Chapter 5

The Uber arrived. I climbed into the backseat and gave my address.

The driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror, hesitated, and then handed me a packet of tissues.

"You okay, sweetie? Wipe your face."

I touched my cheek and realized I was covered in tears. I didn't even know when they had started falling, cold and wet.

It was 2:00 AM by the time I got back.

My apartment was in a run-down, sketchier suburb. The streetlight outside my building had been broken for six months, and nobody had bothered to fix it.

I pushed the door open to my tiny, 200-square-foot studio. The wallpaper was peeling, and wind whistled through the gaps in the window.

On the table sat my prenatal vitamins. Next to them was a baby poster I had taped to the wall—a chubby, smiling baby.

In the corner were a few cans of discounted baby formula. I had gone to three different grocery stores to compare prices just to save twelve dollars.

To save those twelve dollars, I had stood in line for three hours.

I tossed my apron into the washing machine. The envelope of cash fell out of the pocket.

Adding what I made tonight, I had nearly two thousand dollars.

But it was still a far cry from the twenty thousand we needed.

Though now, I didn't even know what I was saving for anymore.

I sat on the edge of the bed and touched my belly. The baby kicked rhythmically, like a heartbeat.

"Sweetheart," I whispered, "is Mommy really stupid?"

The baby kicked again.

"You think Mommy is stupid too, don't you?"

I let out a dry laugh, but as I laughed, the tears fell again.

My phone rang.

It was Austin, calling from a different number.

I silenced it and put it face-down on the table.

By the eighth call, I finally picked up.

"Chloe, I take back what I said earlier. I was just stressed. Please calm down, let's talk about this."

"Talk about what?"

"Our future. My feelings for you are real. Once I handle things on this end, we’ll get married."

"Handle things? How? A divorce?"

He fell silent for a few seconds.

"She’ll agree to it. Her family has money, they don't really care about me. But you're different. You only have me."

"You only have me."

Those words used to sound like sweet romance. Now, they sounded like a curse.

"Austin, do you think I am incredibly stupid?"

"Chloe—"

"I was stupid enough to let you lie to me for three years. Stupid enough to give you all my savings. Stupid enough to work manual labor while pregnant to help you raise money. Do you honestly think that if you say a few sweet words, I’ll just keep being your idiot?"

The line went quiet. When he spoke again, his voice had changed. The gentle, soothing tone was gone, replaced by a cold hardness.

It was like talking to a completely different person.

"Chloe, what are you trying to play at?"

"I’m telling you to stop calling me."