Betrayal

Chapter 19: Step the fuck up Ashley!

Jessica didn't come back for days. Ashley didn't know where she'd gone, or how long she would be gone. The blonde wasn't answering her phone. She wasn't anywhere to be seen.
That was, until Ashley came home from work one day to find a rather shaky Jessica curled up on the couch. The brunette dropped her bag and rushed to her, pulling her girlfriend close against her chest and pressing multitudes of kisses over her head.
"I'm so sorry Jess." Ashley whispered, holding the freezing girl close to her. She pulled her hoodie off and helped the blonde into it. The brunette decided to not press when her girlfriend didn't reply and just held her close as she carried the blonde to their bedroom and wrapped her in the covers. Pressing a kiss to Jessica's brow, Ashley stood up to leave the room.

"Stay." the blonde whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear it. The brunette sat back down on the bed and stroked the blonde curls she loved. She didn't say anything and just continued what she was doing.
"I'm sorry." Jessica looked up at her girlfriend. "I should trust you."
"You were right not to trust me." Ashley played with the hem of her sleeve. "About the kidnapping, I mean. It was stupid for me to do it. I just thought, that, maybe, I might be able to get over you by doing it. By proving to myself and the Jadefists that I could do it. But I'm weak. I...I..I wish that I could have not done it, maybe faked that I'd been hurt or something to get out of it. I'm sorry Jess. I really am."

The brunette looked at Jessica, slightly confused when she saw tears in the blonde's eyes. A few moments of silence passed and the brunette sighed.
"Jess, say something. Yell at me, hit me, kick me, throw me out! Just do something!" It was only then Ashley noticed the tears flowing down her own cheeks. "Please, I don't care! I deserve it!"
The brunette turned away from her and put her head in her hands, furiously wiping away her tears, expecting nothing, but wanting her to do something. Instead, she felt arms wrap around her from behind.
"I'm not mad." Jessica whispered, rubbing Ashley's back softly. "Of course, I would have preferred for it not to have happened in the first place. But it's done. But also, you got me out, you helped me start afresh. If it wasn't for all that, I'd still be stuck with Kian. I'd be stuck in that life I hated."
"You have every right to be mad." Ashley sniffled slightly, wiping her eyes and looking over her shoulder at her. "I hurt you."
"And I also hurt you." the blonde brushed some hair out of her girlfriend's face, softly tracing over the scar that she'd left on her eyebrow. "How about we start over, a fresh slate? No hurt, no grudges. Would you like that?"
Ashley nodded slowly, finally shifting in her place to cuddle Jessica. She buried her head into her shoulder and gripped onto her. It felt like hours before someone spoke again.

"Isn't there a possibility you could be pregnant?" Ashley whispered. "I remember us talking about it before you left."
The blonde didn't have to answer because the brunette could already tell from the sudden tenseness of her body that the answer was yes.
"Do you want to take a couple tests just to be sure whether you are or not?" Ashley stroked Jessica's cheek gently. "I'm pretty sure I still have emergency ones just in case, so we don't need to go out."
Jessica nodded and got up from the bed. Ashley followed her to the bathroom and pulled some tests out of the cabinet.
"Here," the brunette handed them to her girlfriend. "The instructions are on the back. Let me know when you're done babe."
Jessica looked down at the boxes of tests in shaky hands and nodded.

Ashley stepped outside and leaned against the wall. She let out a deep breath, running her fingers through her hair. Slipping her phone out of her pocket, the brunette opened the basically abandoned Bellas group chat.

Ashley: Hey. This group's been quiet. What's everyone been doing?
Beca: I've been busy on the tour with Khaled.
Emily: non stop assessments and rehearsals
Chloe: vet school 😭 it's not what I imagined.
Amy: being super incredible
Stacie: Aubrey.
Emily: 👁👄👁
Beca: and Stacie has arrived everyone

Ashley chuckled. Typical of them.

Ashley: Yeah, Stacie remember we have innocent children on this chat 😭😭
Stacie: like you haven't been banging Jessica this whole time the group's been dead!
Ashley: that's none of your business but I haven't.
Beca: Yeah Stace, it would be Jessica that's banging her!
Ashley: no we haven't had sex at all 😭😭
Beca: damn woman. No wonder someone's cranky 👀
Stacie: can't be right. She hasn't been laid since college.
Ashley: wow thanks a lot Stace. I've just been busy that's all
Stacie: sure... 

The brunette shook her head and put her phone back in her pocket, only just remembering why she was stood outside her bathroom. 
She didn't particularly want Jessica to be pregnant, but then again, if it was true that she was, Ashley would stand by her to the end. She couldn't leave the blonde to deal with that on her own. The other problem was; were they able to financially support a baby? Sure, the brunette could cut the medical costs due to being a midwife, but despite those, a baby was still fairly expensive. 

"Ash?" Jessica walked out the room and instantly nestled into her girlfriend's arms when a cuddle was offered. "I'm scared." 
She whispered, leaning her head on Ashley's shoulder. The blonde was visibly shaking and her signature smile was gone. 
"I know baby." the brunette stroked her hair and kissed her head. "Do you want to have some food while we wait?" 
A small nod was all Ashley got to indicate that Jessica did want some food. 
"What sort of thing do you want? Like a snack, or a meal?" 
"I don't know. Probably a snack." the blonde snuggled the brunette, almost clinging on to her shirt. Ashley nodded and lead her girlfriend to the kitchen and started cutting up some fruit to create the fruit salad Jessica loved to have when she was on her period in college. The blonde's nerves faded away and she smiled at how much the brunette remembered about her. 
Ashley handed her the bowl and a fork and grabbed a blanket so they could cuddle on the couch together.
"What happens if I am?" Jessica asked after a few moments of silence, while they cuddled and periodically popped a piece of fruit in their mouths. The nerves were back, not as bad as they were before; she was in Ashley's arms, of course she'd feel safer. 
"Well." The brunette thought for a few seconds before answering.