Thank you so much for the reviews for Chapter 24! This is one of my favorite chapters because it's so raw and emotional. Well, you'll see lol! Enjoy!

Chapter 25: Last Hopes

Gabriella

The past week had been an absolute hell for me since my last consultation.

Predictably, Troy confirmed my fears once we'd arrived back home by telling me to stop "telling our business" to other people. Since that afternoon we no longer acknowledged each other. While Troy continued to sleep on the couch every night, I remained alone in that king-sized bed, listening to the sound of the cracks that slowly formed in my heart.

Despite my best efforts to keep the children oblivious to the hostility between us, they constantly asked me why we were not speaking to each other. The questions did not begin to affect me until one evening when Chaya came into my room with a serious inquiry.

"Do you and Daddy still love each other?"

Initially, my shock towards the question was not enough to faze me because I knew that Troy still loved me no matter how much we argued. But later that night as I lay in bed thinking about the abusive words we had exchanged the afternoon before, I broke down and cried at the thought of my fiancé hating me.

Within a few hours I had fallen into a deep depression at this heartbreaking realization, and forced myself to accept the inevitable. There was no such thing as true love.

The feelings I used to experience around Troy were just there to build up my hopes and earn my trust so that I would fall victim to the misleading, bottomless pit known as Love. It had all been just a ploy to take advantage of my time, my energy and my affection.

As much as I hated to deny that Troy had broken my heart, he did.

~AFFMB~

The Next Morning

"... and that's why I didn't come to pick up my check... Yes, I'm not pregnant anymore... No, I'm okay—really. I don't mind coming back tomorrow. It's not a problem... Thank you so much for understanding. I'll see you in two days. Goodbye."

"Was that your boss?" Raquél asked me once I hung up the phone.

"Yes it was. He was shocked when I told him what happened over the weekend and offered to give me an entire week off to recover. But I think I'm recovered enough," I said halfheartedly.

As if to contradict my reply, my daughter doubtfully shook her head and sighed.

"If you say so, Mami."

"Well, it's not like I'm still weeping over the miscarriage. I've learned to accept that she's not coming back, but it's someone else in this house that makes me want to pull my freakinghair out," I emphasized while slamming the phone onto the coffee table.

"Troy?" Raquél guessed, whispering so that Troy would not be able to hear from the bathroom.

"Who else? I mean, I knew that things between us would become strained, but I never imagined that it would be this bad. I'm so depressed, honey. I can't eat, I can hardly get myself out of bed, and I'm just mad at... at everything!" I exclaimed softly.

"Or are you just mad at him?"

Our conversation automatically switched topics as Troy stepped into the living room, fully dressed after his shower. Although he was fully aware that I was also in the room, his attention immediately shifted towards Raquél, which I found extremely rude.

"Good morning, sweetie. How are you?" he asked her pleasantly.

"Um, I'm fine, thanks," my daughter responded uneasily, before dropping her gaze onto her cell phone.

It was obvious that she was waiting to get saved by the bell as she nervously tapped her fingers against the lit screen. She then shot out of the chair as soon as the device chimed.

"I-I think that's Enriqué. He must be here to pick me up... Bye," she announced hurriedly, and rushed through the front door without kissing me.

The air in the living room became so silent, so thick with tension that I swore I would suffocate to death. As my dangerous curiosity got the better of me, I decided to ask Troy why he was treating me differently from my children.

"Why are you treating me this way, Troy? Please tell me what I've done to make you so angry with me," I pleaded.

Those few words were the first I'd spoken to him in two days. I was partially shocked not to receive the cold shoulder in the form of a dark glare or a deliberate escape. My stomach churned as he scoffed. The cold chuckle he gave incited a rash of goosebumps across my arms.

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Isn't what obvious?"

"Something is wrong with you. The only reason the baby died was because your body wasn't functioning the way it should have. So don't blame me for your misery... Blame yourself. This is all your fault," he accused plainly while thrusting a finger into my shoulder.

Needless to say, his comment sliced through me like a sharpened blade. Nothing destroyed my self-esteem more than listening to my fiancé tell me that something was wrong with me. Instead of losing my composure like I'd been doing whenever we started an argument, I stood to my feet and pointed my finger at his face.

"And listening to the shit you've been saying to me didn't cause me misery?" I retaliated through shallow breaths. "What about ignoring me or yelling at me just for being in your presence? Don't you think that you have a part in this? Because I do. Ever since the miscarriage, you've been treating me like dirt day after day without even considering how your attitude would affect me. I get it, Troy. I get that you're frustrated and that you think you don't deserve to feel this pain, but stop taking your anger out on me. It was not my fault that I miscarried—nothing is wrong with me... Look, I'm not even sure if this wedding is going to happen because I'm just ready to quit."

With my point already proven, I dismissed myself and made a beeline for the bedroom, ready to sleep for the rest of the day. Although I seemed strong and unaffected on the outside, I was ready to self-destruct on the inside.

"What did you say?" I heard him demand behind my back.

I knew that a tirade was oncoming by the way his voice quivered unsteadily. I found him ready to lunge as I bravely spun around to face him. I became slightly intimidated by his threatening stance.

"You heard what I said. The way you're acting, I don't think I want to marry you if you're going to continue treating me this way. I'm not going to marry someone who makes me feel worthless," I said, and having nothing further to contribute, I once again turned to enter the hallway.

But I was stopped painfully short as Troy suddenly seized my wrist in a terrible, vice-like grip. It was tight enough to force me to my knees, and I cried out in agony to the floor.

"Troy... s-stop, please," I gasped.

"After everything I've done for you and your kids. After all the favors I've done for you... After all the money I've spent and the back breaking labor I put into making this house a home; all the money I spent on that damn ring, this is how you repay me?" he questioned darkly.

"Please, Troy! You're hurting me—"

"No, I'm not going to stop. I'm going to make you feel the pain I've been feeling since the day you killed my daughter. My Viviana."

Suddenly, everything made sense. Troy had gained such a strong attachment towards the baby that he'd christened her, and he was left the most distraught once I miscarried. I did not know that he had planned to name the baby so soon. The loss had been devastating to him, especially because she became a real person to him and he'd fallen in love long before I believed that she was even alive. Knowing that I was sadly mistaken, I now feared that I would pay for feeling sorry for myself.

"Okay, Troy, I'm sorry! I didn't know that you already loved her that much—I honestly didn't. But don't hurt me. It's not going to bring her back or make the trauma of losing her go away... This isn't who you are. You're acting like a monster!" I screamed tearfully.

Finally, Troy released the crushing grip on my wrist. For the first time in what seemed like a long time, his eyes softened with remorse as he realized what he'd done. Perhaps it was over: the harsh treatment, the undeniable guilt; the blind rage. Maybe it finally clicked that no one was to blame for the loss of our baby, but that we both needed each other to cope with the tragedy. But then I was reminded that he was not going to change his mind just because of a single incident.

Now angrier than ever, Troy shook his head and hurled my arm away.

"Damn it, you're fucking selfish," he spat.

I sat back in shock as he stormed past me and through the front door, slamming it hard behind him.

Sadly, I quickly came to the conclusion that there was nothing I could do to save my relationship with Troy. I no longer believed in trying, and for the first time in my life, I was ready to quit. From then on it was determined that I would never be happy.

~AFFMB ~

Troy

I remained in the garage of my apartment seething for the rest of the evening. Gabriella was up to her manipulative ways, playing the helpless victim like she had been since we lost the baby.

She was so selfish.

While she sat crying and starving herself to gain sympathy, no one bothered to ask me how I was feeling. No one consoled me or reassured me that they were going to be there for me whenever I needed support. My boss did not offer to give me an entire week off to recover.

But I had finally reached my breaking point once Gabriella told me that she did not want to marry me. In all honesty I'd wanted to break down in tears and beg for her forgiveness, but I was not succumbing to my emotions that easily. I wasn't going to give up my act until she gave up hers.

Later that evening at midnight as I returned upstairs, I decided to check on the children to make sure that they were asleep. At that moment I could care less about my fiancée.

Located at the beginning of the hallway was Raquél's bedroom, where I stole a peek through the lit crack in the door. I grinned once I found her fast asleep with a large, open novel spread across her chest. Carefully, I tiptoed into the room and placed the book aside before pulling the covers over her body. She moaned in her sleep as I leaned down and pressed a kiss against her forehead.

"I love you, babydoll," I whispered to her.

After shutting off the lights, I stopped by each bedroom to kiss the rest of the children before I turned in for the night. Once I stepped out of A'sharía and André's nursery, I apprehensively made a path towards my bedroom. Uncertainty troubled my conscience as I contemplated checking on Gabriella.

I still loved her and nothing—not even the past week and a half—could change the way I felt about her. Suddenly the soft, trembling breaths of what sounded like sobs emerged from beneath the bedroom door.

It was nothing new, I supposed. She had been crying nonstop since we returned from the hospital, so I was not as concerned as I was I was exasperated. Thinking that she would eventually cry herself to sleep, I began to walk past the slightly open door when I overheard her heartbreaking pleas reverberating off the walls.

Hesitantly, I squeezed myself through the wide crack in the door, and I was shocked to find Gabriella kneeling on the carpet, her arms haphazardly strewn across the edge of the bed. Her cries were pained and wretched, as if a frozen blade had been plunged into her heart. Violent tremors caused her frail body to convulse helplessly, a distressing sight from my perspective. With my presence going unnoticed, she continued her desperate plea in her native language.

"Por favor, Dios. Dime que hice mal. ¡No sé qué hacer! ¡Por favor, ayúdame, Dios Mío!" she lamented to the ceiling, asking God to help her and to tell her what she had done wrong. "He doesn't love me anymore..."

Never before had such an arrangement of words caused me so much heartache and guilt. I loved Gabriella with all of my being, but the way I'd been treating her, I doubted that she felt loved by me. What had I been thinking trying to settle the score by dumping the blame on her? There was never a score to settle in the first place. She was right. There was no one to blame for her misery but me.

Despondently, I slowly began to back out of the bedroom when her cries suddenly ceased. Heat rose in the back of my throat as I found that Gabriella had collapsed on the floor in exhaustion after growing weak by her own distress. Finally submitting to my emotions, I quickly knelt beside my unconscious fiancée and gathered her into my arms and placed her onto the mattress.

That was when I discovered just how much of a toll the past two weeks had taken on Gabriella. The healthy glow that usually illuminated her skin had dwindled to a sickly, pale shade. Dark circlets rest beneath her eyes while the new blemishes that had suddenly flawed her face continued to surface as a result of stress. As I lifted her nightgown I was shocked to find that her curves had leveled. But that was not as disturbing as finding the slightest impression of her ribcage showing beneath her seemingly thinning skin.

Gabriella was sick, and it was all because of me. Because of my lack of compassion and attention, she had endured sleepless nights alone and possibly days without finding the appetite to enjoy a proper meal. How could I have ever accused her of killing our unborn daughter by thinking that something was wrong with her? Gabriella was perfect!

I was the man who was responsible for making the healing process a living nightmare for her, for driving that cold, steel dagger of odium through her heart. In my spiteful efforts to make her suffer I'd twisted it around to inflict more pain, letting her precious blood drench the floor to be contaminated. Not only had I broken her heart, but I'd yanked the beautiful organ right out of her chest and crushed it beneath my feet.

Now my biggest fear was losing her forever.

"I'm so sorry, Gabriella. I never meant to hurt you," I found myself sobbing in her curls as I gently tread my fingers through them. "You deserve so much better than me."

Knowing that my apology had gone unheard, I kissed her forehead before climbing into the bed beside her. The duvet was warm and inviting as I slipped my legs beneath it. Before succumbing to my exhaustion, I pulled Gabriella close to my body and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair, fearing that I would soon be unable to hold her in my arms.

~AFFMB~

The Next Morning

That morning as my slumber had progressed into the early reaches of cognizance, the sound of Gabriella shifting in bed caught my attention. I was alert enough to hear, but not awoken enough to open my eyes. The bed sunk and vibrated as I heard her tumble over, followed by an abrupt pause and a confused intake of breath. Then I heard loud rustle of the duvet, a whoosh of air, and the sound of her delicate footfalls.

Hardly able to get out of bed, I turned over and squeezed my eyes together to redeem the rest of my sleep.

After what seemed like hours later, I opened my eyes only to discover that only 20 minutes had elapsed. Suddenly, the heartbreaking events from the night before returned with a vengeance and struck me with panic.

Hoping to apologize before it was too late, I scrambled out of bed and raced into the living rom. Gabriella was nowhere to be found, so I ventured further into the dining room, where I let out a sigh of relief.

Although her back had been turned to me, it was not hard to spot her rubbing the back of her hand across her eyes. My heart sunk as I found the engagement ring sitting beside her on the table, no longer secured on her finger.

"Gabriella," I called softly, and reached out to run my palm along the curve of her shoulder.

No reply.

I pulled out a chair and sat beside her to investigate. She looked as if she had been crying as she forced her bloodshot gaze upwards. She did not look at me, but sighed regretfully. It was much too late.

"If it makes you happy we'll be gone by tomorrow. I've already made arrangements with my mom, so you won't have to worry about us crowding your house anymore."

"What kind of arrangements?" I questioned fearfully.

"Troy, I can't do this anymore. I'm just exhausted and depressed, and right now I just want to get out while I still have my dignity…"

She shook her head as a single tear rolled down her cheek. "And I thought that I could actually be happy with another man," she scoffed to herself.

"You and the kids are leaving? But I don't want you to leave… I love all of you."

"Is that what you call love? Ignoring me, treating me like dirt; calling me selfish? What about accusing me of killing our baby when you knew that I had a miscarriage? I don't want to live like this anymore, Troy. I'm just done getting hurt. This relationship—it was destined to end in disaster from the very start! All I want is to be happy. Is that too much to ask?" she exclaimed in frustration before breaking down in tears.

As much as I tried to console Gabriella by wrapping my arms around her, she pushed me away and surged out of her chair.

"I don't want to be touched right now! I'm going to pack."

Realizing that I was losing Gabriella quicker than I'd anticipated, I followed her back into the living room, armed with my last hopes of keeping her in my life.

"No! Please don't leave, Gabriella. I'm sorry for everything I did to hurt you, but don't go. I need you!" I pleaded desperately.

Ignoring my plea, she stormed into the bedroom, headed for the closet and pulled out a large, empty suitcase.

"Don't you try to change my mind! This is already hard enough for me as it is."

"W-wait, just listen to what I have to say—please stop packing for a minute," I frantically offered my proposal.

Despite her willingness to avoid listening to something that would affect her decision, Gabriella hesitated, then sighed in compliance.

"You have two minutes."

Those two minutes were going to be the most important moments of my life. She let me take a seat on the bed beside her and offered her hand for me to hold.

"First of all, I just want to say that the past few months have been the best of my life. Before I never believed in love at first sight, but the moment I saw you running after Lina, I just knew that you had to be mine. You were so gorgeous and striking; and to top it all off you were the most intelligent person I'd ever met. When we started dating you showed me how strong and caring you were, and you taught me that the best things in life were love, family and being alive in general. Things between us, including me and the children were great... until the fire. I literally watched your entire life—everything you've worked so hard for—crumble to pieces around me, and that was when I feared that I would never see you guys again. From then on I started to appreciate all the people who loved me even more. I vowed that I would no longer take life for granted because of that experience, and that was when I decided that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you and your children."

A minute and forty-five seconds had elapsed. Perhaps she would lengthen my time.

"The girls; Andre... They're the reason I've become a more affectionate person. It's still difficult to put into words how much I love them; how much I want to succeed for them. I proposed to you because I wanted to be happier that I'd ever been. I wanted you, your children, your family... A-and that's why I wanted the baby so much. You're this beautiful, accomplished, intelligent woman who can conquer anything that comes her way, and having a child that was going to be as perfect as you would've completed my life. I was so ready to become a father. Watching the progress you made with the pregnancy, seeing the ultrasound at the doctor's and learning that it was going to be a baby girl was like a miracle to me. I never felt that I was worth anything before I found out that you were pregnant."

Two minutes. She did not stop me. As my explanation dove deeper into my most secreted emotions, Gabriella glanced up at me in surprise once I began to list my insecurities.

"Having a baby with you was going to be a defining moment in my life, because I never thought that I would ever be part of such a beautiful accomplishment. I thought there was nothing that could ruin this pregnancy, so I named her Viviana. To me she was a person; she had an identity. I had planned to hold her the moment she was born, I planned to watch her take her first steps, I planned to hear her first words; to teach her how to ride a bike, and I planned to wave goodbye when she'd go off on her own to kindergarten. But when we lost her it was like the ground fell out from under me. It was the darkest day of my life. She was only thing that ever made me feel accomplished, and we lost her... We lost her!" I said, and broke down in tears.

Gabriella also began to cry at the sad memory, and embraced me in her arms.

"I had no idea you felt that way, Troy. Why didn't you talk to me like I told you?" she questioned softly.

"Because... I thought that I could be the strong man you wanted me to be. You became so fragile and broken, and I wanted to be your rock. Dealing with my emotions has always been difficult for me, and I thought I was doing the right thing by hiding my true feelings from you. But it was one of the worst decisions I had ever made. Instead of trying to cope with you and understand how it affected your self-esteem, I was impatient, angry and irrational. I figured that burying myself in work and forgetting that she ever existed would take the pain away, but it's so hard to forget about someone you've grown to love. Every night for the past two weeks I've been crying myself to sleep and tossing and turning, searching for anything that would explain why you miscarried. Moving on wasn't an option for me. I wanted to blame someone but I just didn't know who. You were carrying the baby and I was so emotional and so blind with anger that I started to blame you. And I was a jerk for doing that to you. I am so sorry for the way I've been treating you, Gabriella. If I could take back all the things I said to you, the way I treated you, I would do it in a heartbeat. I made a promise to your father, telling him that I would never do anything to hurt you. It was the first promise I'd ever broken. But your health is practically deteriorating because of the treatment I've been giving you."

"How did you notice?" she questioned softly.

"Last night, I came in to check on you and I found you unconscious on the floor. Your appearance frightens me. You're starving, your hair is falling out, you have dark circles under your eyes, and you've become as white as a ghost. I can hardly recognize you anymore! The miscarriage was no one's fault, but because of my cold-heartedness and abandonment, you suffered more at my hands than you did from the miscarriage. Don't ever think that I don't love you, because I do... With all my heart. If there's anything, anything else I can do to prove that to you please give me the chance. I know that you probably won't feel the same way about me after this, but I just—I can't lose you and the children, Gabriella. I'm not strong enough to handle losing everything that I love all at once. I'll apologize every day for the rest of my life if I have to but please, Gabriella, please! Don't leave. I love you with all that I am and if you walk away now I'll have no purpose to live anymore. I love you; I need you. Don't leave me now..."

Finally surrendering to my unsteady emotions, I fell to the carpet in a sobbing heap, drained by the internal demons I'd released from my soul. It was the first time I had unleashed my deepest emotions in front of Gabriella, which was the most daunting task I'd ever had to overcome. Perhaps karma had reversed itself to make me suffer just as I had done to Gabriella. I deserved everything that was coming to me, yet I knew that I could not bear living without her. She did not try to comfort me or even shed a tear. My last efforts at convincing her that I was at fault for hurting her were quickly diminishing, and my hopes of fixing my relationship with her were lost.

"Shit!" Gabriella screamed as she hurled the suitcase onto the floor in outrage. "How do you expect me to react, Troy? I can't just act like everything is all right and pretend that this never happened! You deliberately hurt me, and why should I forgive you after you gave me this?"

My stomach churned as she tugged back the left sleeve of her shirt to reveal the darkened bruise that marred her fragile wrist. I found myself succumbing to tears once again, and I dropped to my knees in front of her to beg for her forgiveness.

"I never meant to hurt you, Angel. I'm so sorry! I'll die if you leave! Please forgive me," I pleaded.

"You know I love you, Troy. But I don't think that I can love you the same way I did before, and I can't bear to live with the guilt. I feel like I'm hurting you."

I could not deny that she was right. It would be selfish for me to continue a relationship with her if she wasn't going to be happy.

"I guess it's too late," I concluded with a despondent sigh.

"It's just that I don't think that this dispute between us can be resolved as soon as possible. I might need some time to think this through," Gabriella replied apologetically.

Reluctantly, accepted my fate, and nodded as I wiped away a lingering tear.

"I understand."

But in that instant, I found a glimmer of hope. Her features rose in sudden realization, and she gazed ahead in contemplation.

"Unless... We start over. On a clean slate."

I surged to my feet and grasped her palms in excitement.

"Yes, let's start over. We can fix this together, I know we can."

Managing a smile, Gabriella opened her arms and embraced me tightly.

"I love you... I'm sorry," she said before pecking my cheek.

"Don't apologize. And I love you, too. Don't ever doubt that for a second."

After letting go, I was left momentarily confused as she disappeared into the hallway. Not a moment too soon, she returned with the engagement ring nestled in her palm. My heart soared with joy.

"Since we're starting over as of now, remind me why you couldn't wait until Valentine's Day," she said playfully.

The sparkle had returned in her eyes as well as the glow in her skin. The Gabriella I knew and loved was back.

As she placed the ring into my hands, I knew that I had to make this right. This was the moment that I would prove to her that I was going to be a much better person. Her lips curled into an anticipative grin once I knelt down on one knee and presented the ring to her like I had weeks ago.

"You are my life, Gabriella. I know that we've gone through some rough times, and frankly I'm glad that you've found it in your heart to forgive me. But I want you to know that I am going to make things right. I want to have a future with you and the children... Marry me, Gabriella. Make me the happiest man on earth," I proclaimed.

Tears pooling in her eyes, Gabriella also knelt down to my level and wrapped her arms around me.

"I will," she promised.

As I slipped the ring onto her finger, she pecked my lips and wiped away my tears. As I picked her off the floor and spun her around I knew that I'd reclaimed everything I once took for granted. From that day on I would happily live every day to the fullest extent with Gabriella and her family.

"Come on. We should go wake up the kids," I said to her, and began to lead her out of the room.

Instead, she stopped in her tracks and pulled me backwards.

"Wait, Troy."

"What is it, honey?"

"I know that this might seem a little soon, but... do you think that we can try for a-another baby?" she questioned nervously, but then quickly added, "Only if you're ready."

Although my fears lingered of having history repeat itself, I knew that deep down inside Gabriella and I both wanted to move on from the pain of losing Viviana. We were blessed with the opportunity to bring another life into this world, not to replace her with a new child.

"I'm ready... Besides, Vivi will be in our hearts for the rest of our lives."

I love this ending! I hoped you enjoyed. Tell me what you think and I'll be back with a shocking twist to the story! :)