The Truth Behind a Smile by Mathew A. Silva

Author:Mathew A. Silva [Silva, Mathew A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-06-30T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

Blood Loss

“Psst, Ana … psssst,” Stephen whispered urgently. He couldn’t wait any longer for her to wake up. He shook her lightly by pressing two fingers against her shoulder between her glitter- and confetti-littered hair. They had spent the previous night celebrating the New Year, and given Stephen’s reluctance to drink alcohol, that had meant that Ana was allowed to drink. Kneeling at her bedside and biting his lip, he slowly built up the force he was applying to her shoulder.

After a few more shakes, and Ana began to open her eyes.

He watched as she tried to focus, and her gaze settled on the small black box he held a few inches from her face. In the box was a silver ring with one of smallest but clearest diamonds anyone could expect to see, surrounded by a halo of even smaller diamonds. Her eyes went wide.

“Ana, I love you and I want to—” Stephen began.

“YES! YES! Of course, I’ll marry you!” She grabbed him by the neck and smashed his face against hers, kissing him as tears gathered in her eyes and began to trickle down her face.

“Okay, okay! Let me at least put the ring on you.” Stephen said as he pulled away.

A smile like he’d never felt before spread across his face as he slid the ring onto a finger of her trembling hand. His lips parted on their own and for a rare moment he felt a natural smile. He felt the liquid warmth of tears of his own, and his vision became blurred.

Ana held out her hand, fingers splayed. The ring fit perfectly.

The two soon-to-be newlyweds spent the day at home in each other arms, enjoying their time together and saving the work of sharing the news for the days to come. They planned a small wedding, no more than 15 or so people, including themselves. Much like Stephen, Ana was an introvert who didn’t have many close friends. She too had lost her parents but at a much younger age. Orphaned by a boating accident in the gulf, she was raised by an aunt who didn’t care much for her. She moved out at the first opportunity, working at menial jobs, paying her way through school, and finally becoming an emergency room nurse.

The small wedding allowed them to save money, which they soon would need in other areas of their lives: Ana would conceive on their wedding night. After the wedding the two would not get much time to themselves since they would be busy preparing for their newborn. It was an exciting time for the couple, and especially for Stephen, who had always dreamt of having a family and children of his own.

He spent most of his time babyproofing their new home. He did everything he could to make sure their family would be safe, taking every precaution he could think of into account, even preventing Ana from driving on her own after the second trimester. All these defenses and security measures helped put Stephen at ease, until one night a few weeks away from the due date.

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