You're Pregnant?

Monday, April 24, 2016

Tech Geniuses

10 weeks...

Outside his office, Melissa linked her arm through Lexi's and guided her silently towards the private elevator. But she refused to use that one, as it is held too many memories in there for her—not that she was going to tell Melissa that. She didn't need any more pity.

Once the doors of the employee elevator closed on them, Melissa sighed and turned to face Lexi. “He doesn't know you're pregnant, does he?” she asked, looking concerned.

“I thought it was quite obvious,” Lexi replied, sounding tired from all the crying. “I hadn't gotten the chance to tell him, honestly.”

“So what are you going to do?” Melissa questioned softly, searching Lexi's eyes for something that would give away what she was thinking, but she remained emotionless.

“Move out of the house and the apartment, but other than that, I don't know,” she replied quietly. She couldn't find herself another place in such a short time. It was impossible—unless she had a treasure trove.

But what if Trey decided to take back all the money he'd been depositing—money she had never really used? This was really getting complicated, and fast. Why was she even depending on his money when she could go for hers? No, nothing from the people who'd shunned her, then died, leaving her all alone.

“You could stay with me—be my roommate again till you decide what to do,” Melissa suggested with a tentative smile. When Alexandra opened her mouth to speak, Melissa placed a finger against her lips. “I'm not taking no for an answer. You are carrying my niece or nephew, and this time, I'm not taking chances.”

Alexandra couldn't help but smile briefly... and nod. She had not been about to refuse the offer—God knew it wasn't all about her this time. Her baby was important, so she was willing to put her pride aside.

“For a moment back there, I thought you would have blurted out to him that I was carrying his child.”

Melissa jerked back, affronted, and it got her a watery smile out of Lexi. It was something, at least. “Please, I know when to talk and when not to,” she defended. Alexandra gave her an unimpressed look and she groaned, admitting, “Sometimes.”

“You are pretty when you admit you're wrong,” Lexi muttered lightly; she still looked hurt and rough. Melissa scowled.

“Don't you just have a wonderful sense of humor?”

Lexi chuckled at the amount of sarcasm packed in that sentence, stepping out when the elevator doors swished open. “Let me get my bag then we can go. I'm kind of getting hungry.”

“It's amazing how you're thinking of food at this time.” She shook her head though she was proud of her friend.

Lexi scoffed. “So I'm supposed to starve myself and my child because my husband believed someone over me? No, thank you.”

“That is the baby speaking,” Melissa muttered. “But I don't mind—as long as you don't eat mine as well.” She shrugged and Alexandra shoved her to the side. “Your appetite is growing fast. Are you sure you're not growing twins?” she added casually.

Twins? With Trey? Had she bitten off more than she could chew? She knew she would love them no matter what, but two would complicate matters. Money was going to be tight, and she might have to start looking for a job as soon as she gave birth.

“But don't you worry, I'll feed you well,” Melissa was saying, her voice rising alongside her excitement. “You're going to be the size of a whale by the time you're about 7 months—”

“Lower your voice,” Alexandra hissed, looking around to see if anyone was paying them any attention.

“Sorry,” Melissa whispered, eyes still wide with excitement. “Didn't mean to offend you.”

Alexandra hadn't meant to come across as reproving, but she couldn't risk Trey finding out she was pregnant yet, else he wouldn't let her go. It would be torture living with someone who hated her. She needed this time away; they both needed this separation to get themselves together.

They saw security at her office, and by how people were watching her, they must have realised she had been fired. Though some looked confused, the others who already knew and never liked her—because her husband was the boss—smiled gladly, openly pointing fingers at her and gossiping.

“Such open disrespect,” Melissa uttered, and Lexi sighed, wondering how she'd already forgotten that her troublemaker of a best friend was with her. “Stare and point again and I'll make sure you lose those bodily functions, along with your will to live.”

It did the job. Her colleagues believed Melissa—especially since she was related to a ruthless businessman—and looked away. Lexi picked up only her handbag, grabbed Melissa, and held her head high as she walked away from her office space, trying to look unaffected.

And it worked—to a point.

Till she was out of sight.

Out of TechGeniuses.

She took a deep breath of the fresh air, not knowing what she was going to do next. A few minutes after she found herself outside the company—while saying goodbye to that part of her life—Trey came out too, tossing a box containing all the little things she had put in her in her office to make it homey to the ground.

So that's what the guards were doing in my office, she thought. No wonder they paid me no mind.

He barked at the now arriving attorney for being late and snatched the divorce papers from him, tossing them to her. Then he told her she had to sign them before she left.

She didn't catch the file, instead, she watched the papers flutter to the ground, merely looking on as he added a pen to them on the floor. “Isn't this a bit too much? You're embarrassing me and this is not how to deal with our personal matters.”

“Embarrassing you?” He scoffed, letting his pain show, not caring that passersby had stopped to look at them. “You embarrassed me. You disgraced me. You could've just asked for a divorce before going to do what you wanted. Did you think of how your actions were going to affect me?”he hissed under his breath. “Sign the papers and go live your life.”

Alexandra turned to Melissa, her bottom lip snagged between her teeth. Melissa shrugged lightly, then placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, squeezing a bit.

She smiled a little, then faced Trey. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

“It's not about what I want. I'm doing this for you.” Trey looked at peace with himself, though he was clearly hurting. And honestly, she didn't blame him—couldn't. To him, he was doing the right thing. She might've done same if she'd had reason to believe she wasn't enough for him.

She went on her knees, set her bag on the floor next to her, and picked up the pen. “Just saying—I want you to be sure this is what you really want; that this is what will make you happy. If it would, I'll sign it.” She looked back up at him, keeping her expression deliberately blank.

Say no.

Trey stepped forward, masking his emotions as well. She could still tell he was angry and hurting by the way his hands were shaking. He clenched his fists to cover up the tremors, then squatted in front of her, lifting her chin with shaky fingers.

“Why do you care about my happiness now? You didn't care about me when you went behind me, neither did you care when you handed over the project.” Alexandra closed her eyes, finally allowing a tear to fall. But I didn't. “You want to be with him so bad? Sign the papers. Free yourself from this sham of a marriage if you really want me to be happy. If you're happy, then I'm happy.”

She took a deep breath and nodded, opening her eyes as Trey dropped his hand. 'We can always talk when these emotions are out of the way,' she told herself. With shaky hands, she signed her name wherever needed, then stood to hand them over. As soon as he got the signed papers, he nodded with a brief smile and went back inside the company building.

She didn't say another word as she picked up her bag and all her stuff that Trey had thrown out into the box alongside Melissa. It embarrassed her that an unused pregnancy kit was part of the things scattered about on the floor.

Trey had noticed the test earlier, but decided against asking. Maybe she always had one on hand—just in case. He convinced himself she would've told him if she was pregnant. Right? This combined with the babygro and dinner he'd found put him on edge, and not knowing the answer was killing him.

All around her, journalists—who had popped out of nowhere—were having a field day, witnessing her 'fall from grace'. It was embarrassing, yes. But the main thing she worried about was her unborn baby.

How would the public react when news about the baby came to light? Would her child be labelled a product of her 'infidelity'?

Trey came back out of the company building, and her heart started beating erratically when she realized he was headed in her direction. What now?

He took her left hand when he reached her—smiled a little—and carefully pulled the rings off her finger. “I've got to take what marks you as mine so no one feels threatened.” And with that, he walked back in the direction he came from.

She held her ring finger in her right hand then brought it to her lips while she cried. She felt two sets of arms around her and opened her eyes to find Melissa and Sierra—Jason's fiancée—hugging her. Sierra kissed her head, whispering, “Stop crying Lexi. He doesn't deserve your tears.”

Alexandra nodded—not because she agreed completely; she understood him. She brought her hand up to wipe her tears, saying, “You're right. Tears aren't necessary.” Then she pulled away to get her box, but Melissa beat her to it.

“I've got it,” she grunted, lifting the box. “Let's go.” The two women paved way for her as they went. When they were almost out of the reporters' midst, a wave of dizziness swamped Lexi, then before she knew it, she was falling.

Melissa had seen her sway, so she'd dropped the box and turned, only to have Lexi lose consciousness. Between her and Sierra, they managed to grab Lexi before she fell to the ground. They couldn't keep holding on to her, so they lowered her to the floor, slowly, ignoring the reporters who kept asking if she was staging this for Trey's sympathy.

“I swear, I will break someone's camera! Get them out of our faces if you won't help!” Melissa yelled. They backed up a little but didn't stop taking pictures.

Sierra straightened, scanning the throng of reporters for her fiancé. She finally spotted Jason's dark head near the entrance of the building, engrossed in an argument with Trey. She squatted next to Melissa, saying, “I see Jason. I'm going to get him to help us. Will you both be okay?”

Melissa nodded, placing Alexandra's head on her handbag, and fixed her dress to cover up her exposed thighs. “Hurry though,” she said as Sierra stood to leave.

Sierra shoved her way through the headline-hungry reporters and made her way towards her fiancé. “Jason,” she called out when she got to him, tugging on his shirt sleeve to get his attention.

“Not now Sierra,” he said, not looking away from Trey. “I'm in the middle of a serious conversation.”

Desperate, Sierra said, “He's not worth wasting your time over right now. You can always talk to him later, but we need your help. Lexi just fainted and the paps are of no help. They're taking pics of her in that state instead, because they think she's staging it.” Jason and Trey both turned to her, alarmed. “Help us get her to the car.”

“Is it bad? I can take her to the hospital,” Trey said, turning to face her. Had he gone too far?

“No,” Jason said before Sierra could say anything nasty-considering the look she was giving him. “I think you've done enough for today. I'll let you know what happens.”

Casting one last disappointed look at his best friend, Jason went with Sierra towards the girls. He scooped Alexandra effortlessly into his arms and pushed through the throng of reporters, with Melissa following with the box and Sierra with a their bags.

After settling her in the backseat of Melissa's car, he told Sierra, “Go with them, I'll follow in my car.”

Trey stood, wondering if he'd made the right choice. He so badly wanted to see if she was fine, but he held himself in check, hoping Jason followed through with his promise.

As soon as they drove off, the reporters were on him like flies. He backtracked into the company, yelling at the workers who had gathered to watch the scene to get back to work.

* * *

Highgate Hospital

Her eyes fluttered open and she was met with the same doctor from before. When he realized she had awoken, he gave her a brief smile.

“Here again. Please don't make it a regular occurrence if you don't want to lose your baby.” She bit her lip, nodding. Why hadn't she just died, she wondered. It would've been better on everyone.

'This is a chance for the baby to experience the world and you're wishing you had died,' her subconscious reprimanded. And that was true. You'd think she'd have learned something after two miscarriages how the loss of life saddened people. She had to treasure the gift of life—that of her's and her baby's.

“How is the baby?” she asked the doctor.

“The baby is fine. Their heartbeat is strong and normal.” She nodded, smiling a little. But then the doctor took off his glasses with a sigh, saying, “You lied to me.”

She frowned. “What about?”

“You told me none of the men from that day were responsible, when in actual fact, one of them was your husband.” This man had to living under a rock to not know that.

She gave him a frosty look. “There's something called patient confidentiality; I have the right to request you not tell him. What if I wanted to tell him myself; surprise him? You wanted me to allow you ruin it? Pardon my rudeness, but this is none of your business.”

“You're right. I apologize.” He put his glasses back on and picked up the clipboard from the bedside table. “I'll let your friends in now.”

She relaxed visibly. “Thank you.”

He left quietly, and not even a minute later, her girlfriends came bounding in. They hugged her tight on both sides till she felt the need for air. Then, and only then, did they release her.

“Don't do that ever again,” Melissa began, smacking her on the arm.

“Ow,” she cried out, “You're not supposed to assault a patient!”

Melissa gave her the stink eye and Lexi swallowed her remaining words immediately. “I was so scared; I was going crazy with worry!” Melissa took Lexi's hand and kissed the back of it a few times. Alexandra chuckled at her dramatics while Sierra shook her head, smiling.

Sierra turned to her, hugging her once more. “We were all worried. I'm glad you're okay,” she said with a smile. Sierra wasn't much of a talker so Alexandra appreciated it.

“Thanks Sierra.”

Melissa's eyes went wide, suddenly remembering something. “How about the baby?” Realizing her blunder, she slapped a hand over her mouth. It was too late though; the others knew now. Melissa cast an apologetic look her way, but she smiled rubbing Melissa's hand.

“You're pregnant?” Jason asked breathily, breaking the silence.

“Yes, and I'm sorry for not telling you guys. I just wanted to tell...” she trailed off, swallowing.

“We get it,” Sierra murmured, squeezing her other hand. “You don't have to explain yourself. Congratulations.”

“Thank you. I'm glad you understand,” Alexandra replied sincerely before turning to address Melissa. “And yes, the baby is fine.” Melissa blew a breath of relief.

“Ever the drama queen,” Sierra teased. Melissa stuck out her tongue, flipping her hair.

“Does he know?” Jason asked in a dangerously calm voice.

“No.”

Jason run a hand through his hair. “You know I'm his best friend right? He's going be hurt when he finds out I knew all along—especially since he should've known first as the father of the baby.”

Melissa turned to him. “I'm his sister. But I won't tell him because he doesn't deserve to know.”

“He's the father of the baby! What do you mean by 'he doesn't deserve to know'?” Jason snapped, glaring at the girl who had been like a little sister to him for years.

“Look at how he treated her! Don't tell me you expect her to pretend all is well when that isn't the case,” she shot back.

“Guys!” Alexandra cut in. "I get that, okay? But I can't tell him; not now anyway. If I do, he'll only take me back for the baby and I'll be miserable. Worse case scenario, he'll take full custody, and I don't want that.” She looked pleadingly at Jason. “Please Jace, for my sake, don't tell him yet. I'll do it myself.”

“Fine,” he muttered in defeat, coming to hug her. “Congrats by the way.”

“Thanks. Now I need sleep,” she said, pouting.

“Oh no you don't,” Melissa said, placing food on the bed next to her. “Eat.”

“But—” she yawned tiredly.

“You only get to sleep after you're done eating something. You haven't eaten since morning!”

“Fine,” she grumbled, glaring at Sierra who was smiling. She loved her friends and hoped they would be around for as long as life let them.