Highschool Clichés

Epilogue

Five years later....

"Seth!"

I hear giggling coming from under the small, barely queen-sized bed and I pretend that I don't know he is there. I purse my lips to stop myself from laughing out loud, when I see his little legs wriggle in amusement. "Oh well, I guess I would have to tell Carrie that we can't make it to her birthday party..." 

"No Mommy, here!" He scurries out form under the bed, his smile wide as he runs straight into my legs, holding on for all his little strength would allow. I squint down at him, pretending I still couldn't see him. "Hmm, where is he..." His little giggle rings out again and he squeezes my legs harder. "Silly Mommy, down here!" I gasp out loud like I'm seeing him for the first time and pick him up. His delighted squeal is all the warning I get before he slobbers my cheeks with kisses.

My heart squeezes in my chest as I look at my son. Some days it gets harder and harder to accept the fact that he's the splitting image of his father, but I do. The same piercing gray eyes that use to see into my soul and hold me captive, the same dimpled smile that got my heart beating a mile a minute every single time I look at him, is all the same. Even his sometimes mischievous ruse like this one reminds me so much of his father; it hurts to even look at him. But this little bundle of joy in my arms is my only saving grace in this cruel, unforgiving world. 

Being a teen mom wasn't easy. Two weeks after leaving the hospital with a gaping hole in my chest, I found out I was pregnant with Seth Jr. It crushed me to know that his father wasn't going to be apart of my life anymore, but I soon realized that I was going to be having a part of him with me. Someone that would always remind me of him. 

It was a blessing and a curse.

I visited the hospital everyday with my heart barely hanging by a thread, waiting for the news that would put the pieces back together. Waiting to hear that he was okay, that we could finally get out of that damn town and be a family. But everyday the dagger was twisted even deeper when the hospital staff refused to tell me anything. That did nothing to stop me though. 

Three months into my pregnancy, a nurse felt so sorry for me, she could not bear to see my pathetic, pregnant form sitting in those uncomfortable looking chairs, waiting to be disappointed again. 

"I'm so sorry," she had said, her eyes cast down in genuine sadness, "But Mr. Seth Muller died three months ago, and his family had decided to have his body cremated."

My grief was instant. My cries of agony did nothing to soothe my soul. It felt like my insides were boiling and there was nothing to make the pain go away. I left the hospital and found myself at his parents front door feeling numb. I wasn't expecting anyone to answer the door, but his mom did. Her disgust at seeing me there made the guilt even so much more to bear. 

I told her how sorry I was for the death of her only child because of me. Of how I did nothing to stay away from him because I felt like I couldn't. She had stood there staring at me like I was nothing but a nuisance to her. But when her eyes fell on my growing stomach, the rage there was so strong, I was sure if I reached out to touch her I would have gotten burned.  

"Listen to me well, you vixen. If I see you or that bastard you're carrying anywhere near my house or in this town again, I'll make sure to finish what Dimitri had started."

Leaving her house that day was the first time I acknowledged that her insults and threats were well and truly justified. A week after the encounter, with the help of Detective Camilla, I had all my bags packed and I was ready to leave this toxic town behind. I never heard from Brenna or Everette again, but I knew that was to be expected.