The IVF Secret

1
I once told Joey that if he ever fell in love with someone else, I would simply disappear.
He had always been so faithful, so I believed our happiness was a fortress, unshakable.
Until, at eight months pregnant, I walked in on him with another woman.
Stella is carrying our IVF baby, he was cooing, his voice a gentle caress as he comforted the radiant woman beside him. "You don't have to do a thing, my love, and we'll have a child that's ours."
He turned his attention back to her, doting on her. "Childbirth is so painful, and you're so terrified of pain. Besides, getting pregnant would ruin your figure. How could you be a rising star then?"
Then he was on the phone, speaking to a high-end postnatal wellness retreat. "When the baby is born, I want my wife's body to be perfectly cared for. If there are any lasting complications, your facility will cease to exist."
I never, in my darkest nightmares, imagined that the man who loved me more than life itself would have me carry the child of his affair.
It's alright. I'll disappear.
I wish you two a lifetime of happiness.
…
I went to three different hospitals. The results of the DNA tests were all the same.
The maternal DNA in the child I was carrying did not belong to me. Not a single test said otherwise.
Eight months pregnant, I walked out of the hospital, the reports clutched in my hand.
I had dreamed of having a child with Joey. We tried for a whole year, finally turning to IVF as our last hope. I thought this baby was the culmination of our love. Instead, I was incubating his and his mistress's embryo.
Six years of deep, unwavering love. I thought he was different.
Was he no different from any other cheating husband after all?
An unread message glowed on my phone. It was from a friend. A gushing sixty-second voice note spilled out: The whole city is buzzing about your due date! Joey has booked out every flower shop and billboard in New York, just to make you happy! I'm so jealous, Elara, you found the perfect man. I heard he basically dropped everything at the company the second you got pregnant, practically tripping over himself to be your butler, cooking for you, serving you tea...
Yes. He loved me that much. And yet, he was trading loving glances with another woman.
A bitter tide rose in my chest, so sharp it stole my breath.
Everyone knew Joey couldn't live without me.
He was a man who loved money and power, a man who trusted no one. Yet, the moment we were married, he signed over his entire business empire to my name. When his parents disapproved of our marriage, he starved himself until he was hospitalized, leaving him with a chronic stomach condition.
The day our IVF was confirmed a success, he wept on the spot.
The entire hospital staff stared, stunned. This titan of industry, crying his eyes out because his wife was pregnant. The nurses whispered, "If a man ever loved me like that, I could die happy."
Remembering the scene I had witnessed at his office, those words were now like dull blades sawing at my heart.
Why would a man who loved me so much force me to bear another woman's child?
By 10 PM, Joey had called me ninety-nine times.
I answered on the one-hundredth. His voice was a choked sob. "Elara, where are you? Did something happen? Answer me! I'm going out of my mind—"
His voice was so broken, so full of raw panic, it sounded utterly real.
But I felt nothing. "I'm fine," I said, my tone flat. "I'm almost home."
When I arrived, Joey was crouched by the front door, his head in his hands, a picture of agony.
His assistant rushed to help me. "Ma'am, you have no idea. The boss has been searching for you for hours. He walked twenty miles, checking every mall in the vicinity. He's sprained his ankle."
"Elara!" He scrambled to his feet, his face streaked with tears. "Why didn't you answer? I was sick with worry. Don't you ever do that again."
The tears streamed down his face, but they couldn't find their way into my heart anymore.
How could he say he loved me while trampling on me like this? The question was a bloody, gaping wound in my soul.
I was helped to the sofa. He knelt before me, gently easing off my shoes and socks before beginning to wash my feet. His voice was thick with lingering fear, with no hint of deception. "Where did you go? You're pregnant. If you had tripped, if anything had happened to you, what would I do?"
The man who was a ruthless storm in the boardroom was now a tempest of fear and anxiety.
"We worked so hard for this child. What if something had gone wrong?"
A bitter, medicinal scent filled the room, making my stomach churn. Because I had a high-risk pregnancy, I had to drink a special herbal brew every day to prevent miscarriage. To protect this baby, I had always pinched my nose and forced it down.
After washing my feet, he brought me the bowl of dark liquid, holding out a piece of candy.
"I don't want to drink it."
His expression changed in an instant, his face hardening. "I will grant you anything else in this world, Elara. But not this."
The image of him and that woman flashed in my mind. I gagged, a dry heave racking my body before I'd even taken a sip.
He patted my back, his voice full of concern but unyielding. "The doctor said you're high-risk. You have to drink it. If you miscarry, think of the damage to your body. Be good."
"We finally have this child," he coaxed, his voice dropping to a seductive whisper. "If you don't take your medicine, who will inherit the Blackwood empire?"
He would say anything for the baby in my belly.
Before, I would have seen this as the ultimate proof of his patience and love. Now, I saw myself for what I was: a laughable fool.
The bitter liquid slid down my throat, its acrid taste a pale imitation of the acid in my heart.
This was the first time I had met Joey’s mistress in person. She had a rosy, delicate beauty, a fragile air about her.
It was no wonder Joey fell for her.
She was introduced as Stella, a temporary replacement for our regular housekeeper.
Wearing a maid's uniform and a face mask, Stella placed a platter of fruit by my bed. "The other maid called in sick. I'll be taking care of you tonight."
Joey sat beside me, gently feeding me slices of fruit with one hand while his other thumb flew across his phone screen.
My own finger hovered over the icon on my phone that would log me into his iMessage account. Years ago, he had set it up and given me his password, a grand gesture of transparency. He must have long forgotten. I pressed it.
He was texting Stella, his words sharp with anger: What are you doing here? I told you never to show your face in front of Elara.
Stella: But I missed youuuu~ You never come to see me anymore~ Maybe I should just die~
Stella: Thinking of you, thinking of you, thinking of you~
Joey's angry scowl softened, melting into a faint smile at her cloying words.
He must have noticed me watching him. "Just got word a big deal at the office finally closed," he explained smoothly.
The loving man before me was cheating right under my nose. Before, I would have been touched that he made time for me despite being so busy. How many times had this happened, while I went on believing I was his one and only? The thought was so absurd it was almost funny.
I glanced back at my phone.
Another message from Stella to Joey popped up: Do you like this wedding dress? I can't wait to be your wife tomorrow. [Image attached.]
Joey looked down, a small, private smile playing on his lips as he typed back: You'll be the most beautiful bride.
My heart skipped a beat. The message was a lightning strike, shattering my world.
I was eight months pregnant, and tomorrow, Joey was marrying someone else. While I was fighting to bring this child into the world, he was promising another woman a wedding gown and a lifetime of love.
When Stella handed him a fairytale book, her eyes lingered on his, a secret, flirtatious glance passing between them. I was nothing more than an accessory to their twisted romance.
Joey turned to me, his expression once again that of a doting husband, and began to read aloud, his voice a soothing balm. Since becoming pregnant, I'd had trouble sleeping. Every night, without fail, he would read to me until I drifted off.
When he finished, he placed a soft kiss on my cheek. "I love you. Good night."
A sharp pain from the baby's kick lanced through my abdomen, but he must have thought I was asleep. He slipped out of the room.
The moment he was out the door, I heard Stella's sultry whisper. "I've missed you so much~"
Joey's voice was sharp. "I told you. Not in front of Elara."
"Don't you think this is more exciting? You don't usually act this way~"
I pulled the covers over my head, but their voices, their sounds, seeped through.
"~You love it too, don't you~~~~"
So this was him, unleashed. This was the passion he saved for other women.
I buried my face in my pillow, and the tears I'd been holding back finally broke free. The low moans and frantic whispers were like slaps across my face, one after another. The pain in my heart mingled with the pain in my belly, and I tossed and turned, trapped in a waking nightmare.
Eventually, the sounds outside stopped.
Joey slipped back into the room and into our bed. He wrapped his arms around me from behind, his hand stroking my face. His voice was a low murmur, thick with adoration. "Elara, I love you so, so much. I can't live without you."
His palm was still warm with the afterglow of his passion.
The embrace that had been my sanctuary for six years now felt utterly vile.
"Do you remember what I told you once?" I asked the next morning, as he was finishing up breakfast. "That if you fell in love with someone else, you should just tell me, and I would disappear."
He froze. "Sweetheart, what's wrong? There's only you. I only love you. Don't let your mind play tricks on you."
He immediately pulled out his phone, offering it to me for inspection. But the chat history had been wiped clean. What was there to inspect?
Seeing my unmoving expression, he raised his right hand. "I swear, if I, Joey Blackwood, have ever been unfaithful, may my parents both drop dead."
A sarcastic smile touched my lips. It was amazing how easily the lies rolled off his tongue.
"Honey, you have to talk to me. Don't keep things bottled up, okay?"
"If I ever betray you, may I die a horrible death and my family line end with me. Please, don't overthink this."
"If you disappeared," he whispered, his eyes filled with a sudden, desperate sadness, "I couldn't go on living."
He looked so distraught he was on the verge of kneeling.
I forced a smile. "I was just saying."
I thought that might make him more cautious. Instead, after breakfast, he made an excuse about work and left.
I knew the truth. Stella had called him to go try on wedding tuxedos.
The moment he was gone, a text from Stella arrived.
: You're a heavy sleeper. [Video attached.]
I clicked play.
It was from last night, filmed right outside my bedroom door. Joey, lost in the moment, burying his face in her neck, kissing her with a feral hunger.
: What do you want?
Stella: I want to see just how stupid a woman can be, to not know her husband has been cheating for three years. Take my advice: have the baby, then divorce him. You'll get a bigger settlement and child support that way.
: Don't you know all of Joey's assets are in my name?
It took a long time for her to reply. : Do you know why Joey is so obsessed with this baby? Because my acting career is taking off. I can't afford to disappear for a year. And I have a low pain tolerance. Joey can't even stand to see me get a paper cut. So, you were the only option to carry this child. Do you get it now? If you're smart, you'll divorce him. If you're not, just wait until he transfers all your assets away.
: While you were suffering from morning sickness, unable to eat or sleep, do you know what Joey was doing? He was working from my apartment, just so he could spend more time with me.
The words burned on the screen. A sob caught in my throat, and then I was crying, really crying, for the first time.
To have this child, I had endured so much. The IVF hormones made my ovaries swell, making it impossible to eat or sleep. The egg retrieval needle, as long as my forearm, extracted more than a dozen eggs, the pain so intense I fainted on the table. For eight months, I had given myself over two hundred shots of blood thinners to maintain the pregnancy. Every day, I choked down that bitter medicine, vomiting until I was empty.
Every time I felt like I couldn't go on, I told myself to just hold on a little longer. It would all be worth it when the baby was born.
Joey and I had been married for three years. I wanted a child with him more than anything in the world.
Whenever he was gone, I told myself to be strong.
It turned out that when he was "at work," he was with her.
I buried my head in my hands, tears streaming through my fingers.
So this is how cruel you've always been.
Today was the day of Joey and Stella’s wedding.
When I woke up, I saw the blood. A large, dark stain on the white sheets.
I stared at it for a long time.
When I first got pregnant, the doctor had warned me there was a high chance I would miscarry. I had fought so hard to keep this baby, with the medicine, with the shots. All just to bring this child into the world.
Maybe this was fate.
When Joey saw the blood, he went feral. He barked orders into his phone, "Shut down the streets! Now! My wife is hemorrhaging! Get a car here immediately, now!"
He swept me into his arms, his usual composure shattered as he sprinted to the car. "Faster! Go faster!" he yelled at the driver, his forehead beaded with cold sweat.
The pain was making me dizzy. He was supposed to be at his wedding right now, wasn't he?
His hand trembled as he stroked my face. "It's going to be okay, Elara. It's okay..." He was shaking from head to toe, as if his soul was about to fly from his body in sheer terror.
At the hospital, they determined it was a placental abruption. After some treatment, the doctor assured us the situation was stable.
Joey remained a coiled spring of tension, terrified I might take a turn for the worse. When the doctor confirmed the baby was safe, he collapsed into a chair, letting out a long, shuddering breath.
He glanced at his phone, then stepped out into the hall to make a call. When he returned, he sat by my bed, but his eyes kept darting to his watch.
I chose my moment. "Is there somewhere you need to be? You can go. The doctor said I'm fine."
My permission seemed to throw him into a state of conflict. He hesitated for a long time.
Finally, he turned to the medical staff. "Take care of her. If anything, and I mean anything, happens to her, this hospital will be a crater."
He didn't realize that his choice, in that moment, was my final defeat.
This was the man who once stayed home for a week to nurse me when I got a small cut on my finger.
When had he become someone who could so easily leave my side to attend another woman's wedding?
My last sliver of hope vanished into thin air.
The television in the hospital room was playing an entertainment news segment. A mysterious billionaire had booked the historic Century Cathedral for a private wedding. The grounds were blanketed in flowers, a real-life fairytale castle. All details of the ceremony itself, however, were on strict lockdown.
Floating above the grand altar in the broadcast footage were five massive, glowing words.
STELLA, I LOVE YOU.
A wave of nausea and grief washed over me. I turned my head away, and in the sterile, familiar quiet of the hospital, I made the arrangements to get rid of the child of my husband and his mistress.
Joey rushed from the hospital to Stella's wedding. Just before walking into the cathedral, he sent his Elara a text.
[If you need anything, just call. I'm on standby for you, always.]
Stella stood before him in her wedding gown, breathtakingly beautiful. But a deep unease settled in his heart. The image of the blood on the sheets this morning kept flashing in his mind.
The priest stood at the altar. "Do you, Stella, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to live together in matrimony? To love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to him, so long as you both shall live?"
The words, the ancient vow, made his heart clench.
He suddenly remembered Elara, years ago, standing before him, whispering, "I do."
His mind was flooded with an image of red. Elara, bleeding, eight months pregnant, all for him.
"I do," Stella said, her eyes shining with happiness. But as she spoke, his love for Elara swelled in his chest, a tidal wave of guilt and adoration threatening to consume him.
He had a sudden, desperate urge to tell Elara how much she meant to him. In the middle of his own wedding, he pulled out his phone.
[Elara, I love you so much. I want to be with you forever and ever. Please, please don't ever leave me. I'll go insane.]
A small measure of peace settled over him as he hit send.
A moment later, a reply popped up on his screen:
I'm gone.
And I'm sorry I aborted your child with Stella.
The world shattered around Joey.
He stared at the DNA report he'd just received on his phone. How could the mother be Stella!?

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