My Husband Left Me When I Was 8 Months Pregnant For My Best Friend Of 20 Years. He Just Crawled Back After Finding Out Her Baby Isn’t Even His. Should I Let My Mom Throw Another Bucket Of Water On Him?
Severing Ties
The day after deciding to divorce, I went to the free legal aid service at the local community center. I had to make two bus transfers with my full-term pregnant body. I took a number and waited for my turn, sitting in an uncomfortable chair.
“In a divorce, how can I receive child support and custody?” I asked as soon as I sat down across from the adviser. My voice was trembling.
“Child support is determined based on the other party’s income. As for custody, it is usually granted to the person who is directly responsible for the child’s care.”
I took detailed notes in my notebook. My husband had offered me the condo, but it wasn’t enough to survive with my son. I needed to get more. Back home, I opened the notebook and organized the additional conditions I was going to demand.
The transfer of the condo’s ownership to my name permanently, a monthly payment for child support, and the complete renunciation of parental rights. The hand holding the pen trembled, but I wrote each word clearly.
A few days later, I met James at a nearby coffee shop. Sitting across from him after so long felt strange. His face, which I once loved, now looked like a stranger’s,.
“What do you want? I already told you that you’re getting the condo. What more are you asking for?” he asked indifferently.
I placed the paper I had prepared on the table. “I appreciate the condo, but it’s not enough. I want $1,500 a month in child support and for you to completely renounce all parental rights. I don’t want you to contact him.”
“Child support too? Don’t you see how much debt I’m in?”
“You’re the one who created those debts. The child is not to blame for anything,” I said, looking him straight in the eyes.
James hesitated for a moment and then sighed. “Fine. Sarah has money, so when we get married we’ll clear the debts and I’ll pay you the support.”
I smiled inwardly. He didn’t know that Sarah was drowning in debt, but I said nothing. That night, I received a call from my mother-in-law.
“Emily, dear, he is your child’s father after all. Do you really have to demand support and the renunciation of parental rights? James is going through a very hard time.” My mother-in-law’s voice was tearful,.
“Mom, I am also a mother trying to protect her child. I cannot allow him to inherit a mountain of debt.”
“But he’s my son.”
“Yes, Mom, he’s your son, but he’s no longer my husband or my child’s father. I am just protecting the child who is about to be born.” I spoke firmly and hung up.
The day to sign the divorce papers arrived. James came to the house to pick up his last things. Packed clothes and shoes into a suitcase and stopped at the entrance.
“I’ve done everything you wanted, so live well. And don’t you dare show up later with the child saying he’s my blood or anything like that.”
I couldn’t believe it. What right did he have to talk to me like that? I didn’t answer and closed the door. Only when his footsteps faded could I let out my breath.
The next day, I went to the county clerk’s office alone, submitted the divorce petition, and stamped my signature. As the clerk reviewed the documents, I looked out the window. The sky was clear. Strangely, I didn’t cry,.
Leaving the building, a sign caught my eye: Family Records. “Now my family is just my baby and me,” I thought. I felt a lump in my throat.
That night I sat alone at the empty dining table, the place where we used to have dinner together. I took out the food my mother had prepared for me and started to eat. My hand trembled as I held the silverware. While washing the dishes, I saw my wedding ring.
I took it off and stored it in the back of a drawer. I didn’t need it anymore. I lay down in bed and caressed my belly. The baby moved. Now we’re really starting over, just you and me. I felt free and empty at the same time, but one thing was certain: I would not look back.
A New Life Arrives
So after 3 years of marriage, I was alone again. Or rather, there were two of us counting the baby I was carrying inside. Two weeks passed since I filed for divorce. One early morning, I woke up with a contracting sensation in my belly.
At first, I didn’t think much of it. I had heard that Braxton Hicks contractions were common at the end of pregnancy. I tried to go back to sleep, but the pain intensified. I could feel it coming at regular intervals,.
I looked at the clock. It was 3:00 a.m. Gritting my teeth, I got out of bed. I went to the living room holding my belly. At that moment, I felt a warm liquid running down my legs. My water had broken.
My heart was pounding. “It’s time to meet my baby,” I thought. I was scared and excited in equal measure. With trembling hands, I called my mother.
“Mom, I think I’m in labor. My water broke.”
“What? I’m on my way right now. I’ll wake your father and we’ll come. Leave the door unlocked. Don’t move around too much, sit down and wait for us.”
After hanging up, I grabbed the hospital bag I had already prepared. I had packed it just in case, with underwear, towels, pads, clothes for the baby, my ID. Thank goodness I had thought of everything.
As I opened the front door to leave, another contraction hit me. It was so painful I had to grab the railing to keep from falling. Cold sweat ran down my forehead. The interval between contractions was getting shorter and shorter,.
About 20 minutes later, my father’s car pulled up to the building. My mother ran out and helped support me. My father, as he opened the car door for me, kept asking if I was okay. You could tell they had woken up in a hurry because he was wearing his pajama pants under his coat.
“It’s okay, Emily. Does it hurt a lot?”
“Yes, Mom. Let’s go quickly. The contractions are getting closer together.”
The drive to the hospital felt endless. A trip that normally took half an hour seemed like an eternity. Every time a contraction came, I gripped the door handle tightly. My nails dug into the palm of my hand. My father nervously tapped the steering wheel at every red light.
“Dad, it’s okay. We can go slower.”
“No way. We have to get there fast. My girl is in pain.” My father’s voice trembled. I had never seen him so nervous.
When we arrived at the hospital, they put me in a wheelchair and took me straight to the delivery room. The doctor examined me and nodded. “The cervix is very dilated, about 8 cm. You’ll be able to give birth soon. You’ve got this.”,
The pain was getting more and more intense. I felt like my whole body was being torn apart. I thought my back was going to break. I never imagined such pain could exist.
My mother held my hand tightly. Hers was also soaked in sweat. “Come on Emily, a little more. You’re doing great. I went through this too to have you.”
“Mom, it hurts so much.”
“I know sweetie, but hang in there a little longer. The baby is coming out.”
I don’t know how many hours passed. I completely lost track of time. I pushed, breathed, and pushed again without a break. Every time the delivery nurse said, “You’re doing great, a little more,” I pushed with all my might. I felt like I was running out of energy.
Suddenly I heard a baby’s cry. The most beautiful sound in the world. In that instant, all the pain seemed to disappear.
“Congratulations, it’s a healthy boy. He weighs 7 lb.” The nurse placed the baby on my chest.
His small rosy face, his wrinkled skin, closed eyes, tiny nose and lips. It was the most beautiful face in the world. Tears started streaming down my cheeks. I couldn’t stop,.
“I endured these nine months to meet him,” I thought. “Lucas, I’m Mommy. We finally meet. You did so well, my little one.”
The baby stirred on my chest. His little hand waved in the air and then latched onto my finger tightly. Each of his fingers was so small and perfect. He even had nails. To think that this little life had grown inside me. In that moment, everything else faded away.
The betrayal, the anger, the loneliness, the fear. Only my son existed. My mother, while wiping the sweat from my forehead, cried with me.
“You did so well, my daughter. The baby looks like his mom. He’s very handsome. He has a perfect nose just like you as a baby.”
“Thank you, Mom. Thank you for being here. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
“Of course I had to be here. My daughter was giving birth.”
My father on the other side of the glass kept wiping his tears as he looked at the baby. I had never seen my father cry like that, always so serious. Later they told me he had paced in front of the delivery room for 2 hours,.
Once in the room, I couldn’t stop looking at Lucas. They had brought him from the nursery and he was sleeping peacefully beside me. His little lips moved making a tiny noise. It seemed like he was hungry. I brought the bottle to him and he began to suck vigorously.
The scene was so adorable that I cried again. “You’re such a good eater, my Lucas. Eat a lot to grow up big and strong.”
