Chapter 24 Miscarriage Surgery
Summer accompanied Aria to the hospital early the next morning, and they sat in the corridor waiting.
Normally, abortion procedures required advance appointments, and finding a doctor willing to perform the surgery on such short notice would be difficult. But Aria paid extra money, and with money, there was no problem.
Now the doctor was in place, they just needed to wait for the anesthesiologist, who was still on the way.
Aria sat on a chair outside the obstetrics and gynecology department, waiting for her test results before the procedure.
The heavy, dragging sensation in her lower abdomen seemed even more pronounced, accompanied by waves of palpitations.
Just thinking about this child leaving her soon made her eyes well up with tears.
Summer sat beside her, holding her hand tightly.
"Aria, don't be scared, I'm here."
Then she sighed, "Actually, you don't need to rush like this. We could come after you've thought it through."
Aria wanted to say it had to be now, that she'd finally managed to make up her mind.
She was afraid that if she waited any longer, she'd regret it.
These words stuck in her throat—she wanted to say them, but couldn't get them out.
She looked at the operating room not far away, her stomach churning.
The courage she'd built up before leaving home had mostly worn away by now.
"Summer..." Aria swallowed, her voice terribly hoarse. "I... I need to use the restroom."
"I'll go with you."
"No need." Aria pressed her hand down, forcing out a smile that looked worse than crying. "It's right over there. I'll be quick. Can you wait for the report for me?"
Summer sighed. "Alright, hurry back."
Aria let out a breath and walked unsteadily toward the restroom.
Of course, she didn't really need to use the restroom—sitting there waiting was just too agonizing. She wanted to do something else to distract herself.
Water gushed from the sink faucet. She cupped some water and splashed it on her face, bringing a cool, tingling sensation.
Tears surged up again, beyond her control.
She lowered her head, hands gripping the edge of the sink, shoulders trembling slightly as she cried silently.
So it had come to this after all.
She'd wanted to live a good life with her child after the divorce, but had to endure the repeated pressure from the child's father.
Just as her mind was in complete chaos, someone suddenly called out from behind her.
"Aria? Oh, Mrs. Grant, it really is you! What are you doing here so late?"
Aria's whole body jolted. She turned around to see a middle-aged woman with heavy makeup and elegant dress.
After thinking for a moment, she recognized her—this seemed to be Elizabeth's friend, Mrs. Moore, whose husband was also a well-known wealthy businessman.
When Elizabeth had returned home for a brief stay last time, she'd met her twice at gatherings.
"Mrs. Moore?" Hastily wiping the tears from her face, Aria forced a smile. "My friend isn't feeling well, so I came with her."
"I see." Mrs. Moore smiled. "You look terrible. I thought you were the one who wasn't feeling well."
Aria pressed her lips together, not wanting to say more, and was about to leave.
But this lady was overly enthusiastic and quite familiar, actually linking arms with her.
"Do you have a doctor you know? I happen to have an appointment with a very skilled gynecology specialist. He could take a look at your friend."
A strong wave of perfume hit her.
Aria was right in the middle of severe pregnancy symptoms. Her mouth immediately filled with acid, and she turned to the sink and threw up.
When she turned back around, she found Mrs. Moore looking her up and down, eyebrows raised high, as if she'd figured something out.
"You're pregnant, aren't you? Oh, you must be!" She pulled out her phone to call Elizabeth.
"I have to tell her this good news. She'll be so happy!"
"No, don't!" Aria quickly stopped her. "I'm not pregnant, I just..."
Just as she was about to use the stomach flu excuse, Summer's voice came along with her footsteps.
"Aria, the results are in, and the anesthesiologist is here too. We can do the abortion now."
"Are you done?"
Summer walked in with the test results and froze.
"Who is this...?"
Mrs. Moore stood with her mouth open, eyes wide, looking at Aria. "Abortion?"
Aria slapped her forehead hard.
This was bad.
If Mrs. Moore knew, then Elizabeth would definitely find out too.
With her fragile nerves, she couldn't even handle something like divorce, let alone an abortion.
"Mrs. Moore, let me explain." She quickly tried to clarify.
"The abortion was a private decision between Arthur and me. He has a mistress, as you know, so..."
"So for his mistress, he's making you, his legal wife, get an abortion?" Mrs. Moore exclaimed, her expression like she'd heard some absurd story.
"Actually, it's not..." Just as she was about to explain, Aria felt nauseous again, her throat moving up and down several times before settling.
"We're planning to divorce, and I don't want to raise a child alone."
Mrs. Moore understood completely, looking at her with sympathy. "Poor child."
"In the end, it's still Arthur's fault. I really don't see what's so great about that mistress of his. When the Grants were about to go bankrupt, that woman heard about it and immediately fled abroad, disappearing without a trace. Now that they're thriving again, she's back."
"They don't even think about it—if Mr. Hall hadn't stepped in back then, Arthur would've been on the streets, living off food stamps! And what happened? When the Hall family had problems, he just watched and did nothing!"
"Those two are both heartless!"
Mrs. Moore muttered on, quite indignant on Aria's behalf.
Summer nodded repeatedly beside her. "Exactly, he's completely inhuman!"
Aria's expression darkened.
"So, can you keep this secret for me? I don't want his mother to know."
"His mother's health is very poor, she can't handle shocks. I'm afraid she won't be able to take it if she finds out."
Mrs. Moore nodded, patting her arm gently. "Don't worry, I won't say anything."
Returning to the department with the report.
Aria was very nervous, hands clenched tightly.
The doctor looked at the report with a serious expression. "The embryo is developing well. Are you sure you want to terminate?"
Aria's heart felt like it would jump out of her throat. Her mouth opened, but no sound came out.
Summer beside her quickly said, "Yes, we're sure!"
"Alright." The doctor wrote out a payment slip and signed it. "If you're sure, go pay the fee."
Then, taking a bottle of medicine from the drawer, she poured out two pills. "Take these first. In an hour, we can schedule the abortion procedure."
Aria hesitantly took them, staring blankly at the two pills. Just then, her phone rang in her pocket.