HAPPY FOREVER AFTER

Emma was totally freaked out. “No I’m not,” she said. She didn’t even know why she was lying about it. Wasn’t this part of the reason why she was here?

“Yes you are. You are pregnant” her mom repeated.

“Yes I am,” Emma said.

“Oh, Emma, ” Amy said, standing up and pulling Emma into her arms. When she released her, Emma stared at her.

“You are not mad at me, mom?” she asked. “Or disappointed.. Or any stuff like that?”

“No I’m not,” her mother replied. “Why would I be, You are a grown woman, Emma”

Emma couldn’t hold it in anymore, she had been so worried about how her mom would react. She knew her mother would understand, but she was still nervous. She burst into tears. It seemed like that was all she could do lately… Cry.

She let her mom sit her back down on the couch and hold her. After she had dabbed her face with a tissue she faced her mom.

“I screwed up real bad, mom,” she began. “I shouldn’t have gotten pregnant. And now I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do with myself and I’m so confused. I don’t even know if I want the baby. The baby’s father doesn’t even know yet, and I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t want the baby. So it’s just me. And I don’t even know if I can handle it. Having a baby comes with such a big responsibility. I don’t even know if I can have a baby alone. I’m so scared.. Mom “.

“It’s okay, honey. I understand, trust me” Amy said, holding Emma’s hands. “But you are not alone. You have me, and your sister. You have your Uncle Ken and Aunt Jen, and you know we will do anything to help you. All you have to do is come to us. It’s okay to feel this way, but I know it’s going to be alright. I promise”.

Emma nodded, not entirely convinced. She didn’t know how everything was going to be okay, but something about the way her mom said it made her feel a bit calmer.

“Think about it,” Amy continued. “This baby is a good thing. And trust me, you are going to love it, more than anything or anyone in the world.”

“You really think so, mom?” Emma asked.

“I don’t think so, honey… I know so” Amy said, and she pulled her into her arms again. “You and your baby are going to be very happy together. It doesn’t matter if the father wants the baby or not”.

“Thanks mom,” Emma said. Relaxing a bit.

“And one more thing,” Amy added. “You have to tell the baby’s father. You can’t keep something like this from him” she said.

“He wouldn’t want a baby, mom. I know”. Emma said.

“But you can’t just assume something like that honey. I understand how you feel. But you should tell him. I’m not saying right now. You can do it whenever you are ready. But I hope you make the right decision”.

Emma nodded.

Amy stood to go, then she turned towards Emma, “And when you feel better, you are going to tell me about this man”.

“Oh, mom” Emma said.

——————————————Text © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.

“You are what?” Karen yelled.

“Stop shouting, Karen.” Emma said

She was on the phone with Karen. “This is the reason why I didn’t tell you before I left. You are freaking out even more than I did. And I’m the one who is pregnant”.

“How the hell am I supposed to react? This is fucking big deal. How the hell did this happen?”

“Well, Karen,” Emma began. “I don’t know if your parents told you this, but when a man and a woman…”

“Shut up. Shut up” Karen yelled again and Emma couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’m serious, Emma. Stop messing around” Karen said. “How could you let this happen?” she asked.

“I dunno. I guess Daniel and I got really careless.” Emma replied.

“So what are you going to do?” Karen asked. “Are you going to keep the baby?”

Emma sighed. “I decided to keep the baby, Karen,” she said. “I mean, it’s my baby too and I think it would be nice to have someone to love, someone who is going to love me back and someone to take care of. I’m a little scared, I gotta say, but my mom says it’s going to be fine, and I believe her. She took care of Isabel and I all by herself after my dad left. Maybe it’s not such a big deal”.

“What ever you decide, babe, I want you to know that I’m right here for you, and that I’m going to help in any way that I can, okay?” Karen said. “Does Daniel know yet?”

“No he doesn’t” Emma replied.

“Aren’t you going to tell him?” Karen asked.

“I will… I mean I know I have to at some point. My mom thinks I should. But I honestly don’t know when I will. I don’t want to talk to him… So I was thinking, maybe I shouldn’t tell him… And then I raise the baby… And then when the baby’s old enough, then the baby will tell him… Hmmm.. How does that sound? ” Emma asked.

“Like a crazy person talking” Karen replied and Emma laughed.

“Look, Karen,” Emma said. “I don’t want to think about that right now. I’m just going to focus on myself for now. I will stay a few more days with my mom. We will talk when I get back” Emma said.

“Alright,” Karen said. “Take care of yourself and say hi to your mom for me”.

————–

He had to see her. Daniel thought. Or he was going to go crazy.

He drove slowly, wondering what her reaction to seeing him would be. Probably throw him out of her apartment. He wouldn’t blame her if she did. He deserved it.

But he had to see her. He needed to see her and talk to her. At first he thought her reason for not showing up at Kay Corp was because she just needed her space, but when Barrett told him that she hadn’t been at Reddings for almost two weeks, he got really worried. What if something happened to her?

He was tired, he turned his head from side to side to ease the tension. It had not been a good day. In fact he wasn’t sure he had had any good days since the last time he saw her. His mood swung between anger and depression, and a dreamy yearning to be with Emma.

She had never left his mind. He thought of the things they talked about, the time they cooked together and that feeling that he had made a big mistake hunted him.

Maybe he shouldn’t have ended things with her. Maybe he should have waited. But he was just trying to do the right thing. Emma deserved someone who was ready. No doubt, she thought him completely daft. In fact, it was a miracle if she would ever want to see him again.

Flowers helped too. He thought. He glanced at the bunch of daffodils on the seat beside him. God, a woman like Emma was probably used to getting flowers from guys. Because… She was so damn beautiful, so damn perfect. She would probably fling the flowers at his head. But it didn’t matter if she did. As long as he saw that she was alright.