Divine (A Josh Devine Fanfic)

Chapter 27

(Claire’s POV)

I was beginning to feel like such a terrible person. Josh was excited about being a father of a baby that might not even be his. I had to tell him soon, but I didn’t want to ruin his excitement. I loved seeing that big, cheeky smile on his face.

As I lay in Josh’s arms, I notice that his breathing becomes slower. Of course he would fall asleep. He fell asleep really fast recently. Being extremely careful, I move his arms and crawl out of his embrace.

I stand up just as a nurse pops in to check on Josh. “Everything okay?” She asks me while typing on the computer. I nod and let my mind wander. “Could you I ask you about something?” I say quietly and walk towards her. I kept my voice low. Even though Josh was asleep, I didn’t want to talk too loud. “Sure.” She nods and looks away from the computer, putting all her attention on me.

“I was just curious about paternity testing… on unborn babies. Could you tell me more about that?” My cheeks grow red as I stammer the words out. I glance over at Josh and see him sleeping soundly. If only he knew the truth right now. “The earliest you’re able to take a test is when the baby is approximately 10 weeks along. It’s also possible to have a test taken in the second trimester.” She explains to me. “Does it cost a lot?” I ask nervously. If there was a way I could do it secretly without paying a fortune, I would do that. “It depends, but sometimes it can be really expensive, £100 - £400.” My jaw drops at the price.

There was no way I could find money like that fast. “Thanks for your help.” I take a step back and let her leave the room. I pace back and forth at the end of Josh’s bed. I decide that I shouldn’t tell him about sleeping with Niall until after I take the test. Because if it is Josh’s, I won’t even bother telling him about that because it will be irrelevant. I didn’t even know how I could possibly tell Josh that I slept with his best friend? It’s not just something I could bring up in our everyday conversation.

I watch as a scene folds out in my head. “Isn’t the weather nice, Claire?” Josh would ask and comment about the beautiful sunshine. “Yeah the weather’s terrific, oh and by the way, I had sex with Niall.”

It just wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have with him. It would seem too abrupt and out of the blue. “I had sex with Niall.” I whisper as I face Josh. Telling him while he was sleeping was a start. “I slept with your best friend.” I whisper and then shake my head. “After you died, I had sex with Niall. And oh yeah, it was in our bed.”

This was a hopeless. No matter how many times I went over what to say, it just didn’t seem right. Any way I’d say it would break his heart into a million pieces.

(Josh’s POV)

I walked up to the front door of my flat dazed. The ground seemed to be moving in every which way. With a shaky hand, I opened the door and walked into the homey space.

“Claire!” I called out. I heard a distant sound of moaning. “Claire? Are you here?” I said as I walked further into the dark flat. I noticed that the living room was empty. The TV was on and cast a mysterious glow over the furniture. Claire’s iPhone sat on the couch. That meant she had to be here. Sitting right beside it, though, was Niall’s BlackBerry. That’s strange. I thought to myself.

I shrugged off the strange vibes I was getting. I stopped dead in my tracks. The noise was getting more audible. There was a lot of moaning going on. “Claire?” I said timidly, almost afraid of what was going on. Was someone else in our apartment? Did someone break in? “Niall…” I heard on the other side of the bedroom door. Even muffled, I still recognized that voice. It was Claire.

I sprinted towards the door and fling it open. I saw a blond quiff peaking out from underneath Claire’s naked body. “WHAT?!” I yelled and move towards the two. They continued to thrust, not even acknowledging my presence. “NIALL! CLAIRE! STOP!” I reached out and tried to pull them off of each other, but it’s like I can’t touch them.

Suddenly, everything blacks out. I start to pant and sit up. I look around to find that I’m in the hospital room and not the flat. “Claire?” I call out. “I’m right here.” She says from across the room, standing by the window.

Hot tears run down my cheek as I begin to recall the awful dream. “What’s wrong, honey?” She hurries over to my side and wraps her arms around me. “I had a nightmare. An awful one.” I whisper in her ear. My stomach churned. At least it was only a dream and not reality. “What was it about?” She asks as she strokes my hair. Her touch begins to make me relax a bit. I wipe away the excess tears and take a deep breath.

“I walked in on you and Niall… you guys were… ya know…” I couldn’t even bring myself to say it. I feel Claire stiffen and her fingers stop running along my head. “That’s terrible…” She says. “I’m just so glad it’s only a dream.” I smile and kiss her on the cheek. “Me too.” She gives me a weak smile and looks down at the ground. Something about the way she was acting made me feel uneasy, but I let it go.