Departed With A Belly {1}

Protect her so-called dignity

Victoria could not go to the hospital.
The moment she did so, her pregnancy would be exposed.

It sounded laughable, but she did not want anyone else to know about the baby.
She tried to protect the last remaining shreds of her dignity, She knew her pride was already gone when she agreed to fake a marriage with Alaric. Right now, before him and the woman he loved, what sort of dignity did she even have? Even so...

Then, she glanced down but did not wish to disclose anything that would cause others to ridicule her.

Alaric scowled when he heard that. The car abruptly turned and screeched to a stop by the side of the road, At that moment, Victoria thought he was telling her to exit his car, so she reached out to open the door.

Clack! The doors were immediately locked, He was staring at her with a dark look through the rearview mirror.

"Why don't you want to go to the hospital?" he asked.

She had been acting strange since walking through the rain the evening before.

"I can visit a doctor myself if I don't feel well," Victoria calmly replied. He narrowed his eyes dangerously when he heard that.

"Al, is it because of me?" Claudia hurriedly asked. "Why not... Why don't I get off here while you take Victoria to the hospital? After all, her illness is quite
serious. We cannot delay her treatment."

Following that, she leaned toward Alaric as if she wanted to unlock the car doors.
Victoria watched as he stopped her, holding her hand.

"Don't say that." Alaric frowned and glanced at Victoria before continuing,
"Don't overthink it. It's not because of you." Then, Claudia glanced down at their hands as an embarrassed glint flashed in her eyes.

Meanwhile, Victoria silently watched them. After Claudia turned to look at her, Victoria tore her eyes away from them.

"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, Victoria," said Claudia. "I thought you
were angry at Al because of me. I'm so sorry."

Victoria calmly glanced back at her. She would have thought Claudia was a manipulator if she did not owe Claudia for helping her once. Nevertheless, Claudia was her savior as well.

Then, Victoria forced a smile. "It's fine."
"Are you unwilling to go to the hospital because you're afraid of the hospital?" Claudia asked with a grin.

friend opened a clinic of his own after returning from abroad. Why not go to his place?"

Chapter Pachyrathy

She then turned to Alaric. "What do you think, Al?"

He did not immediately agree to the idea. Instead, he frowned and asked, "A clinic? Is it reliable?"

Of course," Claudia somewhat awkwardly replied. "If he wasn't reliable, would I introduce him to you? Don't you trust me?"

After a moment of thought, he nodded.
"We'll go there."

Victoria frowned. 'I-"

However, the car was already speeding away, and her objection was useless.

On the other hand, Claudia was even reassuring her. "Don't worry, Victoria.
My friend's a good man. He's very kind and patient. I'll ensure he knows beforehand that your treatment will be negotiated later, alright?"

Compared to the considerate and gentle Claudia, Victoria seemed to be the exact opposite. Despite her sickness, she still refused to go to the hospital; how very selfish and inconsiderate.