Nayra came home feeling irritated and, of course, sad. She put away her shopping and immediately went into the bathroom to freshen up. Nayra stood beneath the shower, soaking her body in cold water. She hoped it would cool down her mind, too. Her encounter with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law had completely ruined her mood.
“There’s no point telling Albi what happened today. He’ll definitely defend his mother and ask me to keep being understanding. But this has gone way too far.” Nayra let out a long sigh. “I feel like asking Albi to move me out of this city. I can daydream about it for now. It’s impossible in reality anyway.” Nayra let out a small laugh.
Once she felt better, Nayra quickly finished her shower and got dressed. She opened up all the things she had bought that day. Then she noticed one item she was sure she had never purchased. She unfolded it and realized it was clothing for a pregnant woman.
“Oh my gosh, why is this in my shopping bag? Did the salesclerk put it in there by mistake? But that’s impossible. I was the only one paying at the register earlier.” Nayra kept thinking about it. She then checked the receipt the cashier had given her. Sure enough, the clothing was listed among her purchases.
“This doesn’t suit me at all, and it was incredibly expensive. I’ll return it this afternoon and ask Albi to take me. We can go out while we’re at it. It’s been a long time since the two of us went out together in the afternoon.”
Nayra folded the clothing again and put it back into the paper bag. Then she called her husband and asked him to take her out that afternoon. Albi didn’t have anything important scheduled, so he went straight home. Making his wife happy wasn’t a bad thing, Albi thought.
“Why are you home already?” Nayra asked while she was in the kitchen.
Albi hugged his wife from behind. “I heard someone wanted to go out this afternoon, so I came home early. But was your outing earlier not fun enough that you have to go out again with your husband?”
“I actually wanted to ask the salesclerk at the boutique something.”
“Is there a problem?”
“I bought a few things earlier, but I didn’t check everything again while I was there. It turned out one item I didn’t buy had been included in my purchase. I do have the clothing with me, but …”
“But what?” Albi asked, cutting her off.
“It’s clothing for a woman who’s already far along in her pregnancy. I don’t know who it belongs to. I was the only one there at the register earlier. And it was so expensive, too. No wonder something felt strange when I paid.”
“Really? Why don’t you keep it for later, when you’re pregnant and need something like that?”
“Not until I actually need clothes like that. Buying them now just makes me sad.” Nayra pouted as she looked at her husband, who was indeed taller than she was.
“All right. We’ll return it this afternoon after I shower. Right now, I want to eat something you cooked.”
Nayra smiled. “All right. I’d be happy to.”
Nayra immediately started cooking the vegetables in the kitchen. She was very skilled in the kitchen. She had been cooking often for years, so she was quite good by now. Her cooking wasn’t bad at all—in fact, her husband thoroughly enjoyed every meal she made.
“Mom told us to have dinner at her house tomorrow night,” Nayra said.
“When did you see Mom? Did she contact you?”
Nayra shook her head. “I ran into her and Aninda at the boutique earlier. Mom was buying Aninda a huge amount of clothing.”
“So that’s why you were in such a bad mood?”
“Aninda’s words made me angry.”
Albi only smiled and didn’t answer. They headed straight to the boutique his family always shopped at. Several salesclerks there already knew Albi, and they immediately greeted him warmly.
“Excuse me, I bought several items earlier. But I never took or intended to buy this dress. Did it accidentally get added to my purchase?” Nayra asked, holding up the maternity dress.
“But it seems this is indeed your dress, ma’am.”
“The dress I chose? No, I absolutely never chose or intended to buy this.” Nayra protested.
“Just take it and keep it, sweetheart. Maybe you’ll need it someday,” Albi whispered.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. Someone who was with Mrs. Laila asked me to put this in your shopping bag earlier. She said you were looking for this kind of clothing because you’re pregnant now, and that your pregnancy would grow bigger in a few months. She was the one who asked me to surprise you.” The salesclerk who had helped Nayra earlier finally spoke up. Hearing her explanation made Nayra furious.
“Albi! Your sister-in-law has gone way too far!”
Nayra immediately walked away from her husband, absolutely furious. Her sister-in-law kept bothering her and bringing up her pregnancy. Nayra then sat down at a café under the same roof as the boutique while Albi finished returning the dress. Nayra cried; she was especially sensitive whenever the subject of pregnancy came up.
“Don’t cry. I’m sure Aninda was only joking.”
“Joking? There was nothing funny about it. It only hurt and made me angry!”
“I’ll talk to Mom later. Take it easy,” Albi replied.
“You’re going to talk to Mom? She’ll just defend Aninda. You should talk to her directly. If necessary, tell your brother, too, so he can teach his wife to show a little more consideration for other people’s feelings!”
“Yes, I’ll talk to Rafael, too. Now, should we go home, or do you want to eat first?” Albi asked.
“Let’s just go home. Besides, there’s nothing else I want to buy. I have everything I need,” Nayra replied.
The next day, Albi and Nayra went to the main house. They had already promised to come to dinner at Laila’s house. Albi immediately joined his mother, brother, and sister in the family room. Meanwhile, Nayra went to the kitchen to get a drink because her throat felt dry.
“Looks like you’re here already, Nayra.” Aninda happened to be in the kitchen, making the milk she usually drank.
“What did you mean by putting maternity clothes in my shopping bag?” Without wasting any time, Nayra confronted Aninda.
“What maternity clothes?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know! I asked the salesclerk at the boutique yesterday when I was there with Albi. One of them said you were the one who told her to do it. What exactly did you mean?”
“I meant well. I just wanted to buy you something you’d definitely need someday. What’s wrong with that?” Aninda showed no sign of remorse.
“You’ve really gone too far. Your joke wasn’t funny at all, Aninda!” Nayra said, trying to keep her voice down.
“What’s going on?”