New Beginnings
It started with a missed period and a small, unopened box of pregnancy tests tucked away in the back of the bathroom drawer, forgotten until that morning when doubt turned into suspicion.
Ava stood alone in the opulent marble expanse of their master bathroom, the kind of space that screamed luxury with its heated floors, dual rain showers, and gilded fixtures. Sunlight filtered through the frosted windows, casting a soft glow over the three white plastic sticks lined up neatly on the black granite counter like tiny, fateful soldiers.
All three displayed the same unmistakable result: two bright red lines.
Pregnant.
The word echoed in her mind, heavy and surreal, too vast for the hushed serenity of the early morning light pouring in from the New York skyline beyond.
She
