Chapter 157
TIMOTHY POT
The atmosphere in the car remained tense as Timothy drove toward the hospital. They had a cake
tasting appointment soon, but Timothy had promised his mother that he would visit her at the
hospital that day. It was a routine he had never
wanted to mi
Of course, this stop along the way displeased Ste. As they settled into the car. Ste couldn’t help
but voice her irritation. Timothy, do we really have to go to the hospital today? We have so much to
do.”
Timothy sighed, his gaze fixed on the road ahead. ‘Ste, you know how important it is for me to
check on my mother. It won’t take long, I promise. Besides, I have to bring her fresh flowers
Ste squinted, her voice sharp with impatience. “Timothy, we’ve been nning this wedding for
months, and there’s still so much to do. We don’t have time for these constant detours.”
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Timothy’s jaw denched, his temper ring as he fought to keep his frustration in check. “Ste, my
mother is sick. She needs me, and I won’t abandon her. This won’t take more than an hour”
She didn’t answer him, instead turning to scowl out the window. Timothy sighed, shifting the car into
reverse.
As they arrived at the hospital. Timothy steeled himself for the confrontation that was bound to
follow. Ste didn’t understand the depth of his and his mother’s bond, and her impatience only
served to widen the rift between them.
They made their way to his mother’s room, and Timothy’s heart ached at the sight of her frail form
lying in the hospital bed. She looked up, her eyes lighting up with a faint smile as she saw her son.
“You’re here,” she said, her voice filled with gratitude.
He leaned down to kiss her cheek gently, cing the bouquet of fresh flowers he had brought on
the windowsill. “Of course, Mom. How are you feeling today?”
His mother’s eyes brimmed with affection as she looked at him. “I’m hanging on.
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thanks to you.”
Ste, who had been standing by impatiently, couldn’t help but voice her annoyance. “Timothy, can
we at least make this quick?”
Timothy’s jaw clenched as he fought to contain his irritation. “Ste, show somet respect. This is my
mother.”
His mother intervened, her voice soft but tinged with sadness. “It’s alright. I’m a bit boring when I’m
ill.”
Timothy shot Ste a re before tugging the silver bangs out of Lydia’s eyes. “No, Mom. You’re
the life of the party.”
T
Ste’s impatience grew, her voice sharp. “This is ridiculous. We have things to do.”
His mother smiled at Ste, her tone gentle. “Dear, don’t be so hard on him. Familyes first, you
know?”
Ste, however, seemed uninterested in making conversation with Lydia. She looked away and
folded her arms.
“Ste, how long have you and Timothy been together?” Lydia asked anyway.
Ste’s response was short and uninterested. “Not long.”
Lydia tried to keep the conversation going, her tone polite. “So, how did Timothy propose?”
Ste’s irritation with the questions was apparent, and she answered tersely. “Romantically. We’re
having a baby, and he wanted to do the right thing by marrying sooner rather thanter.”
Lydia’s expression turned thoughtful as she considered Ste’s response. She leaned in closer, her
voice filled with a hint of sarcasm. “Ah, a baby. How wonderful. It’s always good to have a reason to
rush into things.”
Ste’s patience was wearing thin, and she responded sharply. “We love each other, if that’s what
you’re implying.”
Lydia couldn’t resist pushing further, the sarcasm more abundant now. “Of course, dear. Every act
of love should be rushed into, especially when there’s a baby involved.”
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Ste’s eyes narrowed as she retorted, her tone biting. “Are you suggesting something?”
Lydia’s sarcasm only deepened as she continued to probe. “Well. I’m just wondering how many of
these ‘acts of love‘ were actually Timothy’s doing. I mean, are you even sure it’s Timothy’s seed?”
Timothy winced at the implication, and it seemed to shock Ste as well. Unfortunately, the
usation was off the mark.
“Actually,” he chimed in before Ste could start, “the paternity test confirmed that I’m the father.”
Lydia was visibly distraught, her voice filled with disappointment. “Timothy. I expected better of you.
You’re really following in your father’s footsteps.”
Ste, stung by Lydia’s words, defended their rtionship with a riote of anger. “How dare you
suggest that there’s no love between us?”
Lydia’s judgment was unwavering. “I just hoped that you wouldn’t make the same mistakes your
father and I did, bringing children into a marriage without love.”
Before he could respond, Lydia went on. “And you’re condemning that child to a life with that
dreaded woman you’ve brought in here.”
Timothy’s stalled at his mother’s words. “I’m doing the right thing,” he said slowly. hoping he’d
convince himself. “You would’ve wanted me to take responsibility before.”
Lydia’s tears continued to flow, her voice filled with sorrow. “I want what’s best for you, Timothy,
above all else.”
Suddenly, she reached over, grabbing his wrist and tugging him closer with a surprising amount of
strength. “You have to tell me. There’s someone else, isn’t there?”
Timothy shut his eyes. “Mom…”
“You couldn’t stop talking about her,” she continued anyway. “It was always about finding Evie
again, making things right with her.”
Her words echoed in Timothy’s mind and he couldn’t help but recall those desperate days. When
Evie had told him that she’d used him for fun, it had
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actually affected him. He had yet to meet someone that would grip his heart like that again.
He doubted he ever would.
Ste’s impatience reached its peak, and she abruptly turned to Timothy, her voiceced with
irritation. “We should leave, Timothy. There’s nothing more to be said
here.”
Timothy kept still, feeling a profound sense of disquiet. Somehow, he couldn’t. move beneath his
mother’s mournful gaze.
Ste’s anger red, and she marched over to Timothy. “I said, let’s go!”
She grabbed Timothy’s arm and pulled at him, but he didn’t give. Instead, he pulled himself free
from her grasp and ced a hand over his mother’s.
“I’ll be backter this week,” he told her gently, though she was still in tears. When it didn’t seem
like she would give him a response, he decided to leave her alone.
As they walked back to the car, Ste’s anger was fierce. She mumbled something about never
visiting there again, and hoping he’d toss his mother in a nursing home if she recovered. Once they
had buckled in, Ste’s anger had reached a fever pitch, and she continued mercilessly.
“She has no idea what love is,” Ste hissed, her voice dripping with scorn. “Her own marriage
didn’t work out, I mean, look at your father. She’d probably have him caring for her instead of her
able–bodied son if she knew how to keep a man!”
Timothy’s heart ached as he listened to Ste’s cruel words. His mothery in that hospital bed, frail
and vulnerable, and Ste had no sympathy whatsoever. The amount of cruelty in just one person
still astounded him.
“God, I hope she drops off soon,” Ste grumbled. “We’ll both be better off.”
Suddenly, as if snapped back into reality, Timothy felt a surge of anger rising within him. He came to
a halt, turning to face her with determination in his eyes.
“Ste, enough!” Timothy’s voice was firm,manding her attention. “Don’t you ever talk about my
mother like that.”
Ste’s eyes zed with defiance, her anger undiminished. “She’s the one who started this,
Timothy, with her judgment and criticism.”
Timothy couldn’t deny that his mother had yed a part in the argument, but he couldn’t let Ste’s
behavior go unchecked. “That may be true, but you’ve taken it to a whole other disgusting level.”
Before Ste could retort, Timothy seized the opportunity to address a painful truth that had lingered
between them, unspoken for far too long. “And let’s not forget, Ste, that you had to bribe me into
marrying you in the first ce.”
Ste’s anger faltered, her words caught in her throat as the weight of Timothy’s. usation sank
in. Her face paled, and for the first time in their heated exchange, she was left speechless.
Timothy pressed on, his voice unwavering. “You drugged me, pulled me in bed, and we made a
baby. Now you’re using that baby as leverage to get me to marry you. That’s not love. That’s
maniption.”
The truth hung in the air for a long minute, and for once, Ste had been stunned into silence.
He turned away, his resolve firm. He couldn’t bear to look at Ste in that moment.
“I still love her, you know,” he said, keeping his eyes forward. “It probably pisses you off just
knowing that, but Evie is special.”
He didn’t spare Ste a nce, but he could see her shifting ufortably out of the corner of his
eye.
“And she’s the woman I would marry,” he added softly, his jaw clenched. “In a heartbeat.”
Without another word, Timothy peeled out of the hospital parking lot. Even aftershing out,
Timothy couldn’t help but feel empty inside. The choices he had made, the responsibilities he
couldn’t shirk, were driving a wedge between him and his mother now.
She could be dying in that bed as he was walking away, and thest thing she would have seen
was how much he had be like his father.
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