He Lies for My House

Mike and I had been trying to conceive for five years. The day the pregnancy test showed two lines, I held it and cried for a long time. My fingertips kept tracing the faint red lines on the test strip, and I didn't even dare to breathe too hard, terrified that this long-awaited surprise was just a mirage. When Mike got home from work, I ran over holding the pregnancy test. He froze for three seconds, then lifted me up and spun me around, shouting, "Yolanda, we're having a baby!" At that moment, I truly believed I had married for love, that five years of waiting had finally brought us happiness. Rachel Wade is Mike Gabriel's distant cousin. Three years ago, she said she was fired from the hospital and cried her eyes out. Mike grabbed my hand and said, “Yolanda, it's tough for a girl like Rachel to survive. Our guest room is empty—let's let her stay with us for a while.” I looked at Rachel's tear-streaked face and remembered how helpless I felt right after graduating. My heart softened, and I nodded. Back then, I had no idea that opening that door would plant a ticking time bomb in my marriage. Rachel said she was a gynecologist and knew all about pregnancy care. Every morning, she'd get up early to stew bird's nest soup for me. "Yolanda, it took you so long to conceive, you really need to take care of yourself. I checked some recipes—bird's nest soup with lotus seeds is best for pregnancy." She helped me keep track of my pregnancy symptoms, reminded me to take folic acid on time, and even offered to wash Mike's shirts, saying, "He's so busy at work—I just washed them so you can rest." I truly saw her as a little sister once, even sharing funny stories about me and Mike, like how I'd fought with my parents just to marry him. Looking back now, all those heartfelt words just became knives she used to stab me later. When I hit three months pregnant, Mike said he wanted to throw a little party, inviting family to celebrate my pregnancy. Inside the hotel's private room, relatives crowded around me with congratulations. Fiona Clark, Mike's mom, couldn't stop smiling as she grabbed my hand and said, "Yolanda, you finally get our Gabriel family a child. From now on, I will take good care of you." Just as I was about to say thanks, I heard Rachel Wade crying. She stood in the middle of the private room, tears streaming down like beads breaking off a string, choking out, "This is amazing, Yolanda is finally pregnant. All those late nights I spent helping Mike with massages to improve his health weren't for nothing." The whole room went silent instantly, everyone's eyes locked on the three of us. The teacup in my hand wobbled, hot water splashing onto my fingertips, but it didn't hurt—I just felt my head buzzing. Late nights? Massages? How come I never knew about this? Mike walked over, patted Rachel on the back to comfort her, and smiled at the relatives: "Don't get the wrong idea. Rachel's a doctor. She knew I've been stressed lately and helped me with shoulder and neck massages to ease the fatigue. It's all just normal medical care." Fiona Clark nodded along, "Right, Rachel's really kind-hearted. She knows Mike's been anxious about having a baby and took the initiative to help. We should be grateful to her." The three of them stood together, chatting away, and it just made me feel like an outsider. Rachel Wade lifted her teary eyes and looked at me. "Yolanda, don't overthink it. I just want to help you have a baby sooner; there's nothing else..." "Nothing else?" I finally found my voice, my heart gripped like by a cold, painful hand. "Nothing else? Then why give a massage at night? Nothing else? Then why bring this up at my pregnancy celebration?" I grabbed the hot tea fresh off the table and, before she could even react, splashed it right in her face. The hot tea splashed onto Rachel Wade's face. She screamed sharply, and Mike Gabriel immediately pulled her into his arms, glaring at me with pure fury in his eyes. "Yolanda Shawn! Are you insane? Did you just splash boiling water on her? Rachel was only trying to help us—how can you be so cruel!" I glanced at the faint flush on Rachel's face—the tea was freshly brewed, and I had purposely let it cool for two minutes; I didn't actually want to burn her, just to jolt her awake—but my heart ached with bitterness. "My husband, while I was three months pregnant, was protecting another woman and calling me vicious?" "Mike Gabriel, you were there with her at night, just the two of you getting a massage. You call that normal? Do you even realize that's cheating?" "You still want to mess around..." "Slap!" Before I could finish my sentence, a slap struck hard across my face. The force was brutal—I turned my head from the blow, my mouth instantly going numb as I tasted the faint sting of blood. Mike Gabriel still had his arm around Rachel Wade, his face dark and menacing: "Yolanda Shawn! Don't think you can make a scene just because you're carrying a baby! Rachel is Yolanda; there's nothing between us." Rachel hid in Mike's arms, wiping her tears as she said, "Yolanda, all of this is my fault. Don't be mad at Mike—you're still pregnant. What if you get sick from being upset?"