Never say forever (Never series Book 1)

by Taylor, Courtney A.

  My shift finally ends and I grab my items and checkout. I look at my phone and there’s a text from Ben.

  Ben: Dude get over here after work. I need to talk to you. It’s important. I have news.

  Good thing he said ‘I have news’ because I almost panicked there for a moment thinking maybe something happened to Serena. I rush over to Ben’s house and ring the doorbell. Abby walks to the door and opens it for me. She embraces me in a hug.

  “Hey Aiden.”

  She’s always cheerful which makes her and Ben a perfect couple.

  “Hey.”

  I look over and see Ben. I am anxious to get to the bottom of this.

  Ben walks over to me and has me sit down.

  “I had to do a lot of digging but I found something. Not a lot of people were talking and I don’t have many friends your age. But I told all the people I do know to keep a lookout and I just got a phone call from a buddy of mine, Grant.”

  I don’t know a Grant so I’m not sure where he’s going with this.

  “Turns out that he has a sister that is your age named Lisa. Apparently Grant overhead Lisa gossiping to one of her friends. I was a little disturbed when Tara’s name was brought up.”

  Tara? What the fuck does she have to do with anything?

  “Tara is behind all this?” I ask, rage building in my system.

  “Yeah, she is behind the whole thing. Jackie actually doesn’t know you but she was Tara’s muse. She does everything Tara tells her to do because she wants to be popular. I seriously don’t get these teenage girls. I’m glad Serena is in a whole different ballgame than they are.” He laughs at that.

  “Why would Tara do that?”

  Tara is an ex-girlfriend. We broke up right after my mother died. We were together for about a year and we did have a pregnancy scare. She thought she was pregnant and it turned out that she wasn’t. She was disappointed. I think she was trying to tie me down or something. When my mother died, all she cared about was having sex. She was my first. We were young and just experienced it. She couldn’t deal with the fact that I didn’t want her because I was devastated that my mother died. She caused a big fight and I broke it off with her because she couldn’t care about me enough to be there for me. She just wanted what she wanted and that was it.

  “According to Lisa, she got word that you were having a baby and got jealous. She said, this is supposedly in Tara’s words, ‘That bitch is going down! She won’t want him when I’m finished with him.’”

  Seriously? How pathetic!

  “So let me get this straight. She was jealous that I have a baby on the way? What, because it wasn’t hers? And now she’s trying to destroy my relationship? How did she know I was going to be at that party?”

  “Apparently she’s sleeping with someone on your team.”

  This shit is just crazy. I’m only seventeen and I have a psycho crazy ex after me. I’m glad to find out what all this was about because now hopefully Serena and I can put this behind us. I thank Ben and look up Tara’s phone number and leave Ben’s house. I call Tara but I block my number so she can’t call me back. She doesn’t know my cell number and I don’t want her to have that information. She seems stalkerish now. I hear the phone ring a few times and I hear her pick up.

  “Listen here, bitch! Stop messing with my family. We were done over a year ago, deal with it. Don’t let me catch you or your attention starving whore friends anywhere near my house, my school, my family or I will make your life a living hell.”

  “Aiden, you called. I’ve missed you baby. Are you tired of your pregnant girlfriend already?”

  Did she not just hear what I told her? This bitch is crazy.

  “I am not tired of her. She is my fiancé. We are getting married. Let that sink in! We have a baby on the way. You have nothing to do with anything. You were nothing to me. You were just a cheap lay, just a way to get experience. You were just a body to use. I never saw a future with you and I never will. Stay out of my life or you will regret it. I mean it Tara!”

  I hate being so blunt like that and I didn’t mean to be too harsh but I need her to see that there will never be anything between us. I start hearing sobs on the line so I know I got my point across. I hang up the phone without further words. I’m done with this. I am still angry about all this but I hope this washes away soon. I call Serena to tell her everything and she picks up the phone.

  “Baby, I found out the answers we needed from the party.”

  She tries to answer me but I can tell she’s in pain.

  “Baby what’s wrong?”

  “I don’t know. My stomach is tightening and I can feel a little bit of pain. I don’t know what’s happening. This hasn’t happened before. Is this normal? I’m freaked out. Where are you?”

  “I’m on my way home. Ben found out information but that’s not important right now. This doesn’t sound right. Call 911 and I will meet you at the hospital.”

  She hangs up and I rush as fast as I can to get to this hospital. Fuck! I think she might be having the baby but it’s still early. I hope to God there’s nothing wrong but

  something isn’t sitting right.

  Chapter 18

  Serena

  When my stomach started tightening, I freaked. My mind is reeling with thought of the baby possibly being hurt. Aiden called when it all started. I know he was trying not to freak out but he told me to call 911. When someone tells me that, my body goes into panic mode. I freak out. My hands are shaking uncontrollably as I reach for the phone. My body is in shock.

  A 911 operator answers the phone, “911. What’s your emergency?”

  I stumble on my words, “I’m pregnant and my stomach is tightening and I can feel pain. I think something’s wrong.”

  “We’ll send dispatch out. Stay on the phone with me until they arrive. What you’re describing sounds like contractions. How far apart?”

  “I don’t know. I didn’t count.” I’m trying to figure it out but can’t because I have a sickening feeling that won’t pass. What if something is wrong? I sit here and listen to this operator as I mentally pray that my baby is alright.

  “Okay. If you can try to measure the length of time in between each contraction, do so. Someone should arrive any moment now.”

  I lie here answering questions that don’t even seem relevant when the ambulance pulls up. The paramedics come into the house and put me on a stretcher even though I told them I could walk. It must be standard procedure. They roll me out of the house and into the back of the ambulance. They start checking all my vitals and my eyes begin to tear. My mind goes straight to Aiden in hopes that he will get here soon. I don’t want to do this alone. I don’t want to be alone if I have to find out anything bad that has happened to the baby.

  I haven’t even called anyone to let them know I would be in the hospital. I didn’t really have time to. I’m assuming maybe Aiden called someone on the way here. We pull up to the hospital and they rush me into a room. A doctor comes in and fully checks me out. She places a heart monitor on my stomach to measure the baby’s heart rate. I hear the beating of the heart and I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding.

  She checks me out internally. They draw blood and try to get me as comfortable as I can. They take their sweet time coming back. I watch the clock, waiting for Aiden. It’s been two hours and he hasn’t showed up yet. He knows I’m in the hospital and he was coming from Ben’s house which was only a twenty minute drive. Where could he be? Maybe he got stuck in traffic? Maybe there’s construction? My mind is reeling with all the possibilities that I can’t fully think through because the doctor walks in.

  “I’ve checked you out and everything is okay.”

  “What about the stomach tightening and the pain?” I don’t see how everything can be alright. I have never experienced this.

  “What you had was what we call Braxton Hicks contractions. In other words, its false labor. It’s your body’s way of preparing for labor. They are cont
ractions, but you’re not in labor. We see a lot of cases of the Braxton Hicks contractions and since you are a new mother, I wasn’t expecting you to know what it is. The baby is fine; we got a good heart rate on the baby. I will go get your discharge papers and you can be on your way.”

  The doctor turns and walks out of the room. Well that’s a relief. My baby is not hurt so I can breathe easier. I’m sitting in bed waiting for the doctor to come back in the room when I see doctors rushing someone on a stretcher.

  “Young male….car accident….sustained head wound…possible broken ribs…lacerations on the face.”

  I hear bits and pieces and I feel sorry for his family. I don’t like being in hospitals. I don’t like to see other people suffering or their families. The doctor walks back in with the papers and she is going over instructions and telling me what to be aware of and what’s normal but I completely zone her out when I hear words that sliced right through my heart.

  “ID in the wallet says Aiden Clark.”

  I don’t even listen anymore. I am out of the bed as fast I can. I run over but they won’t let me in the room. Ironically he’s in the room adjacent to mine. Aiden… in a car accident? The tears start streaming down my face as I pray that he is not dead.

  Please God, don’t take him from me. We have a baby coming. He wants this baby. I can’t live without him.

  The doctor walks up to me. “You can’t be in here, Miss. I have your discharge papers.”

  “My boyfriend is in there! What is wrong with him?” my voice is breaking as I speak.

  The sobs won’t stop. I feel like I’m hyperventilating.

  “I’m sorry but I can’t disburse that information due to confidentiality. We can only talk to his parents.”

  I don’t even respond to her. I walk right out into the parking lot and call his Dad. That was not a phone call that I wanted to make. He said he would be here right away. Aiden’s dad pulls right up and gives me a hug first. He knows what I’m going through right now. He’s been here and he knows how much I love him. For both of our sakes, I hope he is okay. I don’t think his dad would do too well with losing another loved one. I can see the emotion on his face and I can see the tears already formed in his eyes. This is all déjà vu to him. The same thing happened to his wife. We walk back into the hospital and his dad requests a status update. The doctor comes out and shakes his hand.

  “Are you Aiden’s father?”

  “Yes. Can you tell me about anything that happened? I need to know. Is he okay?” he asked the doctor.

  “I’m sorry but is there somewhere we can go and talk privately. I can only tell immediate family.”

  Immediate family? What the fuck am I? I am carrying his child!

  I am so beyond emotionally stressed I want to strangle the damn answers out of him. I don’t get my chance to speak because his dad does for me.

  “She is immediate family. She is his fiancé and she is carrying his child. Anything you can say to me, can be said in front of her.”

  The doctor stands there for a minute thinking and then nods his head.

  “Very well then. Aiden was brought in here. He was involved in an accident. Upon arrival, we noticed a few fractures and he has experienced head trauma. Unfortunately he has some swelling in the brain. Our next plan of action is to put him in a medically induced coma so we can reduce the swelling enough to operate.”

  I almost vomit hearing those words. He’s going to be in a coma and he has to have surgery? I can’t stop the tears that come out.

  “Is he going to be okay?” he asked next.

  “We can’t tell right now. We’re not sure ourselves but we are very optimistic and will do everything in our power to make sure he is okay. The surgeon that will be working on him is a top-rated surgeon, so he will be in good hands.”

  I have to sit because my legs are starting to wobble. My whole world is hanging on a strand. He could die tomorrow and I can’t help him. This is all my fault. I freaked out and it turned out to be nothing. If I hadn’t told him, he wouldn’t have been rushing to get to me. I caused this and if he dies I will never forgive myself. I silently scold myself as the tears stream down my face. I feel a hand on my shoulder and I look up and Aiden’s dad has the same look I must be portraying. He hugs me and holds on to me.

  “He’s going to be okay. We just have to think positive and stay strong.”

  “I just want to see him. I want to be in the same room. I need to feel the connection we have. I need to know he’s going to make it.”

  He walks away without a word. I text Abby and Larissa and let them know what’s going on.

  Aiden’s dad walks back in.

  “I asked if we can go in and see him and they said that they have to clean him up and give him the medicine for the coma first,” he said with a frown.

  We sit here for another hour, not saying a word, both in our own misery. We both are hurting. Abby and Ben show up and Abby grabs a hold of me and I can see her tear streaked face.

  “Oh honey, I am so sorry. I hope everything is okay.”

  I try to reply but words don’t come easy. Just tears. I finally gather the courage to speak.

  “This is all my fault. He called me to tell me he found out what happened at that party and I told him I think something may be wrong with the baby. He told me to call 911 and he would meet me here. He rushed here because of me and now he’s in this mess.”

  “Don’t even blame yourself. You had every right to be worried. You’re a new mom. Something didn’t feel right and you acted on it. You did the right thing. Did he tell you about what Ben found out?”

  “No we didn’t get that far. He was more worried about my wellbeing and the baby. I never found out.”

  “Jackie was just a pawn. His ex-girlfriend was jealous that he was having a baby with you. She’s some crazy girl that tried to get pregnant so she can tie Aiden to her forever. She was trying to ruin you guys so he would come crawling back to her. Ben found out from one of his friend’s sister’s gossip.”

  I feel terrible now. I have been distant and I shouldn’t have been. I should have trusted him like I have our whole relationship. The last few months I have been distant and now he’s lying in a hospital bed. I want so much to be close but yet I’m so far away right now. I thought I was done crying for the day. I thought there were no more tears left in this body but I was wrong. I start crying again.

  The doctor walks in and says one person can go back. I don’t even volunteer because I know his dad should come first.

  I let his dad go in first as I sit down against the wall. I raise my hands to my eyes and cry my eyes out again. I can’t seem to stop the pain and heartache. I can’t stop the tears. I feel terrible for the way I’ve acted and now I may never see him again. Just thinking about it causes the sobs to burst even more. I can’t handle this.

  Abby comes over to me and sits next to me. She grabs hold of my hand.

  “He’s going to be fine, he’s strong. We have to be strong for him too. We have to think positive. I know it’s hard because he’s in a hospital but we have to stay positive for him. I’m here with you the whole time. I’ll never leave until I know he’s okay.”

  I look up and she pulls me into a hug. It helps. I still feel nothing but sorrow but it helps to know that I have a friend who is here for me and who is comforting me in my worst of times. I watch the clock, waiting for my turn to see him. Finally after about twenty minutes, I see his father walking down the hallway. I can see his face is puffy and his eyes are bloodshot. I know that visit wasn’t easy on him.

  “Go ahead. They’re going to be doing surgery soon so you have about a half hour.”

  He walks past me and sits in the chair and has a breakdown. I walk quickly to the room and enter. I see him lying in bed, motionless. It kills me to see him like this. His eyes are closed. I sit on the chair next to his bed and I reach for his hand. My vision is blurry. I can’t stop the tears from forming. I hold his limp hand and just watc
h the rise and fall of his chest. He’s alive but he’s not here. I talk to him in a quiet voice.

  “Aiden, please be okay. Please get through this. I need you baby. We still have our wedding to plan. Our little princess will be here next month. We have so much to look forward to. You can’t leave me. Not now, not ever. I still have to learn to cook so I don’t burn our food. We can go to cooking classes together. We can then use that to teach our daughter to cook. It sounds like a fantastic plan. We need to spend the night in our backyard by the waterfalls you built. We still have so much to do. You can’t leave me. What am I going to do if you’re gone? My life won’t be the same without you in it. You’re my hero and I know you’re strong, I know you can fight this.”

  I ramble on like this for what seems like hours when I hear a sniffle. I’m a little disturbed because I should be alone, in private and now someone has just heard my innermost thoughts. I look up and am shocked. There standing in the doorway is Cadence.