Ep 1 - Mark's Emotional Turmoil

"Sir, should we arrange for a DNA test? “Mark barely registered his assistant’s words. His mind was a million miles away, tangled in thoughts that couldn’t hold still, while the piercing cries of the infant grew louder with each passing second. His chest tightened at the sound, a sharp ache that made his heart feel heavy and angry all at once. But beneath the anger, there was something else—something harder to define. Was it pity for the baby? Or something more unsettling, like a deep, unexplained pain?
"Sir...?" Jason’s voice faltered, his fear evident. Mark had been unpredictable lately, snapping at people, his temper short. The tension in the office and home was palpable; no one dared to approach him anymore. They all kept their distance.
"Leave Jason!," Mark muttered under his breath, desperate to be alone with his thoughts. He couldn’t believe it—his wife of five years had cheated on him, and with his own best friend. He had loved her deeply, and now he couldn’t understand what he had done wrong that would make her seek comfort in someone else’s arms.
Having suffered abuse from his father during his childhood, Mark had promised himself he would be different. He would treat his woman with kindness. He made sure to come home at a decent hour, always joined her for dinner, tried to be available on weekends, and showered her with attention while providing for her. But despite all of that, she still cheated on him, and he hadn’t seen it coming.
"How could I be so blind not to notice it while it was happening right under my nose?" he muttered bitterly, gulping down the rest of his drink before hurling the glass against the wall. The loud crash of shattering glass echoed in the room.
Just seconds later, a gentle knock came at the door, followed by an older woman entering the room. She looked at him with a soft, caring expression. "my baby" she said softly, "It breaks my heart to see you like this."
"Not now, Nana," Mark replied, struggling to maintain his composure as he looked at the woman who had raised him from the age of six, after his mother had left him and the abuse she endured at the hands of his father. Nana had been his refuge from the pain of his childhood, offering him warmth in a home filled with nothing but neglect and anger.
"It’s been two weeks, mi amor," Nana continued, her voice gentle. "The baby needs you, If not now, then when?"
Mark’s eyes snapped to hers when she mentioned the baby. "Nana, please, we don’t even know if the baby is mine," he said, his voice trembling with frustration.
"It doesn’t matter, mi amor," Nana replied softly, her eyes filled with compassion. "That baby is innocent. It’s not her fault that she came into the world under these circumstances. You can't punish her—or yourself—for the mistakes of others." She paused before adding, "You need to pull yourself together—for your own sake and for the baby's."
Mark took a deep breath, trying to steady his emotions. "I need more time, Nana, please," he said quietly. "Help take care of the baby, like how you took care of me all these years." It wasn’t easy for him, especially considering how he had always believed the baby was his. He had attended every doctor's appointment, listened to the baby’s heartbeat, and watched in awe as the baby grew in his mama’s belly, feeling the little kicks and growing more attached with each passing day. He had come to love the baby as his own. But now, the betrayal had shattered his sense of trust, leaving him in turmoil. He couldn’t bring himself to even look at the baby anymore, the confusion and pain clouding everything he had once felt.
"Okay, son, I’ll do that for you," Nana said softly, giving Mark’s shoulder a gentle pat. "But you have to promise me you'll try to deal with this, and soon." She paused, glancing at the shattered glass on the floor. "I’m sending someone to clean up that mess," she added, motioning toward the debris. As she turned to leave, she added with a gentle but firm tone, "Just try not to bite their heads off."