The next wave came from the least expected place. Convinced that Harry was going to leave her, that he would go away and she wouldn't be able to hold him, Laura decided to use her last resort: Deanna herself.
Maybe the last days of the final stretch of her pregnancy were driving her crazy, maybe the constant rumors about Deanna and Daniel were annoying her, or maybe she felt cornered by the eminent end of her short marriage; but Laura was livid, tired, exhausted.
You can make the best decisions when you feel something important is at stake, or the worst of your whole life; in the end, it is the outcome that determines it. She had the feeling that something was slipping through her fingers.
-Deanna, I need to talk to you, do you think you can come to the University café at 4 o'clock?
-Hi Laura, sure, I'll be there, are you okay?
-Yes, I'll be there. I'll wait for you there.
No, Laura was not fine, not fine at all. She struggled to climb the five steps to the café, her feet were killing her. When she opened the door she found her friend sitting at the back, a cup in her hands.
Deanna didn't notice her until she was standing in front of her, her thoughts were on Daniel and the problems at the company.
- Deanna...
- Laura! I'm sorry... Can I order you something? -
- No, you don't have to." She struggled to get comfortable in her chair.
- How much longer? -
- Almost nothing... I just want her to be born at once, my feet are killing me -
Deanna smiled.
-I'm sorry I made you come all this way... But in this environment I feel relaxed... I don't know why... -
- Yes, it's the same for me. It must be because we've spent so many hours here -
- Deanna, I have to ask you something and it's gonna sound ugly, so please wait till I'm done, okay? -
- Sure...
Something ugly?
-I shouldn't tell you this, and I shouldn't ask you what I'm about to ask you, but... Really, Deanna, I can't take it anymore -Her voice cracked
- What is it, Laura? Is it Harry again? -
- It's always Harry... Everything in my life has been Harry, that's why I'm going to ask you to please get out of our lives, Deanna... Yes, that's what I need from you, for you to get away from this family... -
Deanna's face must have shown a lot of puzzlement because Laura smiled a little at the sight of her.
- Do you know why Harry asked you to marry his brother? -
- So that Emma could be born and you could form a family... -
- That was the pretext, the real reason is another one: Harry tried to take you away from Frank... Don't make that face, there are many things you don't know. Before I found out about the pregnancy, Harry showed up one day in the apartment totally angry, he was supposed to have an exam that day and I thought he had failed... When I asked him he told me that Frank had come back from his city and was asking about you... It was a good thing, wasn't it? After what he did to you and how bad you were, if he came back to apologize and try to make amends maybe you could take him back... –
- I never knew that Frank had come back... -
- No, of course not... Harry went to find him to threaten him to leave you alone... He scared him a lot because he went back to his hometown, I don't know what he told him because he never mentioned it... But he insisted that he was taking care of you, he was taking care of his friend from that cheating bastard... But that's not really why he did it... You know why he did it? He did it because he's been in love with you ever since he met you... -
- What are you saying, Laura?! -
- It's like this, Deanna. He's been in love with you since you arrived at the University... I dare to say that since he first laid eyes on you... You can't imagine what all these years have been for me, watching him lose his mind every day for another woman... But I don't blame you, you never realized it, you never gave him any reason to believe that you felt the same. On the contrary, you always treated him like a brother... When you started going out with Frank was the first time he got drunk, he cried like a little boy and didn't know what was wrong with him... The next day I saw you with your boyfriend and then I understood... Do you think all the scorn he was giving him was because he was protecting you as his soulmate? No, Deanna, he was jealous... As he is today of Daniel... -
Deanna's heart was racing, she could feel it pounding in her chest.
- Who told you Frank was sleeping with that girl on campus? -
- Harry...
- And you blindly believed him... Anyway, it was true... Do you know how he found out? He never told you... He went looking for him in his dorm room half drunk to beat him up and found him with that woman in bed. He ran to tell you like he'd struck gold. You cried for a whole week. And I realized, Deanna... I realized I had lost him... I had to do something, don't judge me please... -
Laura cupped her belly with both hands and caressed it.
- You got pregnant with Emma... -
- Yes, it wasn't an accident. He doesn't know. What else could I do? I felt that at any moment he was going to confess he loved you, I was going to lose him... I was going to lose him... I did the first thing that came to my mind... You can't imagine how hard it was to have him in bed knowing he was thinking about you... That when he looked at me, he saw you... So many years together... I love him, Deanna, I love him so much –
Laura began to shed some tears, her tone was one of anguish and pain.
-I...
- You never noticed that... You never noticed how he saw you, how he listened to you in rapt attention, how he was thoughtful when you were leaving... I had to witness all that first hand and feign ignorance... My heart is broken since you showed up... It's not your fault, I can't even say that you got into our relationship to ruin it on purpose... You are in love with Daniel now, imagine how I feel... Can you understand me? Harry manipulated you into marrying Daniel to keep you away from Frank... Daniel could have married any woman, he has plenty of them if he wants... But he went to ask you, under the pretext that no one else was going to help us... He never suspected that you two could develop feelings for each other...
-You lied to me...
-I'm sorry, I was desperate as I am now... Desperate because my husband can't get over you, he can't accept that you love his brother, he can't bear to lose you and he is going to leave me because of all that... The relationship between Daniel and Harry deteriorated when your husband knew that his brother was in love with you... Yes, Daniel knows it too and he didn't say anything... He preferred to be on bad terms with Harry than to lose you... And I'm sure Camilla hates you for that too... We all lied to you, Deanna... I'm so sorry -
Her crying deepened and the tears wouldn't stop falling. Some students from other tables watched for a few seconds.
-That's why I'm asking you, for the love of God... Go away, go far away where none of them can find you... Our family is falling apart, Deanna, because Daniel won't let go of you... They're going to end up hating each other... My daughter, Emma, will grow up without her father... Harry has been looking for a place to move far away, two cities away from here... What will I tell her when she asks me about him? -
- Harry wouldn't leave Emma... -
- He'll leave me... He'll live his whole life waiting for you to give him a chance... You have to go, Deanna... –