I Surrogated Twice for My Husband to Pay His Mom’s Debt — Then He Left, Saying I Was No Longer Beautiful

We deposited the final payment a week later. The relief was real. For the first time in years, we weren’t living paycheck to paycheck. I caught Hicks humming while doing dishes. And I thought maybe, just maybe, he’d been right all along.

But that peace didn’t last long.

Three months later, as I was making dinner, my husband walked through the door holding a folded spreadsheet like it was some kind of treasure map. I was cutting vegetables while also watching Nux color at the kitchen counter.

“If we do it one more time, Khal,” Hicks said, already smoothing the paper across the counter. “Then we can wipe it all out! Mom’s car loan, her credit cards, and even my dad’s funeral balance. It will all be done!”

I didn’t respond right away. A sharp, familiar ache pulsed deep in my pelvis. It came and went in waves — phantom pain, maybe. Or maybe it wasn’t phantom at all. Some days I still felt nausea out of nowhere, and now, I couldn’t tell if it was hormonal or just dread.

“You’re serious, Hicks?” I finally asked. “I’m still healing. My body hasn’t recovered. I haven’t recovered.” Continue reading…