I can't lose my baby

**SOPHIE MADSON’S POV**

He was trying to drag me into a van that waited with the engine running. Without a second thought, I hurl some bags still in my hands and the heavy purse at his face, hitting him square on and causing him to stagger backward with the impact. I manage to break free from his grasp and run down the sidewalk in desperation, but I can't run too far because of the baby, so I stop for a moment to catch my breath. When I glance back, the man is running toward me even faster, and my heart races even faster with fear, knowing that if he were to capture me again, he would be even more enraged this time.

Some people pass by on the sidewalk, unaware of what's happening. When the man is about to reach me, I see another man holding me in his arms, shielding me from him. I look startled; it was the one I met the other day. Liam, I think that was his name.

"That man, he... he..." I can't finish; he looks up at the robber, who stops nearby when he sees I'm no longer alone. Then he touches my shoulders, moving me slightly away, and looks at me.

"Wait! Stay right there."

Then he strides toward the assailant. I watch as he lands a punch when he reaches the man, but his accomplice comes to help, and they both flee in the van. Liam comes back to me and touches my shoulders, concerned.

"You're pale! Are you feeling okay?" he worries.

"Not really!"

He then offers to drive me home. I had been feeling slight cramps for a few days now. I need to rest and see a doctor again after all these events.

He drives my car, and when we arrive at my house, he parks the car at the entrance to accompany me inside. I look at him, grimacing slightly from the pain I felt.

"Call a doctor right away. I'll take a taxi back. Are you alone?"

"I'll manage, but thank you once again. It's the second time you've saved my life in a way."

As we exit, he hands over the keys, bids farewell, and disappears. I watch him leave in the distance and enter slowly, placing my hand on my belly and grimacing.

"Do you need help, ma'am?" she asks.

"Yes, help me to get to the bedroom, and then call the obstetrician. I'll give you the number."

She does as instructed; we quickly climb the stairs, and I enter the bedroom. I walk to the bed, almost dragging myself, and after lying down, I give her the doctor's number, and she calls immediately. I close my eyes and bite my lip; I don't know what hurts more, the cramps or my heart filled with fear of something happening.

After a few minutes, the doctor arrives, brought by the housekeeper, and enters the room in a hurry, starting to ask questions, and I answer as much as possible. She conducts some tests, brings a modern device, opens her notebook, and immediately starts performing an ultrasound. She observes the screen and then prescribes some medications that I should take.

"I need a more detailed report. It will be ready in forty-eight hours. That's the time I ask you to rest and take all the medications. Once it's ready, I'll be responsible for giving you the results, okay?"

I listen attentively and feel worried; the way she speaks doesn't leave me as calm, as it took longer than usual, but she finishes by reassuring me, affirming that everything possible would be done for our well-being.

________________________

Two days later, I was feeling much better. I no longer felt any pain and felt a bit more at ease. I went to the company after those days, and there, I talked to a friend who had been pregnant twice before. She informed me that at the same stage of pregnancy, she already felt the baby moving like butterflies in her belly, and I felt apprehensive.

"Don't get anything into your head; every woman is different. Every pregnancy is a pregnancy, you know!" she advises.

"I'll wait, thank you!"

I left there and headed to my office; there would be a meeting later, and I needed to prepare because they asked for it every month after the first monthly planning. That was good because it occupied my mind a bit, and I was grateful not to see that snake around and Steven... the longing consumed my chest, but I needed to adapt. I wanted everything to be the opposite, but it was proving difficult.

I was so focused that I forgot about the problems a little, but my secretary came in and informed me that the doctor was waiting to be received. I immediately stood up, telling her to bring her in, and so it happened. I walked over to the doctor and gave her two kisses on each side of her face as a greeting.

"You didn't need to bother coming here, Doctor. I would have gone there as soon as requested," I smile.

"I need to talk to you as urgently as possible."

Her words tightened my chest. I felt anxious about the way she spoke, so I asked her to sit down and did the same in the chair just behind the desk.

"Sophie, what I want to alert you about is very difficult and serious. Please absorb it calmly," she sighs. "The report I made from the exams detected a genetic malformation in the fetus. As it developed, this became more visible."

I froze, looking at the woman in front of me without saying a word. My breathing—I think I was even forgetting to breathe—was slow. I pressed my lips together and felt my body start to tremble. No, I wasn't prepared for this.

"Your placenta is also detaching, the situation is becoming serious, and the chances of the baby surviving are minimal. The probability is putting your life at risk."

"What do you mean?" I ask in shock.

"Unfortunately, you should terminate this pregnancy; you are also at risk with each passing week. You are young; you will have the opportunity to have children, but you need to be alive."

"Is his heart still beating?" I ask.

Tears were rolling down my face, trembling, and I started to cry quietly and full of pain. Where did I go wrong? What did I do? Why all this?

"I've attended to mothers with the same case as yours; I know you must think it's your fault, but it's not. Unfortunately, genetic conditions can occur without any explanation. A fetal malformation."

"I want to know if he's still alive?" I ask again.

"Yes, his heart is beating, a bit weaker now," she reveals.

So there was still life; I wouldn't lose hope regardless of how my child might come into the world. I wiped my tears and took a deep breath.

"As long as his heart still beats, he'll be inside me... in my womb," I affirm with conviction.

"You're putting yourself at risk!"

"I'm willing to take that risk."