Chapter 4

“Fate brought us together outside the troubled times…” Monique Xander’s phone rang when she was occupied with work. She was helping out in a luxurious café. Aunt Harriet who worked with her was having a day off so all cleaning tasks for both floors fell on her alone. She continued cleaning as she took out her old Nokia phone to accept the call. “Hello, this is Monique Xander from Mansion Coffee. Who am I speaking to?” “Monique, it’s me, your uncle.” A gentle and amiable middle-aged man’s voice came from the other end of the call, it was familiar yet distant at the same time. It was her uncle, Zephyrus Xander! Stunned, she stood there without giving a response, her body bent over slightly from the floor-mopping. Why was he calling her? It had been a long time since they last talked. Did something happen? She thought about her past that she never liked to talk about. She had kept everything to herself like hiding it at the bottom of an ocean. Monique Xander’s parents had a matrilocal marriage so her surname was from her mother’s side. Her parents had a divorce when she was little and she was raised by her grandfather. She was only eight years old when he passed away. He entrusted her over to her uncle, Zephyrus Xander, and he treated her like his own daughter. He was the primary father figure in her life. However, an unraveled knot was tied in her chest after the incident. Her uncle’s daughter, Yvonne Xander had deceived her, causing her to lose her virginity and get pregnant. She had been looked down upon by others ever since. Her uncle was furious and lost his cool when he found out she was pregnant without marriage and, she did not even know who the man was. “How can you be this shameless when I’ve raised you well? You’re an embarrassment to us!” Enraged, Zephyrus Xander landed a hard slap on Monique Xander’s face. Monique Xander took the slap and fell onto the ground. Her fair and delicate cheek swelled and her head spun. “...” She only responded after a while. She sat herself up, curled herself into her arms, and sobbed silently. She did not know why she was dumb enough to trust Yvonne Xander and followed her to the bar. How could she believe Yvonne Xander when she always made fun of her since they were young? She never expected Yvonne Xander to be this evil. How could she explain? Would her uncle believe her if she said that Yvonne Xander tricked her into going to the bar, set up a trap for her, and took her to a hotel room? It did not matter whether he believed her. The one with a ruined reputation and a baby was her. Monique Xander was extremely upset but she had no solutions. She dug her nails deep into her palm but she felt nothing. The voices she heard were earsplitting. They were like daggers stabbing into her heart. “You’re as cheap as your mother. You are a disgrace to us, how are we going to face people now?” Yvonne Xander’s mother, Siobhan Zack shot Monique Xander a glare and sneered. She wanted nothing more than to chase her out of the house at that moment. ‘Aren’t I used to these words already?’ Monique Xander asked herself. Why did it still hurt so badly? She always thought that she had thick skin to fend off and ignore comments like this. She thought that she would be content as long as her uncle still loved her. Yvonne Xander was standing behind the door, watching the scene. Her grandfather had always protected Monique Xander and gave her everything she wanted. On the other hand, she was only left with her leftovers. When Monique Xander came to her house, her father had been kind and loving to her too. Monique Xander had been snatching away her father’s attention which was previously on her. Yvonne Xander was unhappy about that, so she always bullied Monique Xander. That was the first time her father hit Monique Xander. It was satisfying. Zephyrus Xander always cared about his reputation and Monique Xander had always been a good and obedient child. How could he not be brokenhearted when something like that happened? However, his heart still ached when he saw her all curled up and weeping. “Abort that scum within the next two days.” Zephyrus Xander shook his head and sighed before leaving. Monique Xander stared at her leaving uncle with shock as teardrops trickled down her face uncontrollably. Her uncle called her baby a scum instead of a bastard. Did that mean he had always seen her as a scum subconsciously? The reason he was mad was that she embarrassed him instead of getting upset because she was taken advantage of! Nobody cared whether she was upset or suffering. Her world was crumbling. She was so helpless and petrified, but no one cared. Her father, her mother, and now her uncle all abandoned her. There was no one in the world who liked her. Yvonne Xander was even more annoyed when her father left just like that, it was clear that he had a soft spot for Monique Xander. She was certain that her father would kill her if the same thing happened to her and yet her father only gave Monique Xander a scolding. ‘She’s nothing but scum abandoned by her parents and taken into our home!’ Driven by jealousy, Yvonne Xander wanted to step in to say something. Then, she saw Monique Xander’s death glare. Monique Xander wanted to stab Yvonne Xander and carve her heart out to see whether it was black in color. She was her cousin! How could she do that to her? It was unfortunate that Yvonne Xander was her uncle’s only daughter! Stupefied Yvonne Xander had to retract her words. However, she had a smug smile on her face. Monique Xander wobbled her way out of the house without a clue of where to go. It was a long journey and Yvonne Xander’s smile was painfully blinding to her. She moved out of her uncle’s house, dropped out of school, and rented a place outside. She was only 18, a very young age. She had thoughts of getting an abortion because her future awaits but she could not find the heart to do that. Her baby was like flesh on her own body. Although she was still tiny, Monique Xander could feel her presence in her. It was magical. She did not have a father, but she still had a mother! Monique Xander would never follow in the steps of her mother, Miranda Xander. She wanted to love the baby in her womb just like her grandfather would. For her, blood was thicker than water. The baby was Monique Xander’s sole source of motivation to stay alive. Monique Xander then started a new life of raising her kid while working. After some time passed, Little Nomi grew up and Monique Xander realized that she did not resent her uncle anymore as he used to take good care of her. She now understood that everything he did was done in her best interest. Monique Xander’s eyes welled up as she thought of her past. “Oh, hi, uncle. What can I do for you?” Monique Xander stretched her lips for a smile as she replied. “How are you?” His kind voice had a mix of reluctance and concern. “I’m fine. I am a white-collar worker in a huge company. My work is pretty easy with a high salary and great benefits.” Monique Xander answered laughingly as her eyes dimmed. That was her dream job! “How about the little baby? How is she?” Her uncle hesitated before asking. “You mean, Little Nomi? She’s fine. She’s a good girl and she’s really smart too.” “That’s good, I’m glad to hear that,” He answered with relief. He was genuinely happy that she was living a pretty good life. “Well… It’s the anniversary of your grandfather’s death next month. Will you be back?” He paused for a while before asking Zephyrus.