C222 Alicia Is Pregnant

The moment Mike's name was mentioned... Ben's expression darkened. "There it is again." He laughed bitterly. "No matter where you go..." "No matter what happens..." "It always comes back and talk about Mike." He leaned forward and looked directly at Sarah. "Tell me honestly." "Are you friends with my enemies now?" Sarah remained calm.

Ben continued, "Have you never heard the saying..." "The friend of my enemy is my enemy?" "They're using you." "They know exactly how much it'll hurt me if you're close to them." "They're laughing behind your back." "They're celebrating every time you choose them over your own family." Sarah quietly shook her head. "No one is using me." "You've already decided that's the truth without asking me anything."

Ben scoffed. "So tell us." "What happened?" Sarah looked toward her parents. She could see genuine concern in Tracy's eyes. Kelvin also nodded. "If whatever happened made you lie to us today..." "...then we deserve to know." Sarah took a slow breath. She decided there was no point hiding it anymore. "Fine." "I'll tell you." The dining room became completely silent. "I went to the hospital." Before she could continue... Tracy frowned. "I said no lies." Sarah couldn't help smiling helplessly. "I'm not lying." "Chris and Mike came to fetch me." "We went together." "They took me to visit Alicia." No one interrupted this time.

Sarah continued, "When we arrived..." "The entire Mooney family was already there." "Grandfather Peter." "Grandmother Georgia." "Minister Mark." "Even Aunt Valeria." "Uncle Valeria." "Aunt mary." "And Uncle quinton." "The whole families had gathered." Tracy's concern immediately grew. "What happened to Alicia?" "Was she seriously ill?" Sarah smiled gently. "No." "She was being discharged." Everyone looked relieved. Then Sarah slowly continued. "She's..." "...pregnant." Silence. Complete silence. The words echoed through the dining room.

Kelvin slowly lowered the cup he had been holding. Tracy covered her mouth. Even Samantha froze. The glass she was holding slipped and shattered in pieces on the floor Only Ben suddenly laughed. "Heh..." "Hehehe..." "Very interesting." His laughter wasn't joyful. It carried nothing but sarcasm. Sarah ignored him and continued. "When we arrived..." "They were all celebrating." "Mike looked happier than I've ever seen him." "He couldn't stop smiling." "He looked like someone who had just received the greatest gift in his life."

Tracy smiled unconsciously. "I'm... happy for them." Sarah nodded. "Alicia insisted we stay." "I originally planned to congratulate her and come straight home." "But she refused to let us leave." "She said..." "'You've come all this way.'" "'You have to stay for dinner.'" "She invited everyone to the dinner at mooney residence." Sarah smiled as she remembered Alicia's cheerful expression. "It wasn't just a meal." "It felt..." "...like family."

She paused. "The Chambers family came too." "Mr. and Mrs. Chambers." "Mr and Mrs smith." "Everyone gathered together." "They laughed." "They joked." "They celebrated the baby." Tracy listened quietly. Sarah then looked directly at her parents. "Alicia even asked me to invite both of you." Kelvin looked surprised. "Us?" Sarah nodded. "Yes." "She said you both are kind people and my parents." Tracy slowly asked, "Then..." "Why didn't you call us?"

Sarah's smile slowly disappeared. She lowered her head. "Because..." "...after everything that happened this morning..." "I couldn't." The room became quiet again. Sarah looked at her parents with slightly reddened eyes. "How could I?" "How could I invite you to enjoy a happy dinner..." "...while knowing my own family had spent the entire day hurting each other?" No one answered.

She continued softly, "If I had called you..." "Dad..." "Would you have been comfortable sitting at the same table with people Ben calls his enemies?" Kelvin remained silent. Sarah turned toward Tracy. "Mom..." "Would you have been able to smile..." "...while worrying about what happened here this morning?" Tracy slowly lowered her head. She couldn't answer. Sarah sighed. "I couldn't do it." "So..." "I stayed." "I congratulated Alicia." "I ate dinner with them." "And then I came home."

The room fell into another long silence. Ben's face remained expressionless. No one knew what he was thinking. Finally, Sarah pushed her chair back once more. "If that's all..." "I'm going upstairs." She slowly turned toward the staircase. No one stopped her. She had only climbed a few steps when Samantha's trembling voice echoed through the house. "Sister." Sarah stopped and slowly turned around. Samantha was staring at her.

Her hands were tightly gripping the edge of the table. Her lips trembled before she finally asked the question she had been trying to suppress ever since hearing the news. "Sarah..." "...Alicia is really pregnant?" Sarah nodded gently. "Yes." There was another brief silence. Then Samantha asked in an even quieter voice. "...Is it Mike's child?" The entire dining room fell silent once again. Even Ben slowly lifted his head. Everyone waited... ...for Sarah's answer. Sarah looked at her for several seconds.

She knew exactly what that question meant. It wasn't simply asking who the father was. It was Samantha desperately asking whether the last tiny hope she had been clinging to... ...had truly disappeared. Sarah slowly nodded. "Yes." "It's Mike's child." "He was so happy." "I've never seen him smile like that before." "He even drove to Wood IT himself just to pick Chris and came to pick me up before we went to the hospital." Samantha froze. "...Mike..." "...is driving now?"

Sarah smiled faintly. "Yes." "He drove all the way from Lucia Goods Headquarters to Wood IT by himself." "He looked... really proud." Samantha lowered her head. A painful smile appeared on her face. "So..." "He has his own car now." Sarah nodded. "He does." There was nothing more to say. Without another word, Sarah slowly turned around and walked upstairs. Her footsteps echoed softly through the quiet house.

Behind her... Samantha who was lost in thought stared at her as she disappeared to her room. Then she suddenly stood up. The way she stood up startled everyone. "Sarah!" She hurried after her. "Sarah... Wait." Leaving Monica crying on her baby chair. She couldn't care less. No one stopped her. Everyone watched the two sisters disappear upstairs.