Chapter 30 We'll see.
~Haven.
My world flashed before my very eyes.
Walter walked out and all that was left behind was the strong smell of his cologne that hung thick in the air.
I stood there, words failing to come out of my mouth.
Hannah, father, mother, Harrington….and worse? Walter. They'd mock me, call my child fatherless.
My feet dragged against the ground as I walked out of the hospital- the test result hung loosely in my hands.
Everything else felt silent- but in that silence laid a constant reminder of who I'd become. The mother to a child who'd be called a bastard.
I made my way out of the hospital without getting the pills I was supposed to. At that moment? They didn't matter.
I just needed someone to father this child.
My child.
I stood still by the road side, with my hands wrapped around myself.
Only if Hannah hadn't taken Walter away from me. It has all been perfect.
A small house, nothing out of the ordinary, Walter, myself and our child.
But alas, Hannah decided to prove to me that she could have Walter simply because she wanted to.
My head felt blank, like my body had lost control of itself.
My legs led me into the road…uncontrollably and within seconds, there I was, laying on the ground, voices echoing in my head, blood running through my nose and I could only mutter “my child” before falling unconscious.
……..
I opened my eyes and there I was, again, the hospital.
Dad stood somewhere close to the door, eyes fixed on his phone. Mom sat on the chair and Walter paced around the ward.
My father couldn't care less, and my mother barely paid attention but at least, Wlater seemed uneasy.
Maybe he still cared. About me, about his child.
Finally, his eyes met mine.
“She's awake,” he announced, his eyes flickered with concern for a second but he didn't forget to mask it.
Dad walked towards me and I turned away.
“You want to die?” He asked, sounding as cruel as ever.
I knew it.
“If my death would satisfy everyone of you then, fine,” I answered, still not sparing him a glance.
Dad sucked his teeth; frustrated. “Next time, if you're walking into a car, make sure it's one that'll run you over. Completely.”
The hospital door slammed behind him and mom ran after him like his little puppet.
“I'll join you,” Walter whispered to mother.
“Milk it out of her. Who owns that thing she's carrying,” mom said at the entrance before leaving.
Walter. He waited.
I finally turned and my eyes met his.
“You said you loved me,” I started.
“Not until you started sleeping around,” his response? Sharp. Precise.
Sigh.
“I wasn't!”
“You were!” He barked.
“I showed you a side of me I'd never shown anyone. I confessed that I loved you, Haven! But what did you do? You made me feel like I was stupid!”
“What did you think I'd have done? Throw a feast? You're my sister's husband!” I reminded, he seemed to have forgotten.
Walter strode around the room for a while. “We'd have made things work,” he said, his voice dropping to a calm tone.
I remained silent.
Maybe.
I could have just believed him.
But it all didn't matter now, did they?
“I'm carrying your child,” I announced. Again.
This time, expecting a reaction better than the last.
“Why did you try to kill yourself?” He asked, his voice laced with concern.
“You wouldn't accept this child, would you?”
“It's not mine,” he said again.
“Ahhh!” I screamed.
“He probably refused to accept it. You've seen me as an idiot," he added. “One that would accept you at any time. Just because I love….. loved you?”
“If anyone has been taken advantage of here, Walter. It's me! You think the next thing I'd want to do with my life now is tie a pregnancy around your neck and force you into marrying me or what?” I asked, a chuckle escaped my lips.
“You know what that means? That I'd be tagged as the ungrateful bitch who forced her way into her sister's husband and for all I care I'm sure none of you are going to take my side! For the media, and your…. father's sake.”
The room fell silent.
“I’d be the happiest woman on earth if this child wasn't yours. If the man I loved wasn't my sister's husband,” a drop of tears rolled down my face.
“So….” Walter stuttered. “What do you ask of me?”
“Your child,” I started.
“The child,” he corrected.
That's fair.
“I'm not sure it's mine yet. So don't address it like it is.”
“What will I tell my father?” I asked.
Walter rubbed his face. “Anything. Anything without my name in it.”
“What? So I'm meant to handle this on my own? Only a few weeks ago were you desperate for me to carry your child!” I yelled.
“Well, not this one! I was sure that could have been mine? But this? This could be another man's child, Haven!”
“It is not!” I cried. “I really just want to die right now, Walter. I don't know what to do. I seek a normal life but everything just keeps getting complicated with each passing day!”
Walter didn't say anything else.
Then I asked. “What if…..what if I'd admitted to be pregnant when you asked? What if there wasn't this doubt that I'd slept with Harrington or someone else? What would you have done? With me? The child?”
Walter finally turned to look at me. “I'd have been willing to give everything I had to make sure I loved you both,” his voice shook, tears rolled down his face. “I'd run with you if I had to. Somewhere far away from all of this. The pressure, Hannah, your parents?”
“And now?” I asked.
He sighed. “I can't risk all of that for a child I'm not sure about.”
“Now what happens to me?” I asked, still sobbing.
“I don't know, Haven. But we'll see…” he answered.