Silence.
I ran a hand down my face. Life had taken an unsuspected turn. I loved the new course I was on. And, I wanted to ride that motherfucker until the wheels fell off.
“Range–”
“Make this right, Siah.”
“I will. I will, baby.”
Silence.
Her quietness was torture.
“I love you,” I confessed.
A brief pause ensued.
“I love you…in every dimension.”
The line died, disconnecting us. She’d ended the call.
I flippedthe page and was introduced to a new chapter. The small overhead light shone onto the book in my hand. I was four chapters in and hoping to finish the read within the next four days.
It was my second book from the law library. The first was an introduction to judicial proceedings. It was filled with terminology, history, and mock cases.
This book was full of penal codes, sentencing structures, and criminal proceedings. There would not be a conviction in my case, but my interest had begun to spiral. I was hungry for knowledge, relevant and irrelevant to my case, to better understand the criminal system, how it worked, and how I would make it work in my favor.
Make this right, Siah.
Pausing, I placed my hand on the mattress of the bed. Range’s words looped in my head, nonstop.
I despised the distance between us. I wanted nothing more than to be beside her. She needed me. They needed me. And, frankly, I needed them.
I shut off the light and closed the book in front of me. I’d return. For now, there was a more pressing matter that needed my immediate attention.
I tapped the screen of the black cell. Message notifications were stacked on top of each other. All from the same number. Allfrom her. A smile stretched my lips backward as they continued to pile in.
I opened the message thread and was hit with a sack of bricks. Right in the center of my chest. My heart suffered the most.
Sonogram images stared back at me. A picture for each image in the row of six. I zoomed in, studying them closely.
Daddy’s coming home soon.
The gray bubble appeared as I minimized the last image. Another appeared. It wasn’t a sonogram. It wasn’t in black and white. It was my Sunshine.
She stood in the mirror, dressed in athletic gear, treadmill behind her.
Week eight.
I rubbed a hand across her belly. Though flat, I knew there was life inside of it. Lives we’d created together. It wasn’t my intention to impregnate Range, especially given our circumstances. But now that she was carrying my seeds, I inherited a new sense of pride.
You’re awake.A new message appeared.
How are you feeling?
Mornings are tough. The discomfort subsides by noon.
Is there anything I can get you to help with your morning sickness?
