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The toilet flushes and the bathroom door creaks open. I look up. Eric stands there, his face unreadable, holding the pregnancy test.
"Avery, what's this?" he asks, his voice oddly calm.
Panic surges through me. I swallow hard, my mouth suddenly dry. There's no use hiding it from him, but this isn't the way I wanted him to find out. "It's... it's mine. I'm pregnant, Eric."
He doesn't react, doesn't move. His eyes slide past me, fixing on the mural behind me. The silence stretches, thick and heavy between us.
"Eric?" I whisper, desperate for any reaction.
He blinks, focusing on me again. "Pregnant," he repeats, as if tasting the word.
I nod, my hands trembling slightly. "Yeah. We're... we're going to have a baby."
Eric's gaze drifts back to the mural, and I follow it. My eyes land on his arm, where I know the tattoo lies hidden beneath his sleeve. The heart with our names, inked on the day we drove to this city full of dreams and possibilities.
"Remember your tattoo?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. "The one with our names?"
He nods, his expression giving nothing away.
"Maybe..." I start, hope blooming in my chest, "Maybe there's room in that heart for another name now."
Eric runs a hand through his hair, his eyes suddenly darting around the room. "I... I need some air," he says, his voice strained. "This is big news. I just need to process it."
My heart sinks a little, but I nod. "Okay, I understand." I'm used to Eric needing time with big decisions. It's just how he is.
He grabs the keys from the hook by the door. "I won't be long," he says, not quite meeting my eyes.
"Take your time," I reply, forcing a smile. "I'll be here."
The door closes behind him, and I'm left alone with the sound of his car starting up and driving away. I sink onto the couch again, my hand instinctively resting on my still-flat stomach.
Hours tick by. The sun sets, casting long shadows across the living room. I've called Eric's phone six times now, each call going straight to voicemail.
"Where are you?" I whisper to the empty room.
It's dark outside when I see headlights sweep across the wall. My heart leaps. I rush to the window, hope surging through me.
But it's not Eric's car. Just someone using our driveway to turn around.
I collapse back onto the couch, exhaustion and worry washing over me. My eyes start to drift closed, the stress of the day finally catching up with me.
When I wake up, sunlight is streaming through the windows. I bolt upright, my neck stiff from sleeping on the couch.
"Eric?" I call out, my voice hoarse.
But the house is silent. Empty.
And it stays that way. Days pass. Then weeks. Months.
Eric never comes back. Never calls. Never explains.
And just like that, I'm alone, facing a future I never imagined.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Avery
The cold airof the rink bites at my cheeks as Samantha nudges me, breaking my concentration. "Look who's back on the ice," she says, a hint of mischief in her voice. I follow her gaze and there he is—Victor, with that same intense focus he's always had, commanding the attention of the kids as they skate laps. My lips twist into a frown. "Too little too late," I mutter under my breath, eyeing his dark figure against the stark white of the ice. The moms around us are watching him, probably thinking he's some kind of hero.