WEBVTT - Betrayal Weekly | Brook 0:00:00.200 --> 0:00:03.120 Hi, everyone, it's Andrea. If you found us through the 0:00:03.160 --> 0:00:07.400 Hulu documentary, welcome to the Betrayal Podcast. On this feed, 0:00:07.520 --> 0:00:09.920 you can listen back to all four seasons of the show, 0:00:10.000 --> 0:00:14.000 including season three Stacy and Tyler's Story. Right now, our 0:00:14.040 --> 0:00:16.680 team is busy working on season five, which launches in 0:00:16.760 --> 0:00:19.799 January of twenty twenty six, but in the meantime, we 0:00:19.840 --> 0:00:23.280 are bringing you new stories every Thursday on Betrayal Weekly. 0:00:23.840 --> 0:00:26.600 Each episode is told directly by the person who lived 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:30.520 through it, and these stories are powerful. Today, we wanted 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.320 to share one of our recent weekly episodes. If you 0:00:33.520 --> 0:00:36.000 like what you hear, just search for Betrayal Weekly in 0:00:36.040 --> 0:00:40.160 your podcast app and hit subscribe. This is brookstory. 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:49.160 I went down to DC thinking that I was making 0:00:49.240 --> 0:00:55.120 a parenting plan, and I came back with business cards 0:00:55.120 --> 0:01:03.120 for investigators and Victim's assistance in my luggage, doubting who 0:01:03.200 --> 0:01:05.199 I knew for the last five years. 0:01:20.520 --> 0:01:23.759 I'm Andrea Gunning, and this is Betrayal, a show about 0:01:23.760 --> 0:01:26.920 the people we trust the most and the deceptions that 0:01:27.080 --> 0:01:33.680 change everything. Betrayal Weekly is officially back for season two. 0:01:33.840 --> 0:01:36.160 Whether you've been with us from the beginning or you're 0:01:36.280 --> 0:01:40.360 just tuning in welcome this season. We're bringing you some 0:01:40.440 --> 0:01:45.920 of our most riveting, emotional, and unforgettable stories yet, starting 0:01:46.080 --> 0:01:46.680 with this one. 0:01:49.720 --> 0:01:57.360 So I had been married for eleven years. It was 0:01:57.480 --> 0:02:01.000 very shocking to me what little independence I had so 0:02:01.560 --> 0:02:06.320 easily fallen into. And I didn't want to be like that. 0:02:06.320 --> 0:02:10.200 That's Brook Fisk. She's an ICU nurse from upstate New York. 0:02:10.840 --> 0:02:14.280 When she was thirty two, she divorced her first husband 0:02:14.760 --> 0:02:15.560 and started over. 0:02:16.120 --> 0:02:20.160 The first couple of months were scary and lonely. You know. 0:02:20.240 --> 0:02:22.400 I would come home from work and the house would 0:02:22.400 --> 0:02:24.400 be empty because the kids would be at their dads, 0:02:25.160 --> 0:02:28.359 and it would be quiet, and I would sit down 0:02:28.360 --> 0:02:30.320 in the kitchen and look around and not know what 0:02:30.360 --> 0:02:31.360 to do with myself. 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:35.919 Brooke was a newly single mother of two, sharing custody 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:40.480 with her ex. This transition made her painfully aware of 0:02:40.560 --> 0:02:44.160 how much she sacrificed in her marriage. She wanted to 0:02:44.160 --> 0:02:46.200 rebuild a life where she was in control. 0:02:47.400 --> 0:02:52.600 So when I got divorced, really my focus for that 0:02:52.680 --> 0:02:57.560 first year was to become independent and maintain my independence, 0:02:58.720 --> 0:02:59.880 and I really thrived at that. 0:03:01.919 --> 0:03:04.280 She bought a small house and fixed it up on 0:03:04.320 --> 0:03:04.680 her own. 0:03:05.880 --> 0:03:09.120 I would watch YouTube videos on how to fix things 0:03:09.200 --> 0:03:13.160 and how to maintain things, and it was very empowering 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:14.960 figuring out how to do that stuff. 0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:19.760 When she started dating again, she was careful her kids 0:03:19.840 --> 0:03:21.680 had already been through enough change. 0:03:22.680 --> 0:03:25.760 I was on dating apps and I would meet people 0:03:25.800 --> 0:03:28.560 and go on dates and have a lot of fun 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:32.079 with that. But whenever it got to the point of 0:03:32.160 --> 0:03:36.960 somebody wanting to get serious, I think that it would 0:03:36.960 --> 0:03:39.360 scare me and I would back right off. 0:03:40.760 --> 0:03:44.040 She didn't want a boyfriend, and she definitely didn't want 0:03:44.080 --> 0:03:47.120 to get married again. If she was looking for anything, 0:03:47.520 --> 0:03:50.120 it was just someone to go on dates with. Her 0:03:50.160 --> 0:03:52.960 life was busy enough with her two kids and a 0:03:53.000 --> 0:03:54.520 demanding job in the ICU. 0:03:56.120 --> 0:04:02.640 I worked nights and it was an incredible experience. I 0:04:02.720 --> 0:04:07.600 loved working in the ICO. I loved being able to 0:04:07.960 --> 0:04:09.920 really impact people's lives. 0:04:10.960 --> 0:04:13.040 That's where she met a medical resident. 0:04:14.120 --> 0:04:18.320 So his full name was secunder Amron, but I called 0:04:18.360 --> 0:04:20.559 him Sick. A lot of his friends called him sick. 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:23.919 One day, she was called into a room with Sick 0:04:24.120 --> 0:04:25.240 and another doctor. 0:04:26.080 --> 0:04:30.040 They were talking about the patient's heart rate and he said, well, 0:04:31.600 --> 0:04:34.440 his heart rates up now. It must be because this 0:04:34.600 --> 0:04:36.040 nurse is in his room. 0:04:36.839 --> 0:04:40.600 He was talking about Brooke. He shot Brooke a smile. 0:04:41.000 --> 0:04:45.960 Which was funny and flirtatious and maybe a little inappropriate 0:04:46.000 --> 0:04:49.599 at the time, but yeah, that was the first time 0:04:49.640 --> 0:04:52.599 I remember meeting him. 0:04:52.800 --> 0:04:55.080 A few weeks later, Brooke was working the night shift 0:04:55.080 --> 0:04:57.640 with Sick when he asked her to help with the patient, 0:04:58.320 --> 0:05:01.560 and once the patient fell asleep, Brooke in Sick got 0:05:01.600 --> 0:05:02.120 to chatting. 0:05:03.560 --> 0:05:08.200 At the end of our conversation, he asked me if 0:05:08.240 --> 0:05:11.040 I would like to go out with him, and I 0:05:11.200 --> 0:05:17.080 said that I don't date doctors. He said ever, and 0:05:17.120 --> 0:05:19.800 I said no, I don't date doctors. I have a 0:05:19.880 --> 0:05:24.159 rule against it. And he said, well, let me know 0:05:24.200 --> 0:05:27.680 if you change your mind. And after he left the room, 0:05:28.240 --> 0:05:32.960 the patient, who I thought was sleeping, opened her eyes 0:05:33.000 --> 0:05:35.160 and she pointed at me. She had a trake so 0:05:35.200 --> 0:05:38.520 she couldn't talk, but she mouthed the words that man 0:05:38.600 --> 0:05:41.560 is for you, and I laughed and I said, no, 0:05:41.680 --> 0:05:44.680 he's not, and she said, yes he is. 0:05:46.800 --> 0:05:50.400 Brooke didn't like the stereotype about doctors and nurses hooking. 0:05:50.240 --> 0:05:52.720 Up, you know, the nurse and the doctors sneak off 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:57.599 into a supply closet, because that's what's depicted on Gray's Anatomy. 0:05:58.600 --> 0:06:02.400 That's why she had the rule no dating doctors. But 0:06:02.480 --> 0:06:05.680 after a few weeks of flirtation, he won her over. 0:06:06.440 --> 0:06:09.440 She took his number and decided that just this once, 0:06:10.120 --> 0:06:14.240 she could break her rule. They started with an ice 0:06:14.240 --> 0:06:17.839 cream date, then long walks and dinners at his apartment. 0:06:18.640 --> 0:06:23.160 We really developed kind of a friendship first kind of relationships. 0:06:23.240 --> 0:06:26.719 So we would spend a lot of time watching movies, 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:31.679 going to movies. I taught him how to cook rice 0:06:31.880 --> 0:06:36.440 American style. I don't think either of us realized at 0:06:36.480 --> 0:06:39.400 the time how much closer we were getting while we 0:06:39.400 --> 0:06:47.120 were doing those casual things. So that fall, we went 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:52.280 out a couple of times and we started talking about, 0:06:52.400 --> 0:06:56.279 you know, where he came from, what my background was, 0:06:57.440 --> 0:07:02.120 and I knew that he had come for residency from Pakistan. 0:07:03.040 --> 0:07:05.880 He came from a family of doctors. In fact, his 0:07:05.960 --> 0:07:09.720 dad had owned a hospital in Pakistan. Like his older brother, 0:07:09.960 --> 0:07:13.200 Sick wanted to stay in the US and practice medicine here. 0:07:14.000 --> 0:07:18.800 Where he grew up. Men and women didn't do public 0:07:18.800 --> 0:07:23.040 displays of affection, and I remember the first time that 0:07:23.080 --> 0:07:26.360 he held my hand in public. He was so awkward 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:31.400 about it, and I was like, what are you doing? 0:07:31.720 --> 0:07:34.840 Are you holding my hand in public? You know, kind 0:07:34.880 --> 0:07:37.760 of joking with him, and he was like, yeah, I am, 0:07:38.160 --> 0:07:39.840 but he was so nervous about it. 0:07:40.640 --> 0:07:43.960 There was a real connection between them, but that didn't 0:07:44.040 --> 0:07:46.240 change Brooks feelings about commitment. 0:07:47.320 --> 0:07:50.000 I was honest with him that I really wasn't looking 0:07:50.120 --> 0:07:53.760 for any kind of a relationship that you know, I 0:07:53.800 --> 0:07:57.240 have kids at home and they're my first priority. He 0:07:57.320 --> 0:07:59.680 knew that I would only go out with him when 0:07:59.720 --> 0:08:04.040 my were with their dad, and he was accepting of that. 0:08:04.920 --> 0:08:08.240 He also said that he wasn't looking to get into 0:08:08.280 --> 0:08:10.200 a relationship or get married either. 0:08:11.320 --> 0:08:15.200 Regardless of what he said, Brooke could tell he was trying. 0:08:16.520 --> 0:08:21.320 He would always pay attention and notice details. He would 0:08:21.400 --> 0:08:25.480 notice how I took my coffee and make an effort 0:08:25.560 --> 0:08:29.480 to prepare it for me. That way. He knew which 0:08:29.720 --> 0:08:35.040 ice cream flavors I liked, at which dessert restaurants. He 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:39.199 was logical and thoughtful and funny and caring. 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:43.560 After six months of dating, they realized that what was 0:08:43.600 --> 0:08:46.280 happening here was more than just a casual fling. 0:08:47.520 --> 0:08:53.800 It was probably late the next spring that he looked 0:08:53.800 --> 0:08:58.120 at me and he said, do you consider me your boyfriend, 0:09:00.080 --> 0:09:06.320 and I hadn't even thought about it, and I said, well, yeah, 0:09:06.360 --> 0:09:08.640 I guess I do. Is that okay? 0:09:09.920 --> 0:09:15.319 It was definitely okay with him once they became official. 0:09:15.480 --> 0:09:17.000 They kept things quiet at work. 0:09:18.040 --> 0:09:23.320 A lot of our coworkers knew that we were together, 0:09:23.880 --> 0:09:25.920 but it was just kind of a thing that nobody 0:09:25.960 --> 0:09:29.600 really talked about. Occasionally someone would say, oh, I saw 0:09:29.679 --> 0:09:33.880 your boyfriend, but I would say, oh, do you mean 0:09:33.960 --> 0:09:35.360 doctor Imron. 0:09:35.280 --> 0:09:41.080 You know, outside the hospital. They built a rhythm. When 0:09:41.080 --> 0:09:43.839 Brooks kids were with their dad, she and Sick planned 0:09:43.920 --> 0:09:46.520 romantic dinners and weekend getaways. 0:09:47.000 --> 0:09:51.079 We loved to go on trips. What we really liked 0:09:51.080 --> 0:09:56.000 to do is go to vacation spots and find the 0:09:56.040 --> 0:09:57.720 foods that they were famous for. 0:09:59.000 --> 0:10:02.559 It started with an promto road trip to Chicago. Sick 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:05.400 drove with Brooke asleep in the passenger seat. 0:10:06.160 --> 0:10:08.400 And I remember him waking me up as we were 0:10:08.520 --> 0:10:13.599 kind of driving into Chicago. It was nighttime and Chicago 0:10:13.920 --> 0:10:17.680 was let up. A lot of the buildings had purple 0:10:17.760 --> 0:10:21.080 lights on them for some reason, and he woke me 0:10:21.160 --> 0:10:24.120 up and he said, look, I called Chicago and had 0:10:24.120 --> 0:10:27.480 them light the buildings up purple for you. Because he 0:10:27.520 --> 0:10:28.679 knew that I liked purple. 0:10:29.679 --> 0:10:33.160 That weekend, they didn't have a plan. They just explored 0:10:33.200 --> 0:10:34.280 their way through the city. 0:10:35.360 --> 0:10:40.920 We found this really awesome restaurant that had Pakistani food 0:10:41.120 --> 0:10:43.920 and they were open all night. We went there at 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:47.000 like one o'clock in the morning, this hole in the 0:10:47.040 --> 0:10:51.240 wall restaurant, and it was the most amazing food. 0:10:52.760 --> 0:10:54.600 Next they went to New Orleans. 0:10:55.960 --> 0:11:02.160 Even though I don'ate me, we ate alligator, it was 0:11:02.200 --> 0:11:02.720 pretty good. 0:11:05.920 --> 0:11:08.760 Back home in New York, they weren't living together, but 0:11:08.800 --> 0:11:12.359 they were in each other's lives in real, tangible ways. 0:11:12.840 --> 0:11:15.800 About two years into dating, Sick came to her with 0:11:15.840 --> 0:11:16.600 a proposition. 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:20.760 He moved out of his apartment and into a townhouse. 0:11:21.880 --> 0:11:24.760 And he had said at one point that he thought 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:27.120 that I would come and live with him, and I said, 0:11:27.800 --> 0:11:30.880 I can't come live with you. I have kids. And 0:11:30.920 --> 0:11:32.760 he said, well, you can just stay here when your 0:11:32.800 --> 0:11:36.400 kids aren't home, and I said that's fine. And at 0:11:36.400 --> 0:11:39.760 that point we had a conversation about how we really 0:11:41.040 --> 0:11:44.720 liked the life we had together, and we liked being 0:11:44.800 --> 0:11:49.120 together when we could be together, but that neither of 0:11:49.200 --> 0:11:54.079 us were really passionate about wanting to get married. 0:11:54.200 --> 0:11:58.400 Still Brooke had been careful about boundaries from the very beginning, 0:11:58.960 --> 0:12:00.840 especially when it came to her kids. 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:05.640 For me, there was a lot of hesitancy about introducing 0:12:05.679 --> 0:12:08.880 someone to my kids, so there was a little bit 0:12:08.880 --> 0:12:12.320 of integration, but not a lot. We all went to 0:12:13.559 --> 0:12:16.839 the movies together a couple of times, and he came 0:12:16.920 --> 0:12:19.400 over for dinner a couple of times. 0:12:20.040 --> 0:12:23.200 Her kids really took to Sick and enjoyed having him around. 0:12:24.000 --> 0:12:26.880 After that, he wanted Broke to meet his family. 0:12:27.640 --> 0:12:30.360 His mom came to town and he asked me if 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:36.000 I would meet her, and she invited me for lunch 0:12:36.120 --> 0:12:38.760 and tea. So I went over and we had a 0:12:38.800 --> 0:12:45.720 really nice afternoon together and we ended up talking about love. 0:12:47.120 --> 0:12:49.600 Sick was at work, so it was just broken his mom, 0:12:50.200 --> 0:12:52.280 and there was clearly a wink and a nod to 0:12:52.320 --> 0:12:56.280 the conversation because Sick had n't been completely honest with 0:12:56.320 --> 0:12:56.720 his mom. 0:12:57.679 --> 0:13:01.360 Sick k had told her that I was his friend. But 0:13:01.920 --> 0:13:06.760 she's a mom and she's not dumb, so I think 0:13:06.840 --> 0:13:11.960 she knew what was going on. She asked me what 0:13:12.040 --> 0:13:14.440 I thought about arranged marriage and if I thought it 0:13:14.559 --> 0:13:19.240 was good or if I thought love marriages were better, 0:13:20.280 --> 0:13:23.200 and we had a nice conversation about love, and she 0:13:23.480 --> 0:13:29.520 told me about meeting six Dad and their marriage. I 0:13:29.760 --> 0:13:34.040 didn't get any sense of disapproval from her at all. 0:13:34.760 --> 0:13:36.240 She was very kind to me. 0:13:37.240 --> 0:13:40.319 The meeting went so well. Broke and six Mom started 0:13:40.360 --> 0:13:44.120 sending letters and care packages back and forth, which made 0:13:44.160 --> 0:13:45.479 Sick a little nervous. 0:13:46.080 --> 0:13:49.120 I remember him being a little bit like, she's going 0:13:49.200 --> 0:13:50.680 to know, She's going to know, and I was like, 0:13:51.240 --> 0:13:52.760 I think she already knows. 0:13:54.600 --> 0:13:57.800 Brooke didn't see the big deal, but for Sick, his 0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:02.559 family expectations mattered, especially when it came to marriage. 0:14:03.320 --> 0:14:08.120 He talked about feeling like there was an expectation on 0:14:08.200 --> 0:14:13.560 him to marry a Pakistani girl and his family wouldn't 0:14:13.559 --> 0:14:18.960 accept him marrying a white girl. And I asked him, well, 0:14:18.960 --> 0:14:22.120 what if you just don't get married, would that be okay? 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:25.840 Would your family accept that? And he said I think so, 0:14:26.640 --> 0:14:30.800 And I said, well, okay, let's do that. Then let's 0:14:30.880 --> 0:14:31.840 just not get married. 0:14:33.960 --> 0:14:38.000 Their agreement worked for almost four years, but when six 0:14:38.160 --> 0:14:43.800 residentcy ended, their relationship hit across roads. He started applying 0:14:43.840 --> 0:14:46.080 to fellowship programs across the country. 0:14:46.680 --> 0:14:50.200 We actually went to a couple of different places. We 0:14:50.280 --> 0:14:53.880 took a little road trip around for him to look 0:14:53.920 --> 0:14:55.040 at them and interview. 0:14:55.760 --> 0:14:58.880 The program he really wanted to go to was in DC, 0:14:59.560 --> 0:15:03.080 a sick hour drive from upstate New York. Brooke made 0:15:03.120 --> 0:15:06.600 it clear that relocating wasn't an option for her family. 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:11.920 I don't think that trying to have a long distance 0:15:12.000 --> 0:15:16.240 relationship is a good idea, especially given that I have 0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:21.240 kids and he's going to be living states away. And 0:15:21.280 --> 0:15:24.600 he acknowledged that, and we had a couple of conversations 0:15:24.640 --> 0:15:30.280 about it, while ultimately he decided that it was important 0:15:30.280 --> 0:15:33.040 for him to go to this program. It was a 0:15:33.080 --> 0:15:35.560 program that his brother had done, so it was kind 0:15:35.600 --> 0:15:36.760 of a family legacy. 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:42.760 It was bittersweet, but Brooke supported Sick if he wanted 0:15:42.760 --> 0:15:46.040 to start his career in America. This really was for 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:47.080 the best. 0:15:49.640 --> 0:15:53.040 I was very happy for him, congratulated him. I bought 0:15:53.080 --> 0:15:58.960 him a cake and helped him start looking for places 0:15:59.000 --> 0:16:02.920 to buy down there, and helped him paint it, and 0:16:03.000 --> 0:16:07.120 helped him pick out furniture and decorate it. And then 0:16:07.320 --> 0:16:10.360 you know, we kind of said goodbye after that, but 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:15.520 of course goodbye wasn't really goodbye, as often happens in 0:16:15.520 --> 0:16:17.040 these relationships. 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:21.120 They knew they had an expiration date, but they were 0:16:21.160 --> 0:16:22.760 having a hard time letting go. 0:16:23.680 --> 0:16:29.080 I remember walking into the airport with tears streaming down 0:16:29.120 --> 0:16:34.400 my face, bawling after saying goodbye to him, and tsagent 0:16:34.560 --> 0:16:36.560 came up to me and she said, are you okay? 0:16:38.000 --> 0:16:40.720 And I said, yeah, I just said goodbye to my boyfriend. 0:16:41.080 --> 0:16:43.520 But I'm sure she thought something was horribly wrong, just 0:16:43.520 --> 0:16:46.640 from the amount that I was crying. We said a 0:16:46.640 --> 0:16:47.840 lot of goodbyes that year. 0:16:49.320 --> 0:16:52.880 This began a new era of their relationship, one where 0:16:52.920 --> 0:16:56.080 they kept finding their way back to each other weekend 0:16:56.120 --> 0:16:56.720 by weekend. 0:16:57.560 --> 0:17:02.360 We weren't in a relationship, we were not together, but 0:17:02.520 --> 0:17:05.240 what we would end up doing is anytime either one 0:17:05.240 --> 0:17:10.960 of us had like a long weekend free, or if 0:17:11.000 --> 0:17:13.359 it was one of our birthdays, we would take a 0:17:13.359 --> 0:17:14.360 little trip together. 0:17:15.520 --> 0:17:18.560 For her thirty seventh birthday, Sick planned a trip to 0:17:18.600 --> 0:17:19.280 the Poconots. 0:17:20.040 --> 0:17:25.240 We stayed at a bed and breakfast up in the mountains, fireplace, 0:17:26.480 --> 0:17:35.280 woody romantic get away, candle at dinners and fireside chit 0:17:35.359 --> 0:17:36.200 chat every night. 0:17:36.840 --> 0:17:40.560 You know, Brooke didn't know it at the time, but 0:17:40.640 --> 0:17:46.560 what happened that weekend would affect the rest of her life. 0:17:46.840 --> 0:17:49.959 At the end of their trip, they said another tearful goodbye. 0:17:50.560 --> 0:17:53.760 It was a great time, But that whole weekend, Sick 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:56.680 had been keeping a secret. He just couldn't bring himself 0:17:56.720 --> 0:17:57.840 to tell her in person. 0:17:59.000 --> 0:18:02.960 He called me a couple of days later, and he 0:18:03.080 --> 0:18:07.040 said that he wanted to talk to me, and he 0:18:07.119 --> 0:18:08.960 wanted to let me know that he had talked to 0:18:09.000 --> 0:18:14.480 his mom and that he had agreed to let his 0:18:14.560 --> 0:18:43.360 mom arrange him a marriage. 0:18:44.080 --> 0:18:47.800 After a romantic getaway for Brooks birthday, Sick called her 0:18:47.840 --> 0:18:52.560 with surprising news he was moving forward with an arranged marriage. 0:18:53.400 --> 0:18:57.879 I was surprised because he had not been interested in 0:18:57.920 --> 0:19:02.080 an arranged marriage and hadn't expressed any interest in it. 0:19:03.080 --> 0:19:06.280 She always thought Sick wanted a love marriage, and when 0:19:06.280 --> 0:19:09.399 he broke the news, he didn't even seem excited about 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:10.320 the idea. 0:19:10.840 --> 0:19:15.080 He seemed resigned to it. He seemed sad about it. 0:19:16.240 --> 0:19:20.360 He talked about it like he was going to get 0:19:20.359 --> 0:19:22.320 a girl who wanted to marry a doctor. 0:19:23.359 --> 0:19:26.199 Brooke tried to hide it, but she was hurt. 0:19:26.920 --> 0:19:31.159 I felt sad, but I think that part of me 0:19:31.240 --> 0:19:34.040 had been expecting it, because we'd basically been trying to 0:19:34.040 --> 0:19:37.960 say goodbye for a year. So even though part of 0:19:38.000 --> 0:19:41.800 me felt like he was still mine, he really wasn't 0:19:41.880 --> 0:19:42.720 mine anymore. 0:19:44.680 --> 0:19:48.160 If he was serious about pursuing this, that meant their 0:19:48.160 --> 0:19:49.720 relationship had to be over. 0:19:50.600 --> 0:19:54.800 I told him that if that was happening, then we 0:19:55.000 --> 0:19:58.560 really needed to stop talking to each other, because it 0:19:58.640 --> 0:20:04.359 wasn't fair to another woman to think that she was 0:20:04.359 --> 0:20:07.760 getting a husband and have her husband over here in 0:20:07.800 --> 0:20:10.879 the United States talking to me and going on trips 0:20:10.920 --> 0:20:16.359 with me. That's just not fair. And he agreed, And 0:20:17.080 --> 0:20:19.480 for all the times we had tried to say goodbye 0:20:19.600 --> 0:20:25.480 over the past year, I think that finally seemed to 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:27.600 be the thing that let us stop talking to each other. 0:20:31.359 --> 0:20:36.480 After that conversation, I think we went the longest period 0:20:37.000 --> 0:20:42.000 we had ever gone without talking. It was over two weeks. 0:20:42.720 --> 0:20:50.320 Neither of us reached out, and then I realized my 0:20:50.440 --> 0:20:55.800 period was late, so I took a pregnancy test and 0:20:55.920 --> 0:20:56.720 it was positive. 0:20:57.600 --> 0:21:00.679 Brooke knew it happened during their Poke Knows trip. 0:21:01.600 --> 0:21:05.639 The moment I realized I was pregnant, I started thinking 0:21:05.680 --> 0:21:09.919 about the baby and who he was going to be. 0:21:11.080 --> 0:21:14.800 I really just felt like that was my baby. From 0:21:14.840 --> 0:21:17.120 the minute I knew I was pregnant. 0:21:17.440 --> 0:21:20.240 It felt like a gift from the universe. She knew 0:21:20.240 --> 0:21:23.440 this would be her last baby, and it just felt right. 0:21:24.160 --> 0:21:26.920 But now she faced another decision. 0:21:28.080 --> 0:21:33.080 I wasn't sure if I should even tell him. Part 0:21:33.080 --> 0:21:37.479 of me thought, if I don't tell him, he'll never know, 0:21:38.640 --> 0:21:42.159 and I just have the baby and go on with 0:21:42.240 --> 0:21:45.399 my life and he can go on with his life. 0:21:46.359 --> 0:21:49.040 On the other hand, it felt wrong to keep this 0:21:49.080 --> 0:21:49.800 from him. 0:21:50.320 --> 0:21:53.800 Is it fair of me to not give him that 0:21:54.000 --> 0:21:57.280 choice and that opportunity to take part in his child's life. 0:21:58.680 --> 0:22:01.840 I knew how much I liked being a parent, and 0:22:02.440 --> 0:22:05.199 I wouldn't want to miss the opportunity to be in 0:22:05.320 --> 0:22:10.119 my child's life. So I decided to tell him because 0:22:10.119 --> 0:22:11.960 I thought that it was the right thing to do. 0:22:13.280 --> 0:22:16.320 She told him over the phone. He was quiet for 0:22:16.359 --> 0:22:18.800 a few seconds, and then. 0:22:19.160 --> 0:22:22.359 His immediate reaction was to ask me to have an abortion. 0:22:24.320 --> 0:22:28.480 I told him I couldn't, and he didn't have to 0:22:28.480 --> 0:22:33.040 be involved. He didn't have to financially support the baby, 0:22:33.160 --> 0:22:35.560 he didn't have to have anything to do with the baby. 0:22:36.960 --> 0:22:40.280 I was already a single mom. I loved having kids. 0:22:40.359 --> 0:22:44.199 I'm good at raising kids. If he doesn't want to 0:22:44.200 --> 0:22:46.000 have the baby, that's fine. 0:22:46.280 --> 0:22:48.639 She went to the doctor and learned the baby was 0:22:48.720 --> 0:22:51.240 perfectly healthy. It was a little boy. 0:22:52.640 --> 0:22:56.840 I was already picking out names before I was even 0:22:57.040 --> 0:23:01.920 showing because I already knew who he was. I decided 0:23:01.920 --> 0:23:06.320 to name him Makai and call him Kai for short. 0:23:09.920 --> 0:23:13.359 But Sick wasn't on the same page. After she told him, 0:23:13.720 --> 0:23:14.879 he started spiraling. 0:23:17.320 --> 0:23:24.280 That started months of phone calls and text messages, begging 0:23:24.320 --> 0:23:27.159 and pleading with me to have an abortion, and telling 0:23:27.240 --> 0:23:31.520 me that I was ruining his life, that this was 0:23:31.600 --> 0:23:35.720 going to cast shame on his family in Pakistan, that 0:23:36.359 --> 0:23:39.840 his mother was going to be ridiculed and he was 0:23:39.880 --> 0:23:44.160 going to be an outcast, and that I was causing 0:23:44.240 --> 0:23:46.919 him mental anguish. 0:23:48.080 --> 0:23:51.480 She understood that having a baby outside of marriage wasn't 0:23:51.520 --> 0:23:56.160 part of his plan, but plan or not, this was happening. 0:23:58.119 --> 0:24:01.440 All of that text message and the phone calls about 0:24:01.480 --> 0:24:03.800 your ruining my life, You're ruining my mom's life. That 0:24:03.880 --> 0:24:04.920 all made me pretty mad. 0:24:06.000 --> 0:24:09.399 She kept waiting for Sick to come around every time 0:24:09.480 --> 0:24:12.120 she talked to him. He tried a new tactic. 0:24:13.000 --> 0:24:15.719 One day, I was sitting on my bed and I 0:24:15.760 --> 0:24:18.920 was on the phone with Sick, and he said that 0:24:20.040 --> 0:24:22.840 he had talked to a friend of his who was 0:24:22.880 --> 0:24:26.760 an opigi N and that his friend had told him 0:24:27.400 --> 0:24:35.320 that I could take mesaprostal and that it would abort 0:24:35.359 --> 0:24:37.880 the baby, and that I could do it right there 0:24:37.880 --> 0:24:41.639 at six house and it would all happen very easily, 0:24:42.440 --> 0:24:44.480 and I wouldn't even need to go to the hospital 0:24:44.560 --> 0:24:47.080 or anything, and Sick could be there with me the 0:24:47.119 --> 0:24:51.320 whole time. And Sick asked if I would be willing 0:24:51.359 --> 0:24:56.600 to do that, and I said absolutely not. No. He 0:24:56.720 --> 0:24:59.600 said that he wasn't trying to pressure me, but that 0:25:00.000 --> 0:25:02.160 we were running out of time because we could only 0:25:02.240 --> 0:25:06.600 do this in the first trimester, and my first trimester 0:25:06.680 --> 0:25:10.399 had been coming to an end. So he wanted me 0:25:10.560 --> 0:25:14.040 to do this, and I said now. 0:25:16.400 --> 0:25:20.200 When she started the second trimester, the conversation was over. 0:25:20.960 --> 0:25:25.320 She'd made her choice. The window for second guessing had closed. 0:25:26.200 --> 0:25:29.119 Now that it was official, Brooke shared the news with 0:25:29.160 --> 0:25:30.159 her two kids. 0:25:31.040 --> 0:25:34.680 We had a little gender reveal cake for the baby. 0:25:35.800 --> 0:25:39.720 We went shopping and bottom a bunch of clothes and 0:25:39.840 --> 0:25:41.159 some stuff for his crip. 0:25:41.880 --> 0:25:44.359 She didn't hear from Sick for a few weeks, but 0:25:44.400 --> 0:25:47.200 when he did reach out again, he'd had a change 0:25:47.200 --> 0:25:47.520 of heart. 0:25:48.400 --> 0:25:52.640 Eventually he starts talking about setting up a bank account 0:25:52.800 --> 0:25:57.520 for me and the baby, and then he asks me 0:25:57.920 --> 0:26:03.280 if I'll come down to see him so that we 0:26:03.359 --> 0:26:06.240 could figure out a parenting plan and figure out a 0:26:06.240 --> 0:26:10.000 way that we could have this baby together and him 0:26:10.680 --> 0:26:13.399 still be in d C and maybe in New York, 0:26:14.000 --> 0:26:15.560 but still have this baby together. 0:26:16.560 --> 0:26:20.080 Finally, the Sick she knew was back. She made plans 0:26:20.119 --> 0:26:22.560 to drive down to d C right after her four 0:26:22.600 --> 0:26:23.920