Chapter 24 MAKE ME PREGNANT

Chapter 24 MAKE ME PREGNANT
Her eyes softened.

“I would like that very much, hija.”

After she left, the silence in the room felt heavier than before—almost suffocating.

I stared at the door for a moment, my chest rising and falling unevenly, before reaching for the phone she had lent me. My fingers trembled slightly as I held it, the weight of everything pressing down on me all at once.

I needed to call Mikee.

I needed someone… familiar.

Someone who knew me. Someone who wouldn’t look at me the way everyone else did.

With shaking hands, I dialed her number from memory. Each ring echoed louder than it should have, stretching the seconds into something unbearable.

One ring.

Two.

Three.

Why isn’t she answering?

Just as I was about to give up, the line clicked.

“Hello? Who is this?”

Her voice was sharp, unfamiliar—guarded.

My throat tightened.

“Kee…” I whispered, my voice fragile, barely holding together. “It’s me.”

Silence.

A long, deafening silence.

For a moment, I thought the call had dropped.

Then—

“Oh my God?! My crazy best friend? Atarah Klyte Dela Veja?!”

I closed my eyes, letting out a weak breath, a faint hint of relief slipping through despite everything.

“Yes… it’s me,” I murmured. “Calm down.”

“How can I calm down?!” Her voice rose instantly, panic breaking through every word. “You’ve been missing for almost two days, Ath! Two days! Do you even understand that?! Your car—your car was found completely wrecked! I thought—we thought you died and some grim reaper already got your body..”

Her voice cracked at the end, and I could almost picture her—eyes wide, pacing, on the verge of tears.

Guilt twisted painfully in my chest.

“I’m okay,” I said softly, forcing strength into my voice even though it felt like a lie. “I’m alive. That’s what matters.”

“That’s not enough!” she snapped, her breathing uneven. “Where are you? Tell me where you are right now!”

I hesitated.

Fear crept in.

“Just… don’t tell anyone,” I said quietly. “Especially Mom and Dad. Please, Kee.”

There was a pause on the other end.

A heavy one.

“…Where are you?” she repeated, this time calmer—but more serious.

“I’m in JBM Hospital,” I answered. “Come here. But no one else should know. I mean it.”

Another silence.

Longer this time.

“Wait… that’s not possible,” she said slowly. “We already checked every hospital nearby. Your name isn’t there.”

I swallowed.

“They probably registered me under a different name,” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper. “Just… please come.”

I hated how desperate I sounded. I hated how much I needed my bestfriend right now. I only have her.

A deep sigh echoed through the line.

Frustrated. Worried. Torn.

“…Fine,” she finally said. “Ofcourse, I’m coming. But we’re not done talking about this, Atarah.”

A weak, almost broken smile formed on my lips.

“I know.”

The call ended.

And just like that, the silence returned.

But this time… the silence didn’t feel as suffocating. It wasn’t as empty. Somehow, it felt… less lonely.

___

WHEN I WOKE UP again, it wasn’t the silence that greeted me.

It was movement.

The faint sensation of someone adjusting the IV attached to my arm.

My brows furrowed slightly as I forced my eyes open, still heavy with exhaustion—

And then I saw him.

Rare.

For a split second, my mind went completely blank.

Then everything rushed back all at once.

I shot upright despite the sharp pain that immediately protested through my body.

“What are you doing here?!” I demanded, my voice laced with shock—and something dangerously close to panic.

My gaze snapped toward Mikee. Great, she didnt inform my family? But this guy? Wow!

“Why did you bring him?!”

“I didn’t,” she mouthed quickly, her expression caught somewhere between guilty and helpless.

“I was with her,” Rare said calmly, as if his presence here was the most natural thing in the world. “And your parents deserve to know.”

Frustration flared inside me, hot and immediate.

“Leave,” I said coldly, my voice dropping into something sharp and unforgiving. “I don’t need you here.”

“No.”

His answer came without hesitation—firm, unyielding.

“Stop being selfish, Atarah.”

The word hit harder than it should have.

My chest tightened.

“Selfish?” I repeated, my voice trembling despite my attempt to steady it. Hurt and disbelief bled through every syllable. “I’m selfish? I just don’t want to cause them more trouble!”

The room fell tense.

For a moment, he just looked at me. Then he sighed—And before I could react, he pulled me into his arms.

“Hey…” his voice softened, almost a whisper against my hair. “Don’t cry.”

His hand moved gently, soothingly, through my hair.

“They care about you,” he continued quietly. “You’re their daughter.”

I tried to push him away, my hands pressing weakly against his chest—but his hold only tightened, grounding me, refusing to let me escape.

“You’re probably mad at me too…” I whispered, my voice breaking. “I hurt her. Your first love..”

He pulled back slightly, just enough for me to see his face—his eyes steady, unwavering.

“I’m not,” he said firmly. “Akisha is fine. Her pregnancy is just… delicate.”

A bitter laugh escaped me.

“Because of me.”

“No,” Mikee cut in quickly, her voice softer now. “You lost control, Ath. That’s all. That doesn’t make you a bad person! I know you..”

Silence followed.

Heavy.

Uncertain.

“They’re worried about you,” Rare added, his tone gentler now. “Your sister hasn’t stopped crying.”

Something inside me twisted painfully at that.

My chest felt tight.

“…I’m scared,” I admitted, the words barely audible.

For the first time, my voice carried no sarcasm. No defense. Just truth.

Just fear.

His expression softened.

“I’m here,” he said quietly. “We both are.”

The tension shifted after that. Subtly. But undeniably.

I glanced at Mikee, and she looked a little awkward, standing there, watching Rare and me. Not that we were… touchy. He was just… comforting me. Her eyes flickered between us, unsure of what to say.

“I’ll just… grab something from my car,” she mumbled, breaking the tension, and hurriedly stepped out, giving us a little space.

I looked at him, still holding his hand as if I were the one offering comfort, my voice trembling slightly with a mixture of guilt and curiosity. “How… how come you’re not mad at me?” I asked, my words spilling out before I could stop them. “I mean… I hurt her—Akisha. You’re supposed to be upset with me. She’s hurt too, isn’t she?”

His jaw tightened, a storm of restrained emotion flickering across his features, and for a moment, the air between us felt impossibly heavy—charged with unspoken truths, anger, and something I couldn’t quite name.

“You keep insisting I still love her,” he said after a moment, irritation creeping back into his tone. “You don’t know anything.”

“It’s obvious,” I shot back, lifting my chin slightly.

“I’m not in love with her anymore. And what do you want me to do? Go there and act like her husband?”

I let out a soft scoff.

“Your eyes say otherwise.” I laughed awkwardly because I felt his dark aura.

His jaw tightened.

“You’re impossible.”

“And you’re in denial.”

He licked his lips, and when his gaze met mine, I instinctively looked away, heart hammering in my chest.

“What about you?” His voice was low, deliberate, each word carrying a weight I wasn’t ready to bear.

I froze, as if the air itself had thickened around me.

Then he said it—words that cut through the chaos of my thoughts, leaving a trembling echo in my chest.

“Are you still inlove with your EX?”

“NO WAY!” I shouted.

“Then I choose you instead?”

My breath caught, sharp and uneven, lodged somewhere between fear and disbelief.

For a long, suspended moment, I was paralyzed. My mind screamed, my heart whispered, and I could find no words to answer—not yet, not now.

“…No,” I said quickly, almost defensively. “I don’t want a relationship. I onky want and child you failed to give that so I’ll just have a child with other man.”

Something dark flickered across his expression.

His jaw clenched.

“Don’t you dare.”

I raised a brow.

“Why? Jealous?”

“I’m not.”

“Sure,” I teased lightly, though my heart was beginning to race for reasons I didn’t want to acknowledge.

Then—

He moved closer.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

Too close.

My breath hitched.

I could feel the warmth of his presence, the faint scent of mint lingering in the air between us.

It was distracting. Dangerous. Before I could think—

The door suddenly opened.

Startled, I pushed him away immediately.

Mikee peeked in, a mischievous grin playing on her lips.

“Oops… am I interrupting?” she teased. “They’re on the way, by the way.”

And just as quickly, she disappeared again.

Silence returned.

But it felt different now.

Charged.

Unsteady.

I looked at Rare—

Only to find him already looking at me.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said quietly. My heart skipped.”Even with all those scars.”

I held his gaze, unable to look away.

And for the first time—

There was no teasing in his eyes.

No arrogance.

No games.

Just something raw.

Something real.

“I was worried,” he continued softly. “I don’t want to lose you.”

My chest tightened painfully.

“I missed you…”

“If you ever feel alone… if you think there’s no one on your side, then come to me. I want to protect you. I want to be your ally… your safe place.

The words barely settled between us before

He closed the distance. His lips crashed against mine.

My mind screamed at me to stop. To push him away. To think. To remember everything

The anger.

The chaos.

The pain.

But my body didn’t listen. I didn’t move. I didn’t resist.

And somehow—

Against all logic—

I kissed him back. I feel like I missed him too? What the ef!