Chapter Two: Tears and Two Lines

Emily stops, as she turns to his direction.

Her heart starts pounding. Maybe it was all a prank, she thought to herself.

Edward walks to her calmly.

“You forgot your locket,” he hands it to her. “And the money has also been paid to your account,” he added in a calm tone.

Emily's heart falls immediately, her hopes shattered.

“T...thanks,” she turns and leaves, slamming the door behind her.

Holding her tears, the pain in her heart, and the anger boiling in her from the disappointment.

As she walked outside the gate, the cab she had booked was already waiting for her. She barged into the taxi without confirming if it was her ride.

“Where to ma'am?” The driver asked, staring at her through the rearview mirror.

“Take me to any hotel outside this town,” she replied, avoiding his gaze.

“Okay, ma'am.”

Emily stared out of the window as she burst into silent tears.

“How did I fall into this,” she murmured to herself. “W.....why is fate so cruel, where do I go now?” Emily asked quietly.

“Should I call my Dad,” she still murmured to herself. It immediately occurred to her that he was the root of her problem.

“No...not possible, I won't,” she starts sobbing. She thought to herself that it might be better if she cut ties with him if she really wanted to start again.

After about thirty minutes, they arrived at a hotel outside town.

“We've arrived ma'am,” the driver's voice cut through her thoughts.

Emily wipes every trace of tears from her face. She pays the driver and steps out of the cab. The driver came down to assist with her luggage, but she refused.

She walked towards the hotel with her luggage.

As she got to the reception, she approached the chubby lady behind the counter.

“A room for a week,” she said to the lady.

“That'll be five hundred dollars,” the lady replied, adjusting her glasses resting on her nose to look up to Emily.

Without uttering more words, she handed her credit card over to the lady to make payments.

“Have a wonderful stay,” the lady said, handing her card back to her. She also gave her the key with the room number on the key holder.

Emily easily located her room, as she inserted the key into the keyhole to open the door. As soon as she was in, she locked the door from the inside. She checked every corner of the room if it was clean. She released a breath of relief as everywhere was properly arranged including the co-joined toilet and bathroom.

“This will have to do for a week,” she told herself. While standing she started to feel lightheaded. She immediately stepped towards the bed and fell flat on it.

She napped for about half an hour before she was interrupted by a call. It was her best friend Betty who was calling, she wasn't ready to speak to anybody including her best friend.

At first, she thought it was Edward, maybe he had come back to his senses but she was disappointed. A few stray tears escaped her eyes but she furiously wiped them off, reminding herself that the man wasn't worth it.

She huffed in annoyance, trying to rise into a sitting position, but this time, the sudden urge to puke had her rushing towards the bathroom.

She emptied her bowels in the toilet.

After a while she held onto the bathroom sink, leaning over it. She splashed some water on her face, as she raised her head her eyes met with her reflection in the mirror. She looked a bit pale for someone who always had tanned skin.

“I can't be sick,” she murmured to herself, recalling that for the past five days she had been feeling weak and dizzy.

She didn't bother telling Edward because she had recently gone for a medical check-up and the doctor told her she was fine.

“Wait…. It's a new month.” Her eyes widened to a realization, as she stared back at her reflection.

It's been five days into a new month and she hasn't seen her period. She was a week late, she had never in her life experienced a late period.

“How did I forget?” she asked herself. Suddenly, it felt as if her nipples were tingling. She had never experienced sore breasts or tingling nipples even during ovulation.

Fear crept into her chest abruptly.

“It…it can't be,” she murmured to herself, as she shook her head in denial. “It was just once right?”

“But you didn't take pills.” A small voice whispered in her head.

Her heart was slamming hard against her chest, scared of the possibility of the impossible becoming a reality. She flushed the toilet and sped out of the bathroom, quickly grabbing her purse and exiting the room.

“Where's the nearest pharmacy?” she asked the receptionist.

“Three blocks from here, to the right,” he answered, even though he was displeased with her approach.

Emily wasn't patient enough to express her gratitude, as she quickly ran off in the direction the man had described.

About thirty minutes later, she returned to her room with about five pregnancy tests while fervently praying that her fears wouldn't come true. Immediately she urinated on all five of them, while awaiting the results.

As soon as they were ready she fell to the bathroom floor, as all five of them were positive.

“I can't be pregnant,” she said, as tears of distress and regret streamed down her face.

How was she going to handle the situation? How did she land herself in such a hopeless and helpless state? She had a selfish father and she couldn't face her best friend. Could she really take care of a baby? How could she be pregnant for a man, who has clearly stated that he doesn't want her? Indeed signing the contract with Edward was the biggest mistake of her life.

These questions and thoughts ran through her head as she continued crying.

After crying for more than an hour, she rose to her feet and exited the bathroom, heading for the bed. But the noise from the TV caught her attention as she heard the name of the same man who had left her in this terrible condition.

“CEO of Carter Textiles Ltd, Edward Carter is back with his ex-fiancée who seems to be pregnant,” the news broadcaster said, smiling excitedly. “It is said that they will be getting married soon.”

A picture of Edward in an intimate position with a pregnant brunette came up on the TV. The presenter had explained that the picture had been shot at a social event where the billionaire had claimed that the woman who had been his date, Natasha Wills, was his soon-to-be wife and that they were expecting their first child.

This news broke Emily's heart more.

So this was the reason he didn't attend the event with her. Indeed she was going to leave this city, not for him but for her and her unborn child.

She protectively wrapped her hands around her flat stomach.

“It's you and I against the world” she murmured in a broken voice.