Elodie

My inconsistency at the workplace has been piling up, and today is one of those days I have to send yet another email asking for permission to be absent.

My finger glides across the red button and it clicks Send.

I sit quietly, staring at the white ceiling of the hospital when the doctor walks in with a file and a wide smile on her face.

That kind of smile that is either too good... or about a change in everything.

"Congratulations, Elodie," she says softly, "you're pregnant."

My heart races, skipping a beat as I blink once.

Twice.

Then I laugh.

Not a happy laugh.

A bitter, crack sound that makes the nurse beside her shift uncomfortably.

"I think you're mistaken here," I whisper, shaking my head. "I can't be."

But the smile on her face didn't falter. "I ran the test twice. You're eight weeks along. There's no mistake."

My throat tightens, and my fingers curl around the strap of my purse, squeezing it like I'm holding on to reality.

Pregnant?

Me?

"How?" I squint as the word slips from my lips.

Dr. Lucy lets out a soft chuckle. "How? You don't mean that, do you?"

My lips curl inwardly, in response to her harmless gesture.

It has been barely two months since I moved down to Emberveli town-since after Mason left me. Adjusting to the new environment hasn't been so smooth to me, now this.

This is a cruel joke from the universe.

I'm finally carrying a child?

A miracle I prayed for endlessly to save my marriage but it never came.

Why now?

After all I've been through?

My eyes burn, threatening to unleash flow, but I blink fast.

No tears, not here.

"So now, Dr. Lucy says, breaking the silence, "you'll need to level up the care you give yourself, knowing there's a life growing inside you."

"Yes, Doctor." I nod, forcing a faint smile that doesn't reach my eyes.

"Here," she says, handing me the test results. "Ensure to go through it and follow up all the instructions there. Congratulations once more Elodie."

"Thank you." I say and swallow hard.

I walk out like a ghost, clutching the paper with trembling hands. When I get to the major road, I wave for a cab.

As it pulls to a drive, I lean my back on the soft leather seat, speechless, except for the rustling sheet of my lab test breaking the silence.

In less than an hour, I'm back to my apartment. I pay the driver and step out.

I rush inside, slam the door shut and stand there freezing, still holding the result.

"I, Elodie...Pregnant...?"

I stagger backwards until my legs find the edge of the couch, and I collapse onto it.

My hands quiver as I place it over my flat stomach, the same stomach my ex and his mother had mocked.

"You're barren. Useless. A disgrace to our name."

Those words still echo in my head like a cruel chant.

A single tear rolls down my right cheek.

Another follow.

Then a loud, broken sob racks my body as years of shame and rejection come crashing.

I weep for years, I spent begging God for a child to save my marriage, and now when no one expects it, life blooms inside of me.

A wave of happiness and confusion washes over me at the same time.

How am I going to survive?

I barely feed properly.

"I'm finally going to be a real mother? I whisper through my sob, squeezing joyfully through my teeth. "But for who?"

I blink hard, trying to force back the tears that are already slipping out.

"For a man who treated me with no respect like I meant nothing?"

I close my eyes against the rush of pain that fills me. "I'll keep you safe, my baby, away from Mason." I said and move my hands across my belly. "I promise."

Just then, my stomach churns violently as a sudden rush of nausea sweeps past me.

I rush to the bathroom, holding my mouth with one hand and pressing the other against my belly.

I lean over the toilet bowl and gag, my body shaking with the force of each heave. A Bitter bile and remnants of my meal surges up my throat, leaving a sour taste in my mouth.

When it finally stops, I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and let out a weak bitter laugh.

"So... it's real after all." I murmur.

...

Five years later...

Oh my God. It's almost 5 p.m.

I'm late again.

Hurriedly, I grab my handbag and dash out to the busy road. I wave down a cab.

"Main and Elm, please," I pant as I hop in. "Quickly!"

The driver nods and speeds off. But barely ten minutes into the drive, rain starts, pouring heavily.

Suddenly, the road clusters and I get stuck in traffic.

I tap my foot nervously. "Please...go faster."

He sighs but doesn't answer. I stretch my neck, trying to see past the sea of cars ahead.

Just then, my phone buzzes with a message from the school: "Liam is waiting safely at the drop-off point"

I exhale deeply. I feel relief and whisper a soft "Thank you Jesus." I put the phone back into my bag.

Shortly the road clears. The cabbie speeds forward as fast as he could, but nothing prepares me for the scene I meet when he turns the corner.

A silver car diverts sharply at the school drop-off point.

And Liam. My Liam is right there.

My eyes bulge as I watch it speed towards him. Panic crawls through my veins.

My pupils dilate. "No. No, no." My scream catches in my throat.

"Stop, stop, stop. I slap the front seat, praying my fears were wrong.

The moment it slows, I fling the door open and dash out. My bag spills onto the wet road but I don't care.

A small crowd is gathering.

Hazard lights blinking nonstop.

And then I see him. His small body... lying still on the wet ground.

There, a man in a soaked dress shirt is already kneeling, performing a frantic CPR.

My heart nearly stops.

"Liam!" I scream, as I push through the people.

My legs give out when I reach them and see his pale face, blood smears on his temple, and one of his shoes has flown off.

I kneel closely beside him, my heart drops. "No! Liam!"

Voices were muttering words from behind but I can barely hear them. My entire mind zeros in Liam.

"Baby... Mama is here. Please...open your eyes." Tears blur my vision. My hands tremble as I cup his face.

But when his body gives no response, my fear grows stronger.

"The ambulance has arrived." A voice speaks.

"Help my baby! Please!" My words hang in the air like a challenge as EMTs move in swift motion.

Travis

"Any news yet?" Nathan's voice drifts from the other side of the phone, "Have you heard from...?"

I shrug, swirling the wine in my glass. "Not yet."

"But it's been years, Travis," Nathan says. "You don't even remember her face. Or her name."

"But I remember how I felt," I murmur. A sad smile creeping onto my lips. "That night was the only time I've felt that way with another except Serena."

Nathan sighs. "Who chases an unknown shadow for five years?"

"A man who has nothing else that makes sense." I answer with a lower voice now.

He softens, his tone calmer. "There are still good women out there. Women who'd treat you better, if..."

"If I just let go?" I cut in, a bitter chuckle slipping through. "I already did that once. You saw how it ended."

He fell silent for a moment. "Serena betrayed you, yes I'm aware. But not every woman is like her."

My grip on the glass tightens. The pain is still there, buried under ambition and denial. "I know. But I can't fake closure."

Nathan groans lightly. "You don't even know this girl. One night in a hotel room and she's tattooed on your soul?"

"You weren't there," I whisper. "She didn't even ask for anything. She just...left even though I was an inch away. Her blur still etches in my mind."

"And you think she's out there waiting for you? You think she'd accept you now even if you find her and explain your feelings?"

"No." I admit. "But I'm not searching for her to reclaim that night. I'm just...hoping she's okay."

"You're a romantic fool, you know that?"

I chuckle. "Hope has kept me sane, Nathan."

"Then good luck to you and your mysterious stranger," he says with a sigh. "I'll let you. Safe drive to Emberville."

"Thanks."

The line clicks off.

I exhale slowly and drop my phone, then swallow the last of my wine, and close my eyes briefly, before sinking deeper into the lounge chair.

Everyone says I need to move on, but how do I move from something that never had a name, yet it carved itself into my chest like truth?

Grabbing my keys, I walk down to the garage. I get into my Porsche Cayenne and pull onto the busy road to Emberville town for a routine site inspection.

...

A few hours later...

I'm done with what I came for and heading back home.

The road fills with people rushing from work. The sound of horns and revving engine slaps the air.

But just then I notice something in my side mirror, a black SUV with tinted windows.

With ease, It drives through the traffic and follows me closely as I approach the intersection of Main and Elm.

At first, I think I'm being paranoid... but the car sticks to me, mimicking every turning I make.

"Hello..." I speak into the phone, my voice tight. "Track my car and get me the information of the person tailing me."

"Yes boss," the voice replies immediately.

I hang up and make a sharp U-turn, hoping to lose whoever it is.

But that's when it happens.

The SUV catches up with me. It hits my car from behind and I lose control.

My car swerves fast, running out of lane. I slam the breaks, heart in my throat.

But it is too late then.

It hit a small school boy.

The thud is sickening, his small frame crumples on the impact.

My head jerks forward from the sudden stop and hits the steering wheel. A sharp pain splits through my skull, and blood begins to trickle down my face, blurring my vision.

The SUV then speeds past like smoke without any further hesitation.

In seconds, a small crowd gathers, drawn by the sound of screeching tires and shouting voices.

I open my car door and stumble out with blood dripping down my face.

Everything spins.

And then my eyes fell on her, broken. Confusion dribbles me for a second.

Her scream cuts through the noise with ease.

"Liam! My baby!" She shouts, running forward, and pushing people aside.

I freeze.

Panic surging up in my nerves.

"Someone call 911," a voice shouts from somewhere behind me.

My legs grow heavy, barely holding me upright as I stumble toward the body on the ground.

Blood drips from my forehead, clouding my vision.

I didn't mean for this to happen.

Forcing my sight to clear, I blink hard and that's when I see him clearly.

He lay still on the wet ground, a man kneeling beside him, compressing his chest, trying to breathe life back into him.

No...

My heart pounds in fear. Threatening to erupt from my ribcage.

Then, as if remembering I exist, she snaps her head up and her gaze fixes on me in anger.

She staggers to her feet and grabs the front of my shirt, with trembling hands.

"He's all I've got left in this world," she beats my chest weakly over and over, her tears shattering something inside me. "Why would you take him from me? Why?!"

"I didn't see him I swear, I didn't..." my voice cracks. "There was a car...someone was chasing me. I didn't mean..."

But my words sound very unnecessary.

"The ambulance is here!" a voice calls.

Red lights flashes and the wail of the siren grows louder. A paramedic team rushes in with a stretcher.

She lets go of me, as if drain of all strength, and turns back to her son.

The medics place the boy gently on the stretcher. His arms flop loosely. No response

"We'll perform CPR in transit. Possibly intubation if need be," one of them says, almost mechanically. " Due to space, we cannot permit an extra passenger."

The woman stands abruptly. "No. No, I'm coming with him."

"I'm sorry, ma'am," the paramedic replies. Wheeling the boy into the ambulance, and slams the doors shut. "We need room to work."

"You'll drive me." she turns and says as she comes facing me, her eyes full of desperation.

I nod without saying a word. There's nothing to say. I don't even know how I'm still standing.

We both get into my car.

The ambulance speeds off ahead of us, wailing its siren like a scream.

She sits beside me sobbing with a breaking breath, clenching the edge of the seat shakingly.

I wonder, what if I've just destroyed the only good thing left in her life?

Guilt twists my stomach.

The boy's frame flashes in my mind like a punch. I don't care about the car that tailed me."

Right now, I can only hope I haven't just killed someone's son.

Elodie

"God, Please..." I whisper shakily. "Don't take him from me."

I glance sideways at the man behind the wheel.

The idiot who hit my son.

His face remains pale, and there's blood near his temple. He holds tightly to the steering wheel.

But it doesn't move me at all.

I press my trembling hands in my chest, trying to steady the storm.

This is his fault, his exact act of recklessness.

And now I'm back to this city, this one place I swore I'd never set my foot in again.

I can't run into Mason. I can't run into his wife.

They must never find out about Liam.

Not now. Not ever.

To them, I must remain the barren ex. The woman they threw away like trash.

Tension grows thicker in me, I grip the edge of my blouse in my fingers.

Liam, I'll protect you. Even if I have to fight the devil himself. I will keep you safe.

"Can you drive any faster?" I snap at him. Frustration rises within me the more I look at him.

He blinks hard. "I apologise ma, I didn't mean to..."

"Just drive." I cut him off.

"I didn't mean for this to happen," he continues, "There was a car tailing me, and I..."

"Drive." I yell louder this time.

He nods quickly, raising one hand like he's surrendering. "Okay. Alright."

A few seconds pass before he says in a more quiet tone, "You can call me Travis."

"This isn't the time to know whatever you're called." I spit.

He goes silent.

Good.

I don't have the strength to argue. Liam is all that matters right now.

I catch him stealing glances at me again. I hate it. I hate how calm he seems under all this.

Then my eyes fall on his shiny, gold wrist -Rolex.

Of course.

He must have thought of himself as a God. I sign, throwing my face to the other side of the window.

Rich, powerful and untouchable. Men like him always walk away clean.

But not this time.

Not if Liam doesn't wake up.

We arrive at the hospital a few minutes later. One of the best I have ever seen. The kind of place rich people trust with their lives.

The ambulance pulls to a stop and the paramedics burst the doors open. They pull Liam's stretcher down with swift urgency.

I run after them, with speed.

"God, please..." I keep whimpering, asking God to spare his life. "Please let him live."

...

Inside the emergency department, doctors and nurses take over, gloves snap, and commands flying across the room.

"We can take care of it from here." a nurse says firmly, stepping in front of me.

I try to move past but she blocks me gently.

"Take that hallway, go to reception, and fill in your information..."

I don't let her finish before I turn and race like a mad woman to the lobby, my feet barely touching the floor.

My breath comes out in sobs.

"Please nurse, where? Where do I sign in? He's in the emergency room!" I say, pointing behind me.

My voice breaks. I could not talk properly.

The receptionist stares at me without any further questioning and pulls out a big book. "Here." she says, pointing to a particular corner of the form.

I quickly scribble down my name, without any further pause to ask questions.

"And here too," she adds, tapping the far end of the page. "For who you brought in with you."

When I finish and return back to the waiting area, it's cold and too quiet. The seconds drag.

I can't sit still, I pace back and forth in the room.

Then a voice speaks. "Are you his mother?"

I turn sharply.

The man approaching wears a bluecoat and a kind face. "I'm Dr. Jerry, paediatric trauma specialist. He's in good hands."

"Please... do whatever you can to save him," I whisper. "I'll be glad he survives whatever happened to him..."

Before Dr Jerry can reply, another voice cuts in from behind. "His expenses are covered. Do everything."

I turn around.

It's him again.

Travis.

He steps forward, in a calm and composed manner, with a thick white bandage across his forehead.

I'd forgotten about his injury. I was too focused on Liam. And still I am.

Dr. Jerry gives a short nod. "We'll do our best," he says, then he leaves.

I finally sit on one of the metal chairs but my knees won't stop shaking. I try to pray but no words come out.

Time slowly melts away.

Soon, a nurse appears suddenly. "Ma'am, your son needs blood. We need a donor urgently."

"Yes, take mine." I say, standing immediately.

She draws my blood and disappears.

*****

Minutes later, she's back, too soon.

"Your blood type doesn't match. We need someone else..."

My heart skips a beat. "My blood isn't a match?"

"I'll try," Travis says, rising from his seat without hesitation. "I'm O negative. Universal donor."

I glance at him, stunned.

Part of me wants to scream, You've done enough already.

But another part, the part desperate to save my child lets him go.

It is all a thought.

He disappears into the hallway with the nurse.

Somewhat strangely, I'm still grateful he is helping, I don't mind doing anything to save my child.

I remain there, freeze, staring at the red light above the operating room door, and grip tight on the chair.

Soon I bend forward and rest my head in my hands.

I shouldn't have brought Liam here.

But fate has a cruel way of dragging you back where you swore you'd never return.

Mason can't see me. He can't see Liam.

If he finds out the truth...

No. I shake the thought away.

Not now.

Not when my son is lying on an operating table, fighting for his life.

Then a voice yanks me from the fog.

"Elodie!"

My heart races. My ears heard it wrong.

"No one knows my name at this place. I pray it's my thought, not reality." I mutter to myself. "I pray I'm safe..."

"Elodie!" the voice comes again, this time louder.

I turn toward the sound.

And freeze.

My heart stops.