8 Months:
"Happy birthday, man! Twenty-eight; you are getting old." One of Aaron's friends teased as he approached a group where some of the guys from the garage were mingling.
Jack had organised a party for Aaron at his and Jess' place to celebrate his birthday and it was good to finally have everyone together.
"Fuck off." He laughed, grabbing a beer off the side.
"So where's your girlfriend? I am still yet to meet her."
"She's just gone to visit her family. She lives in London so doesn't see them much." He responded yet unknown to him that was not where Sophie was.
"Hold up, you're putting effort in to do the whole long distance thing?"
By this point the guys from the garage who were stood there were looking knowingly at Aaron. They knew their relationship and knew that the 'long distance' thing really wasn't an issue as to them, at least they were still getting some time together which usually wasn't easy.
"It's not so bad; I go up there every weekend." Aaron shrugged it off as though it was nothing.
Considering they had gone without seeing each other for months on end, the fact that they were guaranteed to see one another every single weekend was a luxury in their relationship.
"I couldn't do it. It would drive me insane. You're having to stay faithful throughout the week yet with no physical girlfriend there to give you reason to."
"If you saw Sophie Carter you would understand why it's so easy for him to stay faithful." Nate spoke up and Aaron knew if Sophie had have been here she would have bit back at his comment with no hesitation.
Therefore, when he noticed her presence enter the room looking a little flustered, he knew this was not likely to go down well.
"Sorry, I didn't think I'd be that long." She breathed as she wound her arm around Aaron's back as he urged her into a hug.
She'd actually lied and was feeling terrible for it but felt as though she had no other option. She had gone to visit Alissa about the whole adoption situation after something that had happened earlier and ended up bumping into Juliet. From there things had gotten a little awkward and difficult due to the circumstances and there was no doubting the fact that Juliet had her all figured out.
"You're fine, babe." Aaron mumbled in return before pressing his lips to hers.
"Now I understand why you manage to stay faithful, Harris!" His friend spoke up causing Aaron to cringe as he knew what was going to happen.
Sophie's head snapped around to find where the voice was coming from before her eyes met with a guy she had never met before. However, he most definitely had not got off to a good start.
"Why's that?" She asked, her voice short and with very little patience.
She was obviously already not in the best mood and this had just topped it off.
"Well because..." He began to respond, not quite sure what words to use considering it was his friend's girlfriend. "You're hot." He quickly finished avoiding Aaron's eye contact.
However, little did he know Aaron was less worried about what he was saying about Sophie and more worried about what he had just unknowingly started in her.
"So if I wasn't 'hot'-" She mocked. "It would be okay to not be faithful? Girls you don't think are hot can be cheated on?"
Aaron's friend looked a little startled by Sophie's backlash for a moment, clearly not knowing how straightforward and opinionated she was.
"No but it would be more difficult."
Sophie paused for a moment before biting down on her lip, clearly trying to hold back her anger. She could feel Aaron's hand grazing against the skin showing on her back to try and calm her but due to the events of today, it wasn't going to happen.
"Do you want to rethink everything you're saying so we can start over or do I have to give you a lecture?" Sophie asked and the guy chuckled.
He thought she was joking but she really wasn't.
"You can save the lecture for another time." He replied smugly and with a nod of the head from Sophie, she then forced herself to lose his gaze.
"Do you want another drink? I'll get you one." She then turned to Aaron knowing she needed to get away from this before she completely lost it.
He had clearly caught on too because he agreed just to give her an excuse to get away and cool down for a moment.
*
"Are you going to explain where you were off to earlier then?" Corey stood opposite Sophie, looking at her with a knowing expression while she hovered by the drinks.
Taking a deep breath, this night was just getting worse and worse for her and her ability to contain her emotions was becoming impossible.
"No, it's none of your business." She finally turned to face him.
"You went into the pregnancy unit. It's definitely my business." Corey instantly responded, taking Sophie completely off guard.
"What the fuck, Corey?! You followed me?"
Sophie had arrived back in Brighton much earlier than she had told anyone for the simple fact she was heading for the hospital. However, when she had arrived she had typically bumped into Corey in the car park, which had resulted in a bunch of questions she didn't want to answer but was struggling to avoid.
"Yeah I followed you because you've been acting so fucking strange these past few months. I wanted to know what was up and now I get it!"
"No, you don't get it." Sophie mocked not wanting to stand and have this conversation after everything that had happened.
"You're pregnant aren't you?" He posed it more of a fact than a question as he looked to Sophie's stomach. There was no visible bump showing through her clothes but it had just been a natural reaction. "Why haven't you said anything?"
Corey obviously knew that there was a chance that it was his due to the mess of a relationship they had involved themselves in previously and it had led to complete anger to run through him.
Just staring back at him for a few minutes Sophie remained silent as she debated in her mind how to react. She knew she had been caught in the act so there was no way she was going to be able to hide it any longer.
"Because the baby was going up for adoption. No one needed to know." She sighed, wanting to grab a drink and disappear from this conversation but Corey wasn't making it possible; he was upset.
"What the fuck, Soph?" Corey looked genuinely shocked at the words that had just left her lips and was unsure how to express how he felt. "You didn't even think that whoever the dad is that they should know? You are just going to put it up for adoption and not give someone else a chance to try. Do you realise how fucking selfish that is?!"
He was beyond angry, that was obvious but he didn't realise that Sophie's levels were raising much higher than his.
"It doesn't even matter anymore, Corey! This conversation is over, just forget it!" She stressed trying to escape from where she had been cornered.
"Yes it does matter. What you are doing is wrong. Do you know which one of us is the dad?"
Corey stepped in her way from leaving once again and it was in that moment Sophie stopped trying and gave him her full attention.
"No and none of it matters because the baby is dead, Corey! It doesn't exist anymore; my body killed it as per fucking usual so whatever idea you had about potentially being a dad can disappear because the baby is gone." She bit and Corey stood frozen on the spot, not being able to speak.
Sophie's tone and words had been so cold. Everything she was saying was heart breaking yet she showed no signs of caring. She looked numb and that was exactly how she felt.
After the first weekend she had spent with Aaron in London, she had begun showing signs she was all so familiar with and knew exactly what was happening. She didn't feel anything, she couldn't express any kind of emotion because it would finally be a breaking point for her if she did.
She had experienced two miscarriages in the past and this was her third. She had been through the pain and heartbreak of it twice that she could no longer take it anymore. Therefore, she had instead completely shut down every emotion inside of her and instead put up a cold front. She had arrived at the hospital today and bluntly told the doctors that she was miscarriaging and refused to take any sympathy. The one bond she had built with the baby, even after insisting she wouldn't, had suddenly been broken and she showed no feelings towards it.
Therefore, standing here face to face with Corey, questioning her about the baby and insisting she was selfish did spark some kind of emotion from her but it was anger. She had kept up the front as though she didn't care and took to throwing the word 'death' at him instead of 'miscarriage' or 'lost' causing him to be left stunned and unable to process what was happening.
*
sorry it has taken me so long to post!