by Layla Silver
I looked at my friend's animated face and couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Catherine and I had been friends for a long time, and we had bonded over our shared dream to study medicine. It had never been about the prestige for us; we genuinely wanted to help people. Now she was living the dream we had shared, while I was stuck working dead-end jobs that were never going to take me anywhere.
"The best part is telling a patient they can go home. They are always so happy to be going back to their families. You know hospitals are never fun."
I could only nod, feeling more determined than ever that I was going to find a way to go to college and that in the distant future, I would be telling people they could go home too. I remembered the doctor who had helped us when mom died. He had made the worst of situations somewhat bearable. Making sure that my mother was comfortable even during the most excruciating moments of her life had given me a new perspective on doctors and nurses. They were people who spent years of their lives studying so that they could give someone that good news one day. That they were going back home.
In our case, it hadn't worked out quite like that. But I knew the doctors had done everything that they could, and that meant the world to me. I was grateful someone had taken the time to invest their lives into a profession that had made my mother's final moments bearable.
"I really wish you were there with me, April. It's not the same without you, you know?" Catherine said.
"I wish I was with you too, Catie; you have no idea how much."
Going to med school was all I was able to think about these days, and knowing that I couldn't was turning me into this sad and mopping individual.
"Are you sure there is nothing you can do? Can't you find something else that pays better?"
I shook my head, having been through this before. I knew that my friend was only concerned but hearing that question made me feel as if I hadn't been trying hard enough. Yet trying hard was all I had been doing.
"I'm sure I'll find something," I finally said, and Catherine gave me that same sad smile she always had whenever I said that. I was used to it by now, and it didn't bother me as much as it used to. So I pushed my sad thoughts away and just tried to enjoy the rest of the morning with my friend.
"So are you seeing anyone?" I asked, steering the conversation away from myself.
She grinned and nodded. "Well, there's this guy."
"And that is how all great romances start, believe me."
We both laughed, and she took out her phone to show me a group photo, pointing at the object of her affection.
"That's him. We haven't made anything official yet, but I really like him, and we seem to get along great."
I smiled and assured her that she would be singing a different song by the end of the month. After all, how could any guy not fall for her? Catherine was sweet and funny, not to mention really smart and loyal to a fault.
"What about you? And don't give me that same old story about not finding the right guy. You are way too young to be single and miserable!"
I had to laugh at that. Only my friend would equate being single with being miserable. Not that I was running down the hill with glee over my single status, but I wouldn't call myself miserable either. I had other important things to worry about anyway, namely my future.
"You know where I work during the weekends; it's not exactly hot guy central. So when am I supposed to meet eligible bachelors, huh?"
"You know guys are not some creatures that only come out during the weekend, right? I know this is going to blow your mind, but you could meet one during the freaking week!"
I laughed until I felt tears well in my eyes, and Catherine patted my hand as I finally calmed down.
"I just want you to be happy, April. You should really go out more and enjoy yourself. You know what? All your work and no play gets me into a matchmaking mood."
"Oh, please, no." I raised my hands in protest, truly horrified.
The last time she had tried to set me up was with her cousin, and I had ended up not talking to her for a week. With good reason, of course. She hadn't told me her cousin was polyamorous, and I was a one man type of girl. Strictly monogamous.
"I promise to do my research and fully understand what I'm getting you into before I make any rash blind date plans."
That did absolutely nothing to make me feel better. "No thank you, but I will keep your offer in mind should I turn thirty and I'm still single and living with my dad."
She grinned. "I knew you would see it my way someday."
I shook my head at her antics and checked the time. "You better get going, or you'll be late for your group study."
Catherine groaned before draining the last of her soda. I couldn't remember the number of times she had told me not to touch that stuff, yet she could down a couple of cans in one sitting like it was water. I had once asked her why she wasn't as particular about her health as she was about everyone else's and the list of reasons I had been given had made sure I never asked again.
"I hope I see you again soon," she said, standing up and giving me a hug.
"Sure thing. We'll work around our schedules."
"I really missed you, April. Don't be a stranger, okay?"
"I won't, I promise."
I meant every word I said, but sometimes life got in the way. Life in the form of med school and several jobs coming between us. Meeting her like this had helped to just relieve some of the stress that had been weighing me down, and I promised myself that I would make more of an effort to see her as often as I could.
We walked out, and she got into her car before driving away. The coffee shop was close to home, so I decided to walk, taking a short cut through the woods I knew so well. The distance was honestly a bit long, but I didn't mind it, being used to running through the land in my Wolf form. It made the distance seem shorter, and I was home in no time, finding a note from my dad on the fridge informing me that he'd gone out for a meeting.
I felt a pang in my chest. Leaving notes was something mom used to do and something my dad had avoided doing ever since she'd died. Seeing him do this meant he was in a much better space and it was good, I was really happy for him. It was just hard to be reminded of her sometimes, especially with the little things that were so synonymous with her. I poured some juice and sat at the kitchen table while typing out a quick text to dad to acknowledge that I had seen his message and would make dinner. I was reading the other messages I had missed when an ad popped up on my screen.
"A shifter surrogate agency?" I said out loud, wondering why something like that was popping up now.
This had to be one of the weirdest coincidences ever since I had just been thinking about it some time back. But that had just been hypothetical thinking, I didn't really mean to go through it. Now that I was looking at the ad though, I wondered if it might be a sign. Becoming a surrogate would solve my and my dad's financial problems, of course, and I could finally go to med school. I would also be giving a family hope, and nothing was more rewarding than that.
I decided to just look into it and proceeded to open the ad. It wouldn't hurt to find out more information about surrogacy, and it wasn't like I was making any decisions right away. There was no harm in it, after all; I was just really curious.
A chat window opened, and I read the welcome message, entering my details before I could stop myself. I hesitated to press enter, thinking again about what I was doing. And what exactly was I doing besides getting more information, I asked myself? There was only one way to find out, and that was to take this final step. So with a deep breath, I went ahead and pressed enter.
"Good day April, my name is Gina, and I'm a representative of First Class Surrogacy. I'm here to answer any questions you might have," I read out loud again, before responding.
"Hi, Gina. What services do you offer?”
I waited for a little while before the answer came through.
"We offer surrogate services for shifters, pairing parents with the
right donors. There are two classes of surrogacy. 1. Gestational /Transfer Surrogacy: An embryo from the biological parents is implanted into the surrogate. 2. Traditional/Donor surrogacy: The surrogate donates the egg and becomes pregnant through artificial insemination."
"Does it cost anything?" I asked, then waited for the response.
"Intended parents cater for all costs associated with the pregnancy, and this will be handled by the clinic."
I paused as I thought about that, it seemed all that would be needed from me would be my womb for nine months, and a general commitment to take care of the unborn child. In terms of financial obligations, this was good news. I just wasn't sure about the psychological aspect of it all, which was the major issue.
"How long does the surrogacy process take?"
That was also another major issue. I didn't want something that would take up all of my time and stress me out at the same time.
Gina's response came. "This depends on your medical and psychological evaluations, and afterwards, waiting for an ideal match with intended parents. It usually takes up to two months at most."
Okay, that wasn't too bad, I thought. I hesitated to ask my next question because it cemented the fact that I was really considering this. Now that I had a bit of information from a professional, it took away some of my fear, and I was ready to find out more.
"What are the requirements in order for me to sign up to be a surrogate?" I asked, taking a deep breath once I pressed enter.
"You need to fill in a basic sign-up form from the link below if you meet the age, health, and pregnancy history requirements as per the surrogacy class you would have chosen. More screening processes will be done after your basic form has been approved."
I was really tempted to ask how much it paid but refrained since it seemed somehow wrong to ask about that over the phone. It was something I could find out if I researched more and probably went to their offices. There was another thing that was nagging me. Becoming a surrogate seemed like an interesting option, but I didn't want to be psychologically involved. If ever I decided that doing this was for me, I couldn't handle dealing with the parents.
So I asked something else that just came to mind.
"Are surrogates required to meet the parents of their baby? Is it possible not to meet them at all?" I asked.
I waited again for a response, and I smiled when I read it.
"It is possible, and we respect the surrogate's wishes pertaining to that particular decision. However, the parents will be kept updated every step of the way, and the surrogate is required to disclose all information relating to the child for the duration of the pregnancy."
I nodded; that made sense. So I typed back, "Okay, thank you."
"Would you like to come through to our offices to find out more about becoming a surrogate?" Gina asked.
I thought about it for a second and decided that I would actually be interested in finding out more from professionals. I believed surrogacy was something that I could do, but I wanted to find out everything that I could first before making a decision. What were the physical and emotional implications? What medical examinations would I have to go through? What did the insemination process entail? What were the risks to my own health? I needed answers to all these questions.
"Yes, please. Can I make an appointment?" I asked.
"You can come anytime; information will be sent to the email you provided."
I quickly typed out a thank you message before closing the chat, then checked out my email. Sure enough, the link to the website was there, as well as the contact details and address.
It was worth a try, and even though I hadn't seriously considered the idea before, I was willing to find out more and see if it was a good fit for me. I had to do something about college, after all, and this could be a good opportunity for me. I saved the email as a favorite and started working on dinner.
I was just finishing up when my father and uncle came in. I grinned and went to give my uncle a big hug; it was always a treat having him stop by. As the Alpha, Jeremiah was always so busy, and I rarely got to see him.
"You get smaller every time I see you," he frowned but smiled as he gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.
"It's because her cooking is terrible," my father teased, earning a glare from me.
"Don't believe anything he says."
"You know I never do," my uncle chuckled, taking a seat at the kitchen table.
He was a tall man, and he seemed to fill our small kitchen with his frame. Despite his status, I knew he had a soft spot for me and had always spoiled me rotten when I was younger. My father helped set the table while I finished making dinner. As I did so, my uncle and I started talking as we caught up with what was happening in the pack.
"So what's been going on with you? Too cool to give your uncle a call now and then?"
I laughed and sat down next to him, passing him dishes so that he could dish first. I updated him on my several jobs as we ate dinner, and when he finally asked about my plans to go to med school, I decided to tell both of them about what I was considering.
The silence that ensued was deafening, and I could almost swear my father had stopped breathing for a second. My uncle was quick to respond, however, and he actually used his Alpha voice on me. Something he had never done before.
"Absolutely not!"
I knew that tone; it meant I was not to disobey him. I lowered my head in submission but did not cower in front of him.
"I won't do anything without doing comprehensive research first and making sure it's something I can really go through with," I tried to explain.
"You are still too young to make such a decision. Do you really want your first child to be with a stranger? And give that baby away at the end of it all? You haven't thought this through at all, April!"
"Dad?" I looked at my father with pleading eyes, hoping he would defend me.
He shook his head but seemed hesitant to join this argument with my uncle. "I don't know, sweetheart, maybe you could consider something else?"
I sighed. "This is the something else I'm considering."
"When did she get so stubborn?" my uncle mumbled in clear frustration.
"I'm not stubborn; I'm just asking you to keep an open mind and offer your support, Uncle Jay."
"I am sorry April, but this seems like a bad idea. And I don't want you to regret this. That's nine months of your life; you can't just take a baby back if you change your mind during the pregnancy."
"And why are you just thinking of the worst-case scenario?" I was really struggling not to get angry and lash out at the Alpha, but my uncle was making it close to impossible. "You know what, let's just finish dinner. I don't want to talk about this anymore," I said.
My uncle was about to argue again, but I shook my head at him.
"Please, Uncle Jay, let's just drop it."
Dinner was a very tense affair after that, but at that moment I really couldn't care less.
Chapter 5 - Julian
"Here goes nothing," I said to myself, taking a deep breath before getting out of my car.
For some reason, I was feeling a little bit nervous and also a little excited. It didn't make any sense since all I was doing was providing my semen sample today. It wasn't as if I would get to see my baby today or anything. But it was still the first, big step, and maybe that was the reason for my mixed emotions.
After a lot of research and much thinking, I was finally here. I had made my decision and was finally going through with this. My phone vibrated in my pocket, and it made me jump, bringing my mind back to the parking lot. It was a message from my assistant, reminding me of some emails that she had sent and I was yet to respond to. I quickly typed back as I was walking, promising to check them out in a few hours. Right now, all I wanted to focus on was getting this part done and over with so that we could move on to the exciting part already.
"Oh, God!"
I barely felt the body collision, but the lady on the gr
ound had obviously taken the force of it. Quickly putting my phone back into my pocket, I extended a hand to help her up. Her phone was on the ground, she had probably been on her phone as well and hadn't seen me coming.
"I am so sorry, I don't usually walk and text. I should have watched where I was going," I said.
She had her phone and bag in hand when she finally looked up, and she froze for a second or longer. Her pale skin darkened with color and her large, green eyes widened. They were so green that for a second I wondered if she wore contact lenses.
"I'm so sorry," I repeated, and she just blinked.
Her scent made my nostrils flare, and I clenched my fist when I felt an unwelcome urge to bury my face in her hair. I could smell that she was a Wolf too which made her scent even stronger and better. The look in her eyes appealed to me more than anything had in a very long time, and I learned something new about myself right there. I was attracted to Wolves who didn't wear make-up and had pale skin and green eyes that begged me to pick them up and cradle them to my chest.
She certainly wasn't the type I usually went for: the successful, well put together and overly confident type. She was much younger than my usual type, too. This was definitely new, and I wasn't complaining. It seemed I was all about new things lately, things I had never thought I would consider trying.
She finally allowed me to help her to her feet, but still hadn't said anything. Her blush had spread to her neck now, and I wondered how much further down her collarbone it went. Such thoughts about a stranger were not good, and it was obvious she wouldn't appreciate me thinking of her in such a manner. Where women had often approached me, this one seemed to want nothing to do with me.
I cleared my throat, feeling the awkward tension between us.
"Well, I'll be on my way then. I'm sorry again for this."
She gave me a small nod and turned to walk in the direction I was going. We walked into the clinic almost side by side, making it the most uncomfortable two minutes of my entire four decades of existence. I had never felt so out of sorts with a woman before, but I really didn't know what to say to the woman next to me. Something I hadn't experienced since junior high when puberty had left me lanky and extremely shy.