Unwanted

Unwanted
Amanda’s POV

At Mike’s House

The phone stayed pressed against my ear long after the man said the first words. I stood there in the quiet room, staring at the wall, trying to understand why this call had to come this morning of all mornings.

“Hi, baby. I have missed you so much. When are we seeing?”

Hearing his voice made my heart jump the wrong way. Not in a good way. Not in a soft way. More like a warning. More like something cold brushing across my back.

I swallowed hard before speaking.

“We are not seeing,” I said, walking toward the dressing table. “We are done. I told you that already.”

There was silence on the other end. Not the calm kind but the heavy kind. It was the kind that meant trouble.

“What do you mean by done?” he asked slowly. “I am asking a simple question. When are we seeing? I miss you.”

I sat on the dressing chair and looked at my reflection. My hair was rough from sleep. My eyes were still swollen. I looked tired but angry. Angry at him. Angry at myself. Angry at the timing. Angry at everything.

“There is nothing like seeing,” I replied. “Stop calling me. We are done. Whatever we had has ended. I have moved on.”

“Moved on,” he repeated, his voice sounding mean. “You think you can just say that and it will make sense to me?”

“Yes,” I said. “Because it is the truth. I am with Mike now. I have a life here. You need to accept that.”

He let out a short dry laugh. Not a happy one. Not even close.

“You really think it is that simple, Amanda? You think you can walk away after all these years?”

“I do not owe you anything,” I said quickly. “I have told you this before. We are done. I do not want to continue anything with you. I am tired. I want peace.”

He raised his voice. “Peace? And what about my time? What about the years I put into you? What about the plans we made? What happens to all that?”

I stood and walked to the wardrobe. I opened it and pulled out a fitted simple, classy and professional black gown. Something that looked good under office lights.

“There are no plans anymore,” I said. “I told you that already. Stop dragging this out. Stop trying to make me feel guilty. I have moved on.”

He breathed loudly into the phone. I could almost see him pacing.

“You have moved on,” he repeated again. “You think that is enough? You think that is all it takes to end everything?”

“Yes,” I said, forcing my voice to stay calm. “It is enough.”

“No,” he said. His voice changed. Lower. Colder. “Do not test me, Amanda. Do not make me angry. You cannot do this to me.”

“I already did,” I said. “Accept it.”

“You think I will accept nonsense? After all the nights. All the secrets. All the things we planned for the future. You want to throw that away because you think you love him. You think he is a better option. You think he will protect you.”

“He will,” I said, even though my voice shook a little.

He laughed again. Loud this time.

“You think that man cares about you? You think he is yours? You think you have won something?”

“I do not care what you think. I am done,” I said, grabbing my makeup bag.

I placed the phone on speaker and set it on the dressing table. While he talked, I brushed my hair and tied it into a neat ponytail. I applied foundation, then powder, then lip gloss. My hands moved fast, but my heart beat faster.

“You cannot walk away,” he said. “You do not get to do that. Not after everything I gave you.”

“You did not give me anything,” I fired back. “I built myself. I worked for everything I have. You did not give me my job. You did not give me Mike. You did not give me anything. So drop that lie.”

“You are lying to yourself,” he said. “I gave you many things. You know it. You cannot deny it.”

“I can and I will,” I said. “Stop calling me. Stop trying to force something that is dead.”

He went quiet for a moment. Too quiet.

I pulled my chair back and stood in front of the mirror again. I wore the gown and zipped it up. It hugged my body perfectly. I adjusted the neckline and added simple earrings. My eyes still looked tired, but I pushed through it.

Then he spoke again.

“After all this time, this is how you treat me,” he said. “You want to jump into another man’s arms and pretend he is your savior.”

“I am not pretending,” I said. “I chose Mike.”

“You chose a lie,” he said. “You think you can build a life with him. You think you are safe because he gives you attention. You forget something important.”

“And what is that?”

“You have my baby.”

I froze.

The brush slipped from my hand and fell to the floor.

My breath caught in my throat. My heart stopped for a second. My eyes shot straight to the mirror as if I was looking for proof. As if I expected to see something on my face.

“How do you know I am pregnant?” I whispered.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t deny it. That means you are not going anywhere.”

I touched my stomach slowly. This baby was Mike’s. It has to be.

But deep down, a part of me feared this exact thing.

“You are crazy,” I said. “Stop talking like this. Stop trying to control me. You sound desperate.”

“I am not desperate,” he said. “I am warning you. Do not forget the plan we had. You cannot end it. I will not allow it.”

“I am not scared of you,” I lied.

“You should be,” he said. “Because whatever you think you have with him, I will destroy it. You will not stay with him while carrying my child. I will make sure of that.”

“You cannot threaten me,” I said, but my hands were shaking so much that I had to grip the edge of the table.

“I can and I will. You should know me better than this. We had a future. You are the one who ruined it because you think you love him. You think you can run away. Let me tell you something. It is not going to happen. If you do not come back, I will ruin everything you are holding onto. Everything.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could speak, the line went dead.

He ended the call.

Just like that.

I stared at the phone. My chest rose and fell in sharp breaths. Fear and anger twisted inside me like a knot.

“That bastard,” I whispered.

I wanted to throw the phone across the room but I held myself back. I needed to stay calm. I needed to get to work. I needed to pretend everything was fine.

I picked up my bag, sprayed some perfume on my neck, grabbed my shoes and walked out of the room. My jaw was clenched. My hands were cold.

I was scared. Very scared. But I refused to show it.

Whatever the man thought he had over me, I would not let it break me. Not today. Not ever.

I walked out of the house, locked the door and headed to the car.