Unbroken Vows

Chapter 16

Tul gently rocked his daughters as they admired tiny baby onesies, each more adorable than the last. He smiled softly, thinking of the little boy growing inside him and how his daughters would soon have a baby brother to care for. But just as he reached out to touch a soft blue onesie, a figure at the corner of his eye caught his attention.

It was his brother.

For a brief moment, Tul froze, his heart racing. His brother was there, standing with a woman beside him, who was visibly pregnant as well. Their eyes locked for a split second before his brother averted his gaze and quickly turned to leave.

"Is that your brother?" the woman asked, her voice soft yet curious.

Tul didn’t know how to respond. His throat felt tight, and the words wouldn’t come out.Hr realized by the proximity and comfort that the woman was his sister-in-law, the one his brother had married after their family had cast him aside, abandoned and discarded. Before he could process it, his brother was gone, leaving Tul standing there in shock, clutching his daughters tightly.

Later that day, as Tul walked past the cafe where he and Mew had shared so many memories, he sensed something was wrong. The usually vibrant and warm atmosphere was cold and silent. The door creaked as he stepped inside, but there was no familiar face greeting him.

"Hello? Grandma?" Tul called out, his voice echoing through the empty space.

From the back of the cafe, a voice spoke—dark and familiar. "No one is here anymore. I own this place now."

It was Mew’s father.

Tul’s heart dropped. His hands instinctively tightened around his daughters, holding them closer, his belly protruding as he stepped back, eyes wide with fear. He didn’t know what to expect, but every instinct screamed that this was a trap.

"Sit down," Mew’s father demanded, his tone cold and unforgiving.

Tul sat slowly, his entire body trembling. He placed his hands protectively over his swollen belly, terrified of what might happen next. Mew's father stood tall, his eyes gleaming with disdain.

"You think you deserve Mew? Look at yourself. A tainted, used-up thing. You’ve been defiled by another man. For two years, you let him do whatever he wanted to you, and now you come crawling back. You don’t even deserve to be called a man."

Tul’s breath hitched, his mind spinning. He tried to speak, tried to defend himself, but the words were caught in his throat. Every harsh word hit him like a physical blow.

Mew’s father continued, relentless. "And these girls? When they grow up, they’ll realize the truth. That the person raising them is nothing but a victim, someone too weak to protect himself. You’ll see the disappointment in their eyes, and you’ll never escape it."

Tul’s eyes filled with tears. His daughters, his unborn son—he couldn’t bear the thought of them hating him. His body was trembling, sweat dripping down his face. He was seven and a half months pregnant, and the pressure was unbearable.

Just as his vision blurred from the tears, Mew's mother entered the cafe, her face stern and unsympathetic. She took the girls from Tul’s arms as if they were her own.

"They are the blood of my family," she said coldly. "They belong with us, not you. You’ve taken my son away from me, and I curse you. Your children will never love you."

Tul was shattered. The cruelty of their words broke his fragile spirit even further. He fell to his knees, pleading for forgiveness. He begged them, but they only turned their backs on him.

Mew’s father dealt the final blow. "I don’t care about these daughters but to get Mew we have to. We only care about the sons in this family as they will take our legacy forward. It’s shameful enough that Mew fell in love with you—a man—but if this gets out, our family’s reputation will be destroyed. You are nothing but a disgrace."

The weight of everything was too much. Tul was left alone in the cafe, his heart torn apart. This place, once a haven for him and Mew, was now poisoned by the venomous words of Mew’s parents. His vision darkened, and his body crumpled to the floor.

The old lady who owned the cafe rushed him to the hospital. Tul was pale, weak, his body barely holding on. The doctors acted quickly, but there were complications. Tul was giving birth too soon.

When the baby finally came, it was a boy—tiny and frail. Tul was too weak to hold him, barely able to keep his eyes open as he lay in the hospital bed. His body was shaking from the trauma, both physical and emotional, but somewhere deep inside, he felt a flicker of hope.

Even though the child was fragile, he was alive. Tul had survived.

To be continued...