00:00My name is Regina. I am 25 years old. I live in a small apartment. Two months ago, I lost my job. It was a very difficult time. I tried hard to find new work. I sent many letters and waited for calls, but no one called me back.
00:23Months passed. I felt more and more worried. My savings were gone and I needed money for rent and food. One day, my best friend Katie visited me. She saw I was sad. She told me something very strange.
00:42Regina, she said. Some rich people want babies but cannot have them, so they pay other women to carry their babies.
00:53I laughed. It sounded like a crazy idea.
00:57Katie, I said. That is not real. But Katie was serious. She said it was true. I stopped laughing. I thought about my empty bank account and unpaid bills. I needed money. That night, I could not sleep.
01:16I sat on my sofa and opened my laptop. I saw an advertisement. It said,
01:24Private agreement. $500,000. Must be healthy. I read the words again. $500,000. This huge amount could solve all my problems.
01:40The next day, I arrived at the address given in the advertisement. It was a very big house.
01:50My hands were shaking as I rang the doorbell. The door opened.
01:57A man stood there. He was tall and handsome, but he did not smile.
02:06He said, My name is Aaron. Do you know why you are here?
02:13I nodded. I knew why I was there, because I needed money and he needed a baby.
02:19Aaron talked about the rules.
02:23He said, There will be no love, no feelings between us. This is a business agreement.
02:30He also said, After the baby is born, there will be no contact.
02:38You will not see the baby again. You will not see me again.
02:43And you must not tell anyone about this. No friends, no family, no one.
02:51You must live in my house for nine months from today until the baby arrives.
02:58I thought about my empty bank account. I thought about the bills I could not pay.
03:09I thought about the fear I felt every day.
03:14This money, half a million dollars, would change everything for me.
03:19I needed this. I had no other choice.
03:24Aaron held out a paper. It was the contract.
03:27I took the pen and signed the contract. My new nine months had started.
03:35Living in Aaron's big house felt very strange.
03:39It was a very quiet place. I felt alone most of the time.
03:45I had to follow many rules.
03:48I could not use my phone.
03:51I could not talk to my friends.
03:54I could not go outside the house.
03:56I missed my old apartment sometimes, but I knew I had to stay here for nine months.
04:05A doctor came to the house every day.
04:09She checked on me and the baby.
04:12She always asked if I felt well.
04:16Aaron was always busy with his work.
04:19He was always in his office.
04:21One evening, Aaron was sitting alone in the living room.
04:33He looked at me and said,
04:36You can sit if you want.
04:38I walked into the room and sat on a chair near the sofa.
04:43He began to talk.
04:45He told me about his past.
04:47Aaron said his wife died two years ago, and with her, their baby also died.
04:55My heart felt heavy.
04:57I did not know this.
04:59I just want a family again, he said.
05:02I listened to him.
05:04I did not say anything.
05:06There were no words I could say.
05:10Aaron was not just the cold man with many rules.
05:14He was a man who had lost everything and wanted to build something new.
05:22That night, after I went back to my room, I could not stop thinking about him.
05:29Before, I had only thought about the money.
05:34Now, I only think of Aaron.
05:37We talked about our lives, our work.
05:40One afternoon, we sat outside in the garden.
05:45Aaron turned to me.
05:46Have you thought about names for the baby?
05:49He asked.
05:51My heart jumped.
05:53Yes, I said.
05:54If it is a boy, I like Leo.
05:57It means brave.
05:59And if it is a girl, I like Olivia.
06:02It means peace.
06:04He took out a small notebook and wrote the names in it.
06:08This simple act felt like a deep connection.
06:12I was falling in love with him.
06:15But I remembered the contract.
06:18No love.
06:19No feelings.
06:20No future.
06:21These words told me that what I was feeling was wrong.
06:26I had agreed to these rules.
06:29But my heart did not listen.
06:32My feelings for him were growing.
06:34One morning, I was sitting at the table, eating breakfast.
06:41There was a knock at the door.
06:43A woman stood there.
06:45She was very beautiful.
06:48Her face, however, was red with anger.
06:51She looked very wealthy and very upset.
06:54She looked at Aaron.
06:56Who is she?
06:57She asked.
06:58She did not even look at me, but her question was clearly about me.
07:04Aaron said, she is the surrogate.
07:07She got very angry.
07:10She shouted, you really think this will fix you?
07:14This is your answer.
07:15I froze.
07:16My heart began to beat fast.
07:19The woman was Aaron's ex-fiance.
07:22I wanted to run and hide, but my feet could not move.
07:28After a while, the woman turned and left the house.
07:33I walked back to my room.
07:36Aaron came to my room.
07:39He did not ask how I was or if I was okay after the morning's event.
07:45He said, she does not matter.
07:49I said, do I matter?
07:52He said nothing.
07:53He just turned around and walked out of the room.
07:56There was no answer.
07:59One afternoon, I decided to clean Aaron's desk.
08:03He was not home.
08:05I opened a small drawer.
08:07Inside, I saw a photo.
08:09I picked it up.
08:11My heart stopped.
08:13It was a picture of me, but it was not a new photo.
08:18It was a photo from before I met Aaron.
08:22But how did Aaron have it?
08:24Aaron had known about me.
08:26He had found out about me before I even came here.
08:31He knew my past, but he never told me.
08:35Later, when Aaron came home, I showed him the photo.
08:40My hands were shaking.
08:42He looked at the photo, then at me.
08:46His face did not change much.
08:49I asked him, why do you have this photo?
08:53Why did you check my life?
08:55He said, I needed to know.
08:58I needed to know you were safe.
09:01I needed to know you were honest.
09:03I needed to know you were real.
09:05I felt like I was an object, not a person.
09:11Tears filled my eyes.
09:13I am not just some deal, I cried.
09:17I am a person.
09:19I have feelings.
09:21You cannot just check my life like I am a product.
09:25You cannot just use me.
09:28Aaron said nothing.
09:30He did not try to stop my tears.
09:33He did not explain more.
09:36My heart was breaking into a thousand pieces.
09:40My dream, my hope, everything was gone.
09:45I could not stay here anymore.
09:48I walked to my room.
09:50I took out my clothes.
09:52I began to pack my bags.
09:55I was going to leave.
09:57Two weeks passed.
09:59I was no longer at...
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