Lucy sighed as she looked around her bedroom and paced the entire length. It seemed like forever since she had last spent time there, and though the apartment was hers, it felt foreign to her. She had spent more time in Tom's house than in her own apartment since she moved to Ludus.
She had jumped at the opportunity to move to Ludus when she received her promotion because she wanted to get out of Heden for a change and live alone.
She had wanted to live independently as an adult without having to live under the same roof as her parents anymore, and now that she finally had the chance, she had moved right in with Tom.
Did she love Tom? Yes. Did she love being with him? Yes, she did. Did she keep her apartment because she thought things were going to go wrong between them? No. That wasn't true.
She kept her apartment because it was hers. She wasn't planning on moving in fully with Tom. They were in a relationship, and the whole idea of not getting married to him was so they could both have their space when they needed it and retain their individuality. So why did Tom make it seem like having her own apartment was a crime? Lucy mused as she walked over to her bed and sat on it.
She took out her phone and decided to compose a long text to Tom as Sonia had suggested, but paused when she remembered that he was probably in the middle of a meeting and her text would only distract him.
She decided to put a hold on telling him about it and just wait to tell him about it after dinner. If he chose to hear her out, that was fine. If he refused to give her listening ears, she would just give him his much needed space.
Having made up her mind, Lucy rose from the bed and headed for the refrigerator in the living room. Once she opened it, she sighed when she saw the packs of cranberry juice that were seated inside and the chocolates.
Tom had added those to the grocery list she had sent him (Chapter 231). This brought back something Sonia had mentioned earlier in her office about how much Tom had put into their relationship from the beginning until the present compared to hers.
Was she really not doing enough for him? So far, she had been doing all she knew best to do and had been there for him, with him, and beside him as best as she could. So what else were they talking about?
She turned from her refrigerator and went to sit on her couch. She looked at her door, remembering the first day Tom had shown up at her door as her neighbour and assisted her in setting up her apartment.
She sighed as she remembered every moment he had shown up at her door after that and everything else he had done for her, especially those little thoughtful gestures like reading about ulcers because of her and choosing to buy her the cranberry juice. Drinking juice with her instead of wine or coffee so she wouldn't feel like she was missing out by taking just cranberry. Taking her to work daily and always being present for her. Revealing his identity to the world and standing up for her when the scandal started. Refusing to fire her as she knew everyone else had wanted.
To the best of her knowledge, Tom had done his best to be as selfless as possible, and he had never deliberately said or done anything to hurt her feelings apart from the time he lied about his identity and took her to the spa to confront Anita without her knowledge.
She seemed to be the one that was mostly getting mad at him for things and annoying him, and each time he tried his best not to stay mad at her. So why did she make a big deal over what he said that morning? Why had she felt like Tom was attacking her? Was it really the control freak in her, as Sonia had said?
Her action that morning couldn't be the only thing that was annoying Tom, could it? Perhaps he was also worried about Anita's family.
She paused when she remembered the meeting. During the session, she had caught him staring at her on different occasions, and his gaze hadn't been hostile. It had been soft, sort of, like he was trying to figure out what she was thinking, so what had changed? She mused as she tried to recall what else she could have done.
She sat up when she remembered being in a hurry to leave and how Harry had stopped her. Was that why Tom was mad? If she remembered correctly, he had said something about introducing her to his grandfather so she could return to her office, as she had been in a hurry to do. Was that the reason he was mad? She mused with a sigh.
She had been about to leave without saying hello to his grandfather when everyone else had gone up to him to pay obeisance. Apart from the fact that he was Tom's grandfather, he was a major shareholder, and she was supposed to say hello.
She had been unable to draw the line between her personal and professional relationship with Tom. The line was blurring for her, and she was being blinded by emotions. She was acting unreasonably.
Sonia was right. Staying away right now wasn't the best thing. If Tom was taking a step away from her, she was supposed to be drawing closer, not moving away, as that would only widen the chasm between them.
She had overreacted this morning, accused Tom of calling her names without really seeing it from his perspective, and she had acted inappropriately in public. She was at fault, and she owed him a real apology, Lucy thought as she rose and headed for the door.
If Tom said she was a control freak, and Sonia agreed with him, then she needed to work on herself. If they both believed her traumatic experience was responsible for it, then she needed to deal with it. She could do better. She would do better.
With that thought in mind, she ordered a ride and headed for Tom's apartment to get Sonia's stuff from Mia.
Once she rang the doorbell, the door opened a moment later, and Mia flashed her a bright, welcoming smile, "Finally, I get to meet Sonia's best friend! I've heard so much about you. I'm Mia. Bryan's assistant," Mia said as she extended a hand to Lucy, and Lucy found herself smiling as she shook hands with Mia.
It was easy to see why Mia and Sonia got along just fine. Mia had a bubbly personality, much like Sonia. They were able to carry everyone along and talk to everyone like they had been best friends forever.
"I'm Lucy. It's nice to meet you," Lucy said, shaking off a feeling of nostalgia and sadness.
She felt sad and nostalgic standing in front of what she knew as Tom's apartment but talking to someone else. Tom's apartment held certain memories for her.
Mia turned when Jeff joined them at the door, "You must know Jeff. Bryan's manager," Mia introduced, and Lucy nodded as she shook hands with Jeff.
"It's nice to meet you," Lucy said with a polite smile, which Jeff returned.
"Please come in," Jeff offered, wondering why she was standing outside.
"I'm in a hurry. I stopped by to pick up Sonia's stuff," Lucy said, and Mia gave her a nod.
"She told me. Give me a moment, and I will get it," Mia said as she returned inside.
She came out a moment later with an envelope containing one of Sonia's novels and the kit, "Tell her I enjoyed the storyline," Mia said with a wink which Lucy didn't exactly understand.
"Thanks. See you around!" Lucy said with a wave.
She turned around in time to see her cab arrive, and she got in. After she had given the cab man the directions, she opened the envelope to see the novel Mia had read and then she noticed that something else was in the envelope.
Once she took it out, she raised a brow. A pregnancy test kit? Was that the reason Mia had winked at her? Was Sonia suspecting that she was pregnant? Lucy smiled at the thought. She knew how much Sonia loved and craved a family of her own with kids. She did not doubt that Sonia would be ecstatic if it turned out she was pregnant. She was about to become an aunt, Lucy thought with a happy sigh. This was at least one bright spot in her day.
Once Lucy arrived at Tom's house, she met his parents and siblings in the living room, "Where is Tom?" Jade asked curiously.
"He had to attend a meeting, so I came back alone," Lucy said, and Bryan and Jade exchanged a look while Desmond looked at her without saying a word. Only Evelyn seemed not to guess what was going on.
"Alright. You should freshen up. We will be leaving to have dinner with Desmond's dad soon," Evelyn said, and Lucy gave her a nod before turning to Bryan.
"Where is Sonia?" she asked curiously.
"She is resting in the bedroom," Bryan said, and Lucy gave him a nod before walking away.
She dialled Sonia's line as she took the stairs, "I'm here now," she told Sonia immediately after Sonia received the call.
"Meet me in Bryan's bedroom," Sonia said just as Lucy stopped right by the door and tapped on the door.
"I'm right there."
Sonia hung up the call and opened the door immediately to see Lucy's beaming face, "Are we having a baby?" Lucy asked excitedly, and Sonia pulled Lucy in and shut the door behind her.
"What is wrong?" Lucy asked when she noticed the worry in Sonia's eyes.
"I don't want to be pregnant," Sonia said simply, and Lucy frowned.
"Why not? You have always looked forward to having a baby," Lucy said, and Sonia shook her head.
"I can't be pregnant yet. Bryan wouldn't like that. We are just recovering from our last misunderstanding. This might cause another problem for us," Sonia said, and Lucy sighed.
"So Bryan doesn't know about this?" Lucy asked.
"It has to remain between us," Sonia said, and Lucy gave her a nod.
"Hm. Alright. How about you get the test done? Let's know for sure. It might just turn out to be a false alarm, right?" Lucy said as she handed the envelope to Sonia.
"Get it done. I will wait here," Lucy encouraged, and Sonia nodded as she took the test kit out of the envelope, and once she had brought it out, she left the pack on the bed and locked the door.
Lucy stood by the door of the bathroom as Sonia carried out the test. Lucy tried to bring up different subjects to calm Sonia as they waited for the result, and when Sonia raised her head to meet Lucy's gaze, Lucy didn't need to see the strip to know the test was positive.
"Oh, Sony!" Lucy cried as she went in to embrace Sonia, and Sonia's body shook as she wept.
"It's positive, Lu. I'm pregnant!" Sonia cried.
Every time she had imagined the day she would find out she was pregnant, she had always imagined herself happy and excited, not this sad.
She had been careful all these years not to get pregnant because she didn't really consider the past men in her life as people she would want to share her baby with, and she had sort of let herself be carried away by her love for Bryan and had not been careful enough to take the right precautionary steps not to get pregnant.
Or perhaps she had not done so because she had thought Bryan would be okay with having babies with her until he mentioned he wasn't ready for them to be parents yet.
"You should tell Bryan about it. I'm sure he would have a change of mind," Lucy suggested.
"What if he doesn't? I don't want to put him in that situation. I don't want to be in that situation either," Sonia cried, and they both turned to the door when they heard the knob turn, and Bryan knocked.
"Take it. Help me pack it up and keep it. I will get it and dispose of it later," Sonia said in alarm as she quickly rinsed the strip and forced it into Lucy's hand.
"I'm coming, babe," Sonia called as she quickly rinsed her face while Lucy hurriedly dipped the positive strip into the empty pack and hid it in her handbag before opening the door to let Bryan in.
pǎпdǎ Й?νê1,сòМ Lucy flashed a surprised Bryan an apologetic smile, "Sorry we locked you out of your bedroom. Sony, let's talk later," Lucy called out to Sonia as she hurried out of the room.
Lucy sighed as she walked into Tom's bedroom, thinking about Sonia. There was nothing good about the day. She wished she could sleep it off or wake up to find out it was all a dream.
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