Velocity - Daniel Ricciardo

Chapter Thirty - Moving On

📍30th April 2019 – Salzburg, Austria
Amelia's POV

"So, I'm just waiting for him to come back from the hospital." I told Mollie as I positioned the phone to my ear and moved some hair behind my ear. "I don't know what to do with myself, Moll. This is killing me. I wish that you were here." My voice dulled.

"Oh, Mi," Mollie sighed on the other end of the line, her voice filled with concern. "What are you going to do if that test does show Daniel as father? I don't know what I'd do if Charlie had got someone else pregnant."

I leaned back against the headboard, staring at the ceiling as if it held the answers I was searching for. "I don't know," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "I don't think I can cope with it all. I just don't want to let Daniel down."

"It's okay to feel overwhelmed. Anyone would be in your situation." Mollie said in her soothing voice. "Daniel adores you, Mi. He wouldn't let this affect your relationship. Sure, it's going to be a hard time and it's going to be challenging, but you're partners, and that is what ultimately matters."

"I'm trying to be strong for him," I said, tears welling up in my eyes. "He's going through so much, and I want to be there for him. But this... this is different. It's not just about us anymore. It's about a baby, this will change everything and we've only just settled into our own special dynamic."

Mollie paused for a moment, letting my words hang in the air. "Have you talked to him about how you're feeling? He needs to know that you're struggling too. It wouldn't be fair to him if you decided to leave him without communication."

"I've tried," I said, wiping away a tear that had escaped down my cheek. "But every time I bring it up, I can see the stress in his eyes. He's already dealing with so much. I don't want to add to his stress. This is a massive deal for him, it's his first-born child."

The words broke something inside me, and I felt the dam of emotions burst open. I started to cry, my sobs wracking my body as I clutched the phone tighter. "Mollie, I don't know how to handle this," I choked out between sobs. "It's too much. It's all too much."

"Amelia, breathe," Mollie said, her voice urgent and soothing at the same time. "You need to take deep breaths, okay? I'm here with you. Just breathe."

I tried to follow her instructions, but my chest felt like it was being crushed by the weight of everything. The room seemed to spin, and I felt like I was drowning in a sea of overwhelming emotions. Fear, anxiety, helplessness—all of them swirled around me, pulling me under.

"I'm scared, Mollie," I confessed, my voice breaking. "I'm scared that I'm not strong enough to handle this. That I'll lose Daniel. I don't know how to be a stepmom."

Tears streamed down my face, hot and relentless, each one a manifestation of the turmoil inside me. I felt raw, exposed, like an open wound that kept bleeding no matter how much I tried to bandage it.

"Listen to me, Mi," Mollie said firmly, her voice cutting through the fog of my panic. "You are one of the strongest people I know. You've faced so much shit already, and you've come out on the other side. This is just another challenge, and you can get through it. You don't have to have all the answers right now. Plus, you don't even know if Daniel is the father. This could just unnecessary stress."

"But I feel so lost," I sobbed. "I feel like I'm failing him. And myself. I don't know how to be what he needs."

"You're not failing anyone," Mollie insisted. "You're doing the best you can in an incredibly difficult situation. It's okay to feel overwhelmed. It's okay to cry and to feel scared. But you're not alone in this. You have Daniel, and you have me. We're here for you. Girl, you're the closest thing I'll ever have to a sister."