Aria braced her palms against the bathroom counter while Joan rubbed circles against Aria's aching back. Everything she'd hoped wouldn't happen—happened.
The look on his face resembled something far away. Ethan transported somewhere else, and she was sure it was somewhere far away from her and her baby boy.
"Aria, he was just shocked," Joan said, reassuringly.
Aria stood up and rubbed her palms back over her hair. "You didn't see the look on his face, Joan. He looked unbothered. Like he didn't care because he didn't accept it. And for him to run out of here like that? Ethan has always wanted to spend time with me. What am I going to do, Joan? Does he think I'm after his money? Does he question if he is truly the father?"
Joan sat down on the closed toilet and stared at her. "I don't know, Aria. The hard part is over with. He knows—"
Aria chuckled humorlessly. "No, the hard part is just beginning. I can't afford to live here without help. I can't even go back to my job now. How will I face him?"
"Aria," she said, standing up and putting her palms on her shoulders. "You don't know what he's feeling. If he doesn't give you a call back today, you can freak out. He is the CEO, and the call sounded important. Give him today, and if he doesn't come by or call, then you can make a rash decision, okay?"
Aria knew Joan made sense, but her emotions throbbed inside of her, making everything bubble out of her into a cry. Joan embraced her into a tight hug, cradling her like a child.
She didn't know what to expect from Ethan, but that blank, deer in the headlights look, wasn't it. Aria pulled back and wiped underneath her eyes. "I'm okay. I just need to take a little nap. I have to meet Landen for dinner tonight."
Joan scrunched her nose in disgust. "I wouldn’t go if I were you. Ethan already knows, and what's it going to hurt if Landen shows up to Devry Media? Who are you afraid is going to find out now? Plus, Aria, he isn't the father, and leading him on is going to blow up in your face."
Aria sighed deeply, while resting her head against the wall behind her. "I know, but he's told his mom. Maybe I should just call and cancel."
Joan nodded. "Maybe we can go to Surreal tonight."
Aria's eyes popped opened, and she glared at Joan.
The corner of Joan's mouth pulled into a smirk, and her head dropped back in laughter. "You should see your face right now. I'm joking, but it's not like you can get pregnant twice," she said, from the side of her mouth.
Aria chuckled and shook her head. "Thank you for being here, Joan. I really appreciate you. I'm going to rest today and wait. If he doesn’t reach out, I'm … going to decide on exactly what to do."
Joan leaned over and hugged Aria tight. She was so happy to have a friend there to help her. Joan walked with Aria back into the living room where Aria took a seat on the couch.
"How is your stomach?"
Aria rubbed small circles over it with her palm. "Okay. I think they are just Braxton Hicks. I've read about them a little."
Joan nodded. "Yeah, I've heard of those before. Do you want me to stay?" she asked, looking at the clock over Aria's couch. "I have a couple of hours before my shift—"
"No. No," Aria said, shaking her head. "I'm going to rest. If I need you, I'll give you a call, okay?"
Joan bent down and kissed Aria on the top of her head. "Okay. Promise you'll call if you need anything?"
Aria nodded. "Promise."
Joan grabbed her keys from the table and walked toward the door, giving Aria an air kiss on her way out. The silence of Aria's apartment deafened her with grief. Within seconds, tears welled in the corners of Aria's eyes, and she blubbered like a baby.
Sometime later, she couldn't be sure how long because she'd fallen asleep on the couch, she startled awake. The sun had completely lowered in the sky, and the curtains darkened her living room.
Aria hadn't realized how tired she was, but now, she felt utterly hungry from her lack of lunch. She stood, stretching her arms above her head, and she walked toward the kitchen and flicked on the light. The oven clock read seven forty-five, and she gasped at the time.
"Wow," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. She dug through her refrigerator for some leftover spaghetti from the other night and popped it into the microwave. Joan's shift was midway through, so Aria walked over and searched for her phone.
She found it wedged into the couch cushions, which would have been buried beneath her.
When she turned on the screen, her stomach dropped. Besides a missed call from Joan and several texts from Landen … there was nothing.
Ethan hadn't called or texted since that morning. He hadn't cared enough to check on her or send a damned text of reassurance.
She'd told Joan she'd give him the day, and it was nearing night. Ethan Devry didn't care about her or his baby boy she carried. There was only one thing left to do, and it hurt her to even contemplate doing it.
She had to quit Devry Media and find another job with her degree. If it meant staying with Joan until she could get on her feet, so be it. She wouldn't stoop so low to continue working for Ethan while hiding that she was pregnant with the CEO's baby.
The microwave beeped in the background, but Aria didn't budge. She pulled up her phone and texted Joan.
Aria: Is the invitation to move in with you still open? Because, I need your help.
***
Aria gathered the last of her clothes and shoved them deep into her duffle bag. It'd taken all night, and with the help of one of Joan's co-workers, Thomas, they moved all of her belongings, besides the worn-down couch that was technically Landen's, from her apartment to the small U-Haul she rented.
Joan had tried relentlessly to talk her out of moving so quickly, but as the night progressed and Ethan never reached out, the decision seemed more and more rational.
Because Aria couldn’t lift anything heavy, she spent most of the time gathering small things like clothes and towels. When she tried to grab the trashcan, Joan came barreling in like a tornado to take it away.
It was definitely the easiest move she'd ever made.
Thomas and Joan plopped Aria's mattress onto the bedframe in Joan's spare room, and Thomas let out a giant sigh, falling down facedown. "That was the quickest move I've ever been involved in. And at night. You two are crazy."
Aria didn't disagree. Since she'd slept most of the day, she had plenty of energy to make it through to the next several hours. Aria dug inside of her purse and pulled out some cash. "Thank you for helping. We couldn't have done this without you."
Thomas frowned at the money. "I can't take that, Aria."
Aria shook her head. "Yes, you can. Take it. I promised I would pay you."
Thomas rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "I don't want your money. Actually, I think Joan accepting a date with me might make it even."
Aria's brows raised to her hairline, and Joan's mouth moved the opposite direction. "I—well, Thomas. I—"
"She'd loved to," Aria said. "Joan hasn't been out in ages."
Thomas eyed Joan, waiting on her to agree, which seemed like ages. Joan slowly nodded. "I guess we could grab some dinner sometime."
Thomas smirked. "Great. Now, I need to go catch some sleep before my shift. If you two need any more help, let me know."
Aria watched Joan's face as Thomas left her house and shut the door. Joan turned her stare toward Aria. "I can't believe he just did that!" she exclaimed.
Aria chuckled. "He's cute and seems nice, Joan. Maybe he'll be your prince charming."
Joan made a face, but it quickly turned back to Aria. "What about yours? Still no contact?"
Aria shrugged and picked up a bag of clothes from the floor. "I turned my phone off sometime during the night. Every time I received a notification, I got my hopes up, so much that it hurt to look and see it wasn't him."
Joan poked out her bottom lip. "Well, I'm going to catch some sleep before my shift too. If you need anything let me know okay?"
Aria nodded and waited until Joan shut the door to pull out a blanket from one of her suitcases. She didn't mind with the sheets. She'd make her bed later. She crawled into the center of it and pulled the blanket up around her.
It'd been in that very bed that she became pregnant with Ethan's child.
Now she'd hold onto the memory of having him sleep beside her, because the truth was out, and she knew it'd never happen again.