Chapter 17- Aftermath
Jay's voice echoed through the silent room. No one knew where to look. Trudy stared between Jay, Amber and Bray. Bray looked ready to kill someone, while Amber eyes pleaded for Bray to just listen to her. Jay's attention was focused on the shocked blonde in front of him, not even noticing everyone now knew his secrets.
Bray, not able to stand looking at anyone, marched out of the room. Amber started to follow, but at the last moment, she ran out of the room in the opposite direction. Trudy ran after her, knowing that her friend really needed her. For some reason, she looked at Lex before leaving. He just nodded his head, as if to say, 'go comfort her'.
What am I doing? She yelled at herself. I don't need HIS permission. Shaking her head, she put her own thoughts aside. Right now, she couldn't worry about her own life. Amber was going to need her too much.
Ebony leaned against Slade and crossed her arms. This is getting interesting, she thought as she crossed her arms. Her customary smirk crept onto her face. She knew something had been bothering Re-Nee lately and she had hoped that it was men problems, but Ebony had never expected this. The only thing that soured Ebony's happy thoughts was the Amber was pregnant with Jay's child. That should have been my child!
Slade wrapped his arms around her, as if sensing Ebony was thinking evil thoughts.That's why she loved him. He knew her better than she probably knew herself. He was better than any child her and Jay could have created. Turning her attention back to the fighting blondes, she heard Re-Nee say, "This is not something that should be discussed in front of everybody."
Embarrassment and shock were still showing on her face. Before Jay could respond or act, Re-Nee walked past him and up to her room. Everyone heard her door slam and knew she had locked the door. No one would be able to talk or comfort her.
Jay felt like the biggest fool. He wasn't one to lose his temper, but something about Re-Nee made him forget he had control of his emotions. He so badly wanted to walk up those stairs and pound on her door. This conversation wasn't over yet and he really wanted to finish it. He stood there a second, debating what he would do. Finally, he walked out the front door, not giving anyone a single glance.
Knowing the drama was over for at least the night, everyone separated and headed towards their rooms. Tina and Cloe stayed behind to clean up the food and to talk of the change in events. "I should have known!" Tina cried. "I should have known when I asked her about those sheets! What is going on through her mind? She's never this reckless or…or…"
"Stupid?" Cloe supplied.
"Yeah…stupid," Tina repeated, as if making sure that 'stupid' was the right word. "What was she thinking? She barely knows the guy. Was she just trying to get revenge on Bray?"
Cloe shook her head. "Now, does that really sound like our straight-forward leader? Plus, even you said that she was over Bray."
"Maybe I was wrong. Love can do strange things to a person. You didn't get to see how Luke acted when Guy was after me. You would have been shocked."
Cloe thoughtfully stared out in space as she finished washing the dishes. Finally, she said, "Look, we'll never figure this out until we talk to her and she won't let anything out until she wants us to know. I really need to go calm down Ved. He looked ready to kill his brother. I just want to know what was going through Jay's mind." Placing the last dish down, Cloe started out of the kitchen.
Tina followed her out. "You're right. I guess I should check on Luke. He didn't look too happy either. Hopefully Guy can keep Bray settled until the morning."
Cloe shook off sleepiness as she stretched. After leaving Tina, she squared her shoulders and marched into her room. As she suspected, Ved was angrier than a bull seeing red. After several minutes of hushed screams, Cloe finally had Ved calm enough to go to bed. Of course, Josh decided it was time for his middle-of-the-night feeding. Cloe was beyond exhausted by the time she fell asleep.
Turning over, Cloe tried to cuddle closer to Ved. Slight problem though - he was missing. Jumping out of bed, Cloe ran out of her room and into the living room. There she found Danni cleaning up the rest of last night's mess.
"Have you seen Ved?" Cloe asked frantically. Ved was known to act foolishly and Cloe knew that was exactly what he was going to do if he caught up with his brother. Danni noticed the worried look on Cloe's face.
"He said he needed some fresh air to calm his nerves. I tired to dissuade him, but he wouldn't listen." Cloe grew a little more worried. "Don't worry," Danni said, in hopes that she could calm her friend. "He wouldn't do something too stupid."
It was easy to locate Jay. As kids, Jay always ran to places that would calm him. Since arriving on the island, Jay had spent a lot of time on the hill that Re-Nee had been on when she first heard about the approaching boat.
Jay quickly turned as he heard footstep behind him. Jay threw his hands up and began to say, "I was stu…"
"You jackass!" Ved yelled as he pulled back his fist. Jay staggered back due to the blow Ved had delivered. Jay recovered his balance and began to rub his jaw. "I guess I deserve that," he whispered.
This irritated Ved even more. "Is that all you've got to say? What the hell is your problem? What were you thinking? You were always one to believe in true love and here you are messing with everything in a skirt. First, you get Amber pregnant and now you're going after Re-Nee. You didn't even trust her in the beginning. You better have hoped you used protection."
Jay only looked down at the ground. Ved pulled back his arm to hit his brother again. This time, Jay stopped him. "I allowed the first one, but that's all you're going to get. It's not like I planned on it happening. It just did, ok?"
Ved relaxed his arm and pulled it away. Rotating his wrist a few times, Ved sat down. "What are you going to do, then?"
Jay sat down next to his brother and placed his head in his hands. Finally, he looked up and said, "Believe it or not, I don't know. Before you get upset, let me speak.
"I'm not going to pretend that the baby's not mine. Mom and Dad taught us better than that." Ved looked a little guilty, but Jay continued on with his thoughts. "I just don't have a place in Amber's life anymore. Friends, maybe. I think that's all we've ever been. I just hope Bray can understand that it all happened when we thought he was dead."
"And Re-Nee?" Ved asked when Jay stopped speaking. "She deserves the best. She deserves more than a one night stand. She looked after people when she could have told them to march back on the boat they came in on and sail away. We'll get that boat running again. What are you going to do, Jay?"
Jay stood up and placed his hands in his pockets. "What I did was stupid. I've thought a lot about it. We let things get out of hand. I'm not ready for a relationship and neither is she. Ved, it was only going to be a one night stand." It wasn't what Jay wanted but she didn't seem to want more.
Ved stood up and turned to leave. He just couldn't understand his brother right now. At the party, it seemed like Jay was fighting for a relationship, but now he was saying that that night meant nothing to him. After taking a few steps, Ved turned back to his brother. "For your sake, Re-Nee better not end up hurt. You won't only have to deal with me then."
"This is what writers live off of!" Ellie exclaimed to Jack. "The drama! The scandals! The lies! Two leaders of tribes that accidentally come together fall for in love. Will there be a merger? Who will leave this island?" Ellie stopped and looked at Jack. "Are you even listening to me?" she asked.
"Yeah…yeah," he said distractedly. "Love, mergers, scandals. I got it." Ellie had been going non-stop since last night. Jack was only able to escape when they fell asleep last night. Now, he was trying to figure out what was taking Guy so long to fix the boat. After a few minutes of silence, Jack's words sank into his head. Turning to look at Ellie, he began to apologize.
Both were saved from saying anything when there was a knock on the door. Jack rushed to open it. "Oh… hey Guy!" Jack said.
"I hope I'm not disturbing anything," Guy said, looking at Ellie, "but I was wondering if I could borrow Jack for a while." Turning to Jack, Guy continued to talk. "Ved's already downstairs and I figured the three of us could try and figure out what's wrong with the boat."
Excitement grew on Jack's face. "I was just thinking about that." Following Guy down the stairs, Jack rattled off ideas. "I figured it's something electrical. Maybe the water effected…" Jack voice grew fainter as walked away from the room. Ellie threw her hands up. She'd just have to talk to Jack later about ignoring her.
Amber had been awake all night. Tears coursed down her cheek as she laid on her bed. Bray Jr. knew something was wrong, so he too had been restless. He was whinny and continually wanted to be held. Amber just laid in bed, as if she didn't hear him fussing.
Trudy wasn't sure what she should do or say. She alternated between rubbing her friend's back and trying to calm Bray Jr. Trudy tried to whisper comforting words, but they fell on deaf ears.
Around dawn, Amber's tears finally stop traveling down her cheeks. She was completely dry. No tear could form, although she felt like crying. Bray Jr. finally nodded off in Trudy's arms. Walking ever so slowly to the crib, Trudy placed him in it. She watched him a few moments before turning back to her friend.
Sitting beside her on the bed, Trudy placed her hand on Amber's back. "This is what it feels like, isn't it?" Amber whispered. "This is what you and Salene and Ebony must have felt like when Bray chose me. You knew you had no right to him, but you didn't want anyone else to have him."
"Let Jay go. Trust me on this one. You don't want to ruin things with Bray. If he feels betrayed or feels that you are betraying someone he cares for, he'll dump you before you could even blink." Trudy moved over to give Amber some room as she sat up.
"I'm over him." Trudy looked at her doubtfully. "I really am. Things have…they're different now. Bray won't even talk to me now. I'm carrying Jay's child. I love Bray with all my heart, but Jay's such a good man…"
"Stop thinking that way!" Trudy said. She stood up and began to pace the room. "You and Bray were meant to be together. Don't you see that? This is just another obstacle in the two of your lives. You found each other after your 'death'. You overcame Ebony, Sasha, Salene, Pride and me. You overcame his 'death'. Now, you will overcome the stresses that will happen when you are having a child that isn't fathered by the man you are with."
Trudy stopped and looked at her friend. "You and Jay were never meant to be. Even you told me that sometimes you didn't feel like there was chemistry, that he was no Bray. I told you it was tough to get over a first love, but sometimes you just had to move on. Well, you have found your first love again. Why would you want second best?"
Amber placed her hands on her stomach. "Do you think he'll talk to me again? He looked so mad. He just marched out of that room. He looked so hurt."
Trudy came back over to the bed and sat down. Placing her arm around Amber's shoulders, she said, "He'll give you a chance to explain. Bray just needs some time to cool off. Bray and Jay have got some macho thing going on right now. Things are going to hit the fan, but Bray will talk to you."
Amber leaned her head against Trudy's shoulder. "Thanks Trud. You should follow your own advice. Stop settling for second best and find that perfect guy."
Deep inside herself, Trudy felt some stirring. She desperately tried to push it down, but it seemed to continue to boil higher inside her. Putting all her strength behind her mental push, the feeling crawled back to its hiding place. That was one feeling she wasn't ready to acknowledge.
Bray stood down by the beach. So many emotions were twirling through him. He had been so happy to see Amber again and to see his baby boy. He felt some guilt over the way things ended with Re-Nee. He felt fear over what the future held, especially when it came to the boat. Finally, he felt anger over anything and everything that concerned Jay.
No one but himself should father any child that from of Amber. They were soul mates. They were meant to be. Hadn't it been proven over and over again? Why didn't Amber wait a little while longer? Bray asked himself.
You can't blame her. You didn't wait too long before getting together with Danni, the reasonable side snickered.
Well, the other side argued back, who does Jay think he is? Is it his mission to sleep with every girl he sees? Isn't it good enough that he played with Ebony's heart, then Trudy's? Isn't good enough that he got Amber pregnant? Does he have to move on to Re-Nee?
Bray threw the stone he had been holding into the water. It bounced once before sinking. Bray felt like that stone. Once that stone bounced off the water, hope soared. Things had to be okay because he was saved from sinking. Then gravity set in and all the hope was sucked out of him as he was sent tumbling down to a dark corner of the ocean.
Feeling disgusted with himself, Bray walked back towards the house. Amber deserved the right to explain to him. They needed the chance to try to work things out. But Bray was sure about one thing. Jay would not have anything to do with their family.
It was noon before Re-Nee exited her room. Of course, the first person she bumped into was Ebony. "What do you want?" Re-Nee asked, hoping she could escape quickly.
"I told you," Ebony exclaimed. "All the looks and silences between you two. And you had that look… the glowing look that Jay seems to place on a woman's face. You went and tried to hide the truth from me. Tsk tsk," Ebony clucked as she shook her head. Her smirk never faltered as she watched Re-Nee's expressions.
Re-Nee shook her head in defeat and started down the stairs. "Look Ebony, I'm not in the mood. I don't want to talk about it."
Ebony followed her down the stairs. "Oh, why not?" she asked. "Are you afraid to admit that Jay's pulled you into his spell? I told you he would. Or could it be Amber? Afraid she'll try to claim Jay as her own?" Bending forward, Ebony whispered, "There are ways to make sure things don't go right in her pregnancy…"
Re-Nee turned around. "Don't even think about it!" she angrily cried. "You lay one hand on her…" Re-Nee trailed off as Ebony's laughter grew. "What's so funny?" Re-Nee demanded.
Ebony only shook her head and walked away. Before Re-Nee could do the same, Cloe and Tina descended upon her. Danni wasn't far behind.
"What were you thinking?"
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"Was protection used?"
"How could you let him use you?"
"STOP IT!" Re-Nee finally yelled. Pushing her way through the circle they had formed around her, she turned and faced the three. "Do we have to talk about this, NOW?"
Danni immediately nodded yes, but the other girls looked down at their hands. "I guess not…" Cloe whispered. Tina nodded her head in agreement. "Just know that we're here to listen. When you're ready, of course."
Re-Nee nodded her head and turned to leave. The three girls heard the back door shut. Danni exploded. "Why didn't you make her explain? You just let her go. Aren't you worried about what happened?"
Cloe shook her head and walked away. Tina also shook her head, but stayed to face Danni. "You should know better than to try and force anything out of Re-Nee. When she's ready, she'll speak. But until then, I recommend that you don't push her." Tina started to walk towards the playroom, but turned back around to face Danni. "And don't ever think that I don't worry about her. She's the closest thing I have to a sister." Finishing her sentence, Tina walked out of the room.