Anna woke up feeling worse than last night. Her head is pounding, as if all her blood is pumping all at once in her head.
Perfect. This is what she gets for eating spoiled food.
She started moving, and now she also feels like she is gonna throw up. Quickly, she tried to get up. For some reason, she cannot seem to do so, as if she is drowning in her own mattress. It took her a full minute before she was able to get herself sitting on the edge of the bed.
Today was just one of those days when her body felt a little bit too heavy.
She was breathing hard now, despite finally being able to sit up; she was still out of breath.
What time is it? I did not hear my alarm go off.
She looks back at the sheets of the bed, trying to find her phone. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark room. It was then that she realized she was staring at a rich and heavy, velvety bedspread.
This is not my bed. A rising panic started in her chest.
Where am I?
She started to look around. It was a large room, only illuminated by the seeping morning light in the drapes by the two high ceiling windows far off the wall.
Starting to stand up, she planned to peek at those curtains covering those windows when she suddenly felt very dizzy. Like her world is spinning, and she could not seem to make it stop.
Feeling wobbly, she felt the sudden urge to throw up again. It was then that she actually started vomiting. Grabbing a basin-looking-metal from some nightstand, she buried her face in it and just kept going.
It's as if her stomach is getting turned over. Her belly would tighten, and whenever she felt like she had emptied everything, it would clench again and prove her wrong. She couldn't stop.
When she was finally done, she felt so much better, as if a cool breeze was suddenly blowing on her face. Beaded sweats were all over her face, the feeling of being just too weak and tired enveloped her, and she just ended up sitting on the floor.
Oh my god, I thought I was gonna die. What is happening to me?
It was then that she touched her tummy and realized it was way too big.
She quickly looked down and saw her oversized belly covered by some thin, flimsy piece of clothing. Not quite believing what she saw, she grabbed the long, chemise-like, white, linen, cottony fabric at the hem, and then she pulled it up so that she could see her bare stomach.
"AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" As soon as she saw her swollen belly, she started to scream.
The door to the room burst open, and two scared women, dressed in what looked like an 18th-century Victorian maid uniform, entered.
"M-Miss, a-are you ok?" the first maid stammered. She was a young-looking, petite girl with freckles and a brown short wavy hair.
"My stomach. It's big!!" She told them frantically.
"Calm down, miss, you are almost on your 9th month, your tummy will definitely be the biggest in your last months of pregnancy." The other, much older maid answered. This one looks more composed, but her sweating face tells her she is as nervous as the first girl.
"P-pregnancy?" She asked.
How in the world is she pregnant? And.. Who are these people?
She looked around the room and noticed that she was in a very unfamiliar place. Where is she?
The room was big, too big. While it was dark, she could see the shadows of solid oak furniture scattered in the room. There was a heavy-looking four-poster bed, two elaborately carved cushion chairs facing each other, and a circular table with what looked like a flower vase in the center.
At the end of the room, there is a dresser with a huge vanity mirror. It was then that she caught a reflection of herself in that mirror.
Sitting on the rich, intricately patterned carpeted floor is a woman with long, straight, thick black hair. It curls just right at the tips as it lies on the carpeted floor.
The eyes looking straight at her were silver instead of her supposedly brown eyes. The same shock registered on its face as she moved her hand to her face.
"No. This can't be. That can't be me."
This is the last thing she said before fainting.
-----
"Miss, Miss.. please wake up."
Anna woke up with a start. The dream is still fresh in her mind.
"Miss, are you ok?" The younger maid asked, while the other, much older maid, sighed in relief.
"You?" She asked the younger-looking maid.
"O-of course it's me, M-Miss, are you okay? You have been dreaming."
Anna looked at her belly, true enough, the massive bump was there.
Glancing around, she is back in the large room. This time, she is propped on a massive four-poster bed. Heavy draperies of velvet and silk hung all over the top of it, and the two giant windows now lay open.
So it wasn't a dream.
She suddenly has the urge to see what's outside. Getting out of the heavy sheets, she placed her feet on the floor and started to walk to the window.
"M-Miss?" The maid nervously called when she saw where she was going.
Outside, she can see carriages on narrow cobbled paths, rows and rows of 18th-century Victorian architecture, and people dressed in extravagant dresses of the same time period.
What she saw confirmed what she thinks is happening to her.
As a burnt-out employee, one of her hobbies has always been reading webtoons online before she goes to sleep. If the story is especially good, she would stay all night getting lost in the plot. Unfortunately, most of them were not up to her taste, so she would often drop a lot of series in the process.
Her favorite has always been what they call an isekai historical romance. It is a genre in which a person gets transmigrated into a historical/costume romance. It is usually about princesses, villains, kings, dukes, and even magical beings. Right now, looking at the busy street below, she couldn't help but admire everything. It is simply beautiful.
She wanted to lean more on the glass window, but the maid suddenly held her back.
"M-Miss, forgive me, but you cannot be seen outside."
She looked at the hands that held her back.
The maid's face turned white, she quickly removed her hands from her, then dropped down on her knees.
"I am so sorry to have touched you miss. I did not mean to offend you. Please have mercy on me." The maid trembled.
"Why can't I be seen outside?" She asked.
The tearful maid looked at her, puzzled. "Well, people cannot find out about your... Uhmm.. D-delicate condition. You said we would die if anyone ever found out the missus is with a child." The last sentence was said with tears on the young maid's face.
Judging by the way this maid always stammers in front of her, she could tell that this maid is definitely afraid of her.
Why is she so afraid? She also noticed that the other older maid seemed uneasy as well, as if they were both terrified of her.
Her eyes circled the room and landed on the mirror by the dresser for the second time that day. Seeing her face again, she noticed how very dark her hair was, how her eyes were slanted in such a fierce, almost catlike way.
Yes, a resting bitch face. Her face is definitely designed to look like some villainess. She is positive she has been transmigrated to a novel, and it looks like she is inside the body of one of the bad guys.
Ok, she has to think, which one is it? She has read so many webtoons throughout the years that she is not even sure which one she is on.
Think, a story where the villainess got herself pregnant, or was pregnant!! What's the title? She came up with nothing. And even if she remembers, she has read so many that she is not even sure which one it is.
She tried to calm down, maybe she will remember in a bit. She needs to investigate. Looking back at the maid, she decided she'd better know who these people are.
"What's your name?" She asked the maid.
The maid looked even more puzzled now.
Oh no, what if these people became suspicious of her?
"U-uhmm.., It is me... Hannah, young Miss, you hired me 7 months ago and have been serving you faithfully since then."
Hannah is a pretty generic name in webtoon, which doesn't give her anything. She had to know. Maybe she will remember something, a memory from the previous owner of this body.
Trying to concentrate, she closed her eyes and forced herself to think. All that came was memories from her past life; she has no idea who she is. Looking at those unopened drawers by the dresser, maybe she could find something that would help.
"Alright Hannah you may leave."
The maid looked confused; it was clear she was expecting not to be let go so easily. The sigh of relief was evident as she gently stood up, bowed her head, walked back to the double doors, and closed them behind her.
As soon as she was out, Anna started rummaging through the dresser. In there, she found perfumes, expensive hair accessories, brushes, combs, powders, some old-looking makeup vials, and tints.
She went further into the room, the circular table with the vase on it had a small drawer. She opened that and found some metal shears. Some stems and petals were beside it, which means whoever trims the roses in the vase must be keeping this thing in the drawer for easy access.
She started opening the closet, the massive ones by the wall only contain clothes. Come to think of it, shouldn't they have study? maybe she needs to find where the study room is.
She was gonna do just that when her eyes landed on the side table by the bed. Quickly, she walks towards it and opens the drawers.
Bingo.
She found what looked like a stacked of letters. The envelopes have already been ripped open. She slid the first letter into her hands. Thank goodness she can read these world's alphabets.
It was addressed to a Secilia Ana Marie Dela Riva.
"Is this my name?"
She thought hard, but she couldn't remember anything. Well, at least it has an Ana in it, which is not so different from her original name, Anna. She started reading through the letters; most of them were invitations to a ball. Some were from ladies who were clearly wondering why they hadn't been going out at all. From the way they wrote their letter, she could see that they were more curious than actually concerned.
Then she found a correspondence from someone named Dr. Richmond Smith.
Miss S.
I have only received your request right now, and rest assured that I would be very happy to perform the necessary procedure. This is, of course, if this is still your wish or if you haven't done it already. I do apologize, as I understand it is a matter of urgency. But alas, I have just arrived from the 6-month voyage from the Southern colonies. Thus, I was otherwise unable to answer your request sooner.
Let me know if you still need my services.
At your service,
Dr. Smith
Procedure? What procedure?
She gasped, dropping the letter from her hands.
Could it be? She was so shocked. Whoever owns this body is planning to kill the baby.
Hold on, maybe she's wrong. After all, it did not say what kind of procedure it was; it could mean different things.
But if it is, then it kind of makes sense. The maid called her miss, not ma'am or madam, which means she is unmarried. Pregnancy for a non-wedded woman is a no-no in this strict society. This also further explains the secrecy.
Her heart was racing as she touched her belly. I wonder who could be the baby's father?
A strong kick caught her by surprise. She felt it directly above where she had laid her hand. After that, she felt it move.
It was then that hot tears started falling down her face. As the baby continued to move in her womb, she realized how much she had always wanted a child of her own, how she had been so envious of her ex having his.
She really wanted one so bad. And now, caressing her swollen belly, she realized she had one right here, growing inside of her.
"Thank you, Oh God, thank you." She hasn't prayed in years. With all that she has been through, somewhere along the way, she stopped believing her life could be better. But now, she has received the miracle of a second life and the chance to fulfill her wish to have children.
"If your real mommy does not want you, then I will have you instead." She said tearfully.
She has questioned before why she loves reading 'isekai' genre so much. And realized that it is because stories like it allow the protagonist a second chance at life. Whether it's possessing the body of a character, getting reborn back into their younger selves, or being hit by a truck, dying, and getting reborn into a different land, or transmigrating into a magical place. The idea that one can escape their crappy life in the real world and be given a chance to redo it for the better is a projection of most people's greatest desire.
If one is given the chance to live a second time, this time, they will be wiser. Their choices will be well thought out, backed by experience and wisdom from their mistakes. They could finally do something about their regrets, anticipate catastrophes, and have a shot at redemption.
Feeling the movements in her belly, she is fully aware that this is hers. Her chance to be happy, her chance to be a mother. She caresses her hands over her belly.
You will have all my heart, and I will not let you suffer as I have suffered. I will be the mother I never had to you."
With that, she felt another kick, and she could not help but smile.