My mother made it clear that after the shame I had brought upon the family, I no longerhad a place in her life. She asked me to never return, that I was on my own.
The thing that stung her the most was the fact that I was not only pregnant, but that the father of my baby was the son of the Watsons, a family that had mistreated us during our darkest time. It was something she was not prepared to forgive.
Rejected by my mother, I was left with nothing but the baby growing inside of me and my determination to never give it up.
Not long after my mother kicked me out, Alex’s parents also asked him to leave for different reasons. Having gained their wealth in the pharmaceutical industry, they were upper-class elite and refused to accept me.
I was not from the same class, and since my father was African-American and my mother is Asian, my skin was a few shades too dark for their liking. Alex’s father did not even sugarcoat that part of the truth.
I was not welcome in their home, not even with their grandchild growing in my belly. His mother went as far as offeringme money to get an abortion and stay away from her son.
The pregnancy was the last nail in the coffin. Alex was disowned by his own family. I never told him about his mother’s blackmail because I didn’t want him to hurt more than he already was.
Left with no other choice and desperate to get away from all the stares and the gossip, we both dropped out of high school and left town to go create our own forbidden family.
Three months after we left Dallery, New Jersey, I woke up bleeding. The baby didn’t make it.
I called my mother to tell her what had happened and left endless messages. None of my calls were returned, and she didn’t respond to the letter I sent her. I was dead to her.
Alex was not welcome back home either. We only had each other.
Now he’s been taken away from me and I don’t know if he’ll come back.
The pain has finally subsided, but my body is heavy as I return to the living room and sink back onto the couch. I lie on my side and curl up as far as my belly would let me.
Even though I don’t think I can fall asleep again, my eyes drift shut of their own accord.
The next time I wake up, it’s to the sound of the phone ringing.
It’s Alex. Thank God.
He can’t speak for long, but he tells me to come and see him.
I need to look into his eyes to be assured that everything will be okay. Maybe he will have good news, that it was a misunderstanding and he’ll be set free soon.
Alex might need a few days of distancing himself to nurse his wounds. He always does that after we go through a rough patch, like losing a baby, but eventually, we’ll get back to us. Life would return to normal.
When the baby comes, our joy will melt away the remaining pain.
Chapter 5
After receiving Alex’s call, I couldn’t get to the jail fast enough.
It’s only eleven o’clock. I have an hour to kill before I get to see him. I was too impatient to wait at home.
I’ll use the time to get a bite to eat in a café with a name that’s too faded to read. It’s tucked between a fashion jewelry boutique and a bookstore that sells secondhand books.
The first thing I see when I enter is an old couple reading the Aston Daily with a photo of Alex across the front.
Alarm bells go off inside my head and I spin around and stumble back outside.
I collapse against a peeling wall to catch my breath. I’m nervous about being seen by anyone who recognizes me as Alex’s wife.
In this kind of situation, it would have been so much easier and safer to live in a big town.
I drive around town until I find the courage to get out of the car and walk into Harry’s Sandwich Bar. There are hardly any customers inside and it’s located close to the entrance of Maple Leaf Park.
I order an avocado and tomato sandwich and a small bottle of freshly pressed orange juice. I take my breakfast with me into the park and make myself comfortable on a park bench.
