Look whose still alive and finally updating, well if anyone's still reading this that is... You guys, I am so so sorry that it has taken me so long to update! It has been over a year I know, and I honestly cannot believe it has been that long! I only took a break from this story so I could finish Summer Romance, but I didn't expect that it would've taken so long, hence the lack of a note explaining my absence. Mission accomplished if you didn't know, but it didn't happon until late last year. Seriously where the hell has the time gone?

My dear reviewers, followers and favoriters, to you I say thank you! Your constant support is the reason why I've been able to finish my other stories and come back to this one. To those of you who pmed to ask if I'm finishing this story, thank you for the concern you guys and you know my answer has always been yes. I want you all to know that I won't ever give up on any of my stories, even if it does take me a whole dam year to get back to posting.

Alright enough babbling. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and even though I don't have the right to ask, please review? Also my beta is out on maternity leave and won't be back until she feels ready to beta again so any mistakes spelling or grammatical is all mine.

Oh yeah and, I don't own VA! If I did you guys wouldn't have to wait a year for an update ;(

In The Rain.

Chapter 26.

It wasn't hard to get lost in the peace and tranquility of the cabin, but Rose had known this, it was why she'd decided to go there in the first place. She'd woken surprisingly early that morning, and she was sure she could not remember the last time she'd felt so refreshed, much less the last time she'd woken up early when she didn't really have to. Maybe it was the change of scenery or the fact that she now knew the source of her moodiness and nausea, but whatever it was, she was thankful.

She hadn't stuck around inside the cabin either. Well, she'd stuck around only long enough to make herself a healthy breakfast of eggs and toast, glad that either her parents or Lissa's made frequent trips up here just to restock the fridge. Apparently, it didn't matter to them that no one really came to the cabin anymore, what with the way everyone had been extremely busy as of late. Maybe someone knew that Rose would need this escape.

Once she had eaten, she was about to shower and changed before going outside, but it seemed that now that she knew she was pregnant, her body was all too ready to give her a taste of what pregnant women had to deal with. So rather than showering like she'd planned, she found herself on her knees in front of the toilet, everything she'd just eaten coming right back up. God that was disgusting, and not to mention that she was again hungry.

…

It took a little more effort after her nausea had subsided for her to do anything else, something which made her mad. She was not going to sit around feeling sorry for herself, pregnancy was not a sickness. Sure it did sap all of her energy sometimes and yeah she had to throw up, but she had seen women work right up to their due dates. Her own mother was a perfect example of such a woman, and she had watched Lissa work her ass off during the past couple months. There was no reason why she couldn't be like that, too. She decided then and there that, that was exactly the kind of pregnant woman she was going to be.

Her resolve now strengthened, she dragged herself into the shower and got changed before going outside like she'd planned. Again, she was struck by the beauty of this place, something that had not escaped her notice the night before but now seemed even more magnificent in the light of day. The fragrant flowers filled the air with its sweet smell. Birds chirped happily in the surrounding trees. The day itself was gorgeous, the sky a brilliant blue and the early morning sun feeling heavenly on her skin. It was hard to believe now that she was standing out there that she almost hadn't come.

She went hiking, completely at ease as she made her way through the familiar trail. She only wish that she'd brought Lissa's puppy with her. The dog would've loved all this open space. She made a mental note to tell Lissa about it later.

After her hike, she went inside for lunch and a snack before going swimming. She spent the rest of the day outside, swimming in the lake and then relaxing in the hot spring. God it felt good, so very good to be out of touch with everyone and everything, even though she knew it was just for a while. It felt great to pretend that she wasn't responsible for breaking the hearts of 2 very amazing guys, both of whom she loved. She knew now though that even though she loved them both, she was in love with only one of them. It felt good to just pretend that she was ok, that she was just another regular pregnant woman enjoying her secret get away.

With a start she realized that she was no longer pretending. She really was ok, and she really was a regular pregnant woman. Sure it hadn't been in the way most women expected, but that did not change the fact that she was going to be a mommy. Not going to be, she realized. She already was. She already had someone depending on her for love, protection and nutrition. Wasn't that what being a mother was about? Sure she'd been a little shaken up by the test results, so much so that she'd taken about a dozen more when she'd gone back to the apartment, but now that she'd had time to process it, she realized she wasn't scared of motherhood. Well, not for the reasons most women were, at least.

As the day progressed, it became more and more obvious to Rose that she'd made the right choice in going out to the cabin. All of that alone time with her and the new life growing inside of her had been exactly what she needed. She needed the time to just check out and process everything, even if it was just for a while. She knew what she had to do now. It wasn't just about her and what she wanted anymore. Being by herself only strengthened her resolve.

She would do right by her child, because that was what her baby deserved. He or she deserved to come into this world healthy and at peace, and they most certainly deserved to grow up in a happy home with 2 loving parents. She knew that if Dimitri decided he'd had enough of her and wanted nothing to do with her he would adore the baby. Their child would want for nothing, even if he or she didn't live with both parents. Rose knew that, at least. Lissa was right, he did love kids and she was happy that she was giving him that gift, even if the circumstances were not ideal.

She knew without a doubt that the baby would be the center of her world, too. Hell, it already was and it hadn't even been born yet. Even if on the off chance that Dimitri wanted nothing to do with either one of them, Rose knew without a doubt that her parents would support her. Never in her life had she been as grateful that she had amazing parents than she was in that moment. Not that she was going to be solely dependent on them, but it did make her feel a little better knowing that she'd have their support if it ever came down to that.

Rose stayed outside long after the sun had gone down. She'd watched the sunset and soaked in the hot spring under the twinkling stars. When she finally decided to head back in side, she had every plan of curling up in front of a fire with a glass of wine, none-alcoholic, of course. Hell, maybe she'd even watch some romantic movie she was sure Lissa had left here ages ago, but the moment she made it inside, her plans slipped right through her fingers. In her desperate attempt to escape her life for a few hours, she'd purposely forgotten her phone inside. She told herself that she'd come back occasionally to check it, just to make sure everything was still safe back at home. Unfortunately, she'd gotten so caught up with the outdoors that she'd done no such thing.

"Shit," She snapped, grabbing her phone and rummaging around for her charger. The battery was on the verge of dying, but there was still enough life for her to see the fact that she had several missed calls and texts.

Once it was plugged in, she scrolled through her texts and grimaced. Most of them were from Adrian, and he did not sound happy. She was about to text him, but the phone rang in her hand.

"Hey, Adrian," She answered easily. At first silence met her on the other end, so much so that she was about to pull the phone away to make sure she hadn't accidentally ended the call, but then he spoke.

"Rose," He said seriously. "I need to see you, right now." Rose opened her mouth to tell him that she was out of town and couldn't make it back until tomorrow, but the serious tone of his voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

"What's wrong? Are you ok?" Panic suddenly seized her. Had something happened back home? Had something happened to Lissa? "Is Lissa ok? Adrian, answer me!"

"Oh, she's fine," He said; but something didn't feel right. Well, that wasn't counting the fact that her heart was pounding a mile a minute.

"Then why do you need to see me?" She asked now feeling confused as to what he could want.

"It's not really something I'd really like to discuss over the phone, Rose. Can you just come home?" She knew she probably should agree to go home; she did need to talk to him. Maybe she was selfish, but for the life of her she did not want to go home, not yet, not tonight.

"Adrian, I-I can't, not tonight. I can be back tomorrow if you want." He agreed, but Rose didn't miss the reluctance in which he had done so.

"Meet me for breakfast," He said. "I'll text you the place."

…

"Shit, shit, shit!" Lissa could not help pacing the length of her living room while running her fingers through her hair. She felt trapped, like a wild animal suddenly thrown into a cage. This was not supposed to happen, not now. Dam it, things were supposed to start looking up and, after the very unproductive day they'd all just had, she did not need this.

Dimitri had dropped her and Christian off at home a little while ago. To her surprise, Rose's apartment was open. Confused, she was about to stop in, just to make sure Rose was ok. After all, she wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow. Only when she walked to the door, she froze. That wasn't Rose. It was Adrian. And he was pissed.

"Liss?" Christian asked coming out of the bedroom. "What's wrong? What's got you so worked up?" Lissa hesitated upon answering. In order to answer Christian's question, she would have to let him in on Rose's secret. Could she really do that? Would that count as betraying Rose's trust?

"Lissa?" Christian asked, concern filling those icy blues.

"I-I can't tell you," She said. Christian's eyes narrowed as his brows rose in surprise. It wasn't like his sweetheart to keep secrets, at least not from him and not if it wasn't something super important or confidential.

"Can't or won't?" He asked, his voice sending a shiver through Lissa's body.

"Christian, please," She pleaded desperately. "I really can't tell you. You just have to trust me on this one, ok?" He let out a frustrated sigh.

"Are you ok, then?" He asked. Lissa nodded and his eyes locked on hers. In that moment, it was as though he was staring right into her soul, searching the depths of her mind. His eyes had never looked as intense as they did just then, and while most people might have been unnerved by his searching gaze, Lissa was not. If anything, she was flattered that he was that concern about her.

"This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with Rose and why she went away for the weekend, does it?" Lissa couldn't lie to him he was her boyfriend, the father of her baby. The man knew her better than she even knew herself sometimes.

"As a matter of fact it does," She admitted. "But I can't give you details."

"Can you tell me if she's ok at least?" Christian asked not at all looking happy by Lissa's secrecy, but he'd known both her and Rose for years. He knew of the bond they shared. If either one of them was trusted with a secret by the other, no one would be able to get it out of them. So when Lissa said that she was, he only sighed, nodded and pulled her into his arms.

Oooooh! So what's going on with Adrian? Why do you guys think he wants to see Rose so urgently? Did Lissa do the right thing not telling Christian? And what do you guys think of Rose's new outlook and approach on life? Most importantly, what do you think will happen next chapter? What will Dimitri do when he finds out? What should he do?

Review lovelies and I'll…mmm…try not to disappear like that again? :P Again guys sorry for the extreme wait! Do forgive me? ;)

XXX

Roza