âYes.â
âAnd itâs⦠Martin Weissâs⦠baby?â Her voice went out of tune at the end of her sentence.
âYes,â Kyla answered again.
Mrs. Corbyn was silent. The mother and daughter looked at each other.
A long time had passed when Mrs. Corbyn finally said, âWhat on earth is going on? Donât you no longer love Martin Weiss? How did you get pregnant with his baby?â
Kyla smiled ruefully. âIt was an accident. He came to me drunk, and I took him to a hotel room.â
Mrs. Corbyn could figure out the rest without Kyla telling her.
âThen⦠does Martin Weiss know about this baby?â asked Mrs. Corbyn.
âHe knows,â said Kyla. She then told her mother what had happened today with Martin Weiss.
Mrs. Corbyn blamed herself as she listened.
As a mother, she did not even know her daughter was pregnant when she had thrown up so many times.
Thinking of the struggles her daughter had gone through these days for the baby she was carrying, Mrs. Corbyn pitied her daughter even more, âSince youâve decided to have this baby, then⦠letâs raise the baby together. The store is doing well anyway. I can do some handiwork in my spare time. My old body can still take another ten years,â said Mrs. Corbyn.
Having another child would add to their financial burden. The best she could do now was to make her daughterâs burden as light as possible.
Kylaâs eyes filled with tears. Her mother had already done so much for her!
She should be enjoying her later years but had to work so hard for her!
Kyla took a deep breath and voiced out her decision. âMom, I plan to marry Martin Weiss!â
âWhat?â Mrs. Corbyn was truly shocked this time, even more so than when she learned that her daughter was pregnant earlier.
She knew better than anyone how much her daughter had suffered because of Martin Weiss. In the past, she had thought about her daughter getting back together with Martin Weiss after he repented.
After all, they had Nelson.
3/4 That way, they would be able to give Nelson a complete family.
However, her daughter had vetoed it after she mentioned it several times, so she stopped giving it any more thought. Who knew her daughter would mention it herself this time?
âYou want to marry Martin Weiss? Is it because of this baby?â asked Mrs. Corbyn.
Kyla said, âThatâs part of the reason. I donât want this child to be born a bastard, nor do I want you and Nelson to suffer from more gossip. I know the neighbors have said a lot of nasty things because Iâm single with Nelson.â
âWhy should you care about all this gossip? You donât have to do anything you donât want to do because of gossip like that!â Mrs. Corbyn tried to persuade her.
Kyla looked down at her belly, which was still flat. âMom, even if you donât care, should Nelson and the baby Iâm carrying⦠have to live with that kind of gossip all their lives?â
After a pause, Kyla added, âEven if I divorce Martin Weiss afterward, thereâd be a lot less gossip, andâ¦
the baby Iâm carrying will be lawfully born.â
Mrs. Corbyn only sighed and said nothing more.
After her son finished his homework in the evening, Kyla said, âNelson, I plan to marry your daddy. And I have a baby in my belly. Will you accept me getting married and having a baby?â