Chapter 25%
I stared at the pregnancy test in my trembling hand. The second pink line was faint, but undeniably there.
Positive.
The silence in the bathroom was deafening. My breath came in short gasps as I backed away f own feet. My heart was racing, my knees weak
Pregnant. With Joseph’s child &
from the counter, nearly tripping over my
A million thoughts collided in my head, none of them clear enough to grasp. My body slid down the bathroom wall until I was sitting on the cold tiles, clutching the test like a lifeline and a curse all at once!
I didn’t know what to feel. Joy? Fear? Rage?!
Joseph and I were complicated. Tattered. Tom between love and betrayal. And now, in the middle of it all, I was carrying his child.
I didn’t tell him. Not that day. Not the next. I couldn’t.”
Instead, I poured myself into my art. I locked myself in my small studio, painting until the fumes made me dizzy and my vision blurred. It was the only way I knew how to stay grounded.
Joseph never left me alone for long. Even after I’d told him I needed space, he continued sending me flowers.
Sketchbooks. Chocolates I couldn’t even look at without gagging, thanks to the pregnancy &
But I couldn’t deny the softness in my chest every time his gifts arrived. He was still trying. Still hoping
Still waiting
Then came the dizzy spells. The nausea. The unbearable fatigue.
And then one afternoon, I collapsed.
I had been painting for hours, the smell of turpentine thick in the air. I stood up too fast, and the world tilted. My vision blurred into black, and my knees gave way.
The next thing I knew, warm hands were lifting me from the floor
“Allison!” Joseph’s voice was panicked, his arms trembling as he held me. “Allison, talk to me!”
I blinked up at him. I hadn’t even heard him come in.
He carried me to the couch, his touch gentle but frantic. I felt his hand on my forehead, then my wrist, checking my pulse like he couldn’t believe I was real.
“What’s going on with you?” he asked, eyes scanning my face. “You’ve been pale for days. You’re fainting now. Tell me the truth.”
I tried to turn away, but he caught my chin and made me look at him.8
I swallowed hard. “Tm pregnant.”
The word fell out like a confession, and the moment it landed, the air around us shifted.
Joseph froze.&
His eyes widened, mouth parting–but no words came.
And then, after what felt like an eternity, he dropped to his knees in front of me.!
“I will not agree to stay away,” he whispered. “Don’t even try to push me out of this. I love you. I love you so much, Allison.”
My breath hitched.
He reached into his coat pocket, and I gasped when I saw the small, velvet box in his hands.S
“I was going to wait,” he murmured. “But maybe this is the moment I’ve been praying for.”
He opened it.
A ring. Simple. Silver. Elegant. The kind of ring that said everything without needing words:
“Allison,” he said, voice shaking. “Marry me.”
Tears spilled down my cheeks before I could stop them.
“I know I made mistakes,” he continued, “but I will spend the rest of my life proving that I choose only you. That I will always choose you
I stared at him–this man who had broken my heart, but also stayed when I was in pain, held me when I cried, fought for me when others didn’t
“I’m scared,” I whispered
“I am too,” he said, tears glistening in his oyes “But maybe that’s what makes it real.”
I didn’t answer with words
Instead, I nodded through my tears.
He stood and slipped the ring onto my finger then kissed my hands like I was made of glass. Fragile. Precious.”
And maybe for the first time. I let myself believe in a future.!!
The next few weeks were a whirlwind
Our wedding wasn’t grand. It wasn’t draped in diamonds or filled with hundreds of people. We didn’t want that. Not this time.!! We wanted something true.
So we planned a small ceremony by the lake where we first confessed our love. Just us.!
다
11:25 AM
We wanted something true.
So we planned a small ceremony by the lake where we first confessed our love. Just us.
I wore a simple white dress, the fabric soft against my skin, my growing belly only barely visible. Joseph wore a black suit, the same or he’d worn on the night he begged me not to leave him.
And as we stood beneath the archway of lilies and said our vows, his hands holding mine, I realized something: Love wasn’t abo perfection. It wasn’t about flawless promises or smooth journeys.!
It was about choosing someone–even when it was hard. Especially when it was hard.
Joseph vowed to protect me and our child.
I vowed to give him the chance to keep his promises.”
When we kissed, the wind whispered through the trees, like the world itself was sighing in relief.
And I knew in that moment–I had chosen to take the risk.
For him. For us.
For the tiny heartbeat that had already changed everything.
