Chapter 5: The Surprise Return
Amber was four months pregnant and everybody was getting ready for the baby's arrival. She did as much as she could during the day, even though she got tired easily. She remembered that it was the same thing with Bray. However, this time, Jay was going to be there when the baby was born. He wasn't going to leave her. Nothing was going to happen to him. He promised her that a long time ago after their wedding. Now, it was time for her to become a mother again. This time, the father was going to be there.
One day, everyone was sitting outside and were watching the children run around. It was Bray's birthday, so it was a big celebration. The boy was turning two and it scared Amber. Her little boy was growing up and she had Jay by her side to help her raise such an angel. She sat down and Jay wrapped his arm around her. "You okay?" He asked.
"Yeah, I'm tired," she replied.
Jay nodded before having her lean against him. Bray then ran over to him. "Daddy, look," he laughed. He opened his hand to reveal a frog. Amber watched as Jay held the frog.
"Where did you find this?" He asked.
Bray pointed over to the bushes and Jay put the frog back into Bray's hands. "Do you want this little guy get separated from his mommy and daddy?" He asked. Bray shook his head and Jay smiled at him. "Why don't you go put him back?" He suggested.
"Kay," Bray replied.
Amber leaned against him with a sigh. "Good, I thought he was going to ask if he could keep it," she sighed. Jay chuckled and placed a hand on her stomach as he watched Bray play with Brady and the other children. "Guys be careful around those branches," Amber warned.
"They're fine, Amber. Let them have fun," he insisted.
"I just don't want to bring home children with bumps and bruises."
"They're kids, Amber, they'll always get bumps and bruises."
Amber smiled at his words before feeling exhausted. She was getting tired of chasing Bray around the yard for picking up things that he wasn't allowed to touch. "I'm going to bed," she yawned.
"Do you need help?" He asked.
"No, I'll be fine," she replied.
Jay watched his wife go upstairs and couldn't brush off the unfriendly feeling he had as he watched her. He then looked up to see the kids throwing sticks around. "HEY! PUT THOSE DOWN!" He shouted. He got up to take the sticks away while Amber went up to bed.
Amber went up to her room and then she suddenly felt very uneasy, as if someone was watching her from all sides. "Hello?" She called. She looked around and saw that there was nobody there. She shrugged and was about to take her jacket off when the door closed.
"Hello, Amber," a familiar voice greeted.
She looked over her shoulder and her eyes widened at who stood there. "Bray?" She asked. Bray came out of the shadows with a grin.
"It's nice to see you again too," he replied.
"I thought you were dead? They told me you were dead."
"I was dead virtually. I was able to escape Ram."
He went to hug her when he noticed that something was different about her. She wasn't smiling and she didn't look to thrilled to see him. She looked worried and upset. "What's wrong?" He asked. All of a sudden, mixed with the hormones and the shock of Bray being back, she cried. She sat down and cried. "Amber, it's okay, I'm here. I'm back now and we can raise our son together like we were supposed to from the beginning," he assured her. She shook her head as she wiped her tears away.
"That's where you're wrong, Bray. I'm not the girl you once knew," she confessed.
"What are you talking about?" He asked.
He looked down and his eyes widened when he saw the wedding ring on her finger. "You're married?" Bray asked. Amber nodded and then she finally removed her jacket to reveal her stomach.
"And I'm pregnant," she replied.
"Is it Pride?" He asked.
"No, it's not Pride."
"Then, who?"
Just then the door opened and Jay came walking in with a sleeping child. "Amber, I think you were right when you told me to keep them away from the trees," he stated. He looked up to see Bray. Bray looked up on Jay's forehead to see the 'T' symbol on his forehead. The love of his life had married a Techno.
"A Techno? You chose a Techno over me?" He asked.
"I'm not a Techno anymore. I left the Technos," Jay replied.
"That doesn't change anything. You're still a Techno," Bray insisted.
"He's my husband and the father of my child," Amber put in.
"This Techno is the father?" Bray demanded.
"I already told you that I'm not a Techno anymore. I quit that team. I was sick of their games that they played on us. I quit and I joined the Mallrats," Jay insisted.
"Just because you switched teams doesn't change of what you are," Bray snapped.
Just then, little Bray stirred and woke up. "Daddy?" He asked. Jay hushed the boy.
"It's okay, Bray, get some sleep," Jay answered.
Bray looked at Jay in disbelief. His son, his own flesh and blood had called him 'daddy'. He set the toddler next to Amber. "Come on, Bray, we should talk. We need to let Amber get some rest," he insisted. Bray glared at Jay but agreed to talk about this whole thing. Amber held her son close to her and fell asleep.
Bray and Jay sat outside having a stare down. "Sitting here and staring at each other won't change the fact that Amber's my wife and she's carrying my child," Jay pointed out.
"How did you do it, Techno, huh? Did you use your machines to make her fall in love with you? Did you manipulate her to make her fall in love with you?" Bray demanded.
"No, you know what, Bray? Amber rejected me when she thought you were dead. We all thought you were dead, Bray. She rejected my heart at first. Then a friend told her that she had to move on with her life. It was the best for her and for her son. I took care of that boy as if he were my own. I love that boy, Bray. You can't take away the moments I shared with Amber and little Bray," Jay explained.
Bray stood up with a glare. "That boy is my son," he snapped. Jay stood up glaring right back at him.
"Bray is my son the moment I held him in my arms. You may have created him, but I raised him and I will continue to raise him the way I see fit with the help from Amber, my wife," Jay snapped back.
Bray was speechless for a second before he stormed off. Jay went back upstairs to talk to Amber.
Amber had woken up from her nap already and was trying to fix things up. She was so confused. She loved Jay, but she loved Bray too. Jay was the father of her child and he was her husband. He was the man she vowed to spend the rest of her life with. She looked over to see Jay standing there. "Where's Bray?" She asked.
"He went to blow off some steam," he replied.
"What did you say?" she asked.
"I didn't say anything. I spoke the truth."
Amber sighed and he noticed something different in her. "Amber, are you still in love with him?" He asked. She placed her stuff on the bed and sighed.
"I don't know, Jay. I really don't know," she confessed.
"What about me?" He asked.
Amber looked at him in shock. "Of course I love you, Jay. I married you, you're the father of my baby. Of course I love you," she replied.
"Bray's the father of our son. Do you still love him?" He asked.
Amber sighed and sat down. "Listen, Amber. I'll let you think about it. Tell me when you've made up your mind," he told her. She stood up and watched him go.
"JAY, WAIT!" She called.
Jay closed the door and Amber stood there in disbelief. He was making her choose between him and Bray. Even though she already chose who she wanted to be with at least she thought. "Do I love Jay or do I love Bray?" She pondered. She lowered her head and sat down.
