The young man woke up in very dark surroundings. For a few seconds he seemed stunned and he suddenly got up from his bed.
"Mom" the young man called after he got up from his bed.
When the young man came out, he saw the door of his mother's room opened ajar. As he was about to close the door his eye caught a brown envelope along with a seemingly old notebook. When he approached it, a picture of him and his mother was placed on its cover. The young man picked up the notebook and envelope before sitting on the mother's bed. He first opened the envelope and it contained his birth certificates, one with his mother’s last name and one with his father "Henry Davidson". Aside from it is the original land title named after him and the other properties given to him which are still in the other country. Next, the young man opened the notebook which is his mother's diary
*November 1995
I was talking to my friends while we're waiting for Grandpa Orhan's group to come home from the farm. My friends and I were assigned to always cook snacks for them every afternoon. This is just our daily routine, after school, I go straight to Grandpa Orhan's house to help him and his wife Grandma Aergul. A few minutes later we saw Grandpa Orhan's group on their way home, but they were accompanied by a foreigner. He is handsome and tall, looks like he is in his mid-twenties, and is obviously rich because of his clothes. Grandpa Orhan asked me to follow them inside the house as soon as they approached us, which I immediately obeyed.
When we entered the house, Grandpa Orhan made the guest sit down, I would have gone to the kitchen to help prepare a snack for them when the old man stopped me.
"Erine, let your grandmother do it and just sit here. We just have something important to tell you."
Even though I'm wondering I still complied.
"Erine, he is Mr.Davidson," Grandpa Orhan introduced their visitor.
"He bought the land next to ours, with the plantations that the former owner sold before they emigrated." Mr. Davidson smiled at me before extending his hand in front of me which I accepted.
"I'm Erine, Erine Arslan," I smiled and introduced myself while I shook hands with him.
With great timing when we let go of each other's hands, Lola Aergul arrived with juices and sandwiches. Mr.Davidson took one of the glasses and drank from it. For some unknown reason, I suddenly seemed nervous. When the man lowered his glass, he turned to me.
"Can you understand English?" he asked me.
"Yes, I know somehow."
"I would like to offer you something," he said seriously. "What is it?" I replied politely.
"I wish I could entrust that land to you .." "What?" I suddenly stood up because of surprise, and I did not expect that I raised my voice, which was caused by the peeping of those who were curious outside at whatever event was happening here inside the house. How could I not be surprised, that the land is so big?
"Maybe you're just surprised," I added.
"Erine, sit down first and listen to Henry." Lola Aergul calmed me down, which I obeyed. The young man cleared his throat before he continued.
"Mr. Orhan told me that you were orphaned by your parents and that your father left you to them before he passed away."
I just listened intently to Henry and waited for him to say something more.
"We know how much you want to go to college but Mr. Orhan can't afford to pay for your education just in case, because the savings left for you by your parents have been used up. So I would like to offer you something in exchange for your future studies at a private university in the city"
For a few minutes, I didn't say any words because I was studying the face of the person in front of me carefully. After all, what if he is just messing around.
"And taking care of your crops will be the exchange ?" I asked him after a moment.
"It's not just his plantations and house he wants to give Erine," Grandpa Orhan's serious voice answered my question.
"Then what else?"
"He would have wished, to leave his future heir to you"
"Besides planting, do you want me to be the nanny of your child?" I frowned and asked,
"Does your wife already know this?" I added.
"Erine, Henry is unmarried yet."
"So you want me to take care of your illegitimate child?" I asked again as I got up from my seat.
"Not either." Grandpa Orhan answered again.
"Then what is it?" I asked them, confused.
If he doesn't have a wife, nor he doesn't have an illegitimate child then what kind of child I am going to take care of. Henry sighed before answering my question.
"Then I'll just be direct Erine. I want to offer you to become the mother of my future child."
"Wait, I just met you. Do you want me to be your wife right away?" I asked him, shocked.
"Not wife Erine. But a mother of my future child."
"It's even worse ..."
"I mean you will be a surrogate mother, Erine. I want you to undergo surrogacy and will become a surrogate mother of my future heir."
When I heard that I seemed to have lost my balance and fell into my seat.