Pregnant.

"I can explain," she pleaded, her voice cracking with emotion. "I didn't know that you and Scarlett were in a relationship. She planned this to help me, and I only agreed to do it because I needed the money to pay for my mother's treatments. She has a heart disease and the bills…I couldn't afford it…" 

Dom's expression remained cold as he looked at her. "And you thought that having sex with me was the best way to solve your problems? That's just low, Cara."

She felt tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to explain herself. "I didn't know what else to do. I was desperate…I had no one to help me and I thought that this was the only way to help my mother."

Dom scoffed, giving her a mocking glare. "Desperate or not, what you did was unforgivable. You betrayed your best friend. Perhaps you were jealous of her and tried to live up to her standards but you couldn't, and now you're just trying to make excuses."

Cara felt a sense of anger rising in her as she stared at him. "I'm not making excuses, Dom!" she cried aloud in defense. She couldn't stand him making a mockery of her like she was some piece of trash. "I'm just telling you the truth. I didn't know about you and Scarlett, and I never would have agreed to this if I had known." 

Dom shook his head, his eyes narrowing. "I don't believe you. You knew what you were doing, and you did it anyway. You're a terrible friend and a gold digger. I'm not surprised though. I've met quite a lot of girls like you, but you're so far the worst."

Cara felt a wave of shame wash over her as Dom tossed a wad of cash at her feet. "Take this and leave. I never want to see your face again."

As Cara picked up the money, tears streaming down her face, she felt a sense of betrayal and hurt. She couldn't believe that her friend would use her like this.

'Scarlett took advantage of my desperation…how could I have made myself so vulnerable?' she sobbed within her. Looking down at the clean wad of cash before her, she felt like stepping on it and walking out without taking it, but she needed it desperately. Even though it was degrading, not taking the money would mean all this trouble was for naught. 

In a hurry, she stuffed the money into her purse and stumbled out of the hotel room, her heart burdened with sorrow and remorse. She regretted ever taking Scarlett's advice and felt betrayed by her supposed friend. 

Tears streamed down her face as she questioned what a true friend would do, knowing they would never set someone up like this. She quickly composed herself, determined to remain positive. The thought of paying off her mother's medical bills and other debts gave her solace, and she resolved not to let the words of a "playboy Romeo" bring her down.

——————————————————

As she walked down the hospital ward, Cara was enveloped by the pungent scent of disinfectant, a constant reminder of the suffering and illness around her. The sight of other patients, connected to machines and IVs, only added to her sense of unease and apprehension.

Filled with a sense of trepidation, Cara entered the hospital room, her heart heavy with concern and sorrow. Her mother, Patricia, appeared fragile and defenseless, lying motionless in the hospital bed. Cara struggled to contain her emotions as she drew closer to her mother, tears welling up in her eyes. She could notice how weak her mother was, her skin pale and her breathing shallow.

"Hi, Mom," she uttered softly, trying to hide her emotions. "How are you feeling today?"

Patricia looked up at her daughter, her eyes filled with a mixture of pain and love. "I'm not feeling very well, Cara," her voice sounded so frail. "But I'm glad you're here."

Cara nodded, trying to keep her tears at bay. "I'm here for you, Mom, always."

They sat in silence for a few moments, just holding hands and taking comfort in each other's presence. Cara could hear the sounds of the machines beeping in the background, a constant reminder of the fragility of life.

Finally, Patricia spoke up. "Cara, I need to ask you something," she mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper. "How were you able to afford the bills for this place? I know you've been struggling financially."

Cara hesitated, feeling guilty about what she was about to say. "Oh, um, a friend of mine helped me out," she lied. "He's an actor and he had some extra money to spare."

Patricia looked surprised but didn't press the matter. Instead, she reached out and took Cara's hand in hers. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Cara," she muttered softly. "You've been my rock through all of this."

Cara felt her chest tighten with emotion. She knew how much her mother was suffering, and how much pain she was in, and Cara wished she could take it all away and make everything better. As they sat together, Cara couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the weight of it all. 

She knew she needed to be strong for her mother, but she didn't know how much longer she could keep up the facade.

No matter what happened, her mother could never find what she had to undergo just to afford the money. Patricia would be devastated, and it was the last thing that Cara wanted her mother to feel.

—————————————————

Troubled and agitated by the events of the previous night, Dom wasted no time in contacting Scarlett to demand answers. He was bewildered by how his friend could have approached him with an offer to sell her body for money. The only explanation, he surmised, was that someone had ratted him out. However, Scarlett's revelations left him reeling. 

He was stunned to discover that she had orchestrated the entire sordid affair from behind the scenes, manipulating everyone like a puppet master. As he held the phone to his ear and listened to her hesitant confession, his rage simmered to a boiling point. How could she have betrayed him like this?

The revelation that the nightstand incident had been arranged by his partner without Cara's knowledge only made him even angrier. He felt like he had been played for a fool, used as some sort of pawn in Scarlett's twisted game. He could feel the rage building inside him as Scarlett tried to explain herself.

Dom's hands shook with anger as he held the phone to his ear. "How could you, Scarlett?" he demanded in a stern, husky voice. 

"I was just trying to help my friend," Scarlett replied, her voice trembling with guilt.

"By setting me up with some random girl and making me look like a fool? What do you think I am, some loot you could just be anymore to extract money from? That's your idea of help?" He spat out aggressively. 

"I didn't think it would go this far," Scarlett protested defensively. "I just wanted to give Cara a way to make some quick cash for her mother's medical bills."

"And you didn't think that maybe…there was no better way to do other than using me?" He shot back accusingly and Scarlett fell silent, unable to come up with a response. Dom continued, his voice growing colder with each word. "You know what, Scarlett? I don't think I can be with someone who would do something like this. Someone who would use their friends for their gain without any regard for the consequences."

There was a long pause before Scarlett spoke again, her voice barely above a whisper. "I understand. I'm so sorry, Dom…I was just trying to help…"

However, he only let out a bitter laugh. 

"Oh wow…how nice and thoughtful of you," he uttered sarcastically, feigning a chilling smile that quickly faded into an agitated frown. "Sorry doesn't cut it, Scarlett. Not this time." He took a deep breath before delivering the final blow. "It's over, Scarlett. Goodbye."

Cara sat by her mother's bedside that morning, holding her hand while watching her sleep. It had been a long tiring month for her, with her mother's diagnosis and hospitalization. She had put her own life on hold to care for her mother, but fate had other plans for her. 

After the little scandal with Scarlett and Dom, she kept her distance from her and didn't think their friendship could work anymore. Cara wanted supportive and positive people in her life not negative influences that could cause damage to her already messed up life. Keeping all the negativity at arm's length seemed to work well for her, and she was also performing well in her job. 

After a month had passed, everything seemed like it was getting back in shape. Having cleared off all her debts with the money given to her by Dom previously, she could maintain a steady flow of income from her menial job at Studio One. 

Feeling exhausted and bored after taking care of her mother, she felt a bit sore and 

stood up to stretch her legs, but suddenly felt a wave of nausea wash over her. 

As much as she tried to contend with this sudden eerie ill sensation, She stumbled to the bathroom and threw up on the sink, feeling weak and dizzy. Nervous, she splashed some water on her face and looked at herself in the mirror. Cara couldn't help but notice that she looked somewhat different like something about her body had suddenly changed, but she couldn't tell what it was. 

'I gained weight…' she mused, checking herself out before the mirror carefully. At the same time, it dawned on her that her period was due, and panic set in. Could she be…?

Without wasting another second, She rushed to the nearest drugstore and bought a pregnancy test. 

She waited anxiously and to her horror, the test strip turned pink, confirming her worst fear. 

She was pregnant.