"...Is he my father?"
Everything inside froze.
For a mont, I couldn’t hear anything, not my own breathing, not even my heartbeat. It felt like the world had narrowed down to just that one question and the two people standing in front of .
I looked at Cairo.
Then at Ro.
Ro hadn’t moved. Not even a step. But I saw it—the tension in his shoulders, the way his jaw tightened slightly, the flicker in his eyes when he glanced at before looking back at Cairo. He wasn’t going to answer.
He was leaving it to .
My throat went dry.
"Cairo..." I said softly, forcing my voice to work.
He took another small step forward, his fingers curling into the hem of his shirt like he was holding onto sothing just to steady himself.
"...Just answer mom..." he said.
I swallowed hard and crouched down to his level, trying to steady myself before I spoke.
"Y-you’re supposed to be asleep," I said gently. "It’s late. We can talk about this tomorrow, okay?"
He shook his head imdiately.
"No."
"Cairo—"
"I want to know now."
The firmness in his voice caught off guard. It wasn’t loud, but it was stubborn in a way that reminded too much of Ro.
"Please... I don’t want to wait until tomorrow," he added, his voice trembling slightly. "I heard you. I heard everything."
My chest tightened painfully.
Behind , I could feel Ro’s presence, unmoving but heavy, like the air itself had thickened.
"Cairo..." I reached out and placed my hands carefully on his shoulders. "This isn’t sothing we talk about like this. You’re tired. You probably misunderstood. We should—"
"No," he repeated, louder this ti.
I flinched.
"I’m not tired. I didn’t hear it wrong," he insisted, his eyes already glassy, his voice shaking but determined. "I heard you both. You said it... you said he’s my father."
My breath caught. His gaze shifted briefly to Ro, then back to .
"...Is he my father?"
Silence pressed in around us, suffocating and inescapable. There was no going back after this. No fixing it. No pretending it hadn’t happened.
I had spent years avoiding this, hiding from this very mont. Convincing myself I could control when and how this truth would co out.
Maybe Paris was right. I shouldn’t lie to them because there is no secret that stays hidden forever. It would only hurt them and might even make them hate for repeatedly lying about Ro.
But now?
Now it was right here, demanding to be said.
I opened my mouth but nothing ca out.
My hands tightened slightly on Cairo’s shoulders.
Say it.
Just say it....
But my heart felt like it was being crushed from the inside.
"Cairo..." I whispered, my voice barely holding together. "So things are complicated. And sotis, even if we know the answer, we need the right ti to say it."
"Then this is the right ti.." he said.
My breath hitched.
I looked at him, and for the first ti, I realized this wasn’t about anymore. This wasn’t about my fear or my hesitation or my past. This was about him. About the child standing in front of , asking for the truth he deserved.
Slowly, I exhaled. My fingers loosened against his shoulders.
"...Okay.." I said quietly.
Behind , I felt Ro shift slightly, like he hadn’t expected to say that.
"Okay... I’ll tell you the truth this ti," I repeated, forcing my voice to stay steady even though my chest felt like it was about to cave in.
Cairo didn’t move. He just watched while his complexion seed to grow pale.
I licked my lips, my throat dry.
"Ro..." I started, my voice trembling despite my effort to keep it calm. "He is..."
I paused.
God.
Why is this so hard?
I took a breath.
"...He is your father."
However, Cairo remained silent, staring at and Ro, but after a mont, he seed to grow weaker.
"M-Mom..."
I stopped imdiately. Sothing was wrong. Cairo’s voice sounded off. Too weak.
I blinked, my focus snapping completely to him.
His face had gone completely pale. All the color had drained from his cheeks, his lips turning faintly bluish.
"C-Cairo?" I said, my voice rising in panic. "What’s wrong, baby?"
He swayed just a little but enough to make my heart drop.
"I... I can’t..." he whispered.
His hand flew to his chest.
My entire body went cold.
"No—Cairo—"
Before I could react, his knees buckled.
"Cairo!"
I caught him just in ti, my hands trembling as I pulled him against .
His breathing was uneven. It was too fast and too shallow.
"Hey, hey—look at ," I said quickly, panic rising in my chest. "Breathe. Slowly. Just breathe."
"M-my chest..." he gasped.
Behind , Ro moved instantly.
"W-What’s happening?" he asked sharply, already kneeling beside us.
"He—his heart—sothing’s wrong—" My voice broke completely.
Cairo’s fingers clenched weakly into my shirt.
"I can’t breathe..."
"S-stay with ," I said, my hands shaking as I cupped his face. "Cairo, look at . Breathe slowly, o-okay?"
His breathing got worse. Short, broken gasps that didn’t sound right.
No.
No, no, no—
"Ro, do sothing!" I cried, my voice cracking.
"I am!" he said, his tone suddenly calm—but tight underneath.
He slid one arm under Cairo and lifted him carefully, supporting him like he was made of glass.
"I’m taking him to the hospital."
"I—wait—" My mind was spinning. "His dicine—his bag—"
"No ti," Ro said firmly. "We go now."
Before I could even process it, Cairo was already in his arms, his head resting limply against Ro’s shoulder.
Fear clawed its way up my throat.
"I’m coming!.." I said imdiately, grabbing my bag with shaking hands. I didn’t even think about the kids still sleeping inside.
I stopped for a second because I had montarily forgotten about the two of them. But I couldn’t stay behind because of Cairo.
Ro was already heading toward the door.
"I’ll call soone.." he said quickly, pulling out his phone as he walked, like he had suddenly realized what I had been too panicked to think about.
I followed him, my legs unsteady.
"Alfred," he said sharply the mont the call connected. "I need you to go to Sylvia’s house now."
I froze for half a second. His voice had changed completely. It was no longer hesitant and uncertain but firm and urgent.
"Our two daughters are inside. Stay with them until we get back. Don’t let them wake up alone."
I didn’t even question it.
I didn’t question how quickly he handled everything, how naturally he took control of the situation.
I didn’t have ti.
"Okay, I’ll be there in a mont.." a voice responded from the other end.
Ro ended the call and turned to .
"Let’s go."
We rushed out of the house.
The night air hit my face, cool and sharp, but I barely felt it. All I could see was Cairo. All I could hear was his uneven breathing. Everything else faded into the background.
I didn’t even register how fast we got through the narrow path outside, or how quickly we reached the car.
The only thing I beca aware of was when Ro opened the back door and carefully laid Cairo across the seat, supporting his head.
"Stay with him." he said.
I nodded imdiately, climbing in and pulling Cairo into my arms.
"I’m here," I whispered, my voice shaking uncontrollably. "Mom’s here. You’re okay. You’re okay..."
But he wasn’t. His breathing was still wrong and too shallow. His body felt weak in my arms, like he didn’t have the strength to hold himself together.
Then the engine roared to life. The car sped forward, the sudden motion making my heart jump.
"Cairo, baby, look at ," I said, brushing his hair back with trembling fingers. "Breathe, okay? Just breathe slowly. Stay with ."
His eyes fluttered.
"M-mom..."
"I’m here," I said quickly, tears spilling down my face. "I’m right here."
"I... I’m sorry..."
My heart shattered.
"No," I said imdiately, shaking my head. "No, don’t say that. You don’t have to be sorry. Just breathe. Please—just breathe."
His fingers weakly clutched my sleeve.
"I didn’t an to..."
"Hey," I whispered, my voice breaking completely now. "It’s okay. Everything’s okay. We’re going to the hospital, alright? You’re going to be fine."
But my voice didn’t sound convincing. Not even to .
I looked up at Ro.
"Faster," I said, panic rising again.
"I am.." he replied, his grip tightening on the wheel.
His knuckles were white. His jaw was clenched so tight it looked like it hurt. But his eyes... his eyes kept flickering to the rearview mirror, checking on us every few seconds.
"Stay with us, Cairo," he said, his voice low but firm. "You’re strong, okay? Just hold on."
Cairo didn’t respond. His breathing hitched again and I felt sothing inside break completely.
"Please..." I whispered, holding him tighter. "Please don’t do this... not now... not like this..."
The car sped through the streets, the lights outside blurring into streaks of color. Every second felt too long.
And all I could think was don’t let anything happen to Cairo.
Not my baby. Not my child. I was a bad mother for lying to him. How could I forget that he shouldn’t feel such overwhelming emotions because it might affect his heart?
Maybe if I hadn’t lied to him from the very beginning and admitted that Ro was their dad, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.
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