i did one thing right

3

Ali arrived at the police station a few minutes later, walking alongside Regina's attorney. Ali is also carrying Nathan because Regina requested that he do so.

"You must be Narda," Ali said as he approached the woman. "My name is Ali.. Regina's secretary and a friend. Is she inside?"

"They're talking to her," Narda responds.

"Would you please look after Nathan for a moment? Regina's attorney and I will join her inside," Ali said, completely trusting Narda with the child. Ali knew a lot about Narda because he has been a friend of Regina when she was starting the company. He hasn't met her in person, but he's heard her name far too often from Regina's mouth.

Ali handed Nathan over to Narda without hesitation. Narda's eyes widen as she struggles to decide what to do. For starters, she has no idea if the child she is holding is Ali's. Second, the kid might become uncomfortable in her arms and start crying. Third, she's not the best at dealing with children.

"Hi.." she said when the child looked at her. "Your name is Nathan, right? I don't think you talk yet... Do you only understand baby talk then? Bah bah-" Narda was about to use baby talk with the child when Regina came out of the room and approached them.

"Hey baby..." Narda looks at Regina strangely when she hears that, but she is even more surprised when Regina takes the child away from her and said "Mommy missed you,"

"Who?" Narda questioned quietly enough for only her to hear "wait..." It took her some time to process everything before concluding that Nathan is Regina's child.

"Thank God I can still hold you," Regina says, the previous event flashing through her mind. Narda brushed aside her thoughts after seeing Regina cry. Narda then gently rubbed Regina's back while the other girl sobbed quietly. She finds it difficult to consider the what-ifs. Nathan has no one else besides Regina. She doesn't have any parents in whom she can place her trust. She does have Ali, who has been a friend of hers for many years.

"Narda, could you please take him out for a bit? I'll just compose myself," Regina says, her voice still breaking. Narda took the child from her without hesitation. Nathan is still staring at Narda's face as she walks outside, as if waiting for her to say something.

"What? I didn't make your mom cry?" she chuckled, attempting to lighten the mood. "It's heartbreaking to see your mom cry, huh? Where even is your dad? He should be here comforting your mom," Narda said, unaware that Regina had undergone IUI. She let Nathan sit on her lap facing her when they arrived outside at a bench and what appeared to be a small field. Narda looks down again at Nathan, who is still staring at her. Narda then softly pinches his cute cheeks as she smiles, and Nathan cracks a cute wide smile, causing Narda to smile even more. "When you smile, you look more like your mother." Narda states. After a few minutes of Narda talking to Nathan as if he understood anything, Regina walks out and sits beside Narda on the bench.

"He looks like you," Narda says, making Regina smile as she gazes at her child, who is comfortably sitting on Narda's lap.

"I mean, the only thing familiar about him is my features," Regina explained.

"Well, I haven't seen his father," Narda admits.

"Nor do I."

"What do you mean?" Narda asked, puzzled.

"I had a sperm donor for IUI, so Nathan only has his mother," she explained, causing Narda to realize something for the nth time tonight.

"I've been wondering why your husband is still not here all this time," Narda chuckles. After that, they fall into a brief silence as they observe Nathan's baby talk. Narda then turned her head to look at Regina, who was deep in thought and staring into the distance. "I'm listening," she said, drawing the other girl's gaze to her.

"I'm just... scared," Regina explained.

"You're safe now," Narda says.

"I have a lot of what ifs in my head. I'm not scared if it's just me, but now that I have Nathan... the what ifs are something I'm most afraid of," Regina admits.

"You're afraid of leaving Nathan alone if something happens to you?" Narda asks, prompting Regina to nod. Narda was aware of Regina's father's death because he was a well-known businessman in their town.

"Would my concerns be valid if it was your child?" Regina asks.

"Well, I don't have my own... but I can still say it is very valid," Narda says as she smiles at Nathan, making him laugh.

"How can you not have your own?" Regina wondered.

"Is having a child mandatory at our age?" Narda asks, equally confused.

"No, I don't mean it that way; I mean, you're Narda... someone should be lucky to have you," Regina explained.

"Didn't you turn me down before, and yet that is news to you?" Narda chuckles, she's already in a position to make a joke about it.

"Do you resent me for that?" Regina asked genuinely.

"Why would I? I told you I liked you, and you gave me an honest answer... that's more than enough for me." They fall silent again, this time not awkwardly. They just don't know what to say to each other. Nathan's baby talk and sudden giggles make up for the two's silence.

"Nathan seems to like you a lot," Regina says, smiling at Nathan, who is fixated on Narda.

"I'm quite likable... I don't know, charms I guess," Narda proudly declares, causing Regina to roll her eyes. Narda remains the same person. Someone who is cheerful and lighthearted. As if she is a person who is always cheerful. She can be serious when necessary, and she takes excellent care of those around her. "Regina, can I borrow your hand?" Regina was taken aback when she said that, but as if it was a no-brainer, she placed her hand on Narda's palm, which the latter held firmly. Regina's gaze remained fixed on Narda's face, but she quickly closed her eyes when she felt a stinging pain on her finger.

"Fuck you Narda," Regina exclaims, opening her eyes to Narda's laughter. She smacked her arm right away. Narda simply inserted Regina's finger into Nathan's mouth, and the kid bit it.

"His teeth are cute, but they are deadly," Narda says, laughing.

"That hurts," Regina says, lowering her head to rest her forehead on Narda's shoulder. It wasn't on purpose, but she lingered for a few seconds.

After a short while, Ali and the attorney left, so Regina stood up to speak with them. Narda, on the other hand, took her phone from her pocket while still holding Nathan firmly. She received a text from Ding saying "Ate, you should stay with Ate Regina tonight says Lola. I swear it was Lola's idea :) "

"I completely agree," Ali says, looking at her phone, "I was trying to get Nathan from you but you're too focused on your phone so I thought you got really bad news. Turns out.. I also agree."

"Agree on what?" Regina ponders.

"Reg, do you mind if Narda stays with you tonight? I can't drive her home because your attorney lives quite far away, and I won't let you drive back home alone tonight," Ali says.

"Well, I don't mind, but... do you?" she asks, looking at Narda as if she has a lot of options.

"I believe Ali has already made the decision for me," she said, making Ali laugh.

"Drive safely.. I'll leave Nathan to you because he doesn't want to go with me," he said, having struggled to get Nathan out of Narda's arms.