I'm amazed at how fast I managed to write this chapter...
As usual, I don't have a beta, and I wrote it kind of fast, so I apologize for any mistakes.
Disclaimer: Still don't own Ghost Whisperer...
Glancing at the clock, Melinda reached over and grabbed the phone, and before she had a chance to second guess herself, dialed an all too familiar number.
"Melinda, it's almost midnight, is something wrong?" Delia asked as she answered phone, concerned as to why Melinda would be calling so late, it usually meant something was up.
"He came back," Melinda whispered, starting to cry, "And he knows."
"Who came back? What does he know?" Delia questioned, "Sweetie, what's going on?"
"Jim," Was all Melinda could manage to mutter.
"Jim? Jim's back?" Delia asked, shocked, "When did he come back?"
"A few days ago," Melinda said, chocking back tears, "I saw him at the doctor's office, and then at the store. He..he saw the girls. He knows they are his. What do I do?"
"Melinda, it sounds like you need to just talk to him and tell him the truth," Delia said, offering her advice. She always seemed to know the right thing to do. "You always knew this could happen."
"Yes, but I never wanted it to happen," Melinda stated, calming down a little.
"You still have feelings for him, don't you?" She questioned, already knowing the answer. Everyone knew it was true, Melinda had just never admitted it.
"Of course I still have feelings for him!" Melinda shouted, "He was my husband, he's the father of my daughters, I never stopped loving him, I just..I just never had the guts to go after him." Melinda said between tears.
"Oh, honey, I know," Delia tried to comfort her, "And there isn't a doubt in my mind that says he doesn't feel the same way. Go for it sweetie, after all these years, you two deserve to be together."
"You think?" Melinda questioned, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Of course I think so," Delia assured her, "You are going to get a second shot at your one true love."
"But he left me!" Melinda protested, "And then I kept this whole thing from him. How will he ever forgive me? How can I ever forgive him? It's all just too complicated."
"Because you and Jim love each other!" Delia insisted, "You always have, and you always will. I have seen you two together, and I still can't figure out how you managed to stay away from each other all these years. Now that he is back, you can figure it out and get on with your lives. I always knew this would happen, I just didn't think it would take this long," Delia laughed.
"Thanks, Delia," Melinda yawned, "I'm going to try to get some sleep. Allie and Andy have a birthday party to go to tomorrow, if I can work up the nerve to do it, I'm going to use the time to talk to..to talk to Jim."
"You go girl," Delia applauded her, "Good luck."
"Goodnight," Melinda said, "I'll fill you in on what happens tomorrow."
"Oh, you better," Both friends laughed as they clicked off their phones and headed off to bed.
...
The next day, Melinda dropped the twins off at their friends house, and then aimlessly drove around town, trying to figure out exactly what she was going to say to Jim.
Deciding it would be best if she went home to clean herself up first, she drove back to her house, and pulled into her driveway, shocked to find another car already park in her usual spot. Getting out of her car, she saw Jim sitting on her front porch, waiting for her.
A part of her wanted to run away, to hop back in her car and drive away as fast as she could, but she knew this moment was coming, and she wanted to get it over with. She wasn't sure if Delia was right about Jim still loving her, but she hoped it was. And even if he didn't, he at least needed to know the truth.
"Jim.." She started, walking up the steps to join him. She sat down next to him on the top step, and together they sat in silence for a moment.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He questioned, still staring blankly in front of him instead of turning to face her.
"Why did you leave?" She questioned back.
"You know why I left," He stated angrily, "You could have come with me."
"You know my place was here! It always has been!" She argued back, "You could could have stayed," She added quietly.
"That still doesn't mean you had the right to keep something like this from me," He said as he finally turned to look her in the eye.
"I'm..I'm sorry," Melinda apologized, the tears starting to form in her eyes, "It's just that when you left..when you left, I.."
"I know," Jim said, understanding exactly what she meant. In a moment of courage he reached out for her hand and squeezed it tightly.
"I never meant to hurt you," Melinda assured him, crying.
"And I never meant to hurt you," Jim added, "I never expected to be away this long. I always thought that you would come back to me, or at least call me to tell me to come home."
"I wanted to," She told him, trying to make him understand, "But I just didn't have the courage. And once I found out I was pregnant..."
"If you would have told me, I would have been home in an instant," Jim told her, both knowing he was telling the truth. Melinda knew how much he always wanted kids, and he would have been the happiest man alive if she had told him.
"I know," Melinda said, "But that's exactly why I didn't call you. I didn't want you to come home because you knew we were going to have a baby, or in this case, two, I wanted you to come home because you wanted to. I wanted you to do it for me," She explained.
"You still should have called," He insisted, still tightly holding on to her hand. It felt so right, having him holding her hand again, it was something she had missed, and she didn't dare try to pull away.
"I'm not the only one who could have called," Melinda reminded him, a hint of bitterness in her voice, he could have very well called her as well.
"You're right," He sighed, "We both messed up."
"Yes, yes we did," Melinda agreed, "Do you forgive me?" She questioned him.
"Do you forgive me?" He questioned back.
"Of course I forgive you," Melinda stated, starting to cry once again, "I could never be mad at you..Just like I could never stop loving you."
"Do you mean that?" Jim asked her as she nodded her head yes, even though they both already knew the answer, "I never stopped loving you either."
Now that the truth was out, they sat in silence for a moment, taking in all that they had learned in the past few minutes. Jim looked her into Melinda's eyes, pushed a strand of hair out of her face, and leaned in to kiss her...
Yes, I know, another cliffhanger...
But I promise I will try to update again soon. The story is almost over, actually.
Please review!
