Her Best Second Chance

Chapter 33: Just Because...

Arzhel's POV
Even those who seems unbreakable has a breaking point

The door crashes against the wall as I storm into the house, "You signed it?!!!" I bellow, my voice cracking with rage.

The scent of fresh diapers and baby powder wafts through the air as her hands pause, Her eyes lock onto mine, their dark depths flashing with a warning. "don't you dare forget who you are speaking to " she warns, her voice low and calm.

The air thickens as I retort, my words dripping with anguish and accusation. "I didn't, but if you were any kind of mother, you wouldn't give up on your child." My voice cracks, the pain and betrayal threatening to consume me.

Her eyes plead for understanding as she looks at me. "What choices did I have?" she whispers, her voice cracking. "Was it easy for me to sign that document, knowing it could take away her chance at life?" Tears stream down her face. "The same life I nurtured, the same life I fought for?"

She gently lays the baby on the floor after dressing her, her hands shaking. "But I did it for her, Arzhel. Because I love her."

"It wasn't your decision, Mom!" I shout, my voice echoing through the room. "You're not the one paying for her life support!" I emphasize, my words are laced with anger and hurt.

Her face contorts in anguish. "She is my daughter, Arzhel!" she shouts, pounding her chest with her fist. "My flesh and blood! You think money gives you the right to make decisions over her life?"

Her eyes blaze with the softness of a mothers love. "I carried her, birthed her, and raised her. You may pay the bills, but I pay the price of loving her!"

I blink back tears, standing firm. "You don't give up on someone you love, Mother."

Her voice cracks. "What if we're not giving up on her, Arzhel? What if we're giving her a chance to fight on her own?"

Looking at her, my heart feels like it's being torn apart. The pain of betrayal, the weight of grief, and the sting of anger swirl together, suffocating me.

"You stole her chance," I whisper, my voice barely audible, but laced with accusation.

Sighing, she glances up at me begging me to see her point in all this. "The machine is only keeping her alive, Zel. She isn't fighting. If she was, she would have woken up a long time ago. She needs to fight on her own."

My voice breaks at the thought, I whisper, trembling. "What if...when they pull the plug...she dies?"

A long string of tear slips from her eye. "You've seen her, Zel. We're losing her. She doesn't even look like herself anymore." Her voice cracks.

Our eyes lock, and I feel my composure shatter. A lone tear betrays my attempts to remain strong, tracing its path down my cheek.

"If you take away her chance...if you let her go...you'll lose me too."

Wiping the pouring tears from her cheeks, she nods slowly.  "Sometimes giving up is our only option," she whispers, her voice barely audible.

I take my daughter in my arms, with a heavy heart, I climb the stairs to her room packing what I can in her bag.

Heading back downstairs, mother stands at the bottom, her eyes darting between the bag in my hand and my face.

"What are you doing, Arzhel?" she asks, her voice laced with concern. I halt two steps above her, my gaze steady. "You can't take her," she continues, "you don't have time for her."