I Agreed to Be a Surrogate for My Sister — But After I Gave Birth, My Husband Whispered, “Don’t Give Her the Baby”
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Stella had always dreamed of having a child in a way that seemed built right into her soul.
She was the young girl holding toys under one arm and a baby bag under the other. She grew up to be the teen all the neighbors relied on to watch their kids.
She became the woman who cheered for every single baby announcement.
Therefore, when the medical team informed her she couldn’t safely have a baby, it broke something deep inside her.
She quit picking up the phone and showing up for weekend meals. She silenced our group texts and skipped every single message.
For a long time, it seemed like I was seeing her fade away.
One evening, she arrived at my front door with puffy, red eyes.
As I unlocked the door, she stepped right in before I even had the chance to greet her.
“I have to ask you a question,” she grabbed my hands and moved in close. “Would you ever think about carrying a baby for us?”
For a brief moment, I truly believed I had misunderstood her.
Stella hurried to break the quiet. “You do not need to reply right now. Just pretend I didn’t ask if it is overwhelming. I understand it is. I get it, and I really shouldn’t have shown up like this—”
“Stella. Stop.”
She stared at me with such a painful, guilty expression that it made my heart ache.
I told her, “I would be so happy to do it. But I have to speak with Mason first.”
She started crying so suddenly that it genuinely startled me.
Later that evening, once she went home, Mason and I stayed in bed chatting for a long time. We already shared two children. I understood exactly how being pregnant felt. I was aware of the dangers, the pain, and the worries.
“I really want to do this for her,” I admitted.
Mason stayed silent for a good while. Eventually, he grabbed my hand and gave it a kiss. “I will back you up, but I need you to talk with medical experts and legal teams before making a firm choice. If we take this on, we must handle it the right way.”
When I finally gave Stella a solid yes, following all the doctor and lawyer meetings, she wept so heavily she could hardly catch her breath.
“You are handing me my entire future,” she cried out.
I chuckled while wiping away my own tears.
It sounded like a very extreme thing to say, yet I understood how deeply she desired to be a mom, so I didn’t pay it much mind.
In the beginning, every part of the experience seemed wonderful.
Stella attended every single doctor visit. She mainly paid attention early on, but pretty quickly, she took over all the conversations.
As soon as the baby’s sex was known, she and Wyatt colored the baby’s room light blue. They chose blue covers and little outfits.
The pregnancy progressed. My figure shifted. The child kicked. Normal life continued all around us. My own children would put their heads against my stomach and giggle whenever the baby shifted.
However, small details began to change.
Stella grew much more extreme as the delivery day approached.
Initially, it was simple to brush off. She had wished for this for years. Naturally, she was nervous, and obviously, she felt a strong bond.
Even so, there were times that seemed a bit… strange.
One afternoon, my little girl placed her hand on my stomach and noted, “The baby is wiggling.”
“My baby,” Stella corrected with a stiff grin before pushing my daughter’s hand away to put her own there instead.
“Our little blessing,” Wyatt added, walking over to stand with her.
Stella visited our house every single afternoon.
Mason became much more silent. He would observe Stella sitting next to me, her hands spread wide on my stomach, with a stressed expression.
Whenever Wyatt referred to the child as “our blessing,” Mason’s face would clench.
One evening, while we were preparing to sleep, I questioned, “Are you doing alright?”
He let out a breath. “I just feel like Stella is acting… overwhelming.”
I rested on the side of the mattress. “She has fantasized about being a mother since she was just a little girl.”
“Zoe, she speaks about this child as if nothing else on earth matters.”
I lifted my shoulders, aiming to keep things casual. “Perhaps at this moment, nothing else does.”
“I understand that, I truly do, it is just…” he exhaled heavily and gazed blankly at the wall for a minute. “I just can’t shake the sense that something is bad.”
I extended my arm and grabbed his hand. “As soon as the child arrives, all of this will be fine. You will find out.”
I really should have believed in Mason’s gut feeling.
I started having contractions two weeks ahead of schedule.
The pain struck strongly and quickly late at night. Mason rushed me to the clinic as I panted through the stomach cramps.
Stella waited next to my mattress, squeezing my fingers tightly. Mason cleaned my brow with a wet towel. Wyatt walked back and forth by the glass.
At a certain moment, Stella bent down and murmured, “You are doing incredibly well. My son is nearly out. He is nearly out.”
Then at last, following a final effort, the newborn wailed.
The whole world paused when that noise echoed in the space. Tiny, strong, breathing.
Stella hid her lips behind her palms and began crying loudly.
“Oh my goodness,” she muttered. “That is my little boy.”
The medical staff rested him on my chest for a brief second. He felt heated, wet, flushed, and flawless.
I glanced over at Mason, and a cold shiver rushed down my back.
His skin looked white, and he was gazing behind me with a scared expression on his face. I traced where he was looking.
To my right, Stella was glaring down at the infant on my skin with an expression I had never witnessed from her until now.
It was definitely not happiness.
It was an emotion that was fierce, panicked, and very scary.
“Hand me MY baby,” she demanded, her tone cracking. “I am the person who needs to carry him, not you.”
“We need to wash him off right now, miss, and then we will hand him to you,” the worker stated, picking up the newborn.
Stella stared at the staff member, grabbing him like a wild creature watching its prey.
“Stella?”
“I will phone our mother,” she replied, without even glancing in my direction.
She suddenly walked out into the corridor. The exact moment the door closed, Mason moved right next to my face.
“Please,” he mumbled. “Do not let her have the baby just yet.”
I looked directly at him, my chest beating rapidly. “What? For what reason?”