The Billionaire's Struggle

Guy Anderson is a 29-year-old billionaire and CEO of Anderson's Enterprise. He used to live a very happy and fulfilled life until his Legally wedded wife died a few minutes after giving birth to their first child.

Guy was devastated and very depressed but he knew he had to be strong for his daughter. He promised to take care very good care of her. Luna, his daughter, gave him a new reason to live.

Guy was able to move forward, live life again and take care of his daughter with the help of his Mom, Anna and sister, Silvia.

Guy's father died when he was 13 and since then, his mother has been the breadwinner of their family. Anna did her best to send Guy and Silvia to school till their masters level and now she's a proud mother of two successful children. Guy, who is three years older than Silvia is a successful businessman and Silvia is already a practising doctor.

Five Years Later, While Guy was doing some work in his office, He received a call from his daughter's PreSchool telling him his daughter had fainted. Luckily, the hospital she was taken to was where Silvia, his sister was working. Luna was quickly attended to but she ended up in a Coma.

Guy became depressed again. "What if his daughter never wakes up?" But his sister assured him that Luna will come around very soon.

Guy makes sure, he visits his daughter every morning at the hospital before going to work and every evening after work. He also brings along with him some of her bedtime stories to read to her.

To be honest, it saddens Guy to see his daughter that way. Luna is a very happy child. At the age of four, She's very smart and she also understands her mom is no more. She was still happy because she has her dad, her aunt and grandma. Hopefully, her dad will marry someone who will be a good mother to her and probably have some younger siblings as time goes on.

During the day while Guy is at work, Luna is always being visited by her grandma, Silvia and a very mysterious lady.

Emerald is the mysterious lady who was captured by Luna the first time she saw her. She believes Luna is still very young and innocent to be in this type of situation. Emerald is 23, she has no parents and is just an ordinary cleaner at the hospital Silvia works. Sometimes she had little food to eat and most times, she had nothing. Whatever money she had, She made sure she uses it for her rent. A one-room apartment, just to have somewhere to lay her head after the day's work.

The nurse who was appointed to take care of Luna was too lazy to do her job so she approached Emerald and promise to give her some amount of money at the end of every month if she takes care of Luna. Since then, Emerald has been taking care of Luna. She goes to Luna's room every day to clean her room, change her, comb her hair and do some other necessary things. She even sings to Luna and tells her stories of her life. Em found herself attached to the little girl.

To be honest, Emerald doubts it if Luna could hear her but she just feels connected to her and loves talking about herself to Luna. It's something Emerald looks forward to doing every day.

There was even a time Anna saw Emerald singing and making her grand daughter's hair at the same time. Anna was very impressed. She saw the love Emerald had in her eyes for her granddaughter and since then, they became friends.

Luna was always the reason for Guy's motivation to succeed. But since Luna's accident, He has become less focused. And now he just lost a great deal. A deal which could have provided his company with millions.

Guy blamed himself for all the bad things that have been happening to him and most importantly for losing the deal. If only he had put extra effort into it.

He was so angry and he did the only thing that came to his mind. To go to a club and get drunk. Guy ended up having a one night stand with a very beautiful lady. When he saw her in the club, he couldn't resist himself. The last time he had sex was with his deceased wife. That was because he swore not to have an affair with any other woman and besides, no other lady had captured his attention the way this one did. Seeing the beautiful lady in the club, He couldn't resist her and his drunken state did not help him either.

When he woke up the next morning, he saw that the lady was gone without any trace except with her beautiful face which can't stop popping up in Guy's mind.

Emerald immediately jumped off her couch and ran into the bathroom with the need to throw up. This has been going on for three weeks now. something keeps on telling her she's pregnant but on the other hand, she tries to talk herself out of it. Saying, it might be a stomach infection. But she could not bear it any longer. She hardly finds food to eat and the little she gets from the Hospital's leftovers, she could not even hold it down because of how nauseous she often feels.

After throwing up, Emerald sat on the bathroom floor for a few minutes to regain her lost energy. After that, she rinsed her mouth and did her morning rituals before putting on a very simple dress and a black sandals. She tied her hair in a messy bun after which she carried her bag and exited her apartment for work. She didn't have food in the house so there was no breakfast for her. Hopefully, she will get some leftovers from the Matron in the hospital.

The hospital was not Far from where Emerald stays; making it easy for her to walk down there. It is a fifteen minutes walk. well, it could be more than that, depending on how fast she walks.

Emerald found herself to be in a good mood as she will be seeing Luna later on today. She did not see Luna yesterday because it was a Sunday and also her day off.

It's been over three months and Luna is still in Coma. She hopes the little girl wakes up soon.

Emerald entered the hospital and immediately changed into her cleaning clothes which consist of a navy blue shirt and pants. After that, she proceeded to the hospital's store and cleaned there first.

While cleaning the store, She came across a box of pregnancy tests "Well let me get through this." she said to herself.

After a few minutes of deciding which one to take, Emerald proceeded to the restroom and peed on it. She was certain she wasn't pregnant. "I mean how could I be? It was just a one-night thing." she thought.

After waiting for three minutes as prescribed, Emerald checked the pregnancy test and saw what she dreaded to see. Two pink lines. She was indeed pregnant. "Lord Jesus." She exclaimed as the stick fell off her hand. She covered her hands with her mouth as tears rolled down her cheeks.

She is pregnant and does not even know the father of the baby. What will she tell the child when he or she is born? Emerald hardly finds food to eat in a day, How will she feed the child?. "There's no way I'm keeping this." She muttered.

She made a mental note to meet a nurse to give her an abortion pill or something to get rid of the baby which has to be as soon as possible.

After crying for what seemed like hours. Emerald washed her face and exited the restroom. She went back to cleaning the store and after that, she decided it was time to see Luna and clean her up.

It was already 9 am so Luna's father would have left. She has been told not to enter Luna's room before 9 in the morning because Luna's Father usually come very early in the morning to spend some time with his daughter before he goes to work. So he needs some privacy with his daughter.

Emerald also knows that Luna's mother is no more. It was the Lazy nurse who was meant to take care of Luna that gave her all this information.

She entered Luna's room and immediately she saw the little girl a smile found its way to her face. She quickly went to her bedside and kissed her forehead.

A stranger who sees them together would think she was Luna's mother and Luna was her daughter.

Emerald cleaned Luna's room first, after which she cleaned Luna up and changed her clothes. Emerald was combing Luna's hair when she burst into tears. She would have loved to have a baby girl like Luna but due to circumstances, She has no choice but to abort her baby. No doubt she feels guilty about it but she had no other option. Emerald was lost in her tears and her thoughts that she didn't notice when someone entered the room.

Silvia's shift was to start at 9.30 but she got to the hospital earlier than expected because there was no much traffic today. Silvia dropped her bag in her office and put on her white coat. Since her shift does not start until 30 minutes, She decides to see how her niece is doing. She misses Luna a lot and she prays the little girl wakes up soon.

Silvia also decided to use that opportunity to see Emerald. She visited Anna [her mother] yesterday and Anna told her about Emerald. About how she takes care of her niece. Silvia wanted to thank Emerald. She had never been close to the staff in the hospital. But she knew Emerald was a nice, quiet and respectful young lady.

Silvia entered Luna's room and saw a crying Emerald who sat down beside Luna.

"Why are you crying, Emerald?" Silvia asked with so much concern in her voice, while walking towards Emerald.

Emerald stood up and looked at Silvia's face and Silvia noticed Emerald's puffy and red eyes. She also took in Emerald's features. She looked pale, slim and weak.

"Sorry, Doc. I didn't know when you entered." Emerald said while using the back of her hand to rub her face.

"Are you okay?" Silvia asked again while putting her right hand on Emerald's left shoulder.

"Don't worry about me, I will be fine, " Emerald sniffed. She removed Silvia's hand from her shoulder and ran out of the room.

"Hey, wait" Silvia shouted but Emerald did not bother to look back or stop running.

Silvia went over to Luna and kissed her forehead. "I will be back honey." She whispered and ran after Emerald.

"Em, wait.." Silvia shouted but Emerald kept on running.

"Damn, these heels" Silvia stopped running for a while and took off her heels. She held them on her right hand and continued running, not giving a damn about the ugly stares she was receiving.

"Emerald, I know you are there. please open the door." Silvia said while banging the door Emerald locked herself in. She identified the door as the cleaners room.

"Em, I promise to help you any way I can. just please open the door." Silvia said while banging the door very hard and breathing heavily.

Emerald made her run. The last time she ran like that was when she was in high school. Silvia is a very lazy person. She prefers doing a fifteen minutes crazy dance than doing other exercises.

Silvia was surprised to see Em in that way. Her mom described her as a very cheerful person, she wondered what's making her cry like that.

"Hope you know i'm still waiting Em. I won't leave here until you open the damn door." Silvia reminded.

Emerald had no choice but to open the door for Silvia to enter. Silvia entered the room and noticed it was a typical cleaner's room. Filled with cleaning materials and one large bench to seat. Emerald sat on the bench and Silvia removed her doctor's coat and sat beside her.

She looked so Vulnerable so Silvia pulled her into a hug and the tears came rushing down from Emerald's face.

"Cry it all out baby girl, " Silvia said while rubbing Emerald's back.

Emerald stopped crying after a while and pulled away from the hug.

"I'm sorry for staining your shirt, " Em said while sniffing.

"Don't worry about that" Silvia said while waving her hands.

"Em, what's wrong. You can tell me anything. I will help you in any way I can." Silvia assured.

Em nodded and they were both silent for a while. She was contemplating if she should tell Silvia about her problem. She then decided to talk to Silvia. since Silvia is a doctor, maybe she can help with the abortion process.

"I lost my parents when I was five, so I had to live with my aunt. I was never treated well. I was forced to stop school in my final year of high school and stick to doing the house chores while her children went to school."

" I ran away from them when I was 18 because life there was very unbearable for me. I would be beaten without any fault and I just couldn't bear it any longer. I ran away with the little money I had and came to the city."

" I was able to rent a room and my landlord recommended me here when I told him I was looking for a job. I was hired as a cleaner but the pay is not enough. It's almost the same amount as my house rent which leaves me with no food to eat. Our patients don't like hospital food so I'm lucky to always get some leftovers." Emerald paused, then continued.

" A nurse approached me when Luna was first brought in here, she said she will pay me a sum of money if I replace her to take care of Luna. I agreed because its an opportunity for me to earn more. The nurse paid me for the first month and refused to pay me for the second month. I was so angry because I had plans for the money."

"I didn't even know what I was doing that day. I remember dressing up in the only fancy dress I had and I made my way to the club to drink away my sorrow. That was where I had a one night stand with a Stranger." Emerald said as she burst into tears again.

Silvia pulled her into a hug and kept on rubbing her back. Em has really gone through a lot and Silvia could not even imagine herself being in that situation.

"Even after the nurse refused to pay me, I continued to take care of Luna. I have become very fond of her and I love her as if she were my own." Emerald said and Silvia nodded not failing to see the love in her eyes as she spoke about her niece.

"My mom said so, that's why I came looking for you, to thank you, " Silvia said.

"Anna is your mom?" Em asked surprised.

"Yeah. And Luna is my niece." Silvia replied and Em nodded.

"For the past three weeks, I've been feeling weak and nauseous and I kept throwing up from time to time. I kept telling myself that its a stomach infection until I decided to take a test this morning and it turned out positive." Em said with tears in her eyes.

"You saw me crying in Luna's room because I was thinking about my unborn child. I would love to have a child like Luna but I don't think it will be possible." Em said.

"What do you mean by that?" Silvia asked hoping Em does not want to do what she's thinking.

"I've decided to get an abortion" Em whispered.

Silvia took Em's hands in hers. " You can't do that Em, this child has a right to live."

"I hardly eat once a day, How do you expect me to feed the baby?. The leftovers I eat is not healthy, where I live is not conducive for a newborn, I can't get a better job because I didn't even finish high school. There is no way I provide for the baby? To top it all, I don't even know the father." Em said as she burst into another round of tears.

"Can you please abort this baby for me?" She asked Silvia.

"What? I can't do that Em. It's against my profession and even the laws of Massachusetts." Silvia replied.

"No one needs to know about this doc. It will stay between you and me, I promise. You wouldn't want an innocent child to come into this world to suffer. would you?" Em said which left Silvia speechless.

"UGH what am I going to do?" Silvia said over the phone. She had just called Guy to ask for advice after explaining the whole Emerald's situation to him.

Silvia has conflicted with herself since her talk with Emerald this morning. There was no way she would have a hand in killing an innocent one.

Silvia told Emerald she was going to think about it, after which she gave her some money to buy some food for herself and take the day off. Emerald didn't want to collect the money but Silvia forced her to. She could not allow her to keep on eating leftovers. Especially now that she's expecting a baby even though she's still adamant about not keeping it.

Silvia told her not to worry as she will cover up for her as to taking the rest of the day off. Of course, She collected Em's address, promising to come over later in the day and they would talk things out.

Silvia has just finished her shift for the day and does not know what to do so she called her brother to ask for some advice, hoping she will get something sensible out of him.

"Well, it's her body. If she wants to, then maybe you should help her with the Abortion." Guy said from the other side.

"Guy..... how can you be so cruel. It's an innocent life we are talking about here." Silvia said with a hint of anger in her voice while taking a seat behind her office desk.

"Besides, you know abortion is against the law and my license could be ceased if I'm caught, " Silvia said, clearly frustrated. She could not believe her brother is giving her such a dumb advise. He always gives her the best advice and that's why she usually goes to him whenever she needs an opinion on how to go about something. But she thinks she had made a big mistake on this one.

"Forgive me, Silvia. It's just that I've been having so much on my mind lately. you know, with Luna's condition and work seems to be so hectic these days." Guy said with a hint of guilt and tiredness in his voice.

"Don't worry Guy, Luna will wake up very soon. We have seen lots of improvement in her. You don't have to worry anymore. Let's just keep praying and have faith." Silvia said.

"I know. I just miss my baby girl a lot." Guy replied.

"Me too, " Silvia said with a sad voice.

"Okay, what should I do concerning my friend?" Silvia asked, going back to the main reason why she called him.

"Maybe we should try and help her financially. But first of all, she has to quit working as a cleaner. Since she's still in her first trimester like you said so she has to be extra careful and a cleaning job will do no good to her as it entails a lot of stress." Guy said.

"Yeah, but she's a very shy type. She almost did not want to collect the money I gave her this morning. I had to force her to accept it. She has always been independent all her life. And I guess receiving things from others is very foreign to her." Silvia responded.

"I really feel for her. She has gone through a lot at such a young age."Guy said with a sad voice.

"Yeah me too, " Silvia said.

"You know what? Tell her I'm offering her a job as my personal assistant. Apart from her Salary, she will also be getting other benefits too. Maybe with this job, she would change her mind about aborting the baby."

"Thanks, Guy. I will try and convince her to accept the offer."Silvia said with a huge smile on her face.

"Don't mention sis. She has always been there for Luna so I guess it's not bad if we help her also." Guy replied.

"Yeah, she loves Luna as if she were her own."Silvia said back.

"Yeah, mom told me. She even wanted me to see her. She has been emphasizing about how beautiful she is. You know, mom has been trying to get me to marry someone else but I don't think I'm ready for that." Guy said which earned a chuckle from Silvia.

"She's a very beautiful lady." Silvia agreed.

"Alright then. Keep me updated and let me know how it goes." Guy said.

"Thanks, Guy, " Silvia said after which she ended the call.

Silvia decided to visit Emerald before heading to her apartment which was a twenty minutes drive from Em's. She had branched a restaurant to get some food for her and Em. Which leaves her now to standing in front of Em's apartment.

Silvia knocked and the door opened revealing Em in a Pajamas shorts and a tank top.

"Hi, " Silvia greeted.

"Hello, " Em replied while opening the door wider for Silvia to enter.

Silvia entered Em's apartment and looked around. Em's living condition was a big "NO." for her.

It was a one-room apartment with a very tiny bathroom adjoined with a toilet. The living room also served as Em's bedroom. She had no bed so the couch served as both her chair and bed. She also designated a very tiny corner as the kitchen.

Silvia really felt for Emerald. Her place was too tiny and not even well ventilated. There was no way Em could even raise a baby here.

"I hope you don't mind, umm my house isn't as gorgeous as you might have imagined, " Emerald said.

"No I don't, " Silvia said with a smile on her face.

"I bought us dinner, hope you don't mind, " Silvia said while handling Em the plastic bag which contains the food she bought.

"Thanks." Em smiled and collected the plastic bag from Silvia.

They dished out the food and ate in silence after which Emerald and Silvia cleared the plates and washed the dishes.

"Thanks for this morning, thanks for coming over and thanks for dinner, " Em said while taking a seat beside Silvia on the couch.

"Don't mention Em." Silvia smiled.

"So have you decided on helping me? You know, with the abortion stuff." Em asked and Silvia exhaled.

Silvia took Emerald's hands in her and said "You know I can't do that. it's just not possible."

"Please, you have to help me. I can't raise a child in this condition." Emerald said, already on the verge of tears.

Emerald works in the hospital as a cleaner so she has experienced different situations where young girls were brought to the hospital because they either took fake prescribed abortion pills or went to an unprofessional doctor to help them with the abortion. Some of them ended up losing their lives and the ones that survived got their womb damaged. Emerald does not want that to be her portion so she prefers to do it the right way. That is getting a professional. That's why she really needs Silvia's help.

"What if I help you find a better job that pays well, will you consider keeping the baby?" Silvia asked.

"A better job?" Em repeated.

"Yes, I told my brother about you and he agreed on giving you a job as his personal assistant, " Silvia said.

"Your brother? Luna's father?" She asked and Silvia nodded.

"I don't know about that Silvia." Em said totally confused.

"You have gone through a lot and my brother and I want to help you. That's why he offered you a job in his company and insisted you quit working as a cleaner. You have done so much for us by taking care of our Luna and we are happy to help you out. You know, with this job, you will be paid a lot more than you earn in the hospital and will be able to take care of your little one." Silvia said trying to sound convincing as possible.

"But what about Luna, Who will take care of her while I'm gone?" Emerald asked, already sad with the thought of not being able to see the little girl again.

"Don't worry, we will look for someone to take care of her." Silvia said with a smile "And anytime you want to see her, you are allowed to." Silvia said as if reading Em's mind and Em smiled at her reply.

"So I guess you accept my offer?" Silvia asked hopefully.

"I will give it a try, "

"I'm happy you will."

"But I'm still not sure about the baby. I'm scared." Em said honestly.

"You don't have to be. You have me. I will be very happy to help you and I'm sure my mom will be happy to help also. I know a bit about kids because I use to help my brother out with Luna. Don't worry we will go through this together." Silvia assured.

"Have you gone for a checkup yet?" Silvia asked out of the blue.

"No. I just took a test this morning." Emerald replied.

"So how about the morning sickness?" Silvia asked again.

"It's been horrible, " Em replied.

Before Silvia could say anything further, She was interrupted by her ringing cell phone.

Silvia did not look at the caller ID before she picked up the call.

"Hello, It's Silvia Anderson on the line. How may I help you?" Silvia said to the other side.

Emerald noticed how quiet Silvia was. listening to the caller from the other side. And suddenly Silvia muttered "Oh My God" before tears rolled down her cheeks. But then She was also smiling So Emerald concluded it was tears of joy.

"Thank you very much Doctor Skai, I will inform my brother right away" Silvia said and then ended the call.

Then she turned to a worried Emerald who was giving her a "Please don't keep me in the dark and tell me what is happening look."

"Luna is out of Coma, " Silva said to Em with so much happiness in her voice.