The night ahead seemed darker than ever.
Takahiro's expression hardened. "Our family's future is at stake, Suzuko. This is not about your personal feelings. You will do this for the sake of our ancestors and our family's honor."
But life had other plans.
Widow Honjo Suzu sat alone in her dimly lit home, the smell of incense and tea wafting through the air. It had been a year since her husband's passing, and the grief still lingered like an open wound. As a widow, she was expected to lead a simple, chaste life, dedicating herself to her late husband's memory.
Suzuko's heart sank. She knew where this was heading. Widow Honjo Suzu- who is forced to get pregnant...
Takahiro continued, "The elders have decided that you must carry on the family line. You must get pregnant and bear a child to secure our family's future."
Suzuko knew she had no choice. She would be forced to endure a pregnancy, likely with a man not of her choosing, to carry on a family's lineage. A part of her felt like she was being pulled back into a world she thought she'd left behind with her husband's passing. The night ahead seemed darker than ever
Suzuko felt a cold dread creeping up her spine. She had heard stories of widows being forced into such situations, their bodies used as vessels to carry on a family's lineage. It was a fate worse than death, a complete disregard for her autonomy and grief.