The Twilight Series belongs to S. Meyer, no copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing with the characters.
AN: Here's a little bit about Evily coughs I mean, Emily.
Chapter 13
Everybody Talks
Paul decided to stop at the diner and pick up a pie as a way to thank Sue for helping him out. The babysitter he had hired had called too late for him to figure out an alternative and he needed the extra shifts when he could get them.
As he stood in line waiting to order the pie he wanted he found his thoughts wandering to the day Emily had essentially abandoned Amelia. He could barely believe the gall of her—after all these years she suddenly changed her mind? Hardly. He knew exactly why she was doing what she was doing. It didn't take him long to figure out Emily only did things if it benefitted her.
The day he attended Harry Clearwater's funeral was in the top ten worst days of his life. The only good thing was he would get a glimpse of Leah. He hoped she was happy and things were going well for her. At least one of them deserved to be happy after this whole mess occurred.
He fidgeted in his dress clothes. The collar of his shirt was too tight and he didn't have money to buy a new one. Every dime he made was being saved in order to provide for his soon-to-be born child. His daughter.
He glanced at the woman standing next to him and kept his features as free of emotion as he could. How horrible was it that he hated this woman? The mother of his child. He wished he had never set eyes on her.
Without looking, he knew the moment Leah entered—Emily went into actress mode; sobbing loudly and clutching at his arm. He was sorely tempted to tell her to "shut the fuck up." But that would have only brought more attention to them.
He could see the looks people were passing their way. He knew exactly what people said about him. Oh, to the people of the tribe—Emily was a sweet, innocent girl and he was simply her seducer. How they had worked that out he wasn't sure. Considering he had been with Leah and only her since the beginning of high school.
He managed to make it through that day without resorting to violence or curling into the fetal position and sobbing. Things didn't get better though as Emily approached her due date, she became increasingly bitchy. He was a "no-good piece of shit just like his father" and she could "do so much better than him." If it wasn't for the fact his child was growing inside her—she would have been kicked to the curb long ago.
The day she went into labor, she refused to allow him anywhere near her. In fact, she told the hospital staff he was stalking her and she was in the process of getting a restraining order against him. Rather than argue—he left.
He only knew she had given birth because of her two second phone call telling him so. "It's a girl like they said," she said tersely and then hung up. He sat on the couch and started at the phone, listening to the dial tone; he didn't understand what he had ever done to her to make her treat him like this. Not that he wanted to be with her but from the moment she announced her pregnancy—he had tried to be as close to what she needed as he was able to.
Four days after her phone call he received another. This time it was from the hospital staff. "Mr. Lahote," a stern voice greeted him pausing for the barest moment so he could respond "Speaking."
"Perhaps, you're not aware of Washington law but we are very close to reporting you to the authorities for abandonment."
"What?!"
"Your daughter is a healthy infant and should have been discharged two days ago. While I understand circumstances may be unique. The child's mother has terminated her parental rights leaving you her sole guardian."
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly what I said. You need to take your daughter home or the authorities will be notified and she will be placed in the state's custody until alternative arrangements can be made."
His heart thundered frantically as he realized by staying away from the hospital he had essentially left his infant daughter at the mercy of strangers. The moment Emily called him and told him she was born, he should have just went to the hospital. Damn the consequences.
AN: I didn't research WA law so I'm not sure what the circumstances are re: what constitutes abandonment. Every state is somewhat different and I know several do allow people to leave their infants at a hospital or clinic within 30 days without facing penalties. As for whether WA allows this I don't know and if they do...it wouldn't work for this story...so I'm choosing to ignore it.