I Hope You Will Never Regret

In the blink of an eye, it was the Rugby World Cup Final. Xavier’s mother arrived at Valencia’s ward before 6 pm to keep her company. She brought soft pap and salads. Xavier thanked his mother, then he kissed his wife and left his wife’s ward.

Mrs Taylor looked at Valencia with eyes full of sadness and asked, “How are you feeling, my daughter-in-law?” Valencia smiled and replied, “I don’t feel any pain, Mom. My mother gave me medication and it is working wonders.”

Her mother-in-law looked at her with questioning eyes and asked, “Are you supposed to take any medication while you are pregnant?” Valencia shook her head and replied, “My mother’s doctor told her that the medication will not affect the baby.”

Her mother-in-law was not convinced and said, “Let me see your medication. How long have you been taking this medication? Did you ask Dr Smith if there are no side effects?”

Valencia gave her mother-in-law the medication and replied, “I started taking it when I was twenty weeks pregnant.

I didn’t ask Dr Smith because my mother gave me an assurance that it would never affect the baby. Mom, you know that this baby is everything to my mother and she will never put her in danger.”

Her mother-in-law looked at her and said, “I will ask Dr Smith to test this medication for me. Your parents’ behavior at the baby shower didn’t sit well with me.

They were jealous and greedy. Is your sister planning to replace you when you are no more?”

Valencia froze but she quickly calmed herself down. She looked at her mother-in-law smiling and asked, “What do you mean, Mom?” Her mother-in-law looked at her coldly and replied, “Please don’t play dumb with me.

You know exactly what I am talking about. Did your parents promise your sister that she would take your place should you pass away?”

Valencia lowered her eyes and replied, “Mom, I don’t understand what you are talking about. Are you accusing my sister, Valeria, of being in love with her brother-in-law?”

Her mother-in-law was fuming with anger and said, “Oh, now I understand why they were not happy when my son suggested that you go for surgery after you give birth. It’s because they are waiting for you to die.

Please tell your mother that your sister will never be my daughter-in-law. Your family is despicable. I thought your mother was decent, but I was wrong. I feel sorry for my son. He is in this predicament because I listened to your mother.”

Then she dialed Dr Smith’s number. When it was connected, she asked him to come to Valencia’s ward. A few minutes later, Dr Smith walked to Valencia’s ward.

He greeted Mrs Taylor with respect. Mrs Taylor gave him the medication that Valencia was eating and asked him to test it for her.

Dr Smith looked at Valencia and said, “Young Mrs Taylor, I indicated to you that you are not supposed to take any medication besides Folic Acid, Ferrous Sulphate, and Calcium. Where did you get this medication from and for how long were you taking it?”

Dr Smith shook his head when he heard Valencia’s response. He looked at Mrs Taylor and said, “Mrs Taylor, I will go to the lab right now, but I can say that this medication will have serious side effects on the fetus.”

He left and went straight to the lab to test Valencia’s medicine. Mrs Taylor was very angry with the Moore family; they took the Taylor family for granted.

She looked at her daughter-in-law coldly and asked, “Why are you refusing to register your marriage with my son? Didn’t you force my son to marry you because of your mother’s illness? Why are you playing hard to get?”

Valencia didn’t know how to respond to her mother-in-law. She decided to keep quiet. Mrs Taylor looked at her and said, “Maybe it is a blessing in disguise to not register your marriage.

I really liked you and I thought you would be a good wife to my son, but I was wrong. The Moore family has brought nothing but pain to my son. I am just hoping that there are no secrets the Moore family is hiding from the Taylor family.”This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

Valencia’s heart beat so fast when she heard her mother-in-law’s words. The atmosphere became awkward. Her mother-in-law switched on the television and sat on the sofa. She was praying for the Springboks to bring the trophy home.

In the boardroom next door, Xavier and his friends were chatting and laughing. Chase looked at them and said, “I am so nervous guys, the New Zealand team is a tough nut to crack.”

Xander smiled and replied, “I have faith that our Springboks will surely win today.” Hunter had a glass of juice in his hand; he took a sip and said, “I am looking forward to the All Blacks Haka.”

Cole Knight, Xavier’s Executive Secretary, was in his apartment braaiing the meat. His boss asked him to prepare food for them. He put the meat in different meat serving dishes, then he went to the hospital to deliver the food.

Xavier asked Cole to watch the match with them. Then he went to the bathroom to wash his hands. He took the plates and started dishing out for everyone. Chase washed his hands and helped him.

Xavier took two plates of food and went to his wife’s ward. When he walked into the ward, he felt that the atmosphere was tense. He looked at his mother and asked, “Mom, what happened?”

His mother told him about the medication that Valencia was taking. She also indicated to him that she had asked Dr Smith to test the medication if it didn’t have any side effects on the baby.

Xavier looked at his wife and asked, “Valencia, didn’t we discuss this matter and you promised me that you would stop taking it until Dr Smith confirmed that the medication would not affect the baby?”

Valencia replied, “Xavier, why would I ask Dr Smith because, since I started using this medication, I don’t feel any pain? Also, my mother’s doctor told her that the medication doesn’t have any side effects. I trust my mother wholeheartedly.”

Her mother-in-law was fuming with anger and asked, “Valencia, do you care about this baby? Why did you refuse when your husband asked you to abort it?”

Xavier looked at his mother and said, “Calm down, Mom. Let’s hope there is nothing wrong with the medication. Please eat while the meat is still hot.” It was rare for his mother to lose her temper, especially to her beloved daughter-in-law.

A few minutes later, Xavier went to the boardroom next door to watch the rugby match. Both teams were on the field and the All Blacks were performing Haka. In the first half, the Springboks’ Handre Pollard scored four penalties. The All Blacks were trailing by 12-6.

In the second half, the All Blacks came back more determined and threw everything they had to the Springboks. They held the Springboks; they couldn’t even score a try. The All Blacks got a try, but they missed the conversion. The score was 12-11.

Towards the end of the match, the All Blacks got the penalty. Xavier and his friends stood on their feet praying for Jordie Barrett to miss it. It seemed that the heavens heard their prayers because the penalty attempt went wide.

When the referee blew the whistle for the last time, Chase hugged Xavier tightly. The Springboks showed resilience and a fighting spirit to the end. It was a nail-biting match, no one wanted to sit down anymore.

The Springboks won the Rugby World Cup against the All Blacks by 12-11. They successfully defended their title. They won the Rugby World Cup for the fourth time.