From Now On I Grow Toward Spring Chapter 09
Matteo staggered back a step, as if his legs had given out.
Scene after scene flashed through his mind.
Me, pale and gagging.
Me, suddenly showing up at the hospital.
And before that, the car window slowly rising between us.
Then he finally remembered what he’d forgotten.
The car had driven in the exact opposite direction of the restaurant.
Matteo stood frozen, a chill seeping into his bones.
He had left his pregnant wife in the office and carried Sofia to the hospital.
I had just come out of surgery, and he had sent me to buy soup.
It wasn’t until Sofia called his name several times that he snapped out of his daze.
“Dad, Mom, did you hear that? Talia was pregnant. She just had surgery… by herself.”
My father froze, his first reaction a disbelieving scowl.
Sofia fiddled with her fingers, her expression one of pure innocence. “Really, Matteo? Isn’t it a little convenient that you just happened to overhear the nurses saying exactly that?”
My father frowned. “If you ask me, Talia is just being difficult. She probably planted that story to give herself an excuse not to get soup for Sofia. Is that how an older sister is supposed to act?”
My mother nodded in agreement. “Talia loves children. She bought a whole stack of books on preparing for pregnancy. If she were really pregnant, she would have told everyone ages ago. There’s no way she would have gotten an abortion by herself. She’s probably hiding somewhere right now, waiting for us to panic.”
But Matteo couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.
He scanned the area, but there was no sign of me anywhere.