Drowning

Forty Four;

I dropped Zahara to the hospital; her nerves filling the car as we hit, what seemed like, every single red light in London. Red lights always seemed to hit when you least needed them; possessive no sense of urgency whatsoever at the worst of times.
She had been there for a little over an hour now, but I was yet to hear from her. The service in hospitals was terrible, so she wouldn't be able to contact me even if she wanted to. I was, admittedly, a little nervous for her. She hadn't seen her sister in a while and I wasn't certain how things were left between them. Besides, the whole birth thing seemed daunting in itself, and I knew Zahara well enough to know that witnessing birth was never a part of her plan.

I also hadn't heard from Luke yet, though with any luck, he getting a well-deserved apology from Lauren. So, with not much else to do, I decided to flick on the news. But, as I did so, my phone buzzed by my side, signalling a notification. Curious, I picked the phone up.

Gina:

Hey, Harry. It's G. Can we talk?

My heart began to race. Gina? Fucking Gina? If I was being entirely honest, I regularly forgot about her existence. It was as though, in my mind, we never once knew one another- which, admittedly, was somewhat cruel of me and showed the extent in which I used her, but still. My point is, I forgot that she existed, again.

What could she possibly want with me? Why would she want to talk? My mind began to reel; possibility after possibility clouding every single inch of my mind. Pregnant? No, she would've known by now, given that she'd be close to birthing it. STD? My last check was clear. Possible terminal illness? Surely not- but if so, why confide in me?

Instead of allowing my mind to freestyle different, alarming scenarios, I decided in responding to her perplexing message with a simple, casual, 'what's up?'.

The moments it took her to respond felt like forever. I found myself biting my nails and twiddling my thumbs as I anxiously awaited her explanation. My mind naturally created countless more ideas as to what she could want, but none of which felt right, or suitable.

Gina:

This isn't easy for me to say on text. I just don't know what to do. It's easier to text than to talk though. But I've just found out that the guy I've been seeing for the last couple of months is Zahara's sister's partner. Daniel? I'm sure you're aware of who he is. Anyway, I've just found out that he's married with a baby on the way. I don't have much luck with men so it seems, but it sounds as though Zahara's sister has even less luck. His phone kept buzzing with missed calls. He eventually broke down and told me after an argument. I just don't know who else to talk to, to get ahold of Zahara or her sister. I'm so sorry to spring this on you, I am aware of how incredibly awkward and weird this will feel for you. Just know I had no idea he was a married man. If I had known, I never would've done all of this. Again, really sorry to spring this on you. I just feel like I should talk to his wife. Hope you're recovering well & that this doesn't add too much stress. X

If my heart was racing before, it had sped up considerably by now. My palms were sweating as I reread the message, over and over again. I sat still for moments, trying to piece together what the fuck I had just read, in spite of Gina being detailed and thorough in her explanation.

It wasn't that this was beyond expectations of Daniel. It wasn't that this came as a huge shock- but also, it did. It was Gina. And Salma was in hospital giving birth to Daniel's child. Bewilderment consumed me as the question of 'how the fuck can you do that to your pregnant wife and unborn child?' ran over and over again in my mind until my already-racing heart was pumping 10 beats extra in order to accommodate all of the rage I felt within me.