Chapter 20 - Brielle
I decided to keep the baby. I’d thought about it for a while, going back and forth for more than a week, talking to Tara on the phone, going through all pros and cons. Then one day, I just woke up and decided to go with my gut. And my gut said to keep it.
After making the decision, I seemed to have come alive. Energy sprouted from somewhere within me, and I no longer spent my days wallowing or laying around on the couch. I went back to the diner and got my job back. Today is Friday, and I am going to start it on the following Monday.
When before I could barely muster up the strength to drive to the grocery store and make frozen dinners in the microwave, once I made the decision to keep the baby, I bought nothing but healthy ingredients and started to cook elaborate and nutritious dinners.
I also decided to tell Wyatt, but not until I go the confirmation from the doctor that I was, indeed, pregnant. That’s where I’m headed to now. My appointment is at one in the afternoon, and sitting here at the stop light, I can’t help but think about how different my life has become in the short weeks that all of this has happened.
The phone rings. I answer and put it on speaker.
“So how are you feeling?” Tara asks. We are now talking at least once a day, and often more than a couple of times a day.
“Good. Excited. I’m on my way to the doctor now.”
“I’m so happy for you, Brielle.”
“I’m going to tell Wyatt as soon as the doctor confirms it. You wouldn’t believe how much energy I suddenly have. I was moping around for weeks, and now I just can’t wait to get up in the morning and start the day.”
And then…the world fades to black.
Some time later.
“Brielle? Brielle?” Someone’s calling my name. But it sounds very far away like it’s at the other end of a long tunnel.
I give up. My eyelids are just too heavy. I can’t open them. Not yet.
Some more time later.
“Brielle? Brielle?” This time, the words are closer. They are no longer a tunnel away. My eyelids are a little less heavy. I manage to open them. Harsh light floods in blinding me.
“Brielle? She’s opening her eyes! Brielle?”
The voice sounds familiar. The sound of it makes my heart seize up.
“Brielle, please wake up. Please.”
I try harder. Someone’s rooting for me. Someone very important.
When I finally open my eyes, I see Wyatt. The concerned look on his face morphs into relief. His eyes are filled with hope.
“W-y-a-t-t?” I manage to say. There’s something in my mouth. But someone removes it. My mouth is dry. My lips are chapped. I’ve never been this thirsty.
“It’s okay. You’re going to be okay.”
Some more time later.
I wake up and sit up in a hospital bed. I don’t know how much time has passed or what day it is. All I know is that Wyatt is no longer wearing his casts, but is walking around on his own.
“I love you,” he says over and over again. “Do you know that? I love you. I should’ve told you a long time ago, but I was afraid. And I didn’t know how to say it.”
I stare at him. I don’t understand what he’s saying. Or why.
Tara’s also there. She looks guilty. Happy to see me, but guilty.
“What’s wrong?” I ask. And then I remember.
“You were in a car accident. A tractor trailer ran the red light. You’re lucky to be alive,” Tara says.
And then I remember. It’s not just me.
“And my baby…” I ask.
No one says anything. I don’t know if Wyatt knows. But by the look on his face, I suspect that he does.
“What happened to my baby?” I ask. No one wants to say it. It’s not good news.
“You lost the baby,” Tara finally says. “I’m so sorry.”
The world fades to black.