IN THE MIDDLE OF A FAMILY REUNION, MOTHER-IN-LAW PULLS HER PREGNANT DAUGHTER-IN-LAW’S CHAIR AS A “PRANK” — BUT THEIR WORLD STOPPED WHEN THEY SAW THE BLOOD, AND WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IN THE HOSPITAL BROKE THEM ON THEIR KNEES IN REGRET

Dela Cruz family reunion. Everyone was happy. The house was full of food, wine, and video games.

Jenny was seven months pregnant with her husband Mark’s first child. Her belly was already heavy, her legs were swollen, and she got tired easily. But because it was a “family event,” her mother-in-law, Donya Viring, forced her to help take care of it.

“Jenny! Refill the ice bucket!” Viring ordered while playing mahjong with her friends.

“Jenny! Cut the lechon!”

Viring was known for being a “joker” and insulting. His favorite target was Jenny. To him, Jenny was a “lucky provincial” who married an engineer.

“Look at my daughter-in-law,” Viring laughed at the guests. “She’s so fat! She’s like a whale! Maybe she’s not a child anymore, maybe she’s just giving birth to a pig!”

The relatives laughed. Jenny just bowed her head, trying to smile so as not to ruin Mark’s night. She was so tired. Her hip hurt.

“Mom, that’s enough,” Mark scolded. “Let Jenny rest.”

“Gosh! What an art!” Viring sneered. “In my time, I would still fetch water even when I was on my period. You Gen Zs really are so soft!”

Around eight o’clock in the evening, Jenny took a short break. She saw an empty chair next to the table where the family was chatting.

“Let me sit down,” Jenny whispered to herself, holding her stomach and back.

She slowly turned around to sit down.

Behind her, Viring saw this. The old man’s eyes sparkled. He thought, this is a good joke.

As Jenny’s butt was about to lower itself to land on the chair, Viring quickly pulled the chair away.

“Ooop!” Viring shouted while laughing.

He expected Jenny to just fall over while sitting and they would all laugh. A “classic prank.”

But he was wrong.

Due to the weight of her stomach and lack of balance, Jenny couldn’t just sit down.

BLAG!

Jenny’s butt hit the hard cement with great force. Due to the impact, the back of her head also hit the edge of the table.

“I’M GOING TO GO!!!” Jenny shouted. A scream filled with fear and pain.

The relatives laughed. “Hahaha! Aunt Viring, you really are ugly! Jenny is a lamp!”

Viring was laughing. “What’s that, Jenny! That’s exercise too! You’re so heavy!”

But the laughter stopped when they noticed that Jenny wasn’t getting up.

Jenny’s face was hanging in pain. She was holding her stomach.

“Mark… the baby…” Jenny groaned.

And then, they saw it.

Between Jenny’s thighs, a red liquid flowed. Blood. Lots of blood. It spread across the white tiles of the floor.

Viring turned pale. The guests dropped the glasses they were holding.

“JENNY!” Mark shouted, running towards his wife. “My God! Blood! Call an ambulance!”

“Mark… it hurts…” Jenny cried before she lost consciousness.

In the hospital’s Emergency Room, there was chaos.

Jenny was rushed to the Operating Room. Emergency Caesarean Section.

In the waiting area, the whole family was there. Everyone was silent. No one was laughing anymore.

Mark was sitting in the corner, stunned, his clothes covered in blood. Viring was standing, shaking, still trying to defend himself.

“I didn’t mean to,” Viring justified to the relatives. “It was just a joke. Did I know the child’s grip was so weak? It was his fault, he wasn’t careful.”

Mark stood up. For the first time in his entire life, he faced his mother with an anger that he couldn’t describe.

“Mom, be quiet,” Mark said, shaking.

“Why are you scolding me? I’m your mother!”

“WHEN SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS TO MY MOTHER AND I, I CAN’T FORGIVE YOU!” Mark shouted, echoing throughout the hospital. “You always say it was just a ‘joke’. You’ve been bullied and bullied Jenny. Now, look what your ‘joke’ did! You killed someone!”

Viring sat up. He wasn’t used to being yelled at by his son.

Two hours passed. The OR door opened. The Doctor came out, sweaty and serious-looking.

The family immediately came over.

“Doc, how is my wife? My son?” Mark asked.

The doctor sighed. “Wife Jenny is stable. She lost a lot of blood due to Placental Abruption. The placenta separated from the uterus due to the force of the fall. It’s good that you rushed her right away. If it had been 10 minutes late, she would have died.”

“Thank God,” Mark cried. “What about the baby? My son?”

The doctor looked at Viring before answering Mark.

“The baby…” the doctor said softly. “He is a boy. But… because he is only 7 months old, he is premature. And because of the trauma of the fall and oxygen deprivation, he is in critical condition. He is in the NICU now. His heartbeat is weak.”

Napa