Treacherous Temptations [Chaennie]

Loss

Jennie and Roseanne settled themselves on the couch, a glass of water in front of each of them. The blonde waited patiently, not wanting to push Jennie to talk until she was ready. Instead, she sat back and watched as the older woman took a sip of her drink and tucked several stray hairs behind her ears.

"My parents had a loveless marriage," Jennie began. "I was their only common interest but they treated me rather differently. My father loved me very much and we shared his passion for art. He taught me to paint and we spent hours working in his studio together. My mother was never interested in his artwork, although they had met at one of his gallery openings. His wealth and prominent name drew my mother to him. She had come from a poor family and wanted to better herself. But she never loved my father, nor appreciated his talent. Less than a year into their marriage, my mother had an affair and fell pregnant. I only found this out when I turned eighteen. She had given the child up for adoption because my father, despite not leaving his adulterous wife, had refused to give the girl his surname. My mother wanted her daughter to be a Kim. So Lisa ended up being adopted by a couple who moved to England soon after I was born. And as the Kim heir my mother craved, my path was set. I was to become a doctor. A brain surgeon in fact. I guess everything went according to my mother's wishes until seven years ago."

Jennie paused, drank some more water, and continued.

"I was a resident in a hospital in Maine when my boyfriend was involved in a hunting accident. He was wheeled into my ER and I..." Jennie choked back a sob and Roseanne reached over to grasp her hands. "I couldn't save him. As soon as my superior recognised him, I was ordered away as they worked to stop the internal bleeding the bullet had caused. But they couldn't, and he ..."

There was no need for Jennie to finish her sentence. Roseanne wrapped her arms around the shaking woman, stroking her hair and holding her close as Jennie continued to cry, her body trembling with grief.

Roseanne had no idea. She had no clue that Jennie had suffered such trauma in her life. That she had lost someone, just like Roseanne had. Except Jennie's loss was far more brutal, final, and had utterly devastated the woman. At least Suzy was still alive, even if she had walked away from Roseanne and Oliver.

It took a long time for Jennie to stop crying. When at last she raised her head from Roseanne's shoulder, she wiped her tear-stained red face and mumbled an apology.

"No need to say sorry, sweetheart," Roseanne assured, placing a soft kiss to Jennie's temple. "I'm sorry. Sorry you had to go through that."

"It ruined me," Jennie replied. "I had a breakdown, left the hospital and shut myself in my old room at my parents house. My mother was angry that I'd abandoned her plans. My father was there for me and very supportive. He had loved Daniel too. But he died of a heart attack about six months later. I barely left the house for three months after that day. When I did, it was only because Lisa flew from England to coax me from my hovel. We'd been in touch since I found out about her and she was incredible. She got me back on track. I couldn't return to my residency so she gave me a job in a small cake shop she had started. We worked together to build the business and I had something at last to focus on again. I had a life, I suppose. My mother stopped speaking to me though. I had failed her as far as she was concerned."

"You're not a failure," Roseanne interrupted. "You're amazing."

"Thank you," Jennie said, smiling slightly. "But I did decide I wanted to get back to medicine. I had enjoyed my job and I knew I was good at it so I retrained as a paramedic. I worked at a firehouse for a while but every time I went back to that hospital I thought of Daniel. I knew I had to move away from Maine and all the memories it held. So I came to Boston. I wanted a fresh start and a happy life but I swore I'd never do it again," Jennie said bitterly. "I told myself I would never let myself love another person again to save myself from the heartbreak."