LOVE LASTS FOR ETERNITY
Chapter Ten
Rose's POV
The shopping trip was a success.
It was fun choosing different dresses and other clothes. Mother had always
decided what I wore, so I'd never been able to choose like that. Selina and
Lucy helped me pick out different outfits, and I eventually decided on a
short-sleeved lavender summer dress, a dark blue one with pleats, and a white
lacy one with a red sash. I also bought a couple of skirts and tops, all of
which went together wonderfully. I picked out some shoes, as well, and a couple
of hair ribbons. As expected, Lucy was picking out goodness knows how many
little girl's dresses for me, which wouldn't have fit me if I had dieted down
to a skeleton. I told her that I was too big for those dresses and she seemed
to understand. She loved the shoe section, walking around in high heels miles
too big for her little feet. More than a few times, she tripped, but she simply
collapsed into a fit of giggles.
Jack's stuff was easy, just some
shirts and trousers. It was mine that was the problem. Mother was always telling
me how difficult I was to buy for, saying hardly any color at all went well
with red hair and that my body was a difficult shape. She made me feel like
some sort of horribly deformed freak, when in truth I just had some curves she
didn't approve of. She seemed to think they were indecent, far too suggestive
to the opposite sex, when actually I'd never had any man notice me in that way
before I'd met Cal.
After the clothes were bought,
Selina and I decided to go somewhere for lunch. We decided on a nice café and
had some sandwiches and salad, with smaller portions for Lucy. She was a little
angel, behaving perfectly. I'd always hated shopping as a child and would whine
and moan and fidget. Lucy was perfectly behaved, a well-behaved child Mother
would have given anything for me to have been. She finished all her sandwich
and ate her crusts without complaint, and was far less picky with her
vegetables than most children her age. I, on the other hand, ate slowly, my
stomach feeling a little queasy. I left a couple of bites of sandwich and half
the salad.
Selina looked at me with concern.
"Are you all right, Rose?" she asked.
I forced a smile. "I'm fine.
My stomach just feels a little bit queasy."
"Has this happened
before?"
"Well, it did last night. I
felt like I was going to be sick."
Selina considered. Then she
leaned across the table and spoke in a low voice so Lucy couldn't hear.
"Rose, please excuse my asking, but is your monthly late, by any
chance?" she asked.
I blushed. "Well, yes, it
is."
Selina stood up. "I think
you need to see a doctor."
I looked at her. "Why? Do
you think I'm ill?"
"Not ill, as such. I'm not
going to tell you my suspicions now. Let’s just see what the doctor's got to
say. This same thing happened to me..."
I thought about Selina's words as
we walked up the steps to the doctor's office. I began to worry. Was I ill? Was
it serious? I felt my stomach fill with butterflies as we sat in the waiting
room. Finally, a nurse in a white dress poked her head around the door.
"Rose Dawson?" she asked.
I stood up and Selina and Lucy
followed me into the office.
I lifted my top up to my chest
and let the doctor press and prod my abdomen. It didn't hurt, but I still felt
the queasiness. He wrote his results down and examined them.
"Tell me, how old are you,
Rose?"
"Eighteen next week."
"Right. And are you
married?"
I considered. Should I tell him?
"Yes," I said.
"Well, I've come to a
suspicion as to why you are feeling this way." I held my breath. "I'm
pleased to tell you that you are probably pregnant."
I gasped. "Are you
certain?" I asked, shocked.
"It‘s probable, but it will
be a few weeks before you can be certain."
I clasped my stomach with my
hands, knowing that there was a life inside me. Selina put a hand on my
shoulder.
"Rose? Are you all right?"
I nodded. "Yes. I'm fine.
Just a bit overwhelmed. Oh, my God. I'm pregnant!" I said as it sunk in.
Now that the shock was over, I was so happy. I was going to have a baby. Lucy
put a small hand on my stomach.
"No, you're not," she
said, shaking her head. "You aren't going to have a baby. Your belly isn't
big."
We all burst out laughing, except
Lucy, who looked at us in confusion.
We decided to make our way home.
The excitement of finding out I was pregnant had made me forget completely
about finding a job. I was bursting with excitement. I couldn't wait to tell
Jack. Then I stopped.
What if he wasn't as happy as I
was? What if he didn't want any children yet? I didn't know how I would live if
he didn't want our baby. I worried about it the whole way home.
When we got back to the house,
Selina let the dogs out of the upstairs room and the house was swamped with a
mass of black pups. The yellow pup trailed behind her siblings and settled
herself peacefully on the sofa. She looked at me, her eyes wide with fear. I
gently extended my hand, and she sniffed it. She trembled a little when I picked
her up, but calmed down a bit when I gently stroked her back. Soon she was
asleep in my arms. She was so cute when she was asleep. It was amazing how
unlike her siblings she was. They were loud and boisterous. She was quiet and
content. They were a glossy jet black, she was a soft, golden yellow. She
obviously had problems trusting people, but she seemed to like me a lot. I
could hear her soft breathing as she slept in my arms. I wondered to myself if
this was what it was like to hold your baby in your arms.
Lucy was upstairs, playing with
her dolls, and Selina was upstairs cleaning. I sat there, gently stroking the
puppy, thinking. I had to think about the future now. It wasn't just me and
Jack anymore. We had a baby to think about now. We wouldn't be able to stay on
with Nathan and Selina when the baby came. It wouldn't be fair to them. I had
to find a job soon and make some money before I got too big. I hoped Jack had
found one today. We needed money to support ourselves. The money from Cal's
coat would be a big help for us to settle down somewhere, but we needed to keep
the money coming in. I just hoped I could find a job that I could do.
About an hour later, Jack and
Nathan came back. Nathan went straight upstairs to put something he had bought
away. He wouldn’t tell me what it was. He seemed slightly shaken, a little
shocked, and he only faintly smiled. Jack looked worse. His face was grim, and
he looked deep in thought and worry. I noticed that one side of his face was
shadowed by a large bruise.
"Jack, what happened?"
I asked in a worried voice.
He came and sat down on the sofa
beside me. I gently touched the bruise and he winced in pain. "Rose, we
have to leave. Now."
"Why? What's wrong?" I
asked desperately.
He looked at me, his blue eyes
serious. "Rose, we're both in danger. Cal's here."