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My hesitance made my father drop his fork in apprehension.
“Aryana?” My father called my name cautiously.
Seeing my discomfort, Alexander thankfully took over.
“Yes. There’s something we need to tell you.” He said.
I sighed in relief, glad Alexander would tell my father the news instead. Hopefully, he would gently break the news to my father, but my hopes were dashed when Alexander opened his mouth.
“Aryana is pregnant.”
“What?”
Chapter 22
Alexander
Thequietnessthatdescendedupon the room after the announcement was deafeningly loud. Walter’s eyes were blown wide in shock as he gaped at me. It was the first emotion he had shown me aside from hostility and distrust. It was interesting. I knew I should have felt sorry for Aryana, who was also in a stupor from how blatant my delivery was, but I didn’t see the point in delaying matters. The quicker everything was out, the faster we could get over it.
Slowly, Walter’s eyes moved to stare at his daughter. I continued eating my lasagna while waiting to see what he would say. I didn’t know what to think of Walter. Our first meeting hadn’t left a good impression of him on me, even though I knew it was logical that he would foremost care about his daughter. He first looked at me with hostility which later transformed into apathy and mild politeness. I knew it was petty, but I couldn’t help but feel satisfied at how shocked he felt—a little payback for his uncalled attitude toward me.
“Aryana? You’re…pregnant?” I heard Walter ask Aryana.
I looked up to see Aryana’s eyes on me, crying for help, but I gave her a pointed look instead. She needed to get it all out instead of hesitating. Hesitance wouldn’t get her anywhere.
She took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah, Dad. I’m pregnant.” She confessed with a small smile.
I leaned over and grabbed her hand in support, uplifting the corners of my mouth to give her an encouraging smile.
“Oh…wow….’ Walter leaned back into his chair. Aryana’s hand gripped mine in nervousness as we waited to hear what he would say. “That was not what I had expected when you told me you had something to tell me.”
Aryana gave an awkward smile, not knowing what to say. I steadily looked at Walter. I didn’t care about Walter’s thoughts, but his opinion mattered greatly to Aryana, and because of that, I hoped the relationship between Aryana and her dad wouldn’t be strained.
Walter gazed at the two of us and took in Aryana’s tensed posture, my steady breathing, and finally, at our clasped hands. He sighed.
“Why are you so scared, Aryana? Did you think I was going to shout at you? Berate you or something?”
Aryana nodded.
Walter sighed and stood up from his seat, pulling Aryana to her feet and hugging her tightly. “Why are you crying, Ary?”
My head whipped up at his words. When my eyes landed on Aryana’s body, I saw her frame shake with quiet sobs. It made my heart throb painfully, but I knew she needed this closure. I stood up and put a hand on her back.
“I’ll leave the two of you to it.”
Walter nodded, and I bent down to kiss Aryana’s head. “Everything will be all right,il mio tesoro.”
I didn’t pay attention to Walter’s contemplative gaze at my actions and exited the dining area.
As much as I would have liked to stay and hear whatever Walter would say, I wouldn’t intrude on their much-needed privacy. I walked to the living room where Tony was sitting. The TV was on, and the container of lasagna I had given him was empty.
“Glad to see that you enjoyed the food.” I plopped on the couch beside him, gesturing to the empty container.
“Glad to see that you haven’t lost your touch,” Tony replied, referring to my cooking. “Why are you out here?”
“He knows Aryana is pregnant. I decided to give them some privacy.” I answered.
I noticed Tony staring at me with a knowing smirk.
