delilah. She was our college sweetheart. Who would have thought she’d die of a terminal illness so young? But you’re a good man, Carter. You left her a child. We just have to wait for Scarlett to give birth." "Sienna is also crazy about you. She’s loved you for nearly twenty years. Since she couldn't have you, she begged for your baby." Another guy added, "Too bad your heart only belongs to Celine. That's why you came up with this plan to put all the embryos in Scarlett’s womb. That way, you don't betray Celine, and everyone gets what they want." "But what happens if Scarlett finds out? If she realizes none of the four babies in her belly are hers, she’ll probably lose her mind, right?" Carter’s voice remained cold and detached. "So what if she knows? She only has herself to blame for taking a spot that doesn't belong to her." The others laughed. "True. Even if she finds out, she’ll probably just swallow her pride and give birth anyway. After all, they’re still your kids. Scarlett worked so hard to marry into the Sterling family. She’s like a stray dog you can’t kick away. No matter how mad she gets, you just need to wiggle your finger, and she’ll come crawling back." They burst into laughter, their words dripping with malice and mockery. Standing behind the door, a wave of icy coldness rushed from the soles of my feet to the top of my head. I looked down at my heavily swollen belly. My nails dug deep into my palms. What did they mean? The babies inside me... weren't mine? I had suffered for six months. I threw up every day, my feet were too swollen to fit into shoes, and my hair was falling out in clumps. And before that, there was a whole year of IVF. Countless needles, endless hormone pills. After all that pain, the babies I was carrying belonged to other women? The conversation in the living room continued, but I couldn't hear anything anymore. I knew Delilah. We went to the same college. She was Carter’s first love. When I heard she passed away from an illness recently, I actually felt sorry for her. Now, she was dead, but her child was growing inside my body. It was so absurd that a terrifying chill crept up my spine. I forced myself to breathe, holding back the urge to scream and storm out. Outside, they were already betting on the babies' genders. Hearing Carter’s voice mixed in with the laughter made me shudder. We had been married for three years, and I realized I didn't know the man sleeping next to me at all. I touched my stretched, tight belly. There were four babies inside. One belonged to Delilah. One belonged to Sienna. What about the other two? I knew Sienna too. She was Carter’s childhood friend. She had been secretly in love with him for years. I guess Carter was a real saint. He couldn't give her his heart, so he gave her a baby instead. I suddenly started laughing, but the tears kept falling. If Carter wanted to give them babies so badly, why did he make me carry them? How could he be so cruel? I clenched my fists so hard my knuckles turned white. My lip was bleeding from biting it so hard. I used to think Carter’s constant worry and care during my pregnancy was a sign of his love for me. All the prenatal vitamins he bought, all his gentle reminders—I thought it was sweet. It was all a lie.
The loud voices and laughter continued outside. "I bet on two boys and two girls!" "I bet all four are boys!" Then, a sweet, high-pitched female voice rang out. "Why are you all betting on boys? I think girls are great. I bet three girls and one boy." She turned to Carter. "Carter, do you prefer boys or girls?" The voice was familiar. It was Celine, Carter’s secretary. Carter replied casually, "I like both. Boys are easier. Girls are too fragile." Tyler teased, "So, Carter, what's your bet?" "Since Celine likes girls, I'll bet three boys and one girl." Celine. So she was the third woman. I smiled bitterly. They were carrying on right under my nose, and I was completely blind to it. I didn't know if they were brilliant actors or if I was just incredibly stupid. Celine whined, "What do you mean girls are fragile?" Carter chuckled and pulled her into his arms. "Aren't you? Who was the one crying because she was too scared of the pain of childbirth? You cried several times just during the egg freezing process." "But it does hurt!" Celine pouted, then added, "Oh, by the way, Scarlett never seems to cry. Those IVF needles are so long, and she did it for a whole year. Did she really never cry once?" Carter snorted. "Scarlett is thick-skinned. She doesn't feel pain like you do. She never cried. Not like you, crying over a tiny scratch." Tyler flattered, "That's because Celine has Carter to spoil her. Only girls with someone to protect them get to be fragile. Girls with no one to love them, like Scarlett, just have to suck it up." "Exactly. Carter only put the embryos in Scarlett’s womb because he didn't want Celine to go through the pain of pregnancy." "Scarlett’s belly is as big as a beach ball now. Gross. I wonder what she’ll look like after popping out four kids." "She was already plain. Carter wouldn't even look at her naked anyway. Now..." Their vulgar jokes and disgusting laughter made me want to throw up. I stumbled back two steps, my face completely pale. Thick-skinned? So I didn't feel pain? Of course I felt it. But because I thought I was carrying our babies, I endured it. No matter how much it hurt, I never made a sound. Even when my nails broke from clenching my fists, even when my mouth was filled with the taste of blood, I stayed silent. But my endurance was brushed off as being "thick-skinned." I remembered the day the IVF succeeded. Carter held my hand, his face filled with worry. "You suffered so much for our babies, Scarlett." He would touch my belly and speak to the unborn fetuses. "Be good in there. Don't torment your mom." When I was throwing up and couldn't eat, he would feed me spoonful by spoonful. "You have to eat something. You've lost so much weight. Once they are born, I'll make sure to scold them for making you suffer." It turned out his worry was fake. His care was only for the babies. I was nothing but a breeding machine to him. I closed my eyes, wiped away my tears, and called the clinic to schedule an abortion. Carter, I'm done with you. And these babies you are so eager for? I’m not giving birth to them.
By the time I walked out, Tyler and the others had already left. Only Carter and Celine were in the living room. I intentionally made some noise to give them time to pull apart. I couldn't confront them yet. Celine's face was flushed. She was pretending to report some work to Carter. "Mr. Sterling, there's an urgent meeting tonight. The car is waiting outside." She turned to see me and put on a warm smile. "Mrs. Sterling." Her eyes landed on my huge belly, a smug, knowing smirk playing on her lips. "Your belly looks even bigger today. You are so blessed to carry quadruplets for Mr. Sterling." Looking at her fake face, I didn't even have the energy to respond. Seeing my cold reaction, Celine excused herself. But before she left, she gave Carter a lingering look. It was a secret signal. Carter noticed me coming out of the guest room on the first floor. He frowned slightly, his voice carrying a hint of suspicion. "When did you get back? Why didn't you make a sound?" I looked at his lips, which still had a faint trace of her lipstick. My eyes stung. It was so obvious. How had I been so blind before? I smiled mockingly at myself and lowered my eyes. "I was exhausted when I got back, so I fell asleep in the guest room. I just woke up." Carter seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. His expression returned to normal. "How was the check-up today? I promised to go with you, but something came up at the office." He sounded so guilty. I used to believe that guilt. I used to comfort him, telling him his work was more important and that I was fine going alone. But I would never believe him again. "It went well. The doctor said the babies are very healthy." Carter asked a few more detailed questions before relaxing. He always asked for details in the past. I thought it was because he cared about me. Now I knew who he really cared about. Carter walked over and rubbed my belly, talking to the babies for a while. In the past, I would have smiled happily at this scene. Now, my heart was bleeding. I clenched my fists to keep myself calm, but the tears still threatened to spill over. Carter didn't notice my distress because he simply didn't care. "I have an emergency meeting tonight and might be back late. Take care of yourself." I forced a smile and nodded. "Okay." After Carter left, I walked up to the second floor, holding the handrail. My belly was so big that I couldn't see my feet, which was why I had moved to the guest room on the first floor after my fifth month. I hadn't been to our master bedroom in a long time. When I pushed the door open, I saw the messy sheets and the lingering scent of sex on the bed. On the wall behind it hung our wedding portrait. How ironic. My chest ached so badly that I couldn't stop the tears. But I forced myself to stay calm, wiped my face, and gathered all my personal documents. Before going back downstairs, I walked to the window and looked down. The car parked at the gate hadn't left yet. It was rocking violently. I closed my eyes, a wave of nausea hitting me. In the middle of the night, Carter came back. He smelled strongly of Celine’s perfume. He reached out and gently stroked my belly, his movements careful and reverent. I felt sick to my stomach. I pretended to be asleep. Memories of our past flashed through my mind, and my tears soaked into the pillow. I still couldn't understand why he did this. But it didn't matter anymore. The next morning, I went to the hospital. The doctor looked at me with a deep frown. "You are almost seven months pregnant. Terminating a pregnancy at this stage is extremely dangerous. I don't recommend a late-term abortion." My face was expressionless as I made up a lie. After a series of examinations and assessments, the surgery was scheduled. When I got home, I was completely drained. The surgery was in three days. I had three days to prepare everything. And I was going to leave Carter a grand parting gift.
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