Chapter 8: Surprises

The first few months of pregnancy were easy for me to endure alone. Winter came and went, bringing by the beautiful season of spring. I decorated a room for the new baby, and although I had asked my doctor not to tell me what the sex of the child was, I already had a feeling I knew what it was. For hours on end, I would sit in the nursery and stare at the crib. I was excited to have the baby, I just wished it didn’t take such a long time.



I took the time I had to read almost every book I could find on how to raise a baby on your own and when I wasn’t reading, I was talking to the baby. Pregnancy came with its trials and tribulations however.




I would fall asleep on the couch when too exhausted to find my way to my bed, pigged out joyously for two, no longer cared for how I looked as much, and had even gotten a luxury job of writing online articles from home.





I didn’t care, however, because as my stomach swelled to the size of a basketball, I felt the furious little kicks of a person inside of me who I was going to meet soon.



One night as I was finishing up an article for my job, it happened. I felt myself sitting in wetness. Getting up, I felt the first pangs of pain from a contraction. I called my doctor who rushed her nurse over to pick me up, and that night, I met my daughter who I named Ella after Eric’s mother. She had his eyes...





A week later, I was back at my place with Ella, ready to start a completely different life with her. I gave her all the love I could, never thinking it was even possible to love someone else as much as I loved her.



So it surprised me when two years later, I was celebrating her second birthday with her. I now understand why mother’s say that it seemed like just yesterday when their babies were born. I felt the same way with Ella. It was so hard for me to see her growing up already.



One evening, while Ella was in her feeding chair as I was just finishing making dinner for the night, I heard the doorbell ring. Thinking it was Mr. George coming for the rent, I walked over to the door, not really paying attention to who was standing there as I was reading my recipe book. Looking up before reaching the door, my book fell out of my hands.



I stood there staring at John’s face. For a second I didn’t know if I should even bother opening the door or not. How did he find me? I wondered if Eric also knew where I was. Shrugging away that thought, I walked over to the door and opened it, stepping outside into the warm spring air with him.



“How did you find me, John?” I asked in a quiet voice.

He was about to answer when Ella started wailing her little butt off in the kitchen. I groaned, I forgot she was still in her high chair! I told John he could come inside and wait in the kitchen as I hurriedly put Ella in her crib.



Walking back to the kitchen, I saw John had seated himself at the table and was watching me with an amused look on his face. I sat down across from him and looked at him. We both sat there without saying anything for a while when he broke the silence.



“You are a hell of a hard woman to find, Adelaide.”

Chapter 9: The Truth

“Never mind how you found me actually, why are you here, John?” I asked quietly.

“Look, I didn’t mean to freak you out by just turning up at your door like that. A few months back, a woman came to me asking if I knew where you had gone. I didn’t make much of it then, but a week later, a man was going around town asking everyone if they’d seen you around anywhere. Lets just say that that’s what sparked my curiosity.” He was watching my face intently. “So why are you back in the city, Adelaide?”



I sighed, my shoulders slumping in defeat. “I had a baby.”

John let out a quick laugh and said, “you know as small as a town Desiderata is, they stopped punishing single unwed mothers a very long time ago, Adelaide. You could’ve had her in Desiderata.” He smirked a bit. “What’s the real reason?”

I looked up at him incredulously and cried, “You have some nerve John”

He stopped smirking and looked at me seriously. “Why did you really leave? Did it have something to do with that person? Eric? I think that’s what his name was?”

I dropped my head and nodded. “I didn’t know he was married John. We were engaged a long time ago. I thought he came to Desiderata for me…alone.” I felt so embarrassed.

“Everyone makes mistakes, Adelaide. If you didn’t know, you didn’t know. I’m guessing you left as soon as you found out he was married and you were pregnant with his child?” He nodded towards the direction of Ella’s nursery.

I shook my head, “no, I left when he told me he’d leave her for me. He didn’t know I was pregnant with his child, but at that point, I didn’t want him to know. I didn’t want to be the reason why his wife had to raise the children she had with him, alone.” I looked up at his face. “I refuse to be the reason why their marriage failed.”

He nodded and we both sat in awkward silence again. I had so many questions to ask him, but I didn’t know where to start.

“Do you want to know about Jennifer?” He asked as if he had read my mind. I tried to open my mouth to say “yes” but my mouth went dry so I just nodded at him.



“She was your sister and in a sense, your mother, Adelaide. Just not the one who gave birth to you." He continued on while I stared at him in shock. "Your mom left both you and Jennifer when you were a year old. Jennifer raised you from that point on, despite only being fifteen, she took on the responsibilities of being your mother. She told me that while raising you, she got into some horrible things herself like drugs and really bad guys. She tried though, Adelaide. She tried to give you the best life she could until you started rebelling against her during your teenage years. That’s when she couldn’t hold onto her sanity anymore and crashed hard.”



He looked up at my fallen face and shook his head. “Every day, from the moment I had met her, she’d tell me how she regretted the past. How if she had just one chance to do it over, she’d do it over right. However, the truth is, Adelaide, even though Jennifer couldn’t see it, you were lucky to be raised by her. What she told me about your real mother… it wasn’t so pretty. And you could’ve been in a far worse situation that you think you were in.”



I stared at him for a second before my face crumbled and I started sobbing. All these years I hated her for nothing and yet everything. I wished she had told me the truth from the beginning rather than trying to raise me in the place of my mother.

“Look, Adelaide. She loved you no matter what. And she’d always want what’s best for you.” He said taking out a velvet box and placing it on the table. “That’s why I’m proposing that we get married.” He pushed the box over my way.



I jerked my face up startled. “What?”

“I know it seems a bit weird, but face it. You’re going to need help raising Ella as she grows up. You aren’t earning enough with your online job and soon, you’re going to have to move out of this place so you can give Ella a bigger room as she grows and a backyard for both Ella and Princess Peach to play in one day.”

“I…” I stared at him not knowing what to say.

“I will always love your sister. Jennifer told me she had cancer and despite that, we still got married. She was the love of my life, Adelaide. But she’s gone. I’ve accepted that and I want to move on. I will take care of you, Ella and Princess Peach if you let me. We don’t even have to be intimate. It can be a sham of a marriage.” He searched my face intently for an answer.

“Why?” I choked out. “Why do you want to do this?”

“Because I want to make right what Jennifer thought she did wrong. She died thinking that cancer was her punishment for the way she raised you…” his voice trailed off as his eyes became blurry. “Let me take care of you and Ella, Adelaide. It will be a good life, I promise.”



I opened the box and stared at the diamond ring as he looked at me, face filled with hope. I didn’t know how to answer him. I didn’t even know if this was the right thing to do. All I could think about was how Eric would react to this if he ever found out. But then again, he could never find out, I thought.

When I didn’t say anything for a long time, he sighed and said, “You don’t have to make a decision now, sleep on it and let me know in the morning.” When I nodded, he smiled.

“Can I see her? Can I see your daughter?” he asked a moment later.





I took him into Ella’s nursery and introduced him to her. He took her from me and held her as I sat down in the chair and watched them. Ella was instantly in love with him, giggling as he picked her up and played with her, snuggling close to him when he held her and finally staring up at him in awe when he placed her gently in her crib.



He turned away from her and looked back at me.

“She has his eyes.” He said quietly to me.

“I know.”



Nothing else needed to be said after he took my hand and gently pulled me onto my feet. He hugged me close to him and promised me that everything would work out right. When he let me go, he asked if he could stay the night, quickly offering to sleep on the couch when he saw the hesitant look on my face. I nodded.




That night was the first night I felt relieved after moving back to Sim City.

~



The next morning, I woke up realizing there was a man who wasn’t Eric, sleeping on my couch. I got up with a groan and went through my daily morning routine except this time, when I caught sight of myself in the mirror; I realized that I wanted to make an effort on my looks this morning. I brushed out my hair and applied a little bit of make up onto my face.



Pleased with the outcome, I went into the nursery to see if Ella had gotten up. She was still asleep so I just tucked her in and continued to the kitchen to make breakfast. I was getting ready to pull the cereal box out of the cabinet when I realized that I wasn’t making breakfast for one this morning. So I pulled out some pancake mix instead and made pancakes for the first time since moving here.



John woke up and used the bathroom as I was placing the plates on the table. He came over and sat with me. Gathering up his fork, he dug into his plate of pancakes, occasionally giving me a grin as he ate, complimenting me on the deliciousness of the meal. I sat there watching him, not even touching my food.



“John,” I whispered.

He stopped eating and looked up at me intently with his light blue eyes.



“I want to do it,” my voice sounded gruff so I cleared my throat. “I want us to get married.”



He just smiled and placed his hand on the table. I placed mine on top of his and smiled at him as he intertwined his fingers with mine. Underneath the table, on my other hand, the ring was on my finger, sparkling with as much promise as his eyes.

Chapter 10: New Beginnings

It wasn’t long after I agreed to marry him, that I found the perfect house for us to move into. John made sure to take care of the entire moving process after I found the house. He was keen on the fact that I hated the stress of packing, unpacking, and organizing furniture so he hired people to help him do it while I took care of keeping Ella calm. When we first arrived at the new house, I felt a swell of pride while imagining Ella growing up and having her own room someday.



As we walked into the house, John offered to show me the rooms in the house and I agreed having never been in the house before. I put Ella down near her activity table in the living room and followed him up the stairs to a room he said was my own. I smiled as I saw my old bed in the room as well as Princess Peach’s.



Without thinking, I asked, “where will you be sleeping John?” Realizing what I said sounded awfully much as if I were hinting that he wasn’t allowed in my room, I blushed furiously. Trying to think of anything that would change the meaning of what I had just uttered.

John didn’t say anything for a second, then replied in an emotionless voice. “I have my own room actually, but before showing you that, I’d like you to see Ella’s nursery.”

He grabbed my hand and took me over to the next room. When I was standing in front of the door, he told me to close my eyes. Lifting an eyebrow, I obliged and felt his fingers encircle my wrist as he pulled me into the room.



“Open your eyes, Adelaide.” He whispered in my ear and I felt him move away from me.

I slowly opened my eyes and gasped. “Its beautiful, John” I whispered, my voice barely audible. The room was painted a light peach color and there was a new crib, changing table, and toys arranged just perfectly. I picked up a teddy bear that was sitting in the middle of the room and hugged it to my chest.

“She’s going to love it here.” My voice filled with raw emotion. I turned to look at him and said, “You really didn’t have to do all this.”

“I want to give her all that I can, Adelaide. So yes, I did have to do all this.” He smiled at me and laughed lightheartedly. “Come on, I’ll show you my room before you start bawling right here.”

I didnt mind him teasing me. In fact, I was glad for the distraction. Hurriedly I followed him over to his room.

“This is your room?” I exclaimed with surprise.



He nodded and walked over to his telescope. “Well, actually,” he said, “its more of a study than it is my room. But this is where I’ll be sleeping at night.” He looked through the telescope at something outside the window while I silently groaned. The room was far too small to be a study let alone his bedroom. I shook my head sadly wondering why he had to make it so difficult for himself. As if sensing my frustration, John told me that there was one more room he’d like to show me and took my hand to lead me down the stairs. He took me below the living room to a large empty room next to the garage.



“One day, when Ella’s in her teen years, I want to take down the nursery and combine it with my room upstairs to make her one huge room.” He said, “that’s when I’m going to make this space mine. But until then, if there’s something you want to do with it, go ahead. I was thinking it’d make a nice gym area in the meantime.” He nodded at me.

I felt a wave of disappointment wash over me. Even after Ella was a teen, he wanted his own room? I wondered if it was for himself or for me that he was taking on having his own room. I nodded absentmindedly at him as he continued talking about the plans he had for the room.




I was about to go upstairs when he stopped me, telling he had another surprise to show me in the backyard. I followed him and stopped short when I saw what he had done. Out in the backyard was a swing set, something I always told him I wanted to get for Ella when she was old enough. My eyes stung with unshed tears.


“I know its too soon and she wont be able to use it for a couple more years,” he said sheepishly. “But I want it to be here for her when she’s ready.”


I walked over and sat on the swing set, nudging myself back and forth with my toe. We both were enjoying the silence when I got up and pulled him into a hug. He was surprised at first, not knowing what to do with his hands, but then just wrapped them around me as well and returned my embrace.




It felt so right hugging him, I thought. I pulled away slightly and looked into his eyes, not realizing that I was leaning in closer and closer. It was when our lips touched that I felt a jolt of electricity go up and down my spine and was so shocked that I shoved him away.




“I…I’m sorry...” I stammered and blushed furiously. No longer knowing what to say, I ran up the stairs leaving him behind, but not before seeing the hurt look on his face.

Oh, John…I thought. Why did it have to be this hard? I found a loveseat on our patio and sat there, starting blindly ahead of me. I didn’t know what bothered me more. The fact that I couldn’t forget Eric, or the fact that I wished that the kiss between John and me had continued. I covered my face and sobbed, wondering what was wrong with me.

An hour later, I heard John saying my name as he approached me.



“Here you are, Adelaide.” He smiled and sat next to me.

“John, I want us to have the wedding tomorrow,” I said so abruptly that even he was taken back.

“Ahem” he cleared his throat…”Isn’t that a little too soon?”

I shook my head. “No, I want to do it as soon as possible” I said with a determined voice.

He studied me for a second and then nodded. “Okay, we can do it tomorrow.” His voice was unreadable.

I stared ahead of me wondering what the future had in store for us. If this was a marriage of convienence, I thought, Ella better never find out. I wanted her to fall in love and marry that person. Not settle like I did.

"Adelaide," John said, jerking me back to reality.

"Hmm?" I looked over at him, meeting his intense gaze.

"Im glad you went back to being a brunette." He said softly. "I know why you changed your hair color before...but I just wanted you to know, you look beautiful as a natural brunette."

I chuckled a little. "It wasnt really my choice to go back to being a brunette." I grinned at his confused look. "Having a baby doesnt leave time to care much about your looks." I explained.

We both sat there quietly enjoying the peace for a while until we heard Ella crying out for us.

~



The next day, early evening, we held a small ceremony and were married. I was in a wedding dress that I had bought earlier that day and John was in a suit that he had owned almost half his life. Nanny Gwendolyn was there to witness the magical event, along with Ella, who was mostly confused during the ceremony.



After him and I exchanged vows and rings, we hugged. I think Gwendolyn was confused since usually a wedding ceremony ended with a kiss, but she had tears sparkling in her eyes anyway.



After the ceremony, I fed him some cake and grinned as I “accidentally” missed his mouth. Gwendolyn even got a piece and rolled her eyes while walking by John and I.



We were in the kitchen, sipping champagne and giggling like tipsy teens. It was after she was gone from our sight, that he grabbed my hands and stared at me, grinning like an idiot.

“What?” I giggled, slightly dizzy from the champagne.



“I know that this isn’t a real marriage, but…” his voice trailed off.

“But what?” I titled my head, curious to see where this was going.

“I just wanted you to know that I booked us a trip to Twikki Island.” He looked at me and then quickly said, “we don’t have to go, but I thought it’d be nice to get away and relax for a few days.”

I just smiled at him. “I think it’s a great idea, John. When can we leave?”

His grin was so adorable that I almost melted. “We can leave tomorrow if you'd like or next-”

“Tomorrow is perfect” I interrupted hurriedly. “I’ll go get packed!” I yelled, halfway up the stairs to my room. Truth was…I was ready to get away from reality for a while. And what better place than to do it at Twikki Island, I thought. I made plans that night for Gwendolyn to take care of Ella and Princess Peach whil we were gone.



Early next day, we arrived at the hotel. As John was checking us in at the front desk, I sighed. I wondered why it was that I was here at a romantic island with, John instead of, Eric, who I still loved. This was going to be a long trip, I thought mournfully while staring at the beautiful palm trees outside. I just hoped I would enjoy the trip.

Chapter 11: The Honeymoon Trip

While John finished up the checking in process, I went into the room that he had booked for us. Just as I had walked into the room, I stopped dead in my tracks. In front of me was a room with two beds. There was no room for intimacy, I thought. Did he not want to give us a chance? I wondered if he even wanted me anymore. Was I just too much of a reminder of Jennifer? I stared ahead of me blindly, feeling the sting of tears building up in my eyes.



John walked into the room a few minutes later and looked at me with surprise.

“Hey,” he said in a comforting voice. “Are you okay? Do you not like the room? Is it not big enough?” He sounded genuinely concerned.

When I shook my head, he asked, “did you want us to have two separate rooms? Cause its not too late, I can ask them to change us into a room with two bedrooms…”



I shook my head harder. “No, its fine John,” I said, my voice weary. “Im just tired I guess.” I shrugged and walked out to the patio for some fresh air. I knew I was confusing him, but I didn’t care anymore. I was just as confused. I no longer knew what it was I wanted from him, especially when I kept giving him mixed signals.



As I was enjoying the salty cool breeze of the beach, John came up next to me.

“Isnt it beautiful here?” he breathed in deeply and exhaled. “It seems like the most perfect place to relax and lose yourself.” He looked over at me and smiled.

I closed my eyes and nodded at him. “It’s a gorgeous island” I whispered.

“Do you want to freshen up and go exploring?” He asked me.

I opened my eyes and smiled at him. “That sounds perfect, John.”



I showered and changed into something a bit more comfortable for the weather. We both visited one of the activity centers in the island. We both watched as one of the island men played with a fire baton. John was clearly enjoying himself and even let the man give him a few pointers on how to twirl the stick without hurting himself.



Later on, as the sky grew darker, we stood together at the beach and watched the waves roll in and out. It was such a beautiful and peaceful sight, I almost didn’t want to return back to the hotel. However, John wanted us to go back to the hotel to have dinner.




When we returned, he went into the bathroom to freshen up while I put on something appropriate for dinner. Just as I was closing the drawer, John walked out of the bathroom and stopped short in his tracks, staring at me. I met his intense blue gaze, not even noticing that I had closed the drawer and was just standing there, staring at him.



He walked over and put his hand on my cheek, softly caressing it.

“God, you look so beautiful, Adelaide.” He smelled faintly of soap and beach salt.

I felt my knees shake and inhaled sharply as I saw his face inching closer to mine. He must have heard me, because he suddenly pulled away and said we were going to be late for dinner if we didn’t hurry. I followed him to the restaurant, fully confused and slightly annoyed that he had stopped.



At the restaurant, we were seated and served wine. He toasted to our marriage and ordered the lobster dish for us. It almost felt like a real marriage, I thought. Except that it was only a marriage of convenience and only we knew. I looked around while he was eating and wondered how many of the other couples in here were newly weds. I stared at him as he ate, wondering if he would ever develop feelings for me as deeply as he had for Jennifer. I ate my food in silence with a head full of doubts.



Back at the room, I got ready for bed. Changing into my nightgown, I got into bed and turned on the TV, wondering what John was up to outside on the patio. He came in just as I was shutting off the TV and walked over to me.

“Arent you getting ready for bed?” I asked softly.

“Adelaide, do you want to come build a sand castle on the beach with me?” His eyes were twinkling. “Its too nice of a night to just get into bed and go to sleep.”

I thought about it quietly for a moment and then got up and changed into a bathing suit. I blushed furiously when I felt his eyes on me, waiting for him to say something, but was disappointed when he said nothing. He changed into his swim shorts and we both went out onto the beach.



We built a sand castle together only to end up laughing at each other when the waves crashed into it and dragged it away. He tickled me and we played tag. I was still out of breath from laughing so hard when he asked me if I’d like to dance.

My eyebrow shot up as I said, “there isn’t any music, John.”

“You’re wrong,” he disagreed. When he saw the confused look on my face, he said, “just listen to the waves, darling. They’re playing a song for us.”



With that, he pulled me close and started swaying to beat of the waves. As if on cue, the rain started to fall lightly and he pulled me in closer. Staring at him, I felt something in me stir. It was a feeling of passion, something I thought I could only feel for Eric.



When I heard thunder, I gasped and hid my face his neck, holding tightly onto his body. When it was over, and I felt it was safe, I looked up at him. His eyes were intense again, his blue eyes striking. He leaned his face in, stopping short a few inches from mine. I didnt bother waiting for him to move in closer, I pulled his head down and crushed his lips to mine. I was scared that if I hesitated, he’d pull away. But this time, he didn’t. He kissed me with just as much passion as I felt, his arm tightened around my waist.



I didn’t know how we ended up in our room and on the bed, but there we were. He was kissing me passionately and I was returning the kisses with just as much fervor when he stopped and pulled away. I groaned in my head, wondering why he’d want to stop.



“Are you sure you want to do this, Adelaide?” his voice sounded rough as if he’d been smoking.

“Shut up and kiss me, Mr. Sim.” I purred and pulled him close.





We ended up sleeping around seven in the morning, both exhausted from a very long night.

I dont know why it didnt appear as updated, but just to let everyone know, chapter 11 is a new chapter.

Chapter 12: Ignorant Bliss

For the rest of the vacation, John and I truly enjoyed ourselves. We ate out at the small open restaurants on the island, had some very fun moments of making out in front of the island waterfall, and even took a soak in the hot springs with other island visitors. We left the island only after John insisted on buying me a few souvenirs.



Back at the hotel, on our last night there, John ordered some salmon to be delivered to our room. He thought a night in would be a romantic way to end the vacation, and I couldn’t have agreed more. When our dinner came, John had them serve it to us on the patio. As I put my hand on the table and reached for my fork, John laid his hand over mine.

“I just wanted to tell you, Adelaide, that you look so beautiful tonight.” His eyes were twinkling. “And these past few days have really been something.”

I felt my cheeks grew warm and smiled at him, not wanting to ruin the moment by saying something stupid.



“And,” he said, grabbing his wine glass, “I want to make a toast to us again, this time, to being honest about our feelings for each other.”

I drank with him, the wine burning its way down my chest. I was happy that this was how the honeymoon trip was ending. I was glad that our marriage finally felt like a real marriage.



As we ate, I fed him a few pieces of my food and enjoyed listening to him talk about his plans. He planned to go back to work once we got home and also wanted to help me start up my gallery again.

“John, you don’t have to do that, I can do it on my own.” I protested.



“This is something I really want to do for you, Adelaide. So please, let me do it.” He pleaded, grabbing my hand and intertwining his fingers with mine.

I couldn’t resist him. This was going to be a problem, I thought humorously.

“What are you thinking about, Addy?” He asked when he saw my grin.

“Oh nothing, just that you’re trouble with a capital ‘T’,” I teased.

“I can show you just how much trouble I can be,” he said with an evil grin and grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet.

I giggled as we both ended up in bed, having yet another exhausting night.

~



The next morning we were back at home. John had indeed started work as he said he would and I was in the process of getting the paperwork for my gallery approved. I was making sandwiches for lunch in the kitchen, that afternoon, when I heard the doorbell ring. Thinking it was John, home for lunch; I quickly ran and opened the door.

My heart stopped.



“Addy….” Eric stared at me.

He looked terrible. And yet still so devastatingly handsome as I remembered him.

Remembering that Ella was playing at her activity table in the living room, I hurriedly asked him what he was doing here.



“I…” he dropped his head. “I’ve…I looked all over the place for you. And you just up and left again, Adelaide. You left me again.” He sounded crushed.

“Eric, you cant be here.” I pleaded with him. “Eric…I’m married.”

He looked at me thoughtfully, as if he’d been expecting to hear those exact words.



“Married,” he echoed. "You're married..."

I was so afraid of Ella catching his attention by crying that I just closed the door behind me and stepped outside with him.

“You cant be here, Eric.” I repeated. “Please, you’re going to cause trouble for me.”



He tried to hug me, but I cringed away. “Please, Eric…no…” I shook my head.

“When can I see you then?” He demanded angrily. “I wont leave until you agree to seeing me again.”

I groaned. Why did he have to be stubborn now?

“Alright, alright,” I quickly agreed. “There’s a small coffee shop right around the corner of this block, meet me there tomorrow at 10 in the morning. Now please, leave!”



The urgency in my voice seemed to convince him that I was serious, because he turned around and left just like that. Worriedly, I watched him go, my body fully tense. Without knowing why, I began feeling pangs of regret. I didn’t know what was wrong with me. I was in love with John now, I thought. It shouldn’t matter that Eric found me now. He was too late I tried convincing myself. It didn’t matter anymore that he did now, because I was already happy. Wasn’t I?



I waited anxiously that night for John to come home. As soon as he walked through the front door and into the living room, I rushed over to him and hugged him tightly.

“Looks like somebody missed me,” he chuckled, cradling my head in his hand.



When a sob slipped out, his body stiffened and he pulled away. He looked at me shocked.

“Hey, it was only a joke, Addy. Are you okay?”



I sobbed, covering my face. I shook my head and cried my heart out. He wrapped his arm around me and tried to comfort me, repeatedly saying that he was sorry over and over again.

“Please tell me what’s wrong, Adelaide.” He sounded scared.



“I’m sorry,” I sobbed, pulling away from him. “I guess…I guess Im just tired.” I lied wiping away a few stray tears.

“Are you sure?” he wasn’t convinced with my excuse.

“I’m sure,” I sighed, “I just had a long day, that’s all.”

He nodded finally accepting my excuse as the truth and we both went into the kitchen for dinner.



As John slept that night, I stayed awake wondering what tomorrow would bring.

Chapter 13: Decision Part I

The next morning after John left for work, I waited impatiently for Gwendolyn, Ella’s nanny, to arrive. When she finally did, I rushed to meet her in front of the house.



“Thank you so much for coming on such a short notice, Gwen. Ella is still in her crib asleep. I will be back by late afternoon.” I said in a rush before hurrying off.

I was almost down the street when I realized I had forgotten to tell her something.

“Gwen!,” I turned around and called out to her. “Please tell John that I’m out shopping if he comes by for lunch.” I was relieved when she nodded at me and yelled back, “no problem!”

I was the first to arrive at the small coffee shop around the corner of my house. I sat down and waited for Eric to show up. When a whole hour had passed and there was still no sign of him, I began to wonder what I was doing waiting for a man who had cheated on his wife with me. And just as I was about to leave, Eric came over and plopped himself down in the seat across from me.



I looked at him angrily. “Well you took your sweet time.”

He sighed, “look, I’m sorry, Adelaide. I tried coming earlier, except they wouldn’t let me out of the interview early.”

I cocked my eyebrow, “interview? What interview?”

“I’m moving back to Sim City,” he said.

“Look,” I started, “you cant move back here for me. I’m married, Eric.”



He looked at me incredulously. “Its not for you that I’m moving back for, its for Adele.”

“What?” Now I was clearly confused. What did Adele have to do with him moving back into the city? I began to wonder if he was just leading me on.

“Listen,” he interrupted my thoughts. “We’re going to have to go back to my house because the-”

“Oh no, I’m not falling for that, Eric.” I cut him off.

He sighed and rolled his eyes in exasperation. “Good god woman, you just think the world revolves around me getting you into my bed apparently.” He shook his head.

“Why do we have to go to your house then, Eric? To have a heart to heart on your couch, with coffee?” I waved my arms frantically, gesturing to the place we were at. “Look around, it’s a freaking coffee shop. Perfect for the good ole’ heart to heart talks.”

“Look, Adele is at home and her nanny just called me saying that she needs to be somewhere and that if I’m not home within twenty minutes, she’s taking off, no matter what the circumstances are. So if you want to hear what I have to say to you, you’ll come home with me now, otherwise, I can hunt you down at your doorstep again and cause a damn scene.” He growled, getting up out of his seat and standing next to me.

I looked up at him and studied his face. He wasn’t lying. I always knew when he was lying to get his way, but this time, his eyes were completely serious. I sighed wondering what I was getting myself into and agreed to going to his house.



A cab dropped us off in front of his house and sped away. It almost seemed like the cab driver didn’t want to give me a chance to change my mind about the decision that I had just made to go to my ex-lover’s house.

“Well, here it is.” He muttered, hands on his hips. “Hope you like it.”

Why should I? It wasn’t as if I were going to move in with him, I thought but kept quiet. He invited me in and told me to wait on the couch as he tried to find the nanny. When he called out her name, she came down the stairs with a relieved look on her face.

“I’m sorry-”she began, only to be cut off by him.



“Its fine, Sarah, just make sure it doesn’t happen again. I was at an interview when you called, and had other plans, next time don’t tell me you have to leave on such a short notice.” He gave her her money smiled at her. I could tell he was faking it.

Apparently so could she, since she mumbled something on her way out. He went and grabbed a cup of coffee from his counter and sat down on the sofa next to me.



“I really hate when they do that,” he muttered more to himself than me.

“So….” I said, looking at him. “Why are you here, Eric?”

He drank his coffee without looking at me and didn’t say anything. Just as I was about to repeat the question, he got up and put his mug on his coffee table and turned around towards me, looking completely heart broken.



“I left Lexi,” he said with a grim look.

I was about to say something when he held up his hand and silenced me.

“Wait, let me just talk. I need to get this off my chest.” He sighed and began.

“After you went missing, she and I went all over town trying to find you. She really liked you, and didn’t know about our affair, so was heartbroken when you disappeared. One day I came back from work, and she stood there screaming at me.

“Stop screaming at me, Lexi! I don’t even know what I did!” I yelled at her.



She screamed back, “you bastard, you know what you did! You were screwing Adelaide! Did you think I wouldn’t find out!?”

“Of course I knew you would find out, in fact, I wanted you to find out, Lexi. I just didn’t think it would take you longer than it would a blonde!”

She gasped angrily, covering her mouth with her hands. I could tell she was insulted by what I’d just said.

“Its time you knew,” I yelled at her. “I don’t want to be with you, our marriage was a complete sham, and truthfully, I’d rather just be done with you!”



“You don’t mean that,” she whispered at me, her voice barely audible. “Tell me you don’t mean that, Eric. Think about Adele, please.”

“I am thinking about Adele, and that’s why, when I leave you, she’s coming with me.” I shook my head at her. “You aren’t mature enough to be a mother, Lexi. You drink and party too much, and please don’t tell me otherwise. I got the bill from our nanny that says she’s been staying overtime to take care of Adele.”

“I…” she tried to find words to say, but failed. “You cant leave me, Eric. I’m pregnant with your child.”

I snorted at her. “That is just fine. When that child is born, just send it my way and I will raise them both on my own.”



She walked away from me and started sobbing. “You cant do this to me, Eric. You cant. If you leave with Adele, I will kill myself!” She threatened.

“You would be that selfish, Lexi. You would take your life and the life of the child inside you just to spite me.” I shook my head and sighed.



That’s when I took Adele, and left. I couldn’t stay with her, Adelaide. I just couldn’t. She was doing such a terrible job of taking care of Adele, that I was soon afraid to leave her alone with Adele.”



He looked at me, completely defeated while I sat there with my mouth open.

“I don’t know how I’m going to do this, Adelaide. I don’t know how to be a single father. I came back here to get a better job, since having to rush home to take care of Adele when our nanny left and Lexi was no where to be found, cost me my job in Desiderata.” He shook his head. “And that’s when I found out, you were here.”

I gulped, curious to how he had found out I was back in the city. “How did you find out I was back here, Eric?” I asked.



“A friend of mine, works in the art industry, when I was trying to find you after you disappeared from Desiderata, I asked him to keep a lookout for your name, to see if you’d applied to open or work in a gallery and he obliged. A few days ago, he gave me a call, and I tracked you down.” He walked over to the kitchen window; his back turned to me.

“Why did you leave, Adelaide. That’s all I want to know, why did you leave?” he sounded desperate, as if my answer could set him free.

I walked over to where he was standing. “Cause I couldn’t be the other woman, Eric. Especially not since Lexi was already expecting another child by you.” I whispered, the tears prickling in my eyes threatened to fall over.

He nodded and whispered back, “you’re safe, Adelaide. All these months, that’s all I wanted to know, that you were safe and happy. You are happy aren’t you, Addy?”



I was about to nod when he suddenly hugged me.

“I was so scared, Addy. I thought the worst had happened to you. I’m so glad you’re safe.” He said repeatedly while hugging me to him.

“I’m glad that some man out there is lucky enough to call you his wife. I just wish it had been me, but you’ve made your choice. And I know after what I did to you, I have no right in expecting you to trust me.” His voice sounded course. “But believe me when I say, you are the only one I ever loved.” With that, he let me go.



We both ended up on the sofa, talking about our plans for the future. He wanted to find a good day care to enroll Adele in while he wasn’t around in the morning, and I talked about opening the art gallery again. While we were talking, I wondered if I should tell him about Ella, but I didn’t want to complicate the situation anymore, especially since it seemed that he no longer was going to pursue me, but instead focus on being a good father to Adele. When I realized how late it was getting, I told him I had to go, and he hugged me. I told him I’d call him to check up on him tomorrow and walked out his front door and into the onslaught of rain.





And that’s when I started to feel nauseous. I held onto my stomach as it churned, and then covered my mouth when I was sure I was about to throw up.



It was right about then where the world started spinning around me, and I felt my body hit the ground, the rain slapping me in the face.

But it wasn’t before I realized, “Oh god, I’m pregnant.”

~

I woke up and started to sit up, my head throbbing with pressure.

Chapter 13: Decisions Part II

I sat up in bed and wondered pleasantly where I was. Everything seemed like a fuzzy dream, as if I were in someone else’s house, waking up in someone else’s bed.



Then it hit me.

”This isn’t my house,” I said out loud, panicking while I stood up. “Oh my god, this isn’t my house!” I screamed.

Eric must have heard my scream, because he came running up the stairs towards me.



“Adelaide, what’s wrong?” his voice was full of concern.

That’s when I realized I was in nothing but my underwear. “You pervert!” I cried. “What did you do to me!?” I felt myself go numb. “What did you do to me, Eric...?” I started crying.



Eric was so confused that all he could do was shrug.

“I didn’t do anything, Addy. You passed out in front of my door; you were completely soaked from the rain, so I had to put you clothes in the dryer. I was so afraid you would catch pneumonia. I woke you up, but you only stayed conscious for about an hour, saying something about having a baby. I had no idea what you were talking about at that point. I figured you just needed some rest, so I let sleep in my bed.” He tried explaining but I was crying too hard to really care.



His doorbell started ringing at that point, so he told me to stay where I was, and went to go answer it. I held onto my throbbing head, wondering desperately if I had said anything about Ella to him. I was just about to get into bed again, when I heard John’s voice coming from downstairs. Forgetting I was in my underwear, I ran down the stairs.



I was shocked when I reached the bottom of the staircase. John was yelling at Eric, demanding to know where I was.

”You tell me right now where she is, you bastard!” he was seething with anger.



He continued on a spew of threats and curses, glaring angrily at Eric, when he suddenly caught sight of me standing there.



Relief and concern washed over his face and he pushed Eric aside, walking towards me. He stopped abruptly. It was like watching him being slapped in the face when he realized that I was only wearing panties and a bra. His body grew tense as he raked his eyes up and down my body. I blushed furiously in embarrassment and tried to cover my face with my hands.



“John…” I tried to find the words to explain the situation to him, but I knew no matter what I said, he wouldn’t hear. He stared at me with icily.

Without taking his eyes of me, he growled towards Eric, “you want her so bad, you can have her.” And with that, he walked away from me.



I broke down sobbing, trying to call out his name, but I only ended up choking on my tears. I felt like I was in a bad dream, a never-ending dream that I couldn’t wake up from.



For the first time in a long time, Eric's arms offered me no comfort because I knew nothing would be the same again.