Chapter 5- Return Of The Past
931 Words
Rain streaked down Lily’s apartment window in thin rivulets, catching the light from the streetlamps like liquid fire. She stared at the box with the tiny pink sock sitting on her kitchen table. The room felt colder than it should, like the shadows had grown teeth.
She didn’t know how long she stood there—minutes, hours. Her hand hovered over her phone, thumb trembling over Aiden’s number.
No.
Calling Aiden meant opening herself to his world again. Control. Secrets. Gentle protection that felt more like a leash.
But she couldn’t ignore it. Someone knew she was pregnant. Someone wanted her to feel watched, afraid.
A soft knock echoed at the door.
Lily’s body jolted. She stared, heart hammering.
Another knock. Firmer this time.
She tiptoed to the door, pressed her eyes into the peephole.
Ryan.
Hair slicked from the rain. Leather jacket soaked. Eyes wild.
She hesitated, but opened the door slowly.
“Lily,” he said. His voice cracked with something raw.
She didn’t know what she expected—but it wasn’t the sight of Ryan Hastings on her porch, looking like a man haunted.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
He exhaled, stepping back slightly to show he wasn’t a threat. “I got a message,” he said. Someone tipped me off. Said you were in trouble. That someone knew about the baby.”
Her breath caught. “What message? Who sent it?”
He shook his head. “Anonymous number. I don’t know, but—Lily, I had to come.”
She crossed her arms tightly over her chest. “You shouldn’t have. You’re the last person I need in my life right now.”
“I get that,” he said, stepping forward, his voice low. “But I’m not here to cause more trouble." I came to protect you.
She laughed bitterly. “Protect me? You’re still running with dangerous people, Ryan. Last time you saw me, you threatened Aiden at gunpoint.”
Regret flared in his eyes. “I lost control. I was scared. I thought… I thought I was losing my chance to be a father.”
Silence sat heavy between them.
Then Lily stepped aside.
“Five minutes. That’s all.”
They sat across from each other at the small kitchen table. The box still sat between them, like a silent chaperone.
Ryan picked it up gently. “Where did this come from?”
“I found it at my door an hour ago.”
“No note?”
She shook her head.
His brows furrowed. “This isn’t random, Lil. Someone’s playing with your head. And if they know about the baby…”
She rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know who to trust anymore. Ethan’s acting strange. Aiden wants me to marry him and disappear to some other country. And now you show up like a ghost from the past.”
“I’m not a ghost,” he said, his voice rough. “I’ve been fighting to change, Lil. I left everything—the gambling, the deals, the people. I’ve got a legit job now, outside the city. Warehouse manager in Jersey. I’ve been clean for five months.”
She looked at him. Really looked.
The recklessness was still there—etched in the sharp lines of his jaw, the tension in his fists. But there was something else too.
Desperation. Sincerity.
Hope.
“I want to be in our child’s life,” he said softly. Not as a threat. As a father.”
Lily’s heart twisted.
This was the part they never warned you about. The in-between. The part where every man who hurt you suddenly wanted redemption. Where every decision carries weight beyond your own heart.
She stood, pacing.
“I don’t know what you want from me," Ryan said. I’m trying to stay afloat. I’m trying to be okay with the baby. And now I’m being stalked, threatened, manipulated. I can’t afford another mistake.”
He stood too, gently reaching for her hand.
“I don’t want to make another mistake. Let me help. Just for a while. You don’t have to forgive me or love me. But don’t do this alone.”
Her throat tightened.
She didn’t say yes.
She didn’t say no either.
Ryan crashed on her couch that night. Lily curled up in bed, too wired to sleep.
At 2:17 a.m., she crept into the living room, barefoot and tentative.
He was awake. Of course, he was.
“Are you okay?” he whispered.
She hesitated, then nodded. “Can’t sleep.”
Ryan sat up. “Could I make cocoa? Like I used to for my kids' sister. Worked every time.”
Lily’s lips quirked. “Cocoa at two a.m.? What are we, twelve?”
“Midnight cocoa’s elite behavior, babe,” he said, already moving to the kitchen.
She followed, sitting in the tiny dining nook.
As he warmed milk and stirred in powder, he said, “You ever wonder how we got here? One night. One stupid, reckless night.”
Lily shrugged. “That night changed everything. Maybe for the worse. Maybe not.”
He looked at her, seriously now.
“Lily… I think I loved you that night. And I haven’t stopped.”
Her breath hitched.
The air shifted.
The kettle whistled, sharp and loud.
She stood, suddenly overwhelmed. “I—I should sleep.”
He nodded, gaze heavy. “Right. Of course.”
But as she turned away, she felt it. The pull. The ache.
And she knew things were about to get more complicated.
- Writer
