"Oh—my—god, you are pregnant!" She gasps, slapping her hands against her mouth in shock. I run straight past her, unable to comprehend her words right now. I push open the door to my room, feeling my legs buckle under my weight.
My breathing begins to become restricted as a heavy weight lands on my chest. I scan the room quickly, finding the pregnancy box lying on the floor. I lunge for it and turn back around, heading for the bathroom.
"Emily, wait!" Ivory yells after me but I ignore her, the ringing in my ears deafening the sounds around me. I lock myself in the bathroom once again, my chest expanding as I struggle to breathe regularly.
"No. . . This is a mistake. It's just a mistake Emily, don't freak out." I tell myself quietly. I breathe in sharply, squaring my shoulders up bravely. I can do this. I open the box and find one unused pregnancy test lying inside. My fingers fumble for it and I get ready to take the test for the second time. When I'm done, the worst five minutes of my life pass before I finally have the result . . .
Pregnant.
"No!" I yell, tears forming in my eyes. It's been confirmed.
I'm pregnant with Jake's baby.
"How? Fuck! Fuck!" I freak out, shaking my head in disbelief. I hold out both of the sticks in front of me, my hands trembling. The longer I stare at them, the word PREGNANT begins to blur and reshape. I simply sit on the bathroom floor, ignorant to Ivory's shouts coming from behind the bathroom door. My eyes are fixated on the sticks in front of me and I feel like I'm going to throw up.
The word baby begins to play in a loop over and over again in my mind. Baby. I'm going to have a baby.
*****
Jake's POV -
I smile as I finish wrapping her Christmas present. I know Emily's going to love it. I spent weeks searching for a dainty chain, the perfect shaped heart and thinking of the sweetest engraving.
Finally after lots of frustration and time, it's complete. I hope she loves it as much as I had built it up to be in my mind. Christmas isn't something that usually excited me, the food, the presents and the family didn't do it for me. The atmosphere feels like a facade, the fake smiles plastered on people's faces as they pretend to be merry despite putting themselves into an early grave full of debt.
However there's something different about this year. . . It feels special.
My relationship with Tobias is getting stronger by the day. I'm no longer part of a gang I loathe and I have the most amazing girl in my life who's completely captured my heart. It's adorable seeing Emily so happy and full of Christmas joy. The past few weeks haven't been easy on any of us but we've gotten through it with Christmas to finally look forward to. A time of the year that certainly distracts us from the battles we're facing daily inside our minds.
There's a knock on my bedroom door pulling me out of my thoughts and it opens, Tobias' head popping around the frame.
"Have you got a minute Jake?" He asks and I nod, grabbing the little box and putting it in my pocket. Tobias walks in, shutting the door softly behind him.
"What's up?" I ask him, walking over to the weights scattered around my floor from a quick lifting session. I take hold of the first one and put it back, turning towards Tobias.
"It's Jane," he says, his expression turning serious. I nod waiting for him to elaborate but my bedroom door springs open once again, slamming against the wall on the other side. I immediately turn towards it on guard.
Ivory stands in the doorway, her eyes wide with fear. She's breathing in short little pants and is staring directly at me.
"It's Emily."
She motions for me to follow her and I immediately obey, fear settling inside my stomach. My heart beats faster as I follow Ivory, my chest tightening worryingly. Is Emily okay? Where is she? Is she hurt?
"Ivory!?" I yell frustratedly, wanting her to stop and explain further to me. I could hear Tobias following close behind as he was also worried from his sisters sudden outburst. Ivory leads me to the bathroom door and points at it —
"She's in there," Ivory finally explains, her hand trembling as she points at the door.
"Is she okay?" I ask Ivory, mad at her for not elaborating. I charged for the door and pounded on it, my fists causing it to shake on its hinges.
"Emily? Muffin?" I call out, placing my ear next to the door to listen. I can hear her muffled sobs from the other side and my heart automatically clenches further knowing she was in pain. I snap my head towards Ivory, my words sounding harsh and firm.
"What happened?"
She widens her eyes at me and glance at the door before looking back at me. I watch her face physically wince and she takes a step back, shaking her head.
"I can't tell you," she mutters, looking at her feet. I frown at her and force myself to calm down as I felt the panic inside me growing. Ivory has always opened up to me and I knew she wasn't hiding things from me to be difficult. I clenched my jaw tightly and didn't respond, instead turning my attention back to the door. I knock on it and turn the handle, sighing as it doesn't budge.
"Emily?" I ask once again, calmer this time. I listen carefully, my ear pressed against the cool wood firmly. She's sobbing on the other side and I stand back, positioning myself.
"Aunty Myra's going to kill me." I mutter, running a hand over my face. I inhale deeply —
"Emily, get out the way, I'm coming in!" I yell before charging at the door. It immediately gives in, my body losing balance as I fall on the other side. The wood around me shatters and I cough, feeling the force of landing hard. I groan, feeling the pain in my knees but ignore it as I stand to my feet. My eyes scan the room desperately before they land on her. She's curled up in the corner of the bathroom, her eyes red and puffy.
I immediately fall to her side, pulling her into my chest comfortingly. Ivory and Tobias both enter the room silently, stepping over the broken door on the bathroom floor. They stand a distance away from us, silently. Their eyes are also trained on Emily, frowning worryingly as they take in her state. She's crying quietly in my arms, her face full of fear.
"Are you hurt?" I murmur, feeling the panic inside my chest increase as her body continued to shake with her sobs. She shakes her head and buries her face further into my chest. I stroke her hair, comforting her. My eyes drift to Ivory's who's stood with her hand over her mouth, her eyes fixed on Emily. She holds a different kind of panic in her eyes and I know she's aware of what's going on.
"Ivory, what happened?" I ask more firmly this time and she bites the inside of her cheek, looking at the floor once again.
"It's not my place to say," she whispers. I sigh, forcing myself to stay calm for Emily.
"What in the world is going on here?"
I watch as Mum and Aunty Myra step over the door on the floor, giving us all a hard glare. They pause once their eyes fix on Emily and I on the floor.
"I'll buy you another door, I promise." I say quickly to Aunty Myra. She silently nods, looking worried as she glances over Emily.
"Muffin, what's wrong?" I ask helplessly, wiping the tears from her wet cheeks. She trembles in my arms, stuttering words I can't quite make out. She holds onto me tightly, large brown eyes looking into mine so innocently.
"I'm so sorry Jake, please don't faint."
I frown at her words. . . Sorry for what?
"Is she okay?" Aunty Myra asks quietly, the whole family staying rooted to the spot as they watch over us. I ignore her question and instead search Emily's eyes which look desperate, helpless.
"Sorry for what?" I ask her holding my breath for whatever she's about to explain. An uneasy feeling settles in my stomach and I swallow the thick lump in my throat, waiting for the blow.
She sucks in a breath before pushing me back slightly. Her hand reaches into her pocket and she pulls out a white stick, holding it out to me. I frown further, my eyes widening as it suddenly dawns on me what she's holding.
A pregnancy test.
My heart skips a beat as I stare at the stick in her hand, my own body now begin
ning to shake. I hear a vague gasp come from behind me. My arms hang awkwardly in the air as my brain register the little white stick.
"Is that what I think it is?" I mumble quietly, struggling to form words.
"Yes, it's a pregnancy test."
"Holy fucking shit," I respond, feeling my whole body turn numb. My mind is blurry and I stumble backwards on my feet, standing up uneasily.
"What does it say?" I ask, holding the bathroom sink to stable my legs. My heart is now pounding through my ears and I gaze dazed, disorientated. My eyes never leave Emily's and she stares at me silently, tears falling down her cheeks.
"It's positive," she whispers, her eyes desperately searching mine for my reaction. My stomach churns instantly and I feel every hair on my body stand up, straight as a pin.
"I'm pregnant Jake."
And that's when I turn around and puke up the entire contents of my stomach in the bathroom sink whilst my family watch on silently in shock. Tobias is the first to speak, his gaze flickering between Emily and I —
"Well Merry Christmas, you filthy animals."
THE END
His Mission (HIS SERIES Book 1) Page 42
