“You don’t have to do this, all I need is money for Dan’s operation,” I pleaded, feeling like a dying candle, consumed by shame. I had no choice.
“Listen,” he held me by the shoulders and looked me in the eye, drawing attention from the doctors and nurses around us with his loud voice. I felt embarrassed, but I couldn’t do anything.
I just nodded at him. After calling him yesterday, he arrived in just twenty minutes, even before I did. I saw him immediately talking to the doctor, asking me right away if I wanted the quickest way to get Dan treated. Of course, I agreed.
Today, he came to transfer Dan to a better facility in La Ciudad, I knew this because we initially brought Mama here, but had to move her due to the high costs.
“Eli, you should rest, I’ll take care of everything here,” Gray said as he entered the private room. He had been busy talking to the doctor, who mentioned that the results would only be available tomorrow. Since we arrived here, he hadn’t let me stand up, he took care of everything, and this private room was spacious.
“Gray, we need to talk,” I said as he came in. He frowned at me.
“Don’t you want to rest first? We can talk everything tomorrow. For now, you need to rest,” he handed me an extra pillow, as Jane asked for one too. There were three beds in this private room, it was like an apartment-style setup.
Seeing that he wasn’t convinced by his words, I pressed on, “Promise, we will talk about it tomorrow. You should have seen yourself, your dark circles were shouting for rest.”
I couldn’t argue with that, so I just lay down. He placed the extra pillow under my head, and although I wasn’t sleepy yet, when I felt the soft bed and warm blanket, it felt like my eyes were being pulled shut. Well, I let my eyes win for tonight.
—-
“So?” he started as the waiter served our coffee. “What’s the deal?”
“How can I repay you for what you did?” I asked directly. “I know it’s not a free act of service.”
“Come on, Eli, I’m not the bad guy here, don’t act like I’m the villain he—”
“Drop the act and tell me what I need to do,” I interrupted. I wanted to end this conversation, and I knew that given my circumstances, this was how it would be settled, based on Gray’s preferences.
“Okay,” his tone suddenly became formal, as if he were facing a business prospect. This was what I asked for, and I couldn’t complain now. “I know you didn’t like that we are legally married, but I won’t force you to act like my real wife. I just need you to do one thing.”
“And what is that?”
“You just have to sleep with me?” He said in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Are you fucking insane? Why would I sleep with you? I thought you said you wouldn’t force me to act like a real wife?” I felt my nose flare at his words. What did he think of me? Easy to get?
“Listen, lady,” I didn’t want to listen, but I had to. “I’m not saying that you have to have sex with me, that’s literally what I meant. Just sleep beside me, nothing more, nothing less.”
I couldn’t help but look at him suspiciously. Just sleep beside him, was that all?
“You probably have too much money, don’t you?” he looked at me, confused. “You just throw it around, paying for someone to sleep beside you? It’s different when you’re rich.”
“Just tell me if you want the job or not,” he sounded annoyed.
“Okay, for how long?”
“Six months, then you are free to go,” he handed me his menu. “Deal?”
I took a deep breath and nodded. Well, I guess I have no choice for now. I’ll have to uphold my role as his wife, it seems.
“Okay, deal.”
**********
“First rule, you have to wear this ring,” I nodded and put on the ring he handed me. He smiled. “Good. Second rule, you can’t tell anyone about this deal, understood?” Again, I nodded. “Third rule, for the next six months, you can’t be involved with any other man. Do you have a boyfriend?”
“No, I’m fine with that, proceed,” I replied, so he nodded.
“Fourth rule, you can’t fall in love with me,” I almost laughed at his statement, but I held it back because I didn’t want to offend him.
“Okay, got it,” we were currently in his favorite restaurant’s private room. I was expecting a fancy restaurant given how wealthy he seemed, but I was slightly surprised when we arrived here. He seemed to be a regular, as everyone recognized him as soon as we entered, even the waiters.
“Okay, I’m done. Now it’s your turn,” he said, so I took out my mini pad where I wrote down the rules I wanted.
“First rule, I’ll just sleep beside you until you fall asleep,”
“You can’t,” I looked at him in surprise at his statement, “You have to sleep with me until I wake up, then you are free to go. Also, I forgot, my fifth rule, you have to live in my house since we have to act like a married couple for half a year,”
I just nodded, “Okay, can I speak now?” he nodded, so I continued, “Okay, here it is,” I erased my initial rule and replaced it with what he said, which was a bit fair, “Okay, so I have to sleep with you until you wake up,” he nodded in agreement, “Second rule, I will attend any gatherings or events that my siblings need me for, regardless of my whereabouts or activities. I will always be there for them, and you can’t stop me, okay?”
“Yes, I understand that you’re all orphans,”
I clenched my jaw at that, “We have parents, they’re just not with us right now,” he didn’t say anything, so I glared at him and looked back at my paper where I wrote down my rules, “Third rule, just like you, you can’t be linked with any other woman. I don’t want to look like a neglected wife in front of many people,”
“Got it,” he replied coolly, as if he didn’t think it would be a problem.
“Fourth, aside from my brother’s hospital bills, you won’t have to pay for anything else for us,” he nodded again. I didn’t want to be too indebted to him, so I would try to save while he covered Dan’s bills, “Fifth, we must end the contract after six months,”
“Consider it done,” I handed him the paper, “I’ll make an official contract for this. By tomorrow, we can both sign it,” he just nodded and stood up, “I’ll settle Dan’s bill. We will do everything to make sure he recovers before the contract ends,”
I stood up too and grabbed my bag, “Alright, just call me,” he nodded and put on his suit before leaving. He was about to leave when I called out to him, “Thank you,”
He didn’t respond immediately and just looked at me, “No worries, what you’re doing isn’t free, there’s a price to it,”
I don’t know why, but what he said was hard to swallow. I didn’t say anything and just nodded at him, waiting for him to leave before sitting back down. Tears suddenly fell from my eyes at the realization of everything that was happening. I was being paid.
Well, technically, that’s what’s going to happen. I needed to cooperate, and at worst, sleep beside a man I didn’t know for money. Because of my desire to get my brother treated, I had come to this decision.
Whatever happens, my siblings are more important to me than myself. I’m their only hope, their replacement for our parents. And I promised at their graves that I would take care of Dan and Jane, in their place.
After I finished my emotional episode, I left and headed to the mall. Dan’s birthday is in five days. Even though he’s unconscious now, we’ll still prepare for him. I know he’ll wake up.
I bought decorations for the birthday and then went to the supermarket to buy ingredients. If Grayson happened to pass by the hospital, I’d have it sent to his house. If not, then to ours. I’ll just pick it up before I move out. Jane didn’t know what was going to happen to me yet. I’ll talk to her later.
—-
“How long are you going to be there, sis?” Jane asked as she worked on her thesis. It’s her last semester, so she’s been getting less sleep. I paused in folding the blanket because of what I heard her ask.
“Also for six months, Je. It’s a good offer, so I took it. We have a lot of expenses, right?”
“But sis, is it true that Grayson is your husband? And he even went to fix Dan’s hospital?”
I sat down and sighed, “We’re still fixing that. It’s a long process because the marriage became legal, and it takes time to sort out. For now, I’m not thinking about it. We need to save up,” I knew I was lying, but it was better to say it this way than have a lengthy conversation about it.
“Okay, sis, let it be. When I finish, I’ll work right away so I can sleep with you to lighten your load,” she said as she continued typing on her laptop. She was already wearing reading glasses, her eyesight getting a bit blurry. Among the three of us, she was the only one like this.
She loves to read, so she has a lot of book collections at home. Different authors, series, stand-alone novels, depending on her mood. But she doesn’t buy in bulk, just two each time. Once she finishes them, she buys new ones. Almost all the books on her shelf have been read.
She dreams of becoming an international writer, and she wanted to study abroad to enhance her credentials. But because we don’t have that much money to support her dream, she changed her course.
This will end soon, and when it does, I’ll make sure we’ll have a better life. I’ll give my siblings a good life.
Six months? Be it.