Chapter 12
"my mom's going to kill me for sure" Mary said as she buries her face in her hands
"it's Francis' child, right?" Kenna asked innocently
"of course it's Francis'! I have never been with anyone else" Mary replied feeling frustrated, she wants to bang her head on the wall for being too careless, but at the same time, she brings her hand on top of her abdomen, there's no baby bump yet but she can already feel the life forming inside of her. Her child, her and Francis' child, it's just too bad they're no longer together, in another life, if her pregnancy happened a lot later, she would have been a thousand times happier, of course, she's happy now but also equally terrified, she doesn't even know how to live on her own yet, much more, raise her own child.
"will you tell him?" Kenna asked, wanting so hard to help her friend but has no idea how
"I basically told him to get out of my life, Kenna. And even if I do tell him… he—he cheated on me, remember? He has a girlfriend back there in London, I don't want him to go back to me just because he feels guilty that he got me pregnant" Mary said with sadness in her eyes, tears already making her visions blur
"so you won't tell him? Ever?"
"I don't know" Mary answered, because she truly doesn't know what to do at this point.
"but this explains everything, you know, you being pregnant and all. Your mood swings, your very sensitive sense of smell, you even get nauseous all the time, and I'm actually quite surprised that you're not throwing up—" Kenna said and as if on cue Mary quickly got up from her bed and ran toward the bathroom
"I think I'm gonna be si—" Mary said as she runs hurriedly, Kenna can hear her throwing up from where she's sitting
"ugh fuck" Mary groans as she quickly ties her hair in a ponytail
"do you want me to hold your hair back for you?" Kenna shouted from the other side of the room
"No thanks, I'm pregnant, not helpless" Mary muttered before feeling another urge to throw up, this will take a lot of getting used to, Mary says to herself.
~o~o~o~
"okay that's enough" Bash said as he tries to get the bottle of beer off of Francis' hand but fails miserably
"leave me alone" Francis said as he tries to protect the bottle in his hands like a child protecting his candy
"oh wait.., that's funny. Mary told me those exact same words at the club. Ha! I flew all the way from London only to hear those words… Seriously, I only left her for 2 months! 2 fucking months, Bash! How can she change so quickly" Francis said almost bitterly
"I didn't even get an explanation. I have so many questions, you know? But she just left me there, standing like an idiot, in the middle of the crowd" Francis continues to rant as he drinks his beer
"this beer tastes awful. Everything tastes awful"
"you should get some sleep, Francis. You've had enough" Bash said as he tries to help Francis stand from the couch
"oh you are so right, brother. I've really had enough, I've had far too much and I am so done with this, with everything, really. If she doesn't want anything to do with me… then, I don't want anything to do with her either, problem solved." Francis said rather triumphantly, but he didn't feel any better, maybe he just needs to convince himself more. Bash on the other hand, was relieved when Francis stopped babbling for a whole minute, but was slightly annoyed when he started talking again after a minutes of silence, he really can't wait for his brother to be sober.
"but here's what I don't understand…"
"oh here he goes again" Bash said to himself, clearly exhausted from his brother's musings, Francis, on the other hand, having no care about the world, continues to babble like a toddler
"when I saw her, she seemed really really mad at me and here's the exciting part; I don't even know why she's mad! And that's what made me mad and then—"
"okay, okay… why don't you narrate what happened to the bar—which I have heard a hundred times already, might I add—tomorrow when you're sober and not completely wasted, yeah? Come on up, let's get you to bed"
"No! I'm not sleeping with you, I have a girlfriend… oh wait, ex-girlfriend actually—but it doesn't matter, I still love her. So stop seducing me, okay?" Francis said, not recognizing his own brother, with his eyes almost closed
"whoa, whoa stop right there—" Bash said but stopped because he's now choking on laughter
"I should have recorded that, would have been very useful, for blackmailing purposes of course" Bash said as he laughs at his brother
"hey… hey! Don't you sleep just yet, sleep upstairs, in your bedroom! Francis? Francis! I'm not gonna carry you, no sir." Bash said as he slaps Francis on the cheeks. Repeatedly.
"wake up or I swear to God, I'm gonna pull out your golden little curls" Bash said almost threateningly
"shhh you're too loud" Francis said, trying to quiet down his noisy big brother
"what am I going to do with you" Bash sighs as he watches his brother sleep like a baby and judging by the amount of alcohol he drunk, he's not waking up anytime soon.
~o~o~o~
"I still don't get it though, do you know why they broke up? They seemed fine in the last few months, my brother seemed really excited to see Mary—" Bash said to Kenna, seeming really confused about the whole situation
"he hasn't told you?" Kenna asked, quite surprised
"he hasn't told me what?"
"Francis cheated on Mary, he even asked the girl to move in with him" Kenna said, her voice angry
"what? No, he wouldn't do that… he would never—"
"well, he did. Mary went to London the week after finals and saw the girl herself, in Francis' flat, wearing Francis' clothes." Kenna informed Bash, still quite annoyed by the fact that she's the one telling this to Bash instead of Francis
"Kenna, how long have you known Francis? A few months? Maybe almost a year? Well, I've known him all my life, and he never cheated on anyone. Ever."
"Well I guess he has changed, you don't know him that well after all" Kenna said almost bitterly
"Kenna, you don't understand. I know Francis and I know he loves Mary and only Mary, there's no one else in his life"
"well maybe, none that you know of, but there is definitely someone. How else can you explain the girl in his flat?"
"When was she there exactly? Can you recall?"Bash asked, trying desperately to figure things out
"what does it matter? It wouldn't change the fact that he cheated on her"
"Please Kenna, just answer the question" Bash pleaded
"I think it was on the third week of June? Yeah, Mary went there almost two weeks ago"
"I visited Francis on the third week of June as well" Bash said still confused
"What? Why didn't I know about this?" Kenna answered equally confused
"Francis asked for my help, he wanted to surprise Mary when he finally goes back here so he asked me to help him choose a gift for her"
"you went all the way to London to go shopping with your brother?" Kenna said, not buying Bash's story
"He paid for the whole thing, I couldn't say no. And it's not just any gift, you know. Francis wanted it to be special that's why he needed my expert skills" Bash said rather proudly
"which is what exactly?" Kenna said almost mockingly
"never mind, but the point is, Francis wasn't in his flat the day Mary went there, I should know because I was in a hotel room with him for the whole week"
"so?" Kenna said, still missing the point
"the whole thing must have been a setup, someone found out that Mary's going to visit Francis that week and made sure she'll never visit him ever again"
"you mean to tell me; someone paid a girl to pretend to be Francis' fake girlfriend and make Francis look like a cheating bastard?"
"exactly" Bash answered
"but who would even—"
"Catherine" Bash answered, seeming quite sure that no one else will put all these effort only to see Francis and Mary break up
"Francis' mom?" Kenna asked, everything is making sense now, she thought to herself.
"she never approved their relationship and when the opportunity came, she grabbed it as quick as she can" Bash said letting out a heavy sigh
"does she have any idea what she is doing to her son? To my friend?"
"She's Catherine de Medici, you'll be surprised how far she'll go in order to achieve what she want"
"Bash, this changes everything… Mary needs to know about this"
"yes, I agree. She needs to know that Francis didn't really cheat on her, but I'm afraid this wouldn't change much." Bash said, sadness eminent on his voice
"What do you mean?" Kenna asked, getting confused again
"The things Mary said at the club… and with Louis being there… it was too much for Francis, you know. Yes, Mary was hurt but it wasn't Francis who hurt her, it was the sick plan of Catherine, Francis didn't even know that Mary was angry at him until he saw her at the party… Francis was hurt by Mary, directly, her own words left scars in his heart, her own actions left him wounded."
"but she only said that because she thought—"
"I know what you're trying to say Kenna, I really do. But Francis is so big on trust, he's greatly hurt whenever someone doesn't trust him, especially if that someone is the girl he loves the most. The fact that Mary implied that he cheated on her hurt, it hurt a lot."
"so what do we do now?" Kenna asked, feeling helpless
"we wait… just until things cool down between them, right now their wounds are too fresh and forcing them to reconcile might do the opposite… they must find their way back to each other on their own, that's the only way."
"okay… but first they need to know the truth, I'll tell Mary that it was all Catherine's fault and you'll tell Francis as well, okay?"
"Okay, but like I said, I don't think it would change much"
"It wouldn't hurt to try" Kenna said after few minutes of silence, their problems aren't all solved but the future shows a promise that everything might be slightly better soon and that alone is enough.
~o~o~o~
*3 days later*
Francis was at the beach house, reading a book on their porch facing the beach, when suddenly he was hit by a ball in the head.
"Ow!" Francis said as he rubs the part where the ball hit, messing up his already unruly curls.
"Oh my God, I am so so sorry!" A redhead girl approached him and from the looks of it, she has been playing beach volleyball with her friends near Francis' porch. The girl was even more shocked when she approaches Francis as she nearly froze in front of him and gasps rather soundly.
"you're Francis, right? Francis Valois?" the girl said getting a bit shy in front of an utterly confused Francis
"yeah, I suppose I am?" Francis said, pretending that his head doesn't hurt, he doesn't need to make the poor girl in front of him feel even guiltier or more embarrassed
"you probably don't remember me but we had Sociology class together" the girl informed him, trying to have a normal (and not awkward) conversation with him
"oh" was all that Francis was able to say, now he's the one embarrassed for not recognizing her face, much more her name.
"I'm Ellie by the way, we never really talked in class but I have always wanted to talk to you—Oh my God, I didn't just say that out loud… fuck—I mean shit, sorry—ugh. I'm so bad at this" the girl said, she throws him an equally nervous and embarrassed smile
"it's okay, I should be the one saying sorry. I'm really sorry I didn't remember your name, I feel such a jerk" Francis said, lowering his head slowly
"no, no please don't… feel such a jerk I mean, because you're not, you're actually really nice… and cute—oh my God I'm so sorry, my mouth does this thing, you know. It has a mind of its own, unfortunately… yeah I'll probably just get my ball, my friends are waiting for me" Ellie said as she glances back and saw that her friends have managed to get another ball and have already started playing… without her.
"why don't we just forget this really embarrassing and unfortunate experience, yeah? Just pretend you don't know my name… I'll probably leave now—yeah I'll just go" Ellie said as she awkwardly walks backward and away from Francis, she smiled one last time to Francis and ran as fast as she could, truly hoping that she won't stumble or fall
"hey, Ellie!" Francis shouts after her, Ellie turns her head as quick as lightning
"you forgot your ball!" Francis said while throwing the ball toward Ellie, she catches it as if her life depended on it and quickly gave Francis the sweetest smile, she walked away clutching the ball closely to her body.
Unbeknownst to Francis and Ellie, Mary was just standing there the whole time, she just doesn't have the courage to approach Francis…yet.
~o~o~o~
"Francis…" said a familiar voice that he will be able to recognize anywhere. Francis looked up and saw Mary, staring at him with those beautiful brown eyes, her gaze full of sadness and regret.
"Mary" Francis replied, he immediately put down the book that he is reading and stood up, trying to look decent in front of her.
"What are you doing here?" Francis asked, genuinely curious
"I came here to apologize… Kenna told me everything, your mother's plan—I"
"Yes, Bash told me as well, I've spoken to my mother, she'll no longer bother us, I guess she already got what she wanted"
"Francis… I can't even begin to imagine the pain you felt the night… Francis, I am so sorry, I didn't mean anything I said, I—"
"then why did you say it, Mary? you could have just asked me, you know. But you didn't even give me time to explain or even some time to understand why you were so mad"
"I'm sorry, I let my emotions—my anger, my jealousy cloud over my judgment… but if you were in my place… going to London, finding another woman inside your flat—"
"If I were in your place, I could have just asked you, Mary. Don't you trust me at all? Did you really think that I could do that to you?! How about you put yourself in my place… I wanted to surprise you and make you happy to make up for the months that we're not together, but instead when I got here, you suddenly decided to break up with me, claiming that you don't love me and making me promise to not bother you again. Tell me Mary, which side hurt more?"
Mary just stared at him, tears now falling from her eyes, occasionally wiping the tears by her hands as she sobs quietly, she stands there looking utterly hurt and also ashamed of what she's done, she realized she has been the weak one, falling for Catherine's trap so easily, she's the one that gave up first and now she's facing all the consequences.
"I know—I know I've hurt you, and even if I apologize a thousand times, it won't make the pain go away… but if there's anything I can do—anything at all to make up for the things I've said and done, I'll do it, I'll do anything… just—please Francis, I can't do this without you" Mary said in between sobs, she's a wreck, with her emotions surging wildly inside her and her hormones going crazy, she's not sure how much longer she can handle this whole situation.
"I'm sorry Mary, I need time… time to sort things out, time to heal… it's just—too soon. I need to think this through, I know we've been through so much together, but by now I think we both realized that love is simply not enough… we need to trust each other, always, because without trust we're nothing." Francis said, sadness also visible in his eyes and it's quite obvious that it was hard for him to say those words, but if it's what's needed, then he has no other choice but to say them.
"it's okay, I understand." Mary said, wiping the tears from her eyes as she forces a smile. Francis returned her smile with equal amount of sadness and regret. They both wish they could fix this but they both know they can't; only time can.
"I guess I'll go now" Mary said while slowly walking towards the door, clutching her stomach
"I'm going to leave for London, tomorrow" Francis informed her, but instantly regret it when he saw the look on her face, full of hopelessness and dread, it's as if he hurt her a thousand times over. But Mary kept a straight face and managed to reply
"will you keep in touch?" she said while still pretending to be unaffected by the news
"we both need space, Mary" Francis answered her sadly
"oh… I guess I'll just… see you when you get back?" Mary replied, again trying to sound calm but her eyes betray her as it lets out a single hot tear
"yeah… hopefully" Francis replied, they're both hurting but both can do nothing about it, what cruel fate is it to have, when you love someone but you can't be with them, even though there's nothing that is keeping you apart.
Mary walks slowly as she lets her legs carry her to the car, her emotions are already crumbling down and she doesn't need her body to give up on her as well. She caresses her abdomen and talked to the growing babe inside her.
"We'll get through this, darling. I promise you, we will." Mary said as she drives the car away from the love of her life, from the father of her unborn child.
~o~o~o~
*2 weeks later*
Mary's P.O.V.
She didn't expect that it would rain hard that day, it's summer time after all, the weather should be hot and humid and the road should be dry not wet and slippery, she has been driving for hours and is now clearly exhausted, she's supposed to go to this on-the-spot painting contest thing but because of the bad weather, she's now running late. She hates driving alone especially when the road is not the familiar to her, Kenna has this summer job and her boss is being an ass, she wasn't able to accompany Mary for she was given tons of paperwork to finish before the weekend.
Mary turned the radio up as the rain poured even louder, blurring her windshield and making the road even more slippery , there was a sharp curve ahead but she wasn't able to slowdown before she made the turn… she lost control of the car and drove off the road, thankfully there weren't any cliffs near the area, her car, however, made a full stop as it hit a tree, hard.
~o~o~o~
Her neck hurts from the impact, she found it hard to open her eyes probably because she was afraid of what she's going to see, she can hardly move her legs, much more get out of her car. Rain is still pouring hard as the water enters her car from her broken windshield, she feel utterly terrified and helpless, not just for herself but for her baby as well. She began looking for her phone, desperate to call for help. Her hands shake as she dials the number, after few long seconds, someone finally answered.
"Please—please help me" she said desperately, her voice shaking.
