Chapter 194 The Only Goal
On the other end of the phone, Norman was choked up for a while.
After hanging up, Aurelia added the number to her blacklist. She slowly finished her bowl of oatmeal. Opening Nathaniel's Facebook chat, she typed a few words: [Nathaniel, when you have time, reply to my message. Let's go to the courthouse office to finalize the paperwork.]
In the hospital, Nathaniel had stayed in the ward all night. It wasn't until he stepped out for a smoke in the morning that he realized his phone had been on silent.
There were several missed calls in his call log. When he saw the word "wife", his eyebrows raised slightly. Then he saw Aurelia's message on Facebook.
The moment he read her update about handling paperwork at the courthouse, his eyelids twitched uncontrollably. He opened his contacts to call her, but hesitated, unsure how to explain his actions over the past night.
The truth was, he had left his pregnant wife alone at home while he spent the night with another woman. There was no way to spin this in a way that wouldn't make anyone furious.
Aurelia had always been patient and understanding, but she was still a woman. No woman could gracefully accept that her husband had spent the night with a lover who clearly had impure intentions.
Moreover, Nathaniel felt that since bringing her back, she was different from before—calm to the point of being frightening. He felt she might be testing him at any moment, ready to leave if he didn't perform well.
Nathaniel realized just how badly he had messed up.
When he returned to the ward, Chelsea had finally woken up.
Seeing Nathaniel's exhausted face, Chelsea couldn't suppress her happiness. She knew he wouldn't abandon her; she had ways to control him.
"Nathaniel, the doctor said yesterday that I'm pregnant with your baby. I dreamed our baby called me 'Mom' and asked for both of us to hold him to sleep. Can you come and hold me? Do we really have a baby?"
Nathaniel's eyes were shadowed with exhaustion; he hadn't slept a wink the entire night.
"If you're determined to have this child, I can't stop you. I can't take away your only chance to be a mother. Name your terms; you can have anything you want." His tone was icy, almost businesslike, as if he were waiting for her to lay out her terms.
The implication was clear: anything but marriage was on the table.
Such words from a wealthy man like him would have been eagerly accepted by any woman.
But Chelsea was worldly and knew the difference between a mere title and real substance. To her, being Mrs. Heilbronn wasn't just about numbers on a bank statement. It was about breaking into the high society, living a glamorous life, not just staring at a cold, lonely account balance.
Chelsea stubbornly held her ground, donning the facade of her nineteen-year-old self once more.
She asked innocently, "Nathaniel, what are you talking about? All I ever wanted was you. There's nothing else in this world I want."
Nathaniel felt despair and said, "I can't marry you. If you insist, I'll have to find someone to protect you, watch over you, and provide you with the best living conditions for the rest of your life. If you're willing, I can afford it."
A nobody. He could afford that.
Chelsea looked at his hard, unyielding face.
She thought, 'He is distancing himself, washing his hands of everything—except the money. How could he?
'The promises he's made once, has he already forgotten?'
"Nathaniel, if you think we're a burden, I can take the baby and die. There's no need to humiliate me like this. Our years of relationship don't deserve such harsh words."
Nathaniel's eyes were bloodshot, his throat dry.
He calmly said, "Then go ahead and die."
The room fell into a deathly silence, broken seconds later by Chelsea's hysterical crying.
"You promised to marry me. I've loved you for years and am carrying your child. We were each other's first love. How can you treat me like this? I'm not a rag you can just throw away."
Chelsea pounded her stomach, crying out, "We both deserve to die. We shouldn't be in this world. We're unwanted, unworthy of living, unworthy of being here."
Hearing the commotion, Norman rushed in with doctors, restraining Chelsea's arms.
"Chelsea, calm down. He's the father of your child. He won't abandon you. You've misunderstood Mr. Heilbronn; he was joking."
Chelsea gradually calmed down under their restraint, staring at the man who had spoken so harshly, her eyes filled with tears and extreme grievance.
She was unwilling to let go. Why should she?
Since her teenage years, she had believed she would one day marry him and become Mrs. Heilbronn. Over the years, becoming Mrs. Heilbronn had become an obsession, something she couldn't let go of.
Nathaniel was extremely agitated, and he finally asked, "What will it take for you to let me go?"
Chelsea finally calmed down, wanting to find a resolution to their abnormal relationship.
"Marry me. I want to be your legal wife, even if it's just for a year, a month, or even a day."
Nathaniel sneered. He didn't believe she would be satisfied with just one day. He felt he had never truly understood Chelsea. Since her return over the past two months, he had gradually seen her obsession and ruthlessness, which were far from the innocent, kind girl he remembered.
"Just one day?"
Chelsea hesitated. She had said it casually; of course, she wouldn't be satisfied with just one day. But at least his question was a small concession.
She thought, 'As long as he's willing to take that first step and get the marriage license with me, I can figure out how to delay any separation later. Besides, plans often change, and once we're married, he'll see the good in me. After all, we've shared over a decade of history; it's not something that can just be thrown away.'
Thinking this, Chelsea suddenly felt confident.
Before she could answer, a knock on the door drew everyone's attention.
Aurelia appeared at the door, clad in a loose, cotton maxi dress, her hair falling casually around her shoulders. Her serene demeanor and indifferent attitude only fueled Chelsea's anger.
Aurelia's aloofness, her apparent disregard for everything Chelsea was desperately clinging to, made Chelsea feel like a fool. The stark contrast between her desperate efforts and Aurelia's nonchalant demeanor was crushing.
Chelsea felt like a mere clown in the situation.
Aurelia's presence only heightened the already tense atmosphere, making it even more volatile.
Norman quickly moved to block Aurelia at the door, preventing her from entering.
"Aurelia, don't make a scene. This is a hospital. Let's talk outside. Chelsea can't handle the stress."
Nathaniel stared straight at Aurelia, his heart pounding. Thinking of her message, he felt very uneasy. He knew she had come because he hadn't responded, and her only purpose was to ask for a divorce.
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