Chapter 180 One Hundred And Eighty

Chapter 180 One Hundred And Eighty
The bedroom was dimly lit.
Helen lay comfortably against Ernest’s chest beneath the covers, her head resting lightly on his shoulder while his arm remained wrapped securely around her waist.
The television mounted on the wall played quietly in the background, though neither of them were truly paying attention to it.
For the first time in a long while, things between them felt peaceful again.
Stable.
After weeks of emotional distance and unresolved tension, they had finally begun finding their way back to each other.
Ernest lazily brushed his fingers along Helen’s arm.
“You know,” he murmured softly, “I missed this.”
Helen smiled faintly without lifting her head.
“What?”
“This.”
He tightened his hold around her slightly.
“Us being okay again.”
Helen looked up at him briefly.
“You almost lost me.”
The honesty in her tone made his expression soften instantly.
“I know.”
“And if you ever let another woman drag us into drama again—”
“I won’t,” he said immediately.
Firmly.
“I promise.”
Helen studied his face for a moment before nodding slightly.
She believed him.
At least she wanted to.
Just as silence settled comfortably between them again, her phone rang.
Helen frowned slightly and reached for her phone from the nightstand.
The moment she saw the caller ID, her expression changed immediately.
“Antonia.”
Ernest instantly looked at her.
“At this hour?”
Helen was already sitting up.
Then she quickly answered the call.
“Antonia?”
Her tone became alert instantly.
“Is everything okay?”
On the other end, Antonia’s shaky breathing filled the line briefly before she finally spoke.
“Helen…”
The moment Helen heard her voice, concern flooded her chest.
“What happened?”
Ernest sat up immediately too now, watching his wife carefully.
Helen asked quickly,
“Is Kennedy back home?”
There was a pause.
“Yes.”
Helen relaxed slightly.
Thank God.
But then Antonia spoke again.
“But things are bad.”
Helen’s face tightened immediately.
“What do you mean?”
Antonia inhaled shakily.
And then slowly, she told her sister everything.
From Kennedy walking in and finding Daniel there.
To the confrontation.
To the fight.
To Daniel provoking him.
To Kennedy punching him.
And finally, to the argument afterward.
Helen listened silently, her expression growing more worried with every passing second.
Beside her, Ernest could already tell from her face that the situation was serious.
Antonia’s voice cracked as she continued.
“He won’t even talk to me now.”
Helen’s heart ached hearing the pain in her sister’s voice.
“He came back inside after throwing Daniel out but he barely looked at me.”
Fresh tears slipped down Antonia’s cheeks as she spoke quietly into the phone.
“And now he’s just downstairs refusing to even listen.”
Helen closed her eyes briefly.
“Oh, Toni…”
Antonia broke down again.
“I don’t want to lose my marriage.”
The words shattered softly through the line.
Helen swallowed hard.
Because beneath all the mistakes.
All the confusion.
All the emotional chaos.
She knew her sister loved Kennedy deeply.
Very deeply.
“I messed up,” Antonia whispered painfully.
“I know I did.”
Helen’s voice softened instantly.
“Hey... listen to me carefully.”
Antonia sniffed quietly.
“Hm?”
“You are pregnant.”
Helen’s tone became firmer now.
“A high-risk pregnancy.”
“You cannot allow stress and emotional chaos destroy your health.”
Antonia wiped at her tears weakly.
“I know…”
“No, Antonia. I mean it.”
Helen sat straighter now.
“You need to calm down.”
“You crying all night and putting yourself under pressure is not good for you or the baby.”
Antonia pressed a trembling hand against her stomach instinctively.
The baby.
God.
Everything had become such a mess.
Helen continued gently,
“I know things feel terrible right now.”
“But tonight is not the night to force conversations.”
Antonia stared blankly toward the bedroom door.
“But what if he gives up on us?”
“He won’t.”
“You don’t know that.”
Helen sighed softly.
“I know Kennedy loves you.”
Antonia’s voice cracked again.
“Then why does it feel like we’re falling apart?”
Helen’s chest tightened painfully at the question.
Truthfully things really were spiraling dangerously.
But panicking Antonia further would help nobody.
So Helen steadied her voice carefully.
“Every marriage goes through difficult seasons.”
“This one just became… messier than expected.”
Antonia let out a weak humorless laugh through her tears.
“That’s an understatement.”
A small silence followed.
Then Helen spoke again.
“Give him space tonight.”
Antonia frowned slightly.
“What?”
“Don’t push him right now. He’s angry.”
“And you’re emotional.”
“And if both of you keep talking tonight, it could become worse.”
Antonia leaned back weakly against the headboard.
“But I hate this silence.”
“I know.”
Helen’s voice softened further.
“But sometimes people need time to calm down before they can truly listen.”
Antonia stared ahead blankly.
“You really think I should wait until tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“Let him breathe tonight.”
“And tomorrow, when emotions settle a little, you can try again.”
Antonia nodded weakly despite Helen not being able to see her.
“Okay…”
Helen continued gently,
“And please try to sleep.”
Antonia laughed weakly again.
“I doubt sleep is coming tonight.”
“You need rest.”
“I’ll try.”
Helen glanced briefly at Ernest, who still watched her carefully from beside her.
Then she asked quietly,
“Where’s Kennedy now?”
“In the guest room.”
Helen exhaled slowly.
At least he was still in the house.
That mattered.
“Okay,” Helen said softly.
“That’s actually a good thing.”
Antonia frowned slightly.
“How?”
“He didn’t leave.”
The statement made Antonia pause.
Helen continued carefully,
“He’s hurt, yes.”
“But he stayed.”
“And that means part of him still wants to fight for this marriage too.”
Fresh tears welled in Antonia’s eyes again.
She desperately hoped that was true.
Helen smiled faintly.
“Tomorrow is another day, okay?”
Antonia whispered softly,
“Okay.”
“And Antonia?”
“Hm?”
“No more crying tonight.”
Antonia managed a tiny smile through her tears.
“I’ll try.”
“You better.”
That finally earned a weak laugh from Antonia.
“Goodnight, Helen.”
“Goodnight, Toni.”
The call ended slowly.
Helen lowered the phone carefully and exhaled deeply.
Beside her, Ernest frowned immediately.
“That bad?”
Helen rubbed her forehead tiredly.
“Very bad.”
“What happened?”
Helen briefly explained everything.
Ernest groaned quietly.
“Oh God.”
Helen leaned back against the bed again, worry all over her face.
“I swear if those two don’t fix things soon…”
Her voice trailed off anxiously.

\---

Miles away at the Walton mansion, Antonia slowly lowered her phone onto the bed.
The room suddenly felt painfully quiet again.
Too quiet.
She stared toward the closed bedroom door for several long seconds.
Helen was right.
Pushing Kennedy tonight would probably only make things worse.
Still, the ache in her chest refused to ease.
Antonia slowly lay down against the pillows and wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks.
Then suddenly her phone beeped with a message.
She frowned slightly and picked it up.
The moment she saw the sender, her stomach tightened.
Daniel.
Slowly, she opened the message.
And immediately her blood ran cold.
“You need to choose between me and him.”
“You have just 48 hours.”