His Ruthless Revenge (A Dark Bully Romance)

Chapter Thirty Four

I still feel sick the next day and can't face going into work with Miranda. Finn has barely spoken to me since our disastrous meal the night before and I don't have the energy to try and talk to him either.
I end up phoning in sick which is something I've never done before. I do feel guilty about is but Monday's are always pretty quiet and I know that Miranda and Faye will be able to cope without me. Faye is someone I just recently hired but I have complete faith in her and know they'll be able to manage by themselves for one day.
I'm still lounging around in bed by eleven but eventually drag myself out of it and force myself to take a shower and brush my teeth. I feel somewhat better afterwards but my stomach is still a little queasy. Maybe my period is due or something? I pause for a moment when I try and figure out when that will be, reaching for my phone so I can scroll through my calendar.
Shit. My period was due yesterday which means I'm a day late. I realise there might be plenty of reasons why but that doesn't stop my mind from worrying. I wonder if I've taken all of my contraceptive pills correctly and reach for the packet I keep by my bed.

There's two left.

That means I missed a couple. Shit, shit, shit! How could I be so bloody stupid?! My head was clearly all over the place over the weekend and I stupidly forgot to take them.
The fact that my period is late is terrifying and my fear makes me realise how foolish I was for thinking I could be ready to have a baby. It was stupid of me to bring up the possibility with Finn and I wish I hadn't said anything at all.
Neither of if us are ready and the fact that we've failed to communicate with one another since Chase appeared is a huge red flag for me and proves that our relationship is hardly rock solid.
I decide to solve the matter once and for all by going to the pharmacy. I won't be able to settle until I know for sure and I need to take a test. I quickly tug a hairbrush through my hair and tie it in a ponytail, throwing on some clothes before I leave the house. The sooner I take the test, the sooner I can stop fretting over it.

I head straight to the nearest pharmacy as quick as I can, hoping I don't bump into anyone I know while I'm out. I realise I should have waited for Finn to get home so we could take the test together but I honestly can't wait until then.

I need to know.

I grab three different pregnancy tests and shove them in a carrier bag, keeping my head down as I pay for them and leave the pharmacy. My head is still down as I make my exit, accidentally colliding with someone on my way out.
"April? What are you doing here?" Chase demands, a bewildered expression on his face.
For God's sake, why on earth does he have to be here right now? Of all the people I could have bumped into, why the hell does it have to be him?
"What are you talking about? What are you doing here?" I challenge him, clutching my bag tightly.
"I live just over there." He replies smoothly, pointing towards an apartment complex over the road.
"I had no idea." I say truthfully, anxious to get away from him and avoid anymore of his questions.
"You sure about that? You haven't been following me, have you?" He teases me, smiling mischievously.
"Of course not." I snap abruptly, failing to take it as a joke.
"I'm just playing with you." He concedes calmly, realising I'm in no mood to play around.
"I-I have to get going anyway." I stammer helplessly, trying to get past him so I can head on home.
"Wait." He implores me, reaching out to stop me from leaving. "I just want to apologise for last night. If I said or did anything that made you feel uncomfortable."
"You didn't." I blurt out hastily, trying to bring an end to our conversation. "But I really have to go."
I somehow manage to squeeze past him but accidentally drop the bag I've been holding. He bends down to pick it up before I can stop him and hands it back to me.
"Here you go."
"Thanks." I mumble awkwardly, realising one of my pregnancy tests fell out in the process. "See you later."
I have no choice and decide to leave it behind, hoping he doesn't spot it as I walk away from him.
"April, wait! You dropped this!" He calls out after me, a look of astonishment on his face.
"Look, I didn't want you to see that." I murmur softly, snatching it out of his hand.
"You're pregnant?" He whispers, still staring at the test as my hands begin to tremble.
"No! I mean, I don't know yet." I reply quietly, stumbling over my words.
"But you think you might be?"
"There's a chance." I answer simply, sighing deeply.
"Right. Ok. Erm... how do you feel about that?" He inquires gently.
"Nervous. Scared. Terrified." I admit truthfully, raking my fingers through my hair. "I have no idea how I feel."
"What does Finn say about it?"
"He doesn't know yet."
"You mean you haven't told him?"
"There might not be anything to tell and I want to make sure first." I explain calmly, moistening my lips as my mind races with possibilities.
"You can always come back to my place if you don't want to do it by yourself." He suggests kindly, staring at me intently.
"I really can't do that."
"Why not?"
"There's Finn to consider as well as Miranda. What if they found out about it?"
"I won't tell if you won't." He assures me, encouraging me to trust him. "Come on."
He walks ahead and I somehow find myself following him, chastising myself for being so weak and foolish.
What the hell am I doing? Why can't I stop this? My footsteps follow him as he makes his way up the stairs and down a couple of corridors before we reach his apartment. I enter it without thinking, realising I rarely have a choice when it comes to Chase. I just can't help myself.
"This is nice." I observe honestly, surprised by the interior and how stylish it looks.
"It will do for now." Chase responds casually, shrugging as though it's no big deal. "Can I get you something to drink?"
"Just some water please."
He pours me a glass and hands it to me, watching my every move as I take a sip.
"So are you going to go and take it?"
"I might just wait until tomorrow now. It might be more accurate then."
"April, you're shaking. You have to know." He points out, placing his hand against my own.
"Fine." I sigh reluctantly as I grab the tests out of the carrier bag. "I'll be back in a minute."
I decide to take the most expensive test first and plan on saving the other two just in case. I place the test on the bathroom counter after I've taken it and step outside.
"Everything ok?" Chase asks, taking me by surprise.
He's sitting on the floor right outside the bathroom and encourages me to join him. He seems really concerned and seeing how anxious he is makes me even more nervous myself.
"I have to wait three minutes." I tell him, taking a seat on the floor beside him.
"What are you hoping for?" He blurts out, taking me by surprise.
"I... I feel guilty even saying it." I admit, lowering my head.
"You can tell me anything." He assures me. "You know that."
"I don't want to be pregnant." I confess, rubbing the centre of my forehead. "I don't think I want a baby at all."
"But you told me that you and Finn were thinking about trying."
"I just said that to get a rise out of you. It's something we mentioned but neither one of us are actually ready for."
"I'm not sure if anyone ever really is. You've just got to make the best of it whenever it happens to you."
"Is that what you did?" I prompt him, curiosity getting the better of me.
"I didn't have a choice." He sighs, smiling weakly. "I knew I had to be there for Billy no matter what."
"That's exactly why I couldn't stay with you." I reply softly. "I knew I couldn't stick around and watch you be a dad to someone else's baby."
"April, I..."
"Don't." I beg him, my eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Please don't."
"I'll be there for you both, you do know that, right?"
"Me and Finn?" I gasp, failing to understand him.
"Fuck, no." He chuckles, shaking his head. "I mean you and the baby."
I inhale sharply, watching him closely as his little finger reaches out and strokes my own gently. Our hands are side by side on the floor and barely even touching but I can still feel the electricity between us. My entire body is on fire and I can't remember the last time I experienced such a magnetic pull as this.
"Why would you say that? Why would you even care after everything that happened between us?" I demand forcefully, pulling my hand away.
"Because I still care about you and I'll feel the exact same way about your baby." He explains gently, sounding sincere.
"Time is up." I announce hastily, entering the bathroom.
I reach for the test and close my eyes, praying for a negative result.
"Well? What does it say?" Chase demands, following me into the bathroom.
"It's negative." I tell him, overwhelmed with relief. "I'm not pregnant."
"Wow... that's great news." He agrees, struggling to catch his breath. "I mean that's what you wanted, right?"
"I'm definitely relieved." I admit, overwhelmed with gratitude. "But I think I should probably get going now."
"Wait." He implores me, grabbing hold of my wrist. "Stay a bit longer."
"Chase, you know I can't."
"Please, April." He begs me. "Just a few more minutes."
He disappears before I can say another word, closing the door behind him as he enters another room. I have no idea what's he's doing and I'm seconds away from leaving when he re-emerges with a strange expression on his face.
"What's wrong? Where did you go?" I ask, firing questions at him.
"I ordered us a pizza." He chuckles lightly. "I thought you might be hungry."
"This really isn't a good idea." I argue, pointing out how uneasy I feel about staying.
"Trust me. It is." He murmurs, stroking the inside of my wrist with his thumb.
He leans in even closer and I hold my breath, fighting against the undeniable urge I have to kiss him. The pull I feel towards him is indescribable and I don't know how to resist him anymore.
A sudden knock on the door yanks me straight back to reality and I leap away from him, needing to put some distance between us.
"Who is that?" I whisper, covering my mouth so they can't hear me.
"Let me go and check." Chase replies quietly, looking through the peep hole on his front door. "Shit, it's Miranda."
"What are you talking about? What's she doing here?" I gasp, trembling uncontrollably.
"You'll have to hide in here and I'll get rid of her, I promise." He convinces me, leading me to his bedroom before closing the door behind him.
I close my eyes and try to quieten my breathing, keeping my hand over my mouth the entire time. There's no way Miranda can find me and I can't understand what she's doing here when she's supposed to be at work.
She'll never believe that nothing's going on if she catches me. It looks far too suspicious and I realise just how stupid I've been to come here in the first place.

What the hell was I thinking?

I can hear muffled voices on the other side of the door and strain to hear exactly what they're saying. I can't make out any of their conversation but hope Chase manages to make up an excuse and get rid of her as quickly as possible.
They stop talking for a few moments before I hear indistinct noises again. Miranda's moans penetrate through the door and it takes me a few moments to figure out what's happening. Her moans of pleasure increase and so does my horror.
I don't know why I do it but I somehow manage to open the bedroom door until there's a tiny crack in it and I'm able to peep out. I can't really see anything so try opening it a little bit more. I spot Miranda's handbag on the floor a few feet away from me before I even spot her.
She's bent over the sofa and Chase is behind her, grabbing hold of her hips as he slams into her again and again. His hand wraps around her long hair, pulling it back as she screams out in delight, begging him to keep on going and do it even harder.
I'm physically repulsed by the image of them together and shut the door as quietly as I can, covering my ears as I close my eyes and long to be some place else.
It seems to go on forever as their volume increases. It echoes throughout the entire apartment and I swear they must be doing it on purpose. I have to remind myself that Miranda has no idea that I'm here and cringe with embarrassment for her. She doesn't deserve this and neither do I.
Their sex noises eventually come to an abrupt end and I try listening to their verbal exchanges instead.
All I can make out is muffled noises and the sound of a door closing a few seconds later. The bedroom door opens slowly before Chase steps inside. He looks flustered and somewhat ashamed of himself, dragging his fingers through his hair as he struggles to look me in the eye.
"I'm so sorry about that, April. She wouldn't take no for an answer."
"I can't believe you just did that." I whisper, taking a step back from him in disgust.
"Did what?" He challenges me arrogantly. "Fuck my own girlfriend? That's what happens in healthy relationships, April."
"You're sick." I declare boldly, bitterness and jealousy oozing from my voice. "I can't believe I ever thought I was in love with you."
His head jerks back as though I just slapped him across the face. I can tell my words hurt him but I don't care anymore. I'm completely disgusted by him and want him to know it.
"Just get out, April. Go back to your boring life with your boring boyfriend and keep your nose out of my business." He snaps harshly, acting like he doesn't care and I'm some inconvenience to him.
I don't need to be asked twice and storm by him, shoving him in the chest so he stumbles back and I can get as far away from him as possible.

I don't know how I manage to hold it together until I get home but I somehow do it, breaking down the second I walk through the front door.
My legs crumble beneath me and I can't hold it in any longer, sobbing as I hug my knees to my chest and release all of the pain I've been holding in since Chase came back.
I'm not completely naive. It's not like I thought he'd never had sex with Miranda but to actually witness it with my own eyes is something else entirely. It brought back so many painful memories of him and Louise together and I don't know how to deal with it.
I despise Chase for what he made me endure and I hate him for how he's treating Miranda at the same time. I despise him so much yet it runs much deeper than that. I can't handle my conflicting emotions anymore and know I can't stay here. I have to get away from everything and try and make sense of what I want and how I truly feel.
There's no point in talking to Finn about any of this as I can't tell him the truth about what happened today and I'll feel even more conflicted if I do.
I realise I've ran out of options except for the most simple one.

I can go home.

I've not spent much time with my mum lately and I miss her like crazy. I reach for my phone before I change my mind and dial her number.
"Hello?" She answers warmly, her voice an instant source of comfort.
"Mum, it's me." I say breathlessly, trying to hide the fact that I've been crying.
"April?! How are you? I've missed you!" She exclaims excitedly, thrilled to hear from me.
"I'm doing fine." I lie feebly, attempting to sound upbeat and carefree.
"Are you sure? You don't sound it."
"I'm actually calling because I'm coming to see you." I announce boldly, praying she doesn't have other plans.
"That's wonderful! When should I expect you?" She asks cheerfully.
"Tonight." I reveal decidedly. "I'm coming home tonight."