Matters Of The Heart ✔

Chapter Sixteen

“Bianca, please, don't close your eyes. Please baby, stay with me”, he begged, almost screaming at her to stop her from closing her eyes shut. Then he heard her draw her last breath and her body went numb in his arms.

He blamed himself for her death, if only he got to her five minutes earlier. He felt the woman sitting beside him pulled him in for a hug.

“I'm so sorry”, she ran her hand up and down his back, as he found comfort with her offering him a shoulder to cry on

“Thank you for being honest with me”, she finally admitted after a long moment of silence. “I know it wasn't easy for you. I want you to know that I'll be there for you whenever you need me to”.

He rose his eyes to look at her as she said this.” Do you really mean that?”

“Of course I do. I love you Ian”, his heart melted at her words. He was now certain that she was the one for her.

“I love you too, Abbie”

Austin arrived one hour early for his meeting. That's just how he was, he was never late for anything. Not especially a chance to work in the biggest companies in the city. When he applied for the job a month prior, he didn't think he'll get a call back so quick. He was expecting to wait yet another month. He wanted a challenge. Working as a financial advisor for his previous employer didn't seem enough.

He watched as the young woman approached him, he had seen her before, she was the boss's PA

“Mr Jenkins?”, she asked as she reached where he was sitting, to which he gave a short nod

She gave a small smile. “Please follow me”

He followed her until they reached the corner office in the 4th floor. She opened the door for him, gestured with her head that he walked inside before mouthing a quick, all the best to him before he thanked her and stepped inside.

He was taken aback by the view of the huge office as he took a moment to study his surroundings, grey and black were simply working for this office. Yep! He could do with a job from a place like this. The sound of the door closing shut behind him pulled him back to reality again.

He took a deep breath before taking a couple of steps forwards. The man sitting across him hadn't been aware of his presence. He was still focused on the paperwork in front of him to even notice him standing confidently across him.

He cleared his throat, so that he could be acknowledged. He watched as the dark haired man raise his eyes to look at him, before he chuckled and stood to his feet.

“I'm sorry, I didn't see you there”, he extended his hand for a handshake, formally introducing himself. “I'm Ian Parker”

He also stretched out his hand for a firm handshake with a man he was hopeful he will get the privilege of calling his boss at the end of the day

“Austin Jenkins”

After the meeting, Austin stepped out of the building feeling as overjoyed as he had ever been in years. He'll be managing the companies finances from the following week. He felt relieved that he finally secured what he would call a dream job.

Abbie would be so proud of him and he was content, happy

He found his wife baking in their kitchen. He pressed his lips on her cheek before telling her the good news. Mira seemed pleased for him as she jumped up and down before engulfing him in a bone crashing hug.

“I'm happy for you my darling”, she said, quite smitten with him

“What are you making?”

“Bran muffins, your favorite”

He felt his heart sink at her enthusiasm. Bran muffins were Abigail's favorite, not his. He still held onto to everything that she loved dearly, passing them off as his own to his wife.

He remembered how her eyes lit up each time he got them for her. She wouldn't even mind having them for breakfast, lunch and supper.

He never knew the last time they ate them together, it was the last night they would spend together. The night before she left him.…

He watched her as she looked out the window, a thousand of thoughts flooding into her mind as she placed her hand onto her growing baby bump. She felt a pair of hands circling around her waist and a tender kiss on her temple. He didn't know his mother paid her a visit that morning just after he left for work.

“We're going to be okay Abbie, everything is going to work out fine, you'll see”, he said as he noticed she was a little down that evening. She was always a happy soul, when something was wrong, it was not hard to detect.

She turned to face him and placed both her hands on his chest. He smiled widely at her reassuringly and she couldn't help but smile back. Her smile didn't last long as she cupped his face in her hands, studying his features closely, like she was taking him in with her eyes one last time. He had bags under his eyes, and they just screamed exhaustion due to lack of sleep.

Having to take up two jobs for him in order to put food on the table and maintain the tiny apartment they were living in downtown was taking its toll on her poor Austin. Waiter by day and cleaner by night.

The only time she got to see him and spend the little time they had with each other was when he knocked off at work in the late hours of every evening and some weekends

“You should be in bed”, she said, and he shook his head as he took her by the hand and guided her to the table where he had prepared something for them to eat

“Eat something”, he pushed leftover bran muffins he bought back home with him from his waitressing job toward her with a cup of black tea

“I'll return with a bottle of milk when I come back tomorrow”, he said as he dropped his eyes from hers because he knew she loved her tea with lots of milk. She noticed this and took his hands in her small ones.

“We're going to be okay one day, you'll see”

If only he knew that morning before he left for his day job that he would return to an empty apartment and a heartbreaking letter on the table, he wouldn't have never chosen to leave. He would have just stayed in bed with her all day, holding her close to him and never let go.

That night, like all the other nights when he sat in his study, re-reading the letter once more, he reached into his drawer again, pulling out a tiny item that gave him chest pains. It was a baby slipper. He had made enough tips at work one day and decided to surprise Abigail with two baby slippers when he returned to her one evening.

The both of them kept one of the slippers to themselves, just until their little one came into the world and filled them with their tiny feet

“This is to give you enough reason to come back home to us tonight”, she placed one slipper in his hand one morning, before kissing his cheek. “To me and our baby”

“I'll always come back to the both of you, no matter what”

***

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