STIGMA

"The result of your pregnancy test just came back. You are indeed pregnant. Congratulations!" The gynecologist smiled lightly as she revealed the news.

Eunice Moore couldn't believe her ears. How was that even possible?

Her eyes were wide open with shock. It was unbelievable.

She didn't have a boyfriend, nor had she ever been intimate with any man. How could she be pregnant? There must have been some kind of mistake.

Estrella Moore, Eunice's half-sister, covered her mouth and stared at the supposedly pregnant woman. "Eunice, I just thought you had a stomachache. I wasn't expecting this at all! How could you be pregnant before marriage? This is unacceptable. I have to tell Dad and Mom."

As soon as she finished speaking, Estrella pulled out her phone and called home.

Eunice was still in a daze. She didn't know what to do in this situation. The doctor cleared her throat and shot a sympathetic look at Eunice.

"The results of your physical examination are very unstable, and the risk of miscarriage is unfortunately high that it may lead to a case of lifelong infertility. It would be best for you to keep the baby."

Unable to absorb the mind-boggling information, Eunice simply stared at the doctor, at a loss for words.

When the sisters returned home, Eunice was immediately confronted by her father and stepmother.

"You are so shameless. How could you do this to us? I am utterly disappointed in you!" Leonel Moore jabbed his finger at his daughter's face, extremely furious.

"Alas, you have ruined our family's reputation!" Deanna Moore threw her hands in the air out of frustration.

Then she turned to her husband and continued, "The Mendez family planned to strengthen our bond by marriage. Your father said that he would let Eunice marry into the Mendez family, but now here we are. This little..."

Deanna wanted to curse and unleash her wrath on Eunice but stopped on second thought.

Leonel shook his head and said, "Eunice doesn't deserve it. Let Estrella marry into the Mendez family instead."

Hearing this change of plans, Deanna smiled with satisfaction and looked proudly at her daughter.

Estrella's face immediately lit up. Barely containing her excitement, she clapped her hands and remarked, "Great! I have always liked Rufus."

Leonel nodded in approval. But his expression turned livid once again as he resumed scolding Eunice.

Unlike her half-sister, Eunice didn't care about the engagement at all. Despite receiving rude remarks and grave threats from her father and stepmother, all she could think about was her pregnancy.

The only possibility she could think of where she got impregnated was at the class reunion three months ago. She had gotten drunk after having a glass of wine and couldn't recall what had happened afterward.

Leonel and Deanna continued to berate Eunice, but she didn't respond or defend herself. Satisfied that she had seemed to finally realize her mistake, the pair soon watched TV with Estrella, ignoring their distraught daughter for the next few hours.

While they were changing the channel, a breaking news report caught their attention. "This is a news update on the successor of the powerful Lawson family. After allegedly being chased down by his enemies and sustaining multiple stab wounds, he has yet to be found. He has been missing for more than three months now. The police and the Lawson family have tried every means to search for him, but his whereabouts are still unknown. If you have any information that could help the investigators locate him, please call the number flashed on your screen."

Three years later, Eunice stepped off the train and onto the railway station of Orley. Her slim figure was tightly wrapped in a sleek windbreaker. With shoulder-length hair and light make-up on her face, she looked very delicate and beautiful. She carried a big white suitcase in one hand and held a little boy's hand with the other.

The cute youngster wore a baseball cap and a cool denim jacket. He looked up at his mother and asked in a sweet voice, "Mommy, are we going to look for my godmother now?"

"Not yet. Let's go to the hotel first and get some rest. We will meet her tonight," Eunice replied with a light smile.

There were some important matters that she needed to deal with first. As soon as they arrived at the hotel and put down her luggage, she had to get down to business. Aside from that, she had made an appointment with her good friend, Delia Cortez. They were going to meet for dinner later that evening. All in all, it was a jampacked day.

"Oh, okay!" the little boy replied with a toothy grin.