Mira regained consciousness to the sight of a white ceiling.
She lay in a narrow hospital bed, an IV needle taped to her arm. The ominous premonition welled up in her heart.
She was just about to sit up when the door opened and her parents stepped inside.
Her father's stern, hard-set face appeared first, followed by her mother, whose eyes were swollen and red from crying.
The moment Mira saw them, her heart seemed to stop beating.
They know, her panicked mind whispered.
Her lips quivered, her small body trembling like leaves shaken by a breeze.
"Whose child is it?"
Her father's voice sliced through the room, sharp and cold.
"Aeris!" Mira blurted out almost instantly.
"How can you be so disgraceful—getting pregnant before marriage? I am ashamed to have raised something like you! How am I supposed to face my colleagues and relatives now? I never expected you to make me proud, but could you not at least spare me this humiliation?!" her father's roar echoed through the small ward.
Mira kept her head down, her neck stiffening. She was too frightened and guilty to face them. Tears slipped down her chin, falling onto her hospital gown.
"Let's not create a commotion here. We'll talk about this at home. It'll be disgraceful if someone hears us. Call the doctor. If there's nothing wrong, we'll get her discharged," Mira's mother said, her words pulling her husband back from the edge of fury.
He stared at his disappointing daughter, then turned his head away, afraid he would lose control again.
Inside the moving car, the family was eerily quiet, the silence suffocating Mira. She wished the road would never end, but every road has its beginning and its end—so did hers.
Back home, her parents sat in the living room chairs while Mira stood before them like a criminal being interrogated.
Since it was too late for an abortion, Mira's father could only try to salvage the situation. The drive had extinguished most of his anger. "You have to get married before your stomach shows. I won't compromise on this."
Mira felt a surge of relief that her father had calmed down and wasn't scolding her further. She nodded quickly. "I agree. I'll talk to Aeris about our marriage."
"What? That boy hasn't even proposed! Only a wild child without a mother could behave so despicably. Since his father can't discipline him, I'll act on their behalf. Come, let's go to that boy's house."
Her father shot up from his chair, his expression darkening with every word.
Mira panicked. Aeris hadn't agreed to anything yet. She couldn't let her parents meet him before she convinced him. "Dad! I haven't told him about the pregnancy yet. Let me talk to him first. I'll ask him to come here for the proposal."
Seeing her panicked, evasive eyes, her parents exchanged a heavy look. She had grown up before them—how could they not recognize when she was lying?
Did the boy refuse to marry?
The same question crossed both their minds, a testament to years of unspoken understanding.
"No. We're meeting him today. Our daughter will not be bullied. He will agree, whether he wants to or not." There was no room for refusal in her father's tone.
Mira followed behind her parents, her mind racing to find a way to stop this disaster.
"Wife, call our three nephews and tell them to meet us at XX Restaurant. If that boy thinks he can intimidate us because we're old and weak, I'll have my nephews beat some sense into him until he agrees to marry."
Mira's mother found her husband as meticulous as ever. They didn't have to worry about the nephews spreading the news—her brother-in-law's family was practically their own, and like them, the in-laws cared deeply about reputation.
Sitting in the back seat, Mira frantically sent one message after another to Aeris.
Why isn't this damn jerk reading my texts? Of all days, why today?!
She was on the verge of losing her mind.
And what was Aeris doing now?
He was leisurely sipping coffee on his small balcony, enjoying the bustling city view.
A knock on the door interrupted his peace.
Aeris assumed it was another matchmaking aunty with yet another marriage proposal.
But what greeted him was a hard slap to the face.
"You beast!"
Aeris reacted instinctively and slapped back, nearly knocking the person to the floor. The sound echoed through the hallway.
______
The police sirens pierced into the chaotic living room, abruptly halting the one-vs-three brawl.....