"You should go home first, Eliza. I'll be fine here." Said Mae, the caregiver who have raised Eliza ever since she was still on the orphanage and even after her adopted family adopted her.
Eliza let out a small smile and held Mae's hand, she has been at the hospital for a while because of an acute kidney failure and Eliza wanted to be there for her. She wanted to make it up for everything that Mae did to her.
"I'm fine, I'll take care of you until the doctor gave us some recommendations about your health." Eliza was still hesitant in leaving her behind but Mae knew better.
"Go, Eliza. I told you I'll be fine. I'm sure the nurses would take care of me, and look at you. You're starting to look like a married woman." Mae teased with a hugh pitched voice, making Eliza chuckled lightly.
She was so stressed lately, thinking how she was able to raise money for Mae's operation that she doesn't have enough time to take care of herself. She merely even go out on a date with her boyfriend, Aaron. With a small smile on her lips she let out a weak smile before nodding.
"Okay, but I'll come back tomorrow, hmm? I'll talk to the nurse to check on you from time to time." After she said that Eliza bid Mae her goodbye and kisses her on the forehead. She went out to the nurse station and told them to attend on Mae's needs from time to time.
As soon as she went out of the hospital, the cold air of the dark night welcomed her. She checked on her watch and saw that it was almost midnight. After her job as a jeweller, she immediately came to visit Mae at the hospital.
She fished out her phone and called Aaron, she was not that confident in riding taxi during this time so she wanted to ask her boyfriend to fetch her and take her home. After multiple rings no one answered on the other side and even after how many tries she had, Aaron didn't picked it up.
"Maybe he's already asleep." She reasoned to herself and with a heavy footsteps decided to ride a taxi towards their house. She was still living with her parents after her twenty-five years of living. She doesn't have enough money to save up for a new house and she was also saving up for Mae's operation.
Eliza almost fell asleep on the taxi, good thing the driver reminds her to get out once they were in front of her parents house. "Thank you. You can keep the change." She smiled sweetly at the taxi driver.
The time when she came up to their front door, her eyes squinted and her brows furrowed when she saw a familiar car parked on the house in front of them. She was sure that it was the same car her boyfriend always use but still neglected the thought.
She went in with a sleepy vision, everyone was probably asleep as she thought but when she passed over her sister's room, Kate, her brows almost met each other as moans and groans came from inside.
"Why are you still with Eliza anyway? You know you can have better than her.. that I am more better than her." Said Kate with a heavy breath and hoarse voice at the same time with the moans coming from a man.
Unbeknownst to Eliza's side that the man inside her sisters room was Aaron, her boyfriend. Instead of answering Kate's question, Aaron was so over his libido that none of them even realized the slightly gaped door where Eliza was watching them with her emotionless face.
"I'll decide when to break up with her. Now shut up and make me cum, honey."
Eliza stilled in front of the door, she was so sure that it was her boyfriend, inside of her sisters room.. having sex with her sister. Her eyes became moist with tears, her teeth gritted as she was watch the lewd treachery happening in front of her eyes.
The moans Kate and Aaron made as their sexes interacted with each other was too much for Eliza to hear. She couldn't stand it anymore and hastily kicked the door open to reveal the unfaithful intercourse between her sister and boyfriend.
But instead of showing her true emotions, she looked at them with expressionless and cold stare that woke Aaron up from what happened. He was caught cheating, red handed.
"Eliza..." He stuttered after seeing his girlfriend staring at him with her emotionless eyes. Her eyes then turn to Kate who was hiding a mischievous and triumphant smile. "Babe, it's not what you think about it–"
"What do you think I'm thinking?" As Eliza arch an brow at them, Aaron felt shiver down his spine after seeing the opposite side of his girlfriend. He was used to her kind, gentle and soft side but the Eliza in front of them now was the total opposite of what they're used to.
"Babe, please, let me explain something. This is just a misunderstanding." Aaron tried to get up from the bed and slightly pushed Kate to keep the distance between them. Eliza wants to roll her eyes but forbids herself while watching her boyfriend cover himself with a thick blanket. "Babe, I know you'll listen to me so please let's talk first."
The musky odor of after sex still lingered around the whole room, their sweaty bodies were visible as Kate rested on top of the bed, naked. While Aaron slowly made his way to Eliza. He was about to pull Eliza by her wrist when her hand immediately touched his cheeks, earning a loud and hard slap from her.
"Don't you dare show yourself to me again." She said while keeping her tears from falling as memories of her and Aaron flash through her. "I'm breaking up with you." Eliza turned her back and was supposed to ignore her boyfriends call when her adopted parents showed up.
In front of the same room where Eliza caught their betrayal, stood her parents who were interrupted by the sudden noise.
"What is going on here, Eliza? What's happening, Kate?" Their mother's strict voice made Eliza and Kate bow their heads, unable to look at their mother, Ariella. "Why are you naked, Kate!? And what is this man doing inside your room!?" The veins on Ariella's neck almost popped out when she saw her daughter and her adopted daughters boyfriend inside the room, both bare naked.
"Mom, I love him. I want to marry Aaron—"
"You are already arranged to marry someone, Kate! What are you thinking!?" Her mother bursts out while Eliza watched silently wiped the tears that suddenly escaped her eyes. She kept her tough facade watch their mother pulled Kate out of her room.
"Eliza–"
"Get off me. I am not going to listen to your bullshits because ever since you started fucking my sister, you already proven me that you are the worst decision I've ever made in my entire life." She hissed, her jaw moved in aggression before forcefully pulling her wrist from Aaron's grip.
She followed her mother and sister from behind until they were face to face with their father, Nico. Seeing the madness in her father's eyes, Eliza jolted in shock when her father slapped Kate across the face, causing her to fall on the tiled cold floor.
"You are a useless child! You are going to marry James whether you like it or not!" That was her father's angry voice.
No matter how Eliza want to save her sister from her father's anguish, she couldn't find her voice to defend her. She was also scared of her parents even when she was little, her adoptive mother never forget to tell her how useless and worthless she was, everyday.
"It's alright, Nico. It's alright." Ariella's voice became calm and soothing as she helped Kate get up from the floor. "I'm sure she'll still marry James even after what happened to her and Aaron–"
"I'm pregnant."
All of their eyes settled at Kate after hearing her weak voice. The whole place fell into silence and the only thing can be heard was the sobs coming from her sister.
"I'm pregnant.. and Aaron is the father."
Eliza wanted to runaway from everyone and cry her heart out but she remain calm and composed. Her palms circled into a fist and her sisters cries filled the whole silence.
"I'm pregnant, mom. I can't marry James because I'm pregnant with Aaron's child, I don't want to be called a slut for marrying someone who isn't the father of my child."
Eliza wanted to laugh at her sisters words. Does she think seducing her sisters boyfriend wasn't a slutty thing to do? She kept the question for herself and was about to walk out of the room when Ariella took her attention.
"Then Eliza should marry James," it was not a statement nor a question but a command.
"What? No way. I don't even know that man and I haven't even seen him once!" She finally found her courage to speak up and desperately rejected her mother's want.
Ariella's face darkened at what her adopted child said. "You have no right to disobey me, you orphan!"
"But you just can't force me to marry someone whom I don't even know." She continues to be calm but deep inside, her world was already crumbling and all she wanted to do was scream herself because of anger.
"Marry him, then I'll promise to give Mae every medical attention she'll need. I will pay for all her operation and medication." That was Ariella's final alas, leading Eliza to a quiet battle.
Her lips tremble in both fury and anguish, she tried to stop her tears from falling because she knew she couldn't kist reject the offer. She wanted to help Mae, she owe Mae her life and everything she was now.
Until the final seconds drop to an end, Eliza faced them with full of confident and fierce. She would do everything pay the only woman who treated her like a real family. She was willing to give everything.. including her freedom.
"Fine. I'll marry James if that's the only thing way to help Mae." With that, she turned her back at them and let lose of all the tears and pain she felt after making the tough decision.
She was never free from this family, the difference is she just have to be in a different cage.
