Chapter 8: owing her path
652 Words
Alice didn’t cry.
Not when she left the building.
Not when she got home.
Not even when the silence of her room pressed in on her a little too tightly.
Instead.
She sat.
Still.
Thinking.
It wasn’t the outcome she had hoped for.
But maybe.
It was the answer she needed.
“He’s not coming,” she whispered to herself.
Not today.
Not tomorrow.
Maybe not ever.
And somehow.
That truth hurt less than she expected.
Because now—
There were no more questions.
A soft knock sounded on her door.
“Alice?”
Bills.
“Come in,” she replied quietly.
The door creaked open, and he stepped inside, his usual easygoing expression replaced with something more serious.
“I heard you went out this morning,” he said, closing the door behind him. “Audrey told me where.”
Alice nodded faintly.
“I did.”
“And?”
A small pause.
Then—
“I didn’t see him.”
Bills exhaled slowly, running a hand over the back of his neck. “I figured.”
Alice glanced at him. “You don’t sound surprised.”
“I’m not,” he admitted. “Men like that… they don’t make things easy.”
There was no bitterness in his voice.
Just truth.
Alice couldn’t help how her fingers intertwined; she didn’t know whether she could face up or keep looking down.
“I thought if I just explained—”
“That’s not how men like him work,” Bill cut in gently. “It’s not about explanations. It’s about whether they choose to listen.”
Silence settled between them.
“And he didn’t,” Alice said quietly.
Bill’s silence didn’t mean to linger. He didn’t want to.
Breaking the silence, he took a few steps closer, his voice very soft.
“So… what are you going to do?”
The question seemed to have hit the hardest rock.
Heavy.
Important.
Alice inhaled slowly.
Then exhaled.
“I’m keeping the baby.”
No hesitation this time, firm in her words.
No uncertainty.
Just a decision, Alice has to make.
Bills tried connecting the words to her face, just to be sure if she truly meant it.
“You’re sure?”
Alice nodded, fast.
“Yes.”
“It’s not going to be easy,” he said carefully.
“I know.”
“You’ll have to—”
“I know,” she repeated, a little firmer this time.
He stopped.
Then nodded slowly.
“Okay,” he said. “Then we figure it out.”
Alice blinked slightly. “We?”
Bills gave a small shrug. “You didn’t think I was going anywhere, did you?”
Something in her chest softened, like a weight off her shoulder
Just a little.
“You don’t have to—” she started.
“I know,” he said. “But I want to.”
A pause.
“You’re not alone in this, Alice.”
The words settled deeper than she expected.
For the first time since everything changed.
She felt it.
Support, seen and understood.
Later that evening—
Alice stood by the window, staring out at the city's fading light.
Everything looked the same, the overly busy road, cars hovering on.
But nothing felt the same, void and alone.
Her life had shifted in a way she couldn’t undo.
And maybe.
Didn’t want to.
Her hand moved slowly, resting against her stomach again.
This time.
There was no hesitation.
“I doubt if I know what the future holds”, she said slowly and inhaled.
“But I know one thing”… exhaling sharply.
Her gaze steadied.
Her posture straightened.
“I’m not waiting for someone who didn’t choose me.”
The words weren’t bitter.
They were freeing.
Because for the first time—
She wasn’t thinking about him.
She was thinking about herself.
And the life growing within her.
- Writer
