The Deadly Drop

The wind was howling on the outdoor bungee platform, tearing at my clothes.

I huddled in the furthest corner, my knuckles white as I death-gripped the railing. At eight months pregnant, gravity was already my enemy, and the dropping barometric pressure made my heavy belly feel like an anchor dragging me down.

The cheap, generic safety harness strapped over my maternity clothes felt flimsy–laughable, really. It made the blood drain from my face.

However, my husband, Julian Vance, stood just a few feet away, completely oblivious to my terror. His eyes were glued to his 'first love,' Lily Lane, the girl who had insisted that bungee jumping was the only cure for her blues.

Lily leaned into him, putting on her best kicked-puppy act. "Julian, you're the best. You're the only one who lets me vent when I'm down. You're literally the only person in the world I can trust."

Julian pulled her into a hug, his voice dripping with the kind of tenderness he had not shown me in years. "Don't worry, Lily. No matter what happens, I'm right here. You don't have to be scared of anything."

They locked eyes with that sickening, sticky gaze that said the rest of the world could burn for all they cared.

Suddenly, a gust of wind slammed into the metal scaffolding, shaking the entire platform. I stumbled, my balance thrown off.

The crowd around us gasped.

"Whoa! Is she crazy? Bungee jumping with a belly like that?"

"She's pregnant! She should stay home. Coming out in this weather... Is she hoping for a miscarriage?"

"Some women are just irresponsible. They treat their babies like accessories. When she starts hemorrhaging, she won't even have the breath to cry about it."

The whispers reached Julian. He looked at me, his expression twisting into pure disgust.

"Hear that? You're a nuisance everywhere you go. A pregnant embarrassment. I seriously regret bringing you along."

Lily jumped in, playing the peacemaker with a venomous smile. "Julian, don't be mad. You know Elena drugged your drink to trap you with this baby. Cut her some slack." She ducked her head, voice trembling. "It's my fault. If my depression wasn't so bad... If I hadn't needed this release... Julian, maybe we should just go. Elena obviously doesn't want to do it."

"No." Julian's voice was firm. He cut her off, gripping her shoulders. "Lily, I promised to make your wish come true. You're bungee jumping today."

He turned that cold, hateful glare back on me. "Elena, if you hadn't announced your pregnancy the day Lily got dumped, she wouldn't even be depressed right now. Her misery is your fault. If you have a shred of conscience left, you'll jump with her."

The bystanders finally realized the dynamic: I was not crazy, I was being coerced. The looks they shot Julian shifted from judgment to confusion.

Even the staff member looked horrified. "Sir, pregnant women absolutely cannot bungee jump. The risk of miscarriage... We can't be liable for–"

"She's doing this voluntarily. It's her choice," Julian interrupted, his voice like ice. He grabbed the liability waiver and shoved it against my chest.

"Sign it. And jump."

Four words. That was all it took to strip away the last of my delusions. He looked at me like I was a bag of trash he was desperate to toss in a dumpster.

I took the clipboard. My hand did not shake. I signed my name, Elena, with a strange sense of calm.

After dying a gruesome death in my past life, I finally saw the truth. This man, the husband I had loved for years, had a heart of stone. He did not love me. He did not love our unborn child.

Fine.

I was done holding on. I would grant his wish and disappear from his world completely.

I shoved the waiver back at the stunned staff member. Ignoring the glint of malice in Lily's eyes, I walked to the edge of the platform. The drop loomed beneath us, a gray abyss.

Right before the plunge, I turned to look at Julian one last time.

"Julian," I said, my voice flat. "This baby? I'm giving it back to you."