Sorry for taking so long. I wrote this chapter a few times but everything sounded like crap so I kept starting over.
Hopefully this one doesn't disappoint.
Enjoy!
"These things aren't always right you know. Sometimes they give false positives. We'll go visit a friend of mine at the hospital tomorrow to find out for sure."
Sofie says nothing as she stares down at the test.
"What will you do if it's true?" Karen sits next to Sofie on the couch.
"I hadn't really thought about it."
"Will you keep it?" Karen asks as gently as she can manage.
"I... " Sofie begins but stands and walks across the room. "My mother wouldn't approve. No matter the result I will not have it."
"What about Eric? Will you tell him."
Sofie shakes her head. "I won't burden him with this embarrassment. "
"Well now that sounds like Jeannine talking.." Karen walks over to Sofie. "What do you want Sofie?"
Sofie shakes her head.
Karen sighs and rubs Sofie's back. "Let's find out what they say tomorrow then we'll figure out what to do. No matter what it'll be ok. I'll help you through it."
Sofie starts to tear up when she thinks about Jeannine finding out and she runs out onto the balcony to be alone.
Once the door is shut behind her she places a hand over her mouth and begins to sob.
...
Tia sits on the couch with a bag of chips flipping through the Erudite cameras on Eric's tablet. She stops when she sees Sofie on the balcony. "Eric! Your Erudite's having a meltdown!" Tia yells across the room.
Eric hurries out of the bedroom and grabs the tablet from Tia's hand. "What happened?"
"How should I know?." She says while licking her fingers clean.
Eric gives her a look. "Isn't it about time you leave?"
Tia smiles. "Probably... but I'm not."
Eric rolls his eyes then takes a seat on the couch next to her keeping his eyes glued to the screen.
Tia tosses the half full bag of chips to the coffee table then curls up against Eric with her head on his chest.
"She is sorta cute... well, not right now with the crying and everything."
"Tia." Eric says as a warning.
"What? I think she'd be fun to play with." Tia slides her hand under his shirt and rubs his chest. "Maybe next time she comes for a visit you could..." Tia kisses his neck. "Introduce us." She kisses his neck again then glances at the screen. Sofie is sitting on a patio chair with her knees pulled to her chest. Tia rolls her eyes. "Watch her as she does nothing if you want but..." Tia slides down so her knees are on the floor then reaches up and undoes his pants. "I plan on being a distraction."
...
"Eric! Here I thought you were avoiding me." Jeannine greets Eric in the hallway outside of her office.
"I'm sorry I haven't been to your meetings. I've been busy with Dauntless duties."
Jeannine smiles. "Is that so?... Well let's go into my office. We have a lot to discuss."
Eric follows Jeannine into her office. Karen shuts the door once Eric is in.
Jeannine takes a seat at her desk and sets a folder down. Eric stays standing.
"Please, take a seat." Jeannine motions to a chair across from her desk.
She waits until he's sitting before continuing. "Eric, I'm glad you came alone today. There's something I would like to discuss with you." Jeannine leans back in her chair and folds her hands in her lap. "I'm going to cut to the chase. I know you have been seeing my daughter."
"Jeannine.." Eric is caught off guard and quickly tries to think of a lie.
"Don't." Jeannine holds up her hand to stop Eric. "I knew there was something going on when you stopped coming to Erudite but I have to say I was pretty surprised by the answer. Not only is Sofie Erudite but she is my daughter. Are you trying to turn her against me?"
"Of course not. I didn't even know she was your daughter at first. When I found out I ended it."
"You ended it?" Jeannine raises an eyebrow.
"Yes m'am."
"Of course you did... but unfortunately the damage was already done."
Eric adjusts in his seat. "I hope I haven't lost your confidence..."
"That's not what I'm talking about." She says interrupting him. Jeannine sighs. "Sofie's pregnant."
Eric's jaw drops and his face turns pale white. "How... did..."
Jeannine puts her glasses on and picks up the folder. "Karen and another assistant have been keeping an eye on Sofie for me since she came to work here. Karen has kept a detailed journal of Sofie's comings and goings and reports them to me weekly. I have one page here that tells of a run Sofie took around the same time you left after our last meeting. Since that was the last time you came to Erudite I pulled the video footage and saw you two running together. The video also shows you carrying her into an abandoned building." Jeannine slides the folder to Eric.
Eric picks up the folder and scans through the entries. The last page is dated for the previous day and Eric quickly reads a detailed description of how Sofie found out.
When finished with the page he sets the folder back on the desk but keeps his eyes on the floor. His face is expressionless but he is struggling to keep his composure. There is not much Eric is afraid of but at the moment he fears for his life. People that cross Jeannine often don't live long.
Jeannine removes her glasses and sets them on the desk. "Eric, you have really proven yourself over the last couple of years and I would hate for this to ruin our relationship so I am going to fix this for you."
Eric slowly looks up. "Fix it?"
"Yes. Karen is going to take her to the hospital later for an offical test. I'll have the nurse give her something that will abort the fetus and she will tell Sofie that she was never pregnant to begin with. Everything will be back to the waynit was."
"You would get rid of it just like that?"
"Of course. It would just cause problems for us and I need both you and Sofie to be focused."
Eric is still in shock and just nods.
"Well, I'm glad we could work this out." Jeannine stands. "But Eric?" Jeannine's tone gets very serious. "Don't cross me again. I won't be as forgiving."
Eric stands and again just nods then he shows himself out of the office.
Karen smiles from behind her desk as he exits the office. "Have a great day!"
Eric just stares at her and resists the urge to jump across the desk and rip her throat out for betraying Sofie's trust.
On the way out of the building Eric sees Sofie approaching. He looks around to see if there's a way to avoid her but decides that would be cowardice so he stays put.
When she finally sees him she has a look of terror which is immediately masked with a fake smile.
Eric opens his mouth to greet her when she's just a few steps away but nothing comes out.
Sofie keeps the fake smile when she greets him. "Hello Eric. I hope you're doing well."
"Yeah." Eric says in a flat tone. "And you?"
Sofie's fake smile gets wider. "Oh I'm great! Couldn't be better!"
Eric's stomach turns knowing what she's hiding. "Glad to hear it." He lies.
"Well, uh, I gotta go. See you soon?" She asks while inching away from him.
Not knowing the answer Eric stays silent.
"Ok.. well... bye." Sofie turns and rushes off.
Eric watches as she enters the headquarters. He looks at her with pitty now knowing the reason for her breakdown the night before.
He turns and runs as fast as he can to the train.
Thank you to all who participated in the game!
Here's the next question...
What should Eric do, if anything, about Jeannine's plans for Sofie and the baby?
