Where We Left Off (A Hunter Hayes Fanfiction, Book 2 of the HunTia Trilogy)

Chapter Eighteen

TIA'S POV:

I wake up lying in Hunter's arms, feeling weak from the coughing fit I had gone through in the middle of the night. I think the fever's gone though, Hunter feels like he's the same temperature as me. Unless he got the fever as well, I'm better. Maybe it was one of those 24 hour viruses.
I look at him now. Mouth slightly agape, he's snoring lightly, while his arm is draped across my waist, not far from my bullet wound. His other arm is behind my head, supporting it better than any pillow ever could. The shadows under his eyes are becoming more pronounced, and I feel horrible for keeping him up every night. He's already stressed enough, what with the new album, the upcoming tour, everything's happening all at once. He sighs in his sleep, before stirring, and opening his eyes.
"Morning, Tee," he says, with a smile on his face. Something isn't right though, in his eyes. Like he knows something I don't. Like he's keeping something from me.
I wonder who that lady friend was that he went to see last night.
Now, don't get me wrong. I know for a fact that he'd never do anything like that to me. But I'm not sure if he was just saying that out of anger, or he was actually being serious.
"Are you okay?" he asks, and I realise I didn't answer him.
"Fine, just fine."
He feels my forehead. "Good news, I think your fever's gone."
"That's good," I sigh, and his grip on my waist tightens. He plays with my hair, and I just lie there, doing nothing. I check his mobile for the time, and I smile at the lock screen photo. It was taken while we were in Paris, and we were trying to take a selfie, until he turned and kissed my cheek at the last minute. I'm laughing, and his eyes are closed, his lips pressed to my cheek, with the silhouette of the Eiffel Tower in the background against a sunset. It was a beautiful photo.
"Hunt, it's about eight am. I need to go to Peyton's place today."
He stops playing with my hair, and says "No way."
"I need to, though," I protest. "Pey needs me."
"She can survive without you for a day, right?"
"Why can't I go?" I ask, slightly angry that he's trying to control me like this. Deep breaths, Tia. Don't blow up at him like you did yesterday, warns a voice in my head.
"Because if the virus hasn't left your body yet, Peyton might get sick, and that's the last thing she needs right now," he says, sounding very reasonable.
"Oh."
"Exactly. I'll tell her you're sick. Do you want to get changed?"
"Yeah. Okay." I couldn't argue with that. If Peyton got sick because of me, I would never forgive myself.
"Okay, I'll call her now, okay? Maybe Natasha isn't busy today, and she could go there instead?"
"Mmm..."
He leaves the room, letting me get changed. I dress into my faded red plaid shirt and a pair of trackies, and wander into the kitchen. Hunter comes in after me. He probably finished talking to Peyton and Natasha.
"Breakfast?"
"I dunno, didn't think about it," I say truthfully.
"How does eggs and bacon sound?" he asks, clapping his hands together. I nod, smiling. He really is the best husband a girl could ask for.
"Sure," I say, a grin on my face. I give him a quick kiss, and I let him make everything.
He sets a plate in front of me, a steaming hot plate of scrambled eggs and two rashers of bacon. I suddenly feel sick, the overpowering stench of the eggs making me want to throw up.
"Tia?" Hunter asks, putting down his fork. I think I turned green, because he looks worried. "Are you-"
Before he can finish his sentence, I bolt to the bathroom and throw up into the toilet.

HUNTER'S POV:

I hold Tia's hair away from her face, while she throws up for the third time. Her pale skin looks too pale, to the point where it looks unhealthy, and my skin looks incredibly dark compared to hers.
"Ugh..." she groans, looking sick. "What on earth-" She breaks off, throwing up again.
"That's it, Tee. Let it out," I murmur, patting her on the back with my other hand. She coughs violently, and retches, before turning towards the toilet again.
"I'm so sorry you have to see this, Hunt," she gasps, looking disgusted by both the puke and at herself.
"You couldn't do anything. I'm glad I was here to help."
"I feel horrible," she mutters, and turns towards the toilet, throwing up again.
"We were going to go to the studio today," I say. "I guess you're too sick to go?"
"Wait, what? What's the date today?"
"The twenty-third."
"Of July?"
"Yeah, it's your birthday tomorrow."
Her eyes widen. "Wait a minute," she says, standing up shakily. My eyes immediately move to her navel. I can't help it. What if my unborn child is waiting there?
"What's wrong?" I ask Tia, tearing my gaze away from her stomach to look at her eyes.
"Oh my god. No. No, this can't be happening to me," she mutters. "Não, isso não pode estar acontecendo. Eu devo estar ficando louca. Não posso ser-"
"Tee, what happened?" I ask. I can't understand what she's saying, she's speaking in rapid-fire Portuguese.
"My period's late," she mutters, more to herself than to me.
It was probably just me, but I heard a choir of angels when she said that.
The last piece of proof.
Now all I needed to do was to get the result officially.
"Your period?" I ask, trying not to panic her.
She nods, looking blank.
"Love?"
She looks at me.
"Yesterday, when I left, I went to see Natasha. I knew something was wrong. She gave me a few... ideas. Before I came home, I bought you something. You won't like it though," I warn her. Tia's expression is unreadable.
"Of course..." she says softly. "A lady friend... it was just Nat."
I go to my car and bring out the plastic bag that I bought from the drugstore, despite all the weird looks I got for doing so. Even the cashier stared at me when I bought them.
She takes out the box, and looks terrified. "P-pregnancy tests?" she squeaks.
"Listen, okay? If they come up negative, we don't need to worry. If it comes up positive... we'll worry about it later," I say quickly, noticing the look on her face.
"Do I try them all?" she asks.
"I think we should, just to be on the safe side. I'm guessing you don't want me in here?"
She shakes her head, and I put my hands on her shoulders.
"Remember, Tee, whatever happens, we're in this together," I say gently, before closing the door.

TIA'S POV:

I stare at the closed door.
No. I can't do this.
What if they come up positive?
What do I do then?
I take out all the boxes and read the instructions. I do all of them, and I wait.
And wait.
And wait.
Gosh, why do they take so damn long?
I'm pacing the bathroom impatiently, scared out of my mind. I can't speak, I can't breathe.
What do I do if they come up positive? I'm scared of being a mother. I don't have the compassion, the empathy, the love. A mother needs to be able to love her children accordingly. But I don't know how. I was shown love once, when I was young, but the nine years of horror after that completely changed me and my ability to love family.
I'm so scared.
*A/N: I have no clue how a pregnancy test works. Don't tell me off if I get this wrong.*
The tests all beep at once, and I freeze, mid-step. I feel dizzy, and I walk to the bathroom sink where the tests have been lying.
The first test showed (+).
The second test showed (+).
The third? (+).
I stare at it, not fully comprehending how quickly my life has changed in a matter of minutes.
"Tia?" calls Hunter through the door. I don't even turn to look at his voice. I'm still staring at the results. "Tia, I heard the tests beep. Is everything alright?"
Staring at the bathroom mirror, I slowly bring my right hand to my stomach.
My stomach.
There was an unborn child lying there. Growing inside me. Depending on me.
"Tia, answer me. If you don't answer, I'll open the door," Hunter says.
I say nothing.
"Okay, Tee, I don't know what happened to you, I'm opening the door."
The last thing I can remember is falling onto the bathroom tiles.

HUNTER'S POV:

"Okay, Tee, I don't know what happened to you, I'm opening the door."
I hear a dull 'thud' come from the bathroom.
"Tia, answer me!" I yell. When I don't hear anything, I open the door.
She's lying on the floor, unconscious. Her head must have hit the floor, because she isn't moving. Her breathing is fast, shallow.
The pregnancy tests must have fallen to the ground with her, because they're lying next to her. I look at all three tests. Every single one of them are positive.
But she didn't want children.
Oh no.
I move her to the bed and sit by her side. If she doesn't want kids... she wouldn't want this one.
She stirs, groaning, and her hand immediately goes to her head.
"Ugh..." she groans. "My head hurts... so bad..."
"Careful, babe. You hit it pretty hard."
She looks up. "Hunt? But what...?" She suddenly has a look of dawning comprehension. "Oh." Her hand goes from her head to her stomach. "This is beyond crazy," she murmurs.
"You don't want kids," I say softly. She doesn't look at me.
"No," she says, looking ashamed. "I always told myself that I would never give a child a chance of going through what I had to go through."
"Explain that," I say.
"When I thought my parents were dead, I told myself I'd never bring a child into the world, in case I died. In case they got a home life like the one I did for nine years." She looks up, and her eyes are sparkling with tears.
I bite my lip. "I'll make an appointment with a specialist. We can have an abortion." My voice breaks on the last word.
"Hunt..."
"No. I want you to be happy."
"But-"
"It's fine," I reach for my phone, but Tia stands up and grabs my wrist.
"Love, please," she says, and the tears that had been threatening to spill over begin to fall.
"Tia, I want you to be happy. I don't mind," I try to say through my tears.
"Hunter, it's against our religion."
"But I love you."
"And I love you. Which is why we're keeping him."
"But I want you to be happy. Don't worry about me."
"I'll be happy if we keep him."
"Why is it suddenly a him?"
"I feel like it's a boy," she says. "Hunter, I never wanted kids, that's true. But I don't want to kill my unborn child."
I look at her, not understanding.
"He's been given a chance to live," she murmurs, putting her hand on her stomach, and I put my hand on top of hers. "I can't take that away from him."
"What if she's a girl?" I ask, smiling slightly.
"Then you win," she says, and I look into her eyes. The violet colour seems different somehow. It hasn't changed at all, but there's some kind of deep emotion in them.
I put my hands on her waist and lean my forehead against hers. "We're going to have a baby."
"He's going to be beautiful if he looks anything like you," Tia says with a small smile.
"She," I correct her.
"You're on." She wipes away my remaining tears with her hand, and hugs me.

*A/N: OMBSIHDBSKSGSJDIFHDKSJDJHG!!!!!!!!!!! I HAVE WANTED TO WRITE THOSE LAST FOUR CHAPTERS FOR SOOOOOOOOOO LONG!!!! OMSHDJDJDBDG!!!!!!!!!!
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