Chapter 49
"No, it's not what you think. I've just had a bit too much of spicy food, so my lips got swollen. I'm not feeling too well now. I'll just take half a day's leave."
Scarlet left in a hurry and didn't dare to stay there any longer.
Then, for the next two weeks, she didn't see Lenny since that day.
As time went by, she forgot about that accident.
The weather was getting colder and colder each passing day. She had been pregnant for four months, and her belly was naturally increasing in size. People who weren't aware of her pregnancy might have just assumed she had gained a bit of weight.
She hid it carefully from others and made sure no one found out about it.
After school finished on Friday, she received a call from Lenny's mother, Nita.
Not long ago, Nita went on a business trip with her husband, and hadn't returned since.
When Nita learned from Marlene that Lenny and Scarlet had gotten a divorce, she felt very troubled by it, and wanted to persuade them in getting back together. But at that time, Rosaline had been pregnant with Lenny's baby.
Nina had experienced the same situation in her own past.
Back then, Marlene had found someone from a family of equal social ranking for her son, Jamal. The two families had been friends for many years.
This marriage should have been a strong alliance. It should've become the talk of the city and made everyone envious.
But who would have thought that the bridegroom would run away before the wedding?
The bride's family was disgraced, and the bride lost control and almost committed suicide.
Not long after, Jamal came back with Nita, the woman he loved. Nita was pregnant at the time.
When the two elders found out about this, Marlene's husband, Sewell Foster, fell ill.
This left Marlene as the head of the family. She didn't like Nita as her daughter-in-law at all, but when Jamal threatened her with taking his own life if she didn't oblige, she had no choice but to accept Nita as her daughter-in-law.
The relationship between Marlene and Nita had always been bad, as a result.
A few years later, Sewell passed away. Marlene grew lonely and aloof.
As for the woman that Jamal had abandoned, she didn't get married until she was thirty years old. The whole family had emigrated abroad and never came back.
Marlene's best friend severed all ties with her because of this matter. Naturally, she put the blame on Nita.
Jamal and Nita had decided not to have a wedding ceremony, which was unusual for a rich family. People generally laughed at others who got marriage certificates but didn't have a formal wedding ceremony after.
Society would never consider them as a real couple.
Jamal had always felt like he owed Nita one, but since Marlene had never wholeheartedly agreed to their marriage, he had no other choice in this matter.
As a result, Nita was the laughing stock every time she attended any function or banquet.
There were many rumors and talks against her. People said that she had firstly seduced Jamal to sleep with her, which led to a shotgun marriage. They also said that she was the one who had persuaded Jamal to run away from his official wedding ceremony with the rich lady, and because she and Jamal didn't hold a wedding many years ago, there was no point in holding one now, after so much time had passed.
Evidently, Nita had a very difficult time being the Foster family's daughter-in-law all those years.
Only when Lenny married Scarlet did Nita's life get marginally better.
Over the past year, with Scarlet's unremitting efforts, Nita and Marlene finally stopped being at loggerheads with each other.
Obviously, Nita began to like Scarlet.
But Nita also knew that everything Rosaline was going through was exactly what she had been through all those years back. She didn't have the heart to make things difficult for Rosaline.
And as a mother, Nita would naturally take her son's side. She wouldn't stop her son like Marlene had tried to.
As long as Lenny loved Rosaline, it didn't matter what her background was; whether or not she came from a rich family.
After all, Nita herself was from a humble family.
When Nita returned this time, the first person she wanted to see was not Rosaline, but Scarlet.
Lenny had tried to make an appointment with Nita so that Rosaline could meet her, but he was refused from doing so.
Scarlet arrived in a hurry. She didn't expect to hear a familiar voice before she entered the room.
"Mom, Rosaline has been dying to meet you."
"I don't want to see her now! It's not until now that I understand how helpless your grandmother was back then. I think Scarlet is perfect for you, but you divorced her. Now that you brought another woman home, what could I have done? You leave me no choice.
I know how much Scarlet had done to make things better between your grandmother and me. You don't like her, but I do. I can tolerate your divorce and your marriage to Rosaline. But I can't help feeling guilty for doing this to Scarlet.
Just forget about asking me to accept Rosaline at the moment. Let's talk about it when the wound is not so fresh anymore, and when I'm less angry."
Standing at the door, Scarlet felt warm in her heart. At least, her efforts were not in vain.