Colossal Jump

Chapter Sixteen

Tori knocks on the door.

"Ava, are you okay?" 

"No, Tori, it's not." I shake my head.

"What's the result?" 

"I can't," I choke out.

My legs shake and then give out. I collapse on the floor in a crumpled heap. Tears stream down my face as I stare at the two stripes on the test. Positive. What am I supposed to do with that? I can't do anything with a positive...

"Open the door, Ava." Tori bangs her fist on it, annoyance clinging to her voice.

I don't move... I can't move. I'm positive I can't move, and I'm positive everyone is going to hate me. Blake and I can't have another, no, we just can't handle it. He'll say everything will be fine and then it won't be fine. We'll hate each other and he'll leave me all alone with the positive.

We can pretend things are fine, we can pretend that we'll never be like the others. But the irony is that we're like everyone else despite what we do. We'd never be more than anything else, and certainly nothing less. We aren't special, we aren't going to make it through with a second child.

"Ava, for crap sake, open this door right now!" she demands, the mother inside of her flaring up.

Dragging my hand across my face, I remove the tears from my cheek and stand up. As I shuffle towards the door, I lean out and unlock the handle. The door immediately flies open and Tori storms into the room. She wraps her arms around my body and presses my face into her chest, as if she would do to comfort London.

With her arms wound around me tightly, it felt as if they were the only thing keeping me together. Once upon a time, Kyle was the person holding me together, now its Tori. I didn't seem to be able to do it myself, yet.

Poor Ava, poor Blake, I know that's what they'll say. Heck, that's how I felt for Blake before I got the chance to know him properly.

"Let me see the test," says Tori.

I hold up the test and she snatches it from my hands. I hear her gasp and then it falls silence for a moment.

"Well, shit," she cusses under her breath.

"Tori, I don't know what to do." I cry into her shirt and hug her body tightly. Tori felt like a life raft to this ocean of tears I'm about to cry.

"Hey, it tells you how far along you are," she comments, her tone light with excitement.

"What the heck?" I jerk back and grab the test from her. I look down at the week calculator and frown. "This isn't right, I had my period within this time frame." Taking the test, I throw it in the bin and fold my arms across my chest.

"You should still go to the doctors and get it check out," explains Tori.

"Look, nothing is wrong, so we'll forget this even happened," I say, already moving on from the scare.

I dry my tears and straighten out my shirt. Oddly, this is the moment I'm supposed to be strong. I don't feel strong.

"Ava, you can't bury your head under the sand and forget about it. Take it from someone who's screwed things up... it'll only hurt more." Again, Tori always made a good point. The longer I hide and keep this from Blake, the longer it's going to hurt him. I just don't want to give false hope.

"But I want to, Tori, so badly." I shake my head with disapproval. I needed to be the strong Ava, the one that keeps the ship moving forwards. "How did you tell Blake?" I ask.

"I sat him down with a bottle of beer and spat it out."

"Do you think that will work for me?" I ask.

"I'd like to see that." Laughs Tori.

"Promise me you won't say anything." I look into her eyes and search for the emotion swirling within them. They turn cold and she nods her head.

"I know we've never been the best of anything, but I promise I won't say anything to Blake. When I first found out, I wish I had someone who would have been there for me," says Tori.

"At some point, Tori." I smile. "I hope we can be friends. I know the situation isn't conventional and that I'm with your ex..."

"I was mad to begin with but it's my own fault. I hurt Blake and I left. I can justify why, but I can't justify ruining what you two have. I won't be happy with Blake, know how he is with you. I've found my own slice of happiness with Jude. I'm sorry I had to hurt you to find it, but I want you to know... I never want to come between you and Blake."

"I'm sure we could be friends." I nod. "In fact, I'd really like that."

Tori leans in and we hug it out.

Before we leave the bathroom, I throw the test in the bin and leave the worry behind for now. The false pregnancy test only helped aid my side, I'm not pregnant.

I'm glad I didn't google what was wrong with me as that never turns out well. You've either got something mild, which is generally the case, or three types of cancer... or perhaps I would have come out of denial and realised I could have been pregnant.

"We should get London up and ready," I comment.

"I'm surprised she isn't awake," says Tori.

"London sleeps like a log, Tori, you won't have an issue with noise."

"That's good. The people next door to me are so loud, it drives me nuts!" replies Tori.

We walk back into the bedroom and gather up London's belongings. I help her carry them to the car and then prepare London. Tori changes her while I prepare her bottle. Despite being the one allowed to feed her before she goes... the idea of London leaving feels odd.

She's not my daughter, but most days she feels like it. Even if I was to have my own child, preferably much further down the track, I'd never want to dismiss London from our lives. She'd always be my daughter, and she'd always have a huge family to stand behind her.

It's comforting to know those same people will stand behind me. Tori and I might have gotten off on the wrong foot and I'd even thought the worst about her. But I like that our relationship has changed.... That our differences have become the one thing that bonds us together.

Perhaps Tori and I aren't so different after all.

What do you think about Tori and Ava's new friendship? Will it last?