Chapter5
The next morning, Victor woke up by himself again. It bummed him out, but he had butterflies in his stomach because Nichole admitted that she loved him. He had no idea that the night he had given Nichole made her feel like the only woman on earth. She went to work, told Melissa everything and had a glow that made everyone notice.
Victor made her feel like she had no worries in the world. She worked her tail off and Tashka trotted around the hospital, and she fed off of Nichole’s positive energy. When Nichole got home she hugged and kissed Victor, said hello to Zap, and talked to Victor about her day. “I had the best day ever. I don’t know what it was, but it felt like everything was going perfect,” Nichole exclaimed. Victor listened intently. After she finished, he began to tell her about his day and for the next three months, everything was sailing smooth.
The couple was about to go to the dog park with Zap and Tashka when they heard the doorbell. “I got it!” screamed Victor. He opened the door and saw Derrick there with a wooden baseball bat.
“I told you I was coming back!” Derrick yelled. Derrick hit Victor in the head and he fell down which caused Nichole to scream. Zap ran and hid behind the couch and Tashka charged at Derrick. Derrick swung the bat at Tashka. Nichole cried “stop” repeatedly. Derrick ran over to Nichole and said, “It’s okay baby. I’m here now. Prince Charming to the rescue.”
Nichole attempted to run from him, but he grabbed her arm. Tashka was snapping at him. She tried her best to get him away from Nichole without getting hit by the bat. Victor was finally able to stand and rushed over to remove Derrick from the premises. Victor ran over and punched Derrick hard in the face. He then tackled Derrick and began punching him over and over again.
Nichole called an emergency squad and she screamed at them to hurry. Before they arrived, all she could do was watch the men fight and although Victor was winning, she was still very much afraid. Nichole screamed for help. When Victor looked over at her, she was on her knees and her arms were around her stomach. Victor’s eyes grew, and he punched Derrick one more time, knocking him out.
He ran over to Nichole who was still crying. “It’s going to be okay, baby. You called for help. They’ll be here soon!”
“Our baby, Victor!” she cried. “Our baby!”
Victor’s eyes started getting cloudy and he too began to sob. “I promise, everything will be okay,” he managed to say. The police, an ambulance, and a fire truck arrived at the house. The paramedics ran in to find Derrick unconscious, Nichole lying on her back on the couch, and Victor had a knock on his forehead.
They went to Nichole first when Victor announced she was pregnant. “Please, help my girlfriend! She’s four months pregnant and something is wrong,” he exclaimed. Nichole was crying too hard to speak and the police didn’t know what actions took place so they placed Derrick in the back of one cop car, and Victor in the back of another.
The paramedics rushed Nichole to the hospital and she had to call Melissa to come pick her up afterwards. She had been at the hospital for about an hour while the doctor ran tests and said she couldn’t go through any more stress through the duration of her pregnancy. They told her to take leave from work early and, although she was her own boss, gave her the papers to relieve her from work early.
She had already gotten the call from Victor that he was at the police station. Melissa headed to Nichole and Victor’s house after dropping off Nichole at the police station to check on the damage of the house. Nichole walked into the police station with her hand on her stomach. The baby was fine and moving again after she was given some liquids.
She walked over to the police officer she saw at her house and sat down at his desk. “Hello ma’am. My name is Officer Nettles. Can you tell me what events occurred in your home earlier this afternoon?” the officer asked.
“Of course. My boyfriend and I were headed to the dog park when the doorbell rang. Victor, my boyfriend, answered the door and was greeted with a bat to the head by Derrick. I panicked. Derrick has been stalking me for some time now,” Nichole replied.
“Do you have any proof of this?” asked the officer. Nichole handed her phone to Nettles and allowed him to scroll through the messages from Derrick she never replied to and all of the phone calls from him she never answered. “That’s more than enough proof,” the officer replied. “So, your boyfriend? He tried to protect you in this situation?” the officer asked.
“Yes, he is the one who got Derrick away from me. Derrick has caused me a great amount of stress. I just had to take early leave from work because they just told me if I endure any more stress through this pregnancy, Victor and I will lose our baby. I want to press charges and get a restraining order.” Nichole’s voice broke as she spoke.
“I understand ma’am. Of course, just fill out this paperwork and I’ll bring your boyfriend right out. There will be nothing on his record due to the fact he wasn’t the aggressor in the altercation,” Nettles answered. Nichole grabbed a pen, thanked the officer, and filled out the papers.
Victor came over and sat next to Nichole at the officer’s desk. “Is everything okay?” Victor was afraid to find out, but he knew he had to know.
“Everything’s okay.” Nichole gave him a weak smile. Victor rubbed Nichole’s back and the officer returned.
“You two will go to court in two weeks and he has been ordered to stay away from you both,” he said. Nichole thanked him for the information and she called Melissa to pick them up.
When Melissa arrived, she took the two of them home. Melissa walked in with the couple and explained why their couch was missing. “Tashka was really worried and upset with the terms you left on. She got a little overwhelmed and destroyed your couch,” Melissa admitted.
Nichole sighed. “It was time to buy a new one, anyway.”
Tashka walked over to Nichole and put her face against her stomach. “So, you’re going to be out of work for a while?” Melissa asked.
“Doctor’s orders,” Nichole cried. “What am I going to do?”
Victor remarked, “Maybe we should go lie down. We’ve had a long day. I’ll order Chinese take-out and we’ll watch movies in the room with Tashka and Zap.” Zap hopped off the couch and demanded Nichole to hold him. She picked him up and carried him to the room.
Victor and Melissa spoke privately. “We really have to keep her calm. We should plan a really fun day for her tomorrow,” Melissa whispered.
“That would be great. What should we do?” Victor asked.
“Maybe we could take her out to dinner and a movie after your court date,” Melissa suggested.
“Okay. Nice. I’ll get her pumped up and we can meet up at her favorite restaurant,” Victor added.
“Red Lobster, sounds great,” Melissa finished. “I got to get going. Go ahead and call the Chinese take-out place. Order orange chicken and egg drop soup.”
Victor thanked her and made the call. When the food got to the house, Victor took it to the room and calmed Nichole down. After they ate, Nichole fell asleep with Zap in her arms and Nichole was in Victor’s arms. Tashka laid at the foot of the bed and watched the television. Victor was restless. He wondered how he could sleep after he was assaulted and almost lost his baby. He knew he was going to have a nightmare if he drifted off to sleep.
He watched Nichole breathe and he tried to think good thoughts. He knew he had to keep Nichole calm, but he was freaking out himself. He didn’t know how to feel. He was happy to be having a baby, but he never imagined having a close call that could jeopardize the last five months before his baby was born. He was worried Derrick would come back, regardless of what the police told him. The events that had taken place constantly replayed in his head.
To Victor it was like a scary movie on replay that starred him and the love of his life. He prayed no more issues came about. He debated asking Nichole to move back to Brazil with him and having her start another pet hospital in one of his areas. He didn’t want to stress her out by asking her questions.
He didn’t know how to act. His new family was still brand new and still growing. Victor wasn’t going to give that up, but he was new to these kinds of things. He didn’t know what Nichole was thinking but he intended to ask her the next day.
Nichole woke up the next morning and Victor was still awake. “Good morning,” Nichole said softly.
“Good morning,” he replied. There were bags under his eyes and he was yawning.
“Are you okay? Did you sleep?” Nichole asked.
“I couldn’t,” Victor admitted.
“Why not?” Nichole questioned.
“I just don’t feel like this area is safe for us,” Victor replied.
“Where do you want to move?” Nichole wondered.
“Brazil,” Victor answered. “But it’s just a suggestion,” Victor continued. “We can move to another city or state. It’s completely up to you.”
Nichole thought for a moment and replied, “I will need some time to think about it.” Victor understood.
“For right now, I want to plan the gender reveal party,” Nichole stated, changing the subject.
“How do you want to do it?” Victor asked.
“Well, Melissa already knows the gender. I kind of want her to put dye into pink and blue balloons and whichever color it is, pink or blue, will reveal the baby’s gender when we throw them, and they burst. Or we could get her to bake a cake and put blue or pink in the middle and when we cut it open, it’ll show us!”
Victor sat for a moment then spoke. “What if we used Tashka and Zap as the answer? Tashka is a girl and Zap is a boy, of course. So, maybe we could put them in a room and whoever gets sent out of the room, will reveal the gender! We can also do the cake and the balloons as extra celebration.”
Nichole’s face lit up and she hugged Victor. She screamed, “That’s perfect! I’ll call and tell Melissa, right now!” She picked up the phone and dialed Melissa’s number. “Oh my gosh! Melissa, guess what Victor just said we should do for the reveal party?” she screamed. Nichole walked into the bedroom and Victor couldn’t hear the rest of the conversation, but he knew Nichole’s heart was fluttering. Nichole came back out with a large smile on her face. She walked up to Victor and gave him a kiss. “You are without a doubt, the best guy I will ever meet, know, and love.” Victor smiled in return. “I will do anything to keep you happy.” The two kissed and proceeded to plan the party.
The day of the party came, and they decorated the house in all baby blue and light pink. They took a ballot of what everyone wanted the baby to be. The house was full of Nichole’s coworkers and a few of Victor’s closest friends from around the world. They played games and watched Nichole open gifts for the baby. Finally, the time came to find out the gender of their child. Melissa knocked on the door to get everyone’s attention. Then, she opened the door and both Zap and Tashka ran out. Everyone was confused. “Sorry everybody. We had a technical difficulty!” Melissa screamed. She whistled for the animals to return to their spots.
After about five minutes, she opened the door again. This time, Zap walked out, then Tashka walked out. “Why are they both coming out?” one of Nichole’s coworkers asked.
“That’s a great question. It just so happens, there are two babies! These two are going to have a girl and a boy!” Melissa screamed.
Nichole was wide-eyed and speechless. “What?” Nichole asked.
“Yeah, isn’t it great,” Melissa answered. “The doctor said you wanted it all to be a surprise and here we are!” Nichole and Victor’s eyes began to flood. People in the crowd tried to comfort them but they still sobbed. Nichole chuckled in between her cries.
“This is the greatest day of my life,” Victor announced. “I have twins that are coming, a beautiful soul mate, and two great pets. What more could a man ask for?” Victor asked the crowd. Everyone was quiet, and Victor gave a toast. Everyone, except Nichole, had wine.
“I’ve always been the type of guy that knew what he wanted and went for it, but I must admit, I couldn’t go for Nichole at first. In my heart she was way out of my league. She was the girl I dreamed about since I was in middle school. When I first met Nichole in person, my heart began to skip beats. I was speechless, and her beauty was radiant. I just can’t believe the woman of my dreams is giving birth to my children.”
Nichole stood next to him with a smile on her face. Victor continued his speech. “The only thing is, this isn’t right. I can’t be Nichole’s boyfriend.” Everyone gasped, and Nichole stepped away from him.
“Hear me out,” Victor pleaded. “I can’t be your boyfriend and I’m not sorry for it. I will leave you with a very important reminder of me, though.” Victor reached into his pocket and dropped something on the ground.
He kneeled down to pick it up, lifted the object into Nichole’s vision, opened up a small jewelry box and proceeded to ask the words, “Will you marry me?” Nichole’s tears created a river down her face.
“I don’t know what to say, Victor, besides yes!” Nichole screamed. Everyone in the room cheered for the two.
“I want to get married before my kids are born. I want them to know how much Daddy loves Mommy,” Victor said, smiling at Nichole.
Melissa jumped for joy. “Now I get to plan a wedding!”
Everyone at the party congratulated the two. Nichole opened all of the gifts and after the party was over, they announced they would have a baby shower. Nichole and Victor repeated, “Thanks for coming,” as their friends cleared out the party.
“You look so amazing, Nichole. Can you believe it’s been four months that we’ve been together? I’m the luckiest man on Earth,” Victor told Nichole.
Nichole blushed and said she was happy to hear that. “Can you massage my ankles? They’re swollen,” Nichole asked.
Victor smiled. “I’ll accept any chance I get to touch you.”
The two headed to the bedroom and Nichole cried. “We go to court in two days,” she said as she tried to stop crying.
“I know. Everything will be okay after we get the restraining order. He’s probably going to jail anyway. I called in a lawyer. He doesn’t lose. Plus, we just found out you’re having twins. The judge won’t leave him around kids,” Victor assured her.
Nichole sighed and then laughed. “These mood swings are killing me.”
Victor chuckled. “Everything will be fine in five months.”
“Yeah. I’m so excited! We’re going to bring two beautiful babies into the world. They’re going to have the right guidance to success,” Nichole assured.
“I know. This is the greatest thing ever. I truly feel like the luckiest man in the world. I love you,” said Victor.
“I love you too, baby. We’re going to be really good parents but what should we name them?” Nichole asked.
Victor smiled and said, “Nictor and Vichole.”
Nichole laughed and tapped his arm in a playful manner. “I’m serious!”
Victor laughed. “Okay. Okay. How about Nicolette and Miguel?”
Nichole smiled. “I love those names!”
They talked about babies the entire night until Nichole fell asleep. That night Nichole had a nightmare. She was walking into the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee. She was back to her original size, so she guessed she was never pregnant in her dream. All of a sudden, the lights flickered. She figured there was a storm coming through that messed with the lights and continued to make her coffee.
Derrick walked into the kitchen with a knife. When Nichole saw him, she screamed. He was covered in blood. “Get away from me! Victor, Tashka, help!” Nichole yelled. Derrick dropped the knife and rushed over to Nichole.
“It’s okay, darling, I took care of those problems. I took care of the little pests too,” Derrick said as he pointed over to the playpen in the living room. Nichole was confused. The playpen wasn’t there before but then she figured it out. She had the babies and Derrick took her whole family away from her.
She backed away from Derrick as he stepped towards her. “Don’t be scared. I only want to love you,” Derrick said as he came closer to her with his arms open.
Nichole had tears streaming down her eyes. “You’re a sick monster!” she screamed. “I will never love you!” Derrick frowned and ran at Nichole. She ran outside but was ambushed by another Derrick. “Love me!” the second Derrick screamed. The first Derrick ran outside and announced, “She called us sick and said she would never love us!”
Tears began to stream down the second Derrick’s eyes. He screamed like a tornado warning, and Nichole pushed away from the second Derrick. She was freed but when she looked around, she saw an army of Derricks forming a circle around her. “Love me!” the army of Derricks continued to repeat in unison. Nichole had nowhere to go. She ran at one of the Derricks and attempted to hit him, but he grabbed her arm and the Derricks began to close in around her. Before she woke up, everything was black and all she could hear was Derrick’s voice.