Chapter 36

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Your naivety really baffles me. Trust me,  I'm 99% sure that you are pregnant.

Restlessly, Emery resumed her pace, her feet carrying her back and forth as if to assure her chaotic mind that this was some sort of a misjudgment on her Aunt's part.

Time and time again, she told herself that This can't be true.

Perched on the foot of Emery's bed was her sole audience, Natalia. Unsure of what was bothering her friend so much and probably tired of watching the march pass, Natalia turned a concerned eye on her.

"You don't trust Diana's judgment?"

Emery gave a vigorous shake of her head. "I… I mean I'm just two days late but that's nothing new to me. Besides, I've been on the pill for months now. Clearly, I couldn't have been more careful than that," she grumbled.

Indeed she had been careful. Ever since Nicholas made it known that he was coming back from college, she had thought they were going to start the other part of their love life and from thereon, prepared herself.

So yes, this can't be true.

"And whoever said pills are 100% effective?" Natalia countered.

"I'm not pregnant, Talia." was Emery's feeble response.

Exhausted from the battle of wills, Natalia dragged her palms across her face. "then why don't you take the test. I mean there's no harm in trying, right?" 

With knitted brows, Emery stared down at the pregnancy test kit on the coffee table.

Come to think of it, why did she even agree to buy it if she was not convinced of Diana's subjective diagnosis? Perhaps she did.

No. This can't be true.

"Oh come on, Em." Natalia pressed on.

Just the mere thought of she expecting had her heart racing. Wiping off the lone beads of sweat on her forehead, Emery nodded her consent.

Self-willed, she picked up the pack and shambled into the bathroom.

Please be negative. She prayed as her jumbled mind tried to come to terms with reality.

Her stomach knotted up nauseatingly as she unsealed the pack, and carefully read over the instructions. 

With a light heart, she strode over to the bathroom cabinet to grab some other needed kits.

She then set out to prove the world wrong.

After minutes of careful self-examination, she set the white stick on the cabinet steadily.

But with her withering nerves, every second she spent near that test set her on edge, so in order not to tamper with anything, she walked out of the bathroom to await the allotted two minutes.

Natalia jumped to her feet the second Emery shut the door behind her. "Are you done?" she asked apprehensively.

Emery shook her head. "It says I have to wait for two minutes."

She leaned against a nearby wall for support and nibbled on her fingers unconsciously; chipping some of the nude polish away.

Please be negative. She continued with her silent prayers.

Taking a wild guess, Natalia asked, "You're not actually praying for it to turn out negative, are you?"

Emery turned to face her friend with a sullen look. "You don't get it, Talia."

For a second, she chewed on her lips to find the right words. "we just started dating. Heck he is not even in Manhattan, and he will probably not be here for us if this turns out positive…"

"Em-"

"And what if he doesn't want a child at this point? Or worst, what if he thinks I'm trying to tie him down with a child and rub him off his bachelor life? It's not as if I wanted this…"

"Emery!" the raving came to a standstill after Natalia's commanding call.

Rubbing her temples out of frustration, Natalia edged off the arm of the couch and strolled over to her still fidgety friend.  

"I don't know what the hell is going through your mind right now, but before you jump into conclusions or even think of the what-ifs, I suggest you get in there and take a peek."

"You're no help, Hayes."

"The hell I'm not. Go on." Natalia pointed to the bathroom.

Hesitantly, Emery turned on her heels and toddled into the bathroom. But no matter how long she dragged on, she still got to the cabinet.

When she picked up the stick, she thought perhaps she had not followed the instructions carefully.

Her eyes were wide as she gaped at the pregnancy test in alarm.

Two bold red lines stared back at her.

On the spot, a sense of warmth washed over her. And whether or not the giddiness which filled her heart be that of joy or not, she instinctively rubbed her flat tummy. 

Adorning a moronic smile as if she already knew the test results, Natalia yelled from the bedroom, "Should I be making baby shower plans?”

Inadvertently, a tear fell as Emery stared back at herself in the mirror atop the sink. But she patted her face dry and marched out of the bathroom— a bit gaily than she did before.

"Well?" Natalia stressed with wide eyes.

"It's positive," she mumbled.

Natalia squealed in pure delight, and without a second thought, threw her hands around Emery —crashing her in a bear hug.

"I can't believe this! I'm going to be a godmother!" she gushed.

The tears welled up again. Releasing a deep breath, Emery pulled out of Natalia's hold and reclined into the couch.

"What's wrong now?" Natalia asked anxiously.

"Everything is, Talia…" Emery said with a shake of her head. "What if he is not ready for this? Heck I don't think I can do this on my own if he's not."

Natalia sighed and strode back to the couch. Easing into the space beside her friend, she drew her into a side hug.

"Believe me, I know how it feels like to not be ready for something. But sometimes, its better to accept things as they come and move on. If by any means, Dekker is not ready to be a father, that is his damn fucking problem. I know without a doubt that you can do this with or without him, Em. Besides, we are all here for you, so chin up."

Amidst the frustration and tears, Emery chuckled. "I don't think its good to be cussing around me anymore," she said lightly.

That earned her a full smile from Natalia. "Now, that's the motherly spirit I'm talking about."

"Do you think I should tell him right now?"

Glancing back at the alarm clock on the bed stand, Natalia shook her head. "If it's almost eight here then he's probably asleep. Why don't you give him the good news tomorrow?"

Emery nodded. "But before I tell him anything, I think I should get a clinical test to confirm that I'm really really pregnant," she said firmly. 

Her insistence had Natalia laughing. "Girl, I bet my last thong on this, you are damn pregnant." Emery shot her a glare.

"Fine, no more swearing… but to ease your reluctant nerves, let me get you Lucy's contact so that you can book an appointment with her."

Leaving Emery to her thoughts, she rushed out of the bedroom to get her purse.

       
                                  · · • • • ✤ • • • · ·

Bent over the water closet once again, Emery cussed Billion Miles Dekker and her morning sickness likewise as she emptied her breakfast.

Damn you, Dekker.

She sighed and said to herself, "Don't cuss, Em, you've got this."

After spending half of the night searching on how to deal with morning sickness, and anything pregnancy-related, she could have sworn that she had got it covered.

So this morning, she had made herself an ideal healthy breakfast. But it seems like the little prickle had a different menu of its own.

"It's my birthday so be a sweetpea and let mama eat to her heart's content," Emery grumbled as she dragged herself over to the sink to brush her teeth. 

Seconds later, she rushed out of the bathroom when her cell phone began to continuously ring. Her nerves seemed to dissipate an ounce when she saw the familiar yearned face.

"Hey you," Emery waved back at him. 

"Someone is looking extra beautiful this morning. Happy birthday Queen,"

Her face warmed up immediately. "Thank you."

"Please don't tell me you're spending the day inside the house." 

She chuckled lightly. "Of course not. Natalia has organized a party, but it's in the evening…"

"A party huh? Why am I worried that some guys are going to ogle my girl?"

Emery rolled her eyes. "Look who's wearing green today."

"Well It's not my fault that my girlfriend is a heartthrob."

If anything, her cheeks warmed the more.

You've got to tell him now.

Clearing her throat, Emery began, "Bill?"

"Yes love," she might have hesitated for him to ask the question."Em, is everything alright?"

"Yeah, of course… there is just something that I need to-"

"And where is the birthday girl?!"

"Please don't tell me she's still in bed."

Emery heard Diana and Natalia say simultaneously from downstairs. 

Glancing back at her phone, she offered Billion a sheepish smile and said, "Guess the house party has started. Can I please call you back?"

If Billion had his way, he would have asked her to stay with him. However, knowing how selfish the demand would have been, he nodded. After all, she had to enjoy the audience of her other loved ones who were not from across a screen.

"Sure love, talk to you later. Enjoy your day, but don't drink too much."

On cue, Emery wrapped her arms around her tummy. "I can't even if I wanted to."

"Why, what's wrong?"

Emery's eyes widened, now aware of what she had blurted. "I have to go now, talk to you later handsome."

"Em?!" she heard Natalia's voice from downstairs.

"I'm coming!" Emery snatched her sweater from the foot of the bed and pulled it over her chemise.

The living room was quiet when she came downstairs, but the unusual silence prompted her that the bunch was trying to surprise her. And she guessed right. 

"Happy birthday!"

Natalia, Christopher and Diana chorused when she walked into the kitchen.

Emery burst into laughter at their mirthful performance. "Thanks guys."

Overly excited, Natalia dragged her to one of the kitchen stools while her brother went over to the counter to retrieve the gift bags. Diana grabbed the cake from the fridge and mounted it on the isle. 

"Go on, blow the candles and make a wish," Diana urged.

"Make a wish? What am I, five?"

Natalia scoffed. "Everyone is a kid on their birthday, just blow it."

At least, they didn't put up twenty-three candles.

Even though Emery found their grandstand childish, she did have a wish. Leaning over the isle, she made the one wish in her heart and blew the candles out.

"Finally, we can eat the cake," Natalia said before rushing over to the kitchen cabinet for plates.

Taking in the smiley faces of basically the only close family she had, Emery felt warmth pull at her heart. She glanced up in time to see Diana staring at her with a knowing look. More like regard her unconscious tummy massage.

"You are OK now to have a piece of cake right?" Diana asked softly as she dished slices of cake for the others.

"Why won't she be, its her birthday," Christopher quipped.

Already knowing the gist of the situation, the ladies shared witting glances.

"What?" Christopher asked, his eyes transporting between them.

Emery cleared her throat and said, "There's something I need to tell you guys, well with the exception of Talia cause she kinda knows…"

"Well spill already cause you're scaring the hell out of me," Christopher said.

"Be patient." Diana snapped at him.

"I'm pregnant."

Almost instantly, an ominous silence fell over the group. Emery's gaze shifted from one person to the other as she waited anxiously for a reaction. Anything at all.

Being the mature person in the room, Diana easily regained her composure. She strode over to her niece and pulled her into a motherly hug. 

"Congratulations, dear."

"Thank you Aunt." well that was a surprise.

Considering her family's religious intake on chastity and her Aunt's displeasure the last time they talked about her relationship, Emery had expected some form of moral lecture from the woman.

Guess luck was by her side this time because she did not have the strength to argue with her Aunt again about her choices.

There was another person though who might have something to say. Hesitantly, Emery glanced up at her brother.

Christopher seemed to have frozen after his little sister's words. Obviously she was not little anymore. "Wow…"

Wow? Emery sighed. He looked disappointed and upset? Yeah he was upset. But he was trying hard to hide his reaction as he combed his hands through his head and glanced away from her. 

"Congratulations. I guess," he mumbled. "At least you are happy about it." The latter part was thrown in Natalia's direction.

"Can we not do this here?" Natalia snapped back at him.

"I'll be in the car." On the verge of tears, Natalia spun on her heels and bowed her way out of the kitchen.

"You sure know how to get the party going, Elorm," Diana said to her nephew with a shake of her head.

Turning to face her brother, Emery gave him a contemptuous look. "Really?"

His gaze softened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin this for you."

"Well you did," Emery scoffed. "Excuse me, Nat and I are going to see Lucy." She walked out of the kitchen and went for her handbag from her bedroom.

A minute later, Emery joined Natalia in her car and they drove off to the clinic in silence.

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ʜɪ 👋

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs sᴏ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ғᴏʀ 7ᴋ + ʀᴇᴀᴅs. 💕💕💕

ᴛᴏ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴏsᴇ sᴜᴘᴘᴏʀᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʜɪs ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ɪɴ ᴅɪᴠᴇʀsᴇ ᴡᴀʏs, ɪ'ᴍ ᴠᴇʀʏ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ɢʀᴀᴛᴇғᴜʟ ᴛᴏ ʏᴏᴜ. 🍻

ᴋɪɴᴅʟʏ ʟᴇᴀᴠᴇ sᴏᴍᴇ ʟᴏᴠᴇ. || ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴛ, ᴠᴏᴛᴇ & sʜᴀʀᴇ||

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