Chapter 13
When I was discharged from the hospital, Alpha Lucas was there, waiting by the entrance with that same gentle smile I used to love.
“Emily, let’s go home,” he said, stepping closer to take my hand.
I took a deliberate step back, avoiding his touch. “No need to trouble yourself,” I said flatly. “I’ll just take a cab.”
His smile faltered as my words registered.. “Emily, don’t do this,” he pleaded, his voice trembling. His eyes reddened, the picture of
sorrow.
“I’m sorry about our puppy–Avery,” he said, using the name we had chosen for the baby.
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The sound of it sent a fresh wave of pain through me.
Avery Swanson.
We had picked the name together, hoping our child would grow up surrounded by love and blessings, free to explore and enjoy the world.
“But,” he continued, his tone almost pleading, “I hope we don’t let this ruin us. We have so much time ahead of us.”
I met his gaze with unwavering resolve. “Alpha Lucas, we don’t have a future anymore.”
I turned away and placed my hand on the handle of a waiting taxi.
But I couldn’t resist one parting shot. “Alpha
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Lucas, is the view from the top of the Ferris wheel beautiful?”
He froze, his eyes widening in shock.
Omega Camille had been so eager to share her triumph that she posted a picture of them on social media yesterday.
In the photo, they were seated together on a Ferris wheel. Omega Camille was smiling as she kissed his cheek, while Lucas looked away–whether from guilt or fear of heights, I didn’t know.
“How… how did you know?” he stammered, the color draining from his face.
It seemed he thought he could hide his betrayal from me.
I didn’t bother answering. Instead, I climbed
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into the taxi and left him standing there, rooted to the spot.
When I arrived home, the silence was suffocating. Every corner of the house felt like a painful reminder of what I had lost.
I decided it was time to leave.
Packing my things was harder than I’d imagined. Each object I touched seemed to hold a memory–some joyful, others bittersweet. When I finally reached the nursery, my resolve nearly crumbled.
The room was perfect, just as we had planned it. A soft pastel palette, a crib adorned with tiny stuffed animals, and shelves lined with books for bedtime stories. It was supposed to be a sanctuary for Ashie,
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our precious baby.
Now it was nothing.
As I opened the drawer, I found the notebook Alpha Lucas and I had kept–a shared diary for documenting every step of my
pregnancy.
The entries were written in his handwriting, full of warmth and excitement.
[Our family is about to welcome a new life, and Emily and I are about to become parents. My precious gift is bringing me another precious one, and I will love them both with all my heart.]
[Avery isn’t very cooperative and often makes Luna Emily nauseous. Thankfully, I’m a dependable dad. Once Avery is born, I’ll make sure to give him a good lesson.]
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Alpha Lucas had recorded every detail of my pregnancy–morning sickness, fetal movements, and my unpredictable moods.
I traced the words with trembling fingers, my vision blurred by tears. How could someone who wrote these words become the person standing on that Ferris wheel?
I rubbed my aching eyes, took a pen from the side, and wrote a few lines carefully before grabbing my suitcase and leaving.
The house, at last, was empty.
