His Destined

Chapter III

Esme started her shift at the bar as usual. She heard glasses clinking and people chatting around her. She was used to the steady flow of customers. Some were grumpy, but many were friendly regulars who called her by name. The job wasn't fancy, but it paid the bills. That was enough for her right now.

She poured drinks smoothly, cleaned tables, and smiled at customers, even when her mind tried to drift back to that night. Since she had a meeting with Alexander, she didn't set eyes on him.

Esme felt a twist in her stomach as she cleaned a table by the window. The smell of alcohol usually didn’t bother her, but today it made her feel sick. She stopped for a moment and held onto the table. The dizziness made the room feel small, and her vision started to blur.

“Esme, are you okay?” A voice pulled her out of her thoughts. It was Carla, one of the coworkers. She looked worried.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Esme said with a forced smile, but her stomach hurt. She wiped her forehead and pushed a sweaty strand of hair aside.

Carla frowned. “You don’t look fine. You’re as pale as a ghost. Maybe you should sit down for a bit?”

Esme shook her head. She didn’t want to seem weak. She couldn’t lose a shift when every penny mattered. "I'm just a little tired, that’s all."

Carla raised an eyebrow. “I know you don’t like asking for help, but I’m serious. You look like you might faint. You should get checked out.”

Esme felt sick, and she didn't want to show it. Just then, her manager walked in. He looked worried. "What's going on, Esme?" he asked.

"I’m fine," she replied, but she didn't believe herself. The nausea was still there, and her head was spinning.

He frowned more. "No, you’re not. You’re going to the hospital."

Esme wanted to argue, but she couldn't speak. Another wave of dizziness hit her, and she grabbed the counter to stay upright.

He turned to Carla. "Take her. Now. I'll get someone else to finish her shift."

Without hesitation, Carla took Esme's arm and helped her out of the bar.

*******

The hospital was bright and smelled like antiseptic. Esme didn’t like being there. It made her feel weak and uncomfortable. She followed Carla through the halls, even though she wanted to complain. The nausea was still there, and her stomach hurt more.

They reached the emergency room reception. Carla gave them Esme’s information. Esme was too tired to say much. She just wanted this to end, whatever it was.

After a few minutes, a nurse called her name. Esme walked with the nurse down a hallway to a small exam room. The nurse was nice and helped her to a chair. Esme sank with a sigh of relief.

“Are you allergic to anything?” the nurse asked while getting ready. Esme shook her head. “No.”

The nurse checked her blood pressure and temperature, writing down notes. Esme sat still, feeling her stomach grow emptier. The wait seemed to last forever, and the discomfort only got worse.

Finally, a doctor came in. He was a middle-aged man with a friendly smile. “Ms. Wells, how are you feeling?” he asked.

Esme didn’t want to sound dramatic, but she felt awful. “I’ve been feeling nauseous for a while, and I’m really tired,” she replied.

The doctor nodded and said, “We’ll run some tests to check for anything serious. I’ll also do a pregnancy test just in case.”

Esme blinked, her mind slow to process the words. “Pregnancy test?” she repeated, her voice soft with disbelief.

The doctor smiled reassuringly. “It’s a standard test, especially when a patient is experiencing these symptoms. It’s nothing to worry about, just a precaution.”

Esme felt a sudden jolt when she heard the word "pregnancy." She quickly pushed the thought away. She had taken precautions, right? After her night with Alexander, she told herself it was just a mistake. There was no way this could lead to something as big as a pregnancy.

"I need a urine sample," he said calmly. He handed her a tube. His calmness made her even more uneasy. "It's just for some routine checks."

Esme looked at the tube. Then she looked back at him. "Routine checks?"

The doctor nodded. "You have some symptoms like nausea and dizziness. We want to rule out a few things. There's nothing to worry about right now. It's just a procedure."

Her fingers wrapped around the tube, but it felt strange in her hand.

She nodded slightly. She couldn't speak because of the lump in her throat. Her legs felt like they were moving on their own. She slid off the table and followed him to the bathroom down the hall.

Each step echoed in the quiet. Each breath felt harder to take.

Deep down in her stomach, she felt a bad feeling. She already knew something was wrong.

*****

As the doctor left to get the test, she felt a tightening in her chest. Panic started to rise inside her.

Time moved slowly. Each minute felt like an hour. The cold room made her shiver. Her mind kept drifting back to that night with Alexander.

A knock on the door made her jump. The doctor came back, holding a piece of paper.

"I have the results," he said. He placed the paper on the counter and looked at Esme with a kind expression. "Congratulations, Ms. Wells. You’re pregnant."

Esme felt like the ground had shifted beneath her. Her body went numb. The room seemed to tilt, and she grabbed the chair to steady herself.

She struggled to breathe. The words echoed in her mind, but they didn’t make sense. She tried to think logically, but nothing clicked. She was pregnant. She was going to have a baby.

Esme looked up at the doctor, her voice barely a whisper. "How… how far along am I?"

The doctor checked the results again. "It looks like you’re about two weeks pregnant."

It felt like her entire world had changed. Two weeks. She had no idea.

A wave of emotions hit her all at once. Panic, confusion, and fear rushed in, but beneath it all was a small spark of something unexpected. A baby. She was going to have a baby.