Page 6 of Shattered Hearts

My chest squeezes like it’s a lemon. The air becomes thinner and more humid. Freddie jumps onto the bed. He stares up at me curiously. He’s multi-coloured, with thick hair and round, green eyes. Cats have a sixth sense. It’s been proven in science that they can sense sickness in humans, especially those they live with. He’s always somehow known when something is bothering me. The day Mum and Dad left for their twelve-month holiday, he wouldn’t leave my side for an entire day, and I didn’t want him to.

His tiny, fluffy paw comes out, tapping my thigh gently to grab my attention. I stroke his velvety hair and realise that he’s not purring, which is highly unusual for him. Maybe he can sense something is different with me.

“You can’t tell my parents this,” I breathe into the speaker as Freddie gently rubs his face against my stomach.

Okay, well, my cat certainly knows. Thanks for the heads up, buddy.

Sadie’s car revs to life in the background. “I won’t, I promise. But did something happen? You don’t sound good.”

My head nods instinctively. “Yeah.”

“Okay. What is it, then?”

My foot taps anxiously against the wooden floor as I swallow a lump of sludge. I never used to be an anxious kid growing up. I was always so bright, bubbly, and confident, never caring what people thought of me. But over the past few years, the anxiety has crept its way into my mind, and I can’t seem to get rid of it. This situation definitely isn’t helping it, either.

Swallowing again, I press down the warm, nauseating feeling. “Do you remember when I came to see you a few months ago?”

“Yeah…” she drawls cautiously.

“And we went out to that club because it was your friend’s birthday, and we thought it would be fun to try it out. I told you I went home to my rental for the night…” My fingers fiddle with the edge of my denim shorts nervously.

“Yeah?”

I clear my throat. “I didn’t go home, Sadie.”

“What?” Her voice rises a few notes, and I wince at the sharpness. “Where did you go?”

My lashes clamp shut as I sniff again, knowing that if there’s anyone I can tell in this world, it’s Sadie. She’ll understand, and I doubt she’d judge me.

“Umm…” I hum gently, rubbing my forehead. “I slept with someone.”

The gasp that comes through the phone almost deafens me. “What!” Sadie shouts, and I cringe. “Who? Is this why you’re upset? Did he do something to you?”

My head nods as I get to my feet again, too agitated to sit still. Freddie’s frog eyes watch me as I pace from the door to the window, one arm wrapped around my stomach and the other pressing the phone against my ear.

“Please don’t say anything to my parents until I do. Please,” I squeeze out, my voice cracking into another sob.

I hear Sadie’s car turn off again, knowing that she’s home, likely from the dance studio. She takes her phone off the car’s Bluetooth. “I won’t. You know me, I wouldn’t tell a soul unless you asked me to, but please let me help you, Laynie.”

My throat works roughly before I mumble, “Scott.”

There’s a long beat of silence that makes my stomach swirl faster. “Scott…” Sadie repeats, like she’s mentally stringing the dots together, too slowly for my liking.

“I slept with Scott,” I let out with a sigh.

She gasps again, only this time it’s quieter before she squeals, “Slept, as in…”

“As in I am having his baby, Didi!” I shout into the phone.

She winces softly.

I rub my forehead again, heat rising up my spine uncomfortably. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to yell at you. It’s just… a lot. I don’t know what is happening to me.”

“It’s probably your hormones,” she murmurs, and my jaw clenches. “They’ll be going crazy right now. It usually happens in the first trimester, and you might feel sick too, and then—”

“I know, Sadie. I already looked it up.” I exhale, fanning my face to keep my sweating at bay, although I doubt it’s working.

“Have you told him yet?” she asks. My head shakes, but she knows me well enough to know my answer without words. “You have to tell him, Laylay.”