Faded

Chapter 9

"Baby?" I murmured, willing him to meet my gaze. My eyes widened when I noticed he's sweating bullets, his eyes getting red as if he's holding back his tears. Brandon snapped out of his trance, suddenly murmuring. "I'm fine. I just really have to go." He averts his gaze squeezing my hip signaling me to stand. "I have to take care of something at work."

Gawking after him he hurriedly pecks at my lips before disappearing into the backdoor. I stood there, frozen,worried, hearing his motorcycle come to life and fade in the distance.

He barely even touched his food. It's like he just tossed the contents around the plate. I swallowed hard, feeling something gravely wrong not knowing how to help if he's going to keep acting like this.

Cassie had never felt more alone in her life. Since coming back from Charles, the sins she had committed there had followed her home haunting her in her dreams. She'd only seen Skyler from afar but she would see her face in her nightmares, tears streaming down her face asking her, "How could you do this to us?" In other dreams, it was Brandon telling her, "I love Skyler, not you. Not anymore." She's not sure what hurts more. Her heart in pieces now knowing she's still in love with him, knowing she did something so bad that could not only ruin Brandon's but someone else's life as well.

To make matters worse, she can't tell anyone about this. Well, she had one person, Maddie. She's her best friend, but Maddie couldn't even look at her after confessing what she did. The disappointment in her eyes was clear as day when she said, "I'm not sure if I can even really support you, Cassie. How could you do that? Brandon is a committed man. He was drunk when he came in. Less drunk than you. I remember that much when we were all drinking he could hardly walk straight. You should've pushed him away Cass. You even said you knew it was wrong, just, whats wrong with you"

Sobs rise in her. The last thing she wanted now was to be alone. Scared shitless as she holds the pregnancy test kits in her shaking hands. She had been feeling strange for weeks and she's already missed her period. Cassie prayed quietly, please don't let her be pregnant.

But there it was.

One kit with two lines, another one with the word Pregnant.

A gasp escapes her knees buckling. Fat tears stream down her face as she subconsciously wraps her hands protectively on her lower abdomen. She wasn't sure how long she was staring at herself in the mirror, disbelief and fear still flowing thick in veins. But after so much contemplation, she realizes Brandon has the right to know. Whether he wants to be a part of the baby's life or not is up to him but Cassie is sure she'd do anything to protect the life growing inside her. She sends him a message preparing to get checked at the nearest hospital. To her surprise though, her phone started ringing almost right away.

"What the hell do you want?" his gruff voice sounds through the speaker. She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat trying to push down the hurt rising in her at the tone of his voice. "Can you please meet me? I don't think we can talk about this over the-"

"Just spit it out." she hears him exhale sharply shaking her head. She lets out a gash, "Fine." she breathes in deeply fiddling with the strap of her purse standing in the middle of her living room. "I know you don't want to talk to me or even see me but, Brandon, I-I'm pregnant."

"I don't want to cause you anymore trouble. But you deserve to know." Cassie's voice fades into a whimper, wiping away her tears. She waited for him to say something, anything but there was only silence. And that was enough for her to know.

"Im sorry Brandon." she whispers, ending the call.