Trading Heartbeats

Chapter 28 - The Appointment

Dusk had barely broken in when a pair of soft lips touched Amelia's. Amelia opened her eyes lazily only to stare up into the blue/green eyes of Cody, who had been kneeling beside her bed. Amelia's eyes filled with tears again. She was wrong, like always. She had no business fighting with Cody. She opened her mouth to apologize, but Cody stopped her by placing his lips against her once more. "Don't say it," he whispered to her once they had pulled away from the kiss. Amelia's lips twitched into a small smile as Cody placed his warm hand on her mascara-tear-stained cheek. Amelia's eyes closed at the warmness of his palm.

Cody could feel his throat getting tight, for during this course of time, he'd been debating whether leaving her or staying with her was the right thing to do. He wanted to stay with her, knowing that she needed him, but after everything that's happened, was he good enough for her? Amelia's eyes opened once more and stared into his, leaving all Cody's doubts and thoughts to be forgotten if just for a moment. Neither spoke, but they both listened. The silence had been filled with comfort and words that need not be spoken but were simply understood. Whatever their decisions were to be, they were sure of one thing, it wouldn't be for the betterment of themselves, but for the betterment of each other.

"I know what she did Brittany, but don't you think you were a little hard on her," Sonelle asked as she paced around her apartment with her cell phone clutched to her ear.

"Me? Harsh? Did you see the way she almost came at me, Sonelle," Brittany asked. Sonelle sighed.

"I'm not getting into this with you, Brit, but neither should you. Whatever happened between her and Punk is just exactly that - between her and Punk," Sonelle stated sitting herself on the couch.

"Don't forget that it was not only them that were affected by their mistake, but our best friend, Khaila," Brittany replied. Sonelle sighed once more.

"Alright, Brittany, look. I have to go anyways, I'll text you later," Sonelle stated before hanging up immediately. She set her phone down beside her and took in a deep sigh. As she looked back on everything now, their entire friendship was disintegrating right before their eyes. Amelia and Cody and Punk and Khaila just aren't people you'd put together, especially not after what Amelia and Punk had done and recently what Amelia had discovered and disclosed to the girls. Brittany was still very upset with Amelia for wounding one of her best friends, and Justin seemed to be quite indifferent in this situation. As far as Sonelle was concerned, she and Kofi were the peacemakers of the entire disintegration.

Sonelle always believed in second chances; in fact, when she'd gotten the slightest chance to speak to Amelia at the café, she jumped at it. Years of friendship aren't meant to be thrown away just like that. It looked as if what everyone said about the WWE was right - it truly isn't a place for friends. Suddenly, a hand rested itself on her shoulder from behind. Sonelle jumped a bit as she looked up at the man who'd been grinning at her. She smiled and watched as Kofi crossed over and took a seat on the couch beside her. Extending his arm around her, he asked, "Are you ok?" Sonelle gave a slight nod. Kofi smiled and kissed the side of her head. "Don't worry; everything will work out. Trust me," he whispered to her. Sonelle smiled. Maybe that's all she really needed to do - to just stop trying to make everything better and let it fall into place. After all, isn't it always said that the greatest things happen when we fall?

Brittany slammed her phone down on the bed muttering an 'ugh' under her breath. Justin, who had been lying beside her the whole while, finally looked up at her. He flicked off the T.V. and sat up almost immediately. "Everything alright," Justin asked. Brittany gave a nod.

"Just friend stuff," she muttered to him. Justin gave a slight smile and pulled her into his chest. Brittany smiled at this.

"You're doing too much," he whispered to her kissing her cheek once. Brittany sighed and shrugged. "Everything will take shape, don't worry," he whispered to her again. Brittany looked at him hopefully and smiled.

"Thanks, Justin," she whispered back. Justin gave a slight smirk and kissed her lips once. His way of saying 'you're welcome', she assumed. Suddenly, Justin removed himself from the bed. Brittany raised one eyebrow confusedly. "Where are you going," she asked having noted that he was heading out into the living room. Justin simply smiled.

"It's a surprise," he stated, "close your eyes." Brittany did as she was told, and Justin left the room suddenly. Then, just as suddenly as Justin had left the room, she felt two hands take hers and leave something papery in them; then in one more second, she felt two lips press against hers for a peck. "Open them," he whispered in her ear. Brittany opened her eyes and looked down at her hands that were indeed clutching pieces of paper. Brittany opened her hands revealing two plane tickets. Her eyes widened with excitement as she looked back up at Justin who gave her a nod. "Look at them closer," he continued. Brittany held them up closer and read 'Cape Town, South Africa' on one of them. Her heart pumped extremely fast before letting out a slight shriek and flinging her arms around Justin's neck.

Justin smirked and hugged her back. "Our flight leaves Saturday," he told her. Brittany smiled and kissed his lips once.

"I love you, you know that, don't you," she told him staring into his eyes. Justin smirked.

"I'm glad I do," he whispered to her. The two kissed once more before Justin had tackled Brittany onto the bed once more. It was no denying it, Justin had a way of making her forget her worries, and in truth, that was all Brittany had ever wanted.

"But you already know you're not pregnant," Punk said as he struggled to put on his converse.

"I want to make sure," Khaila told him as she retreated out of the bathroom wearing blue jeans, a plain black blouse and a pair of flip-flops.

"I hate hospitals," Punk mumbled under his breath. Khaila giggled at this and pulled on his hand. Punk had finally gotten his foot into his converse when Khaila had been tugging him down the stairs. The two scrambled into the car and drove towards the hospital. In a moment's time, Khaila had performed the tests instructed by the doctor, and proceeded out into the waiting room with Punk who was sitting near the receptionist's counter. Punk, who had one arm around Khaila, held a comic book in his lap and read it silently. Khaila rested her head on his shoulder, anxiously waiting the results of the test. A couple of minutes had passed before two very familiar faces had walked in.

Amelia stopped dead in her tracks as she caught sight of Khaila and Punk. Punk's head lifted itself up and glared at Cody who glared back. Cody rolled his eyes away from Punk and kissed Amelia's head.

"You sit down. I'll confirm the appointment," he whispered to her. Amelia gave a slight nod, and her stomach had begun to churn once more. As she took a seat farthest to the back, she stared at her knees hoping this humiliation and embarrassment would be over-with. Cody approached the nurse behind the counter and gave a small smile. In a hushed voice, he continued, "Yes, I'm here with a Miss Amelia Rose; we're here for a … paternity test." Cody could hear a slight snicker towards his left. His fingers curled themselves up into a fist ready to strike Punk once more. The nurse, who had been checking the many papers scattered on her desk, finally looked up and smiled.

"Yes, here it is - the pre-natal ," she said, "I'll call you both up in a moment." Cody gave the nurse a courteous nod and retreated back to a seat beside Amelia. Amelia's hands had been trembling in her lap. Cody extended an arm around her and placed a hand on hers. He pressed his lips to her temple giving it a slight peck trying to inspire a bit of confidence and sureness in her even though he had lacked quite a bit of both qualities at the moment as well. His mind still raced on whether or not he should leave Amelia. After thinking about it last night, he'd assured himself that all he did was complicate her life, and she didn't need that especially if she were going to have a child. Should he stay with her though? If the child turns out to be his, would he risk being a burden to Amelia for the sake of his child growing up in a home with both parents? But what if the child isn't his? Would he stay? Why would he? It's not his. He has nothing to lose. Just the thought that he may be raising the child of another man, especially a man who he detested, boiled his blood.

Suddenly, from across the room, Cody noticed Punk and Khaila rise from their seats to greet a doctor that had a manila envelope in his hand. Cody watched both Punk and Khaila's face remain expressionless as the doctor continued to speak and point at the envelope, Cody could swear he saw the doctor utter the words 'not pregnant'. Both Punk and Khaila nodded in unison and thanked the doctor before leaving the hospital. Suddenly, the doctor had stopped in front of both Cody and Amelia. "Good afternoon," he said happily. Amelia gave an uneasy smile as she staggered to her feet. Cody kept his arm around her for support. "Are you the couple who's receiving the Chorionic Villus Sampling," he asked. Cody shot the man a confused look. The doctor chuckled, "Oh, I'm sorry. The CVS is a step we use prior to the actual paternity testing." Amelia gave another uneasy nod. "Right. Well, come this way," he said as he led them off to a room with a large bedlike furniture covered by a sheet. After being told that the process would acquire her to strip down and wear a Johnny Skirt (which the doctor handed to her immediately), both Cody and the doctor left the room.

Amelia stripped down placing the Johnny skirt over her and positioning herself on the furniture awaiting the doctor. A few minutes later, the doctor stepped inside with a nurse who dragged an ultrasound system behind her. As the crammed it into the room, the procedures proceeded, and in about 20 minutes, she was finished. Amelia sat herself up carefully and hopped off of the bedlike furniture careful not to miss her footing. Although it hadn't concerned her before, she felt the need to ask why she hadn't grown a 'baby bump' as yet if it was the beginning of her fourth month of pregnancy. The doctor clarified that not all women have 'baby bumps', nor do all of them fully develop it till later one. Amelia thanked the doctor as he left the room allowing her the privacy to change back into her original clothing. As she exited out of the room, Cody, who had been leaning against the wall opposite the door, jumped and wrapped his arms around her tight.

Amelia gave him a small smile and hugged him back. "How did it go," he asked. Amelia nodded her head.

"The doctor said the baby's developing just fine even though I don't quite have a bump yet," she relayed. Cody gave her a small smile. The doctor came over to them one last time relaying when they could pick up the results of the paternity tests, which was 5 days. Both Cody and Amelia thanked the doctor one last time and proceeded home, nervously anticipating the results.

Finally, the day had come around. Cody and the remainder of the superstars (and Brittany) had already departed Chicago and proceeded to the other states for their upcoming shows. Amelia had noted, however, that before leaving, Cody had been different. He wouldn't talk to her as often as he would. He would refuse to sleep with her or even go out to dinner with her. Amelia withheld her breath. Perhaps he was just nervous about this whole thing, she assured herself. As she stepped out of her apartment, she immediately climbed into her car and drove to the hospital. Stepping in, she waltzed over to the receptionist, gave her name and stated her business. The nurse gave a slight nod and searched for the package beneath disorganized stacks of paper. Finally, she'd found it and handed it to Amelia, who gave a small smile and thanked the kind nurse.

Amelia turned the package over and over in her hands as she walked through the door and out to her car. She decided that it would be best if she opened it at her apartment. She sped off down the road wanting to reach the apartment in as little time as possible. Finally, she'd reached. Stepping out of her car, she carried the package inside and up to her apartment. Locking the door behind her, she retreated to her bedroom, sitting cross-legged on her bed and staring at the package in front of her. What if it wasn't Cody? What would she do? What would she tell Punk? What would she tell Cody? Tears had begun to fill her eyes as she gnawed on her lip and opened the package.

Pulling out the sheet of paper from inside, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. As she opened her eyes and read the sheet, tears gushed out of her eyes. She read and re-read the sheet several times, her eyes still falling onto the first sentence on the sheet, 'We have completed a kinship analysis on samples from the individuals listed below. Based on the scientific evidence, we conclude that Cody Runnels cannot be the biological father of the unborn child.' Amelia trembled as she kicked the sheet and the envelope off of the bed. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she dialled a number on her phone. Pressing the phone to her ear, she tried to stop her hyperventilating. A voice on the other end picked up, "Hello?"

Amelia cried into the phone once more and muttered, "Cody, I'm so sorry." In an instant, she hung up unwilling to listen to whatever else he was going to say whether it be negative or positive. She couldn't be sure. She dropped her phone onto the bed and lay back onto her pillow. Closing her eyes, she continued to weep. The child was for Punk. Everything had changed. Cody wouldn't come back to her. He couldn't. Why would he? What use would there be? Perhaps Layla was right, she did have an knack - an incredibly good one at that - for ruining relationships - even if it were her own. Amelia's crying hadn't lightened up.

With her eyes still tightly shut, she saw the face of the blue/green eyed man she loved indefinitely and with every fiber of her being shaking his head disapprovingly at her, before finally his image disappeared from her mind. Even though, she shut her eyes even tighter to regain the image of the man, nothing happened. He was gone, leaving no trace of recollection behind.