Crossing Lines

TWENTY-ONE | It All Started With A....

Vanessa jumped up when she heard the timer on her iphone sound off. Nearly tripping and falling flat on her face she leaped to grab the pregnancy test that she had seated on the bathroom sink. Vanessa had hope. She wanted to believe that after damn near a year of trying she and Andrew would finally be blessed with a child. Her heart raced and her hands shook nervously as she picked up the small stick silently praying for a positive result. Sadly there wasn't one. She swallowed down the lump in her throat and held back the tears. She promised herself she wouldn't cry this time...but then again she did think that this time would be different. After all her body felt different. She was tired most of the time, her appetite was changing and her breast felt tender. All three signs could have also meant that what she thought was a missed period was just mother nature was making a late trip..... or maybe she wanted to be pregnant so badly that she pushed the symptoms on herself? Either way it was just another waste of a trip to the drug store. Nessa tossed the negative test into the waste basket and got herself together.

She knew it was going to be hard. Doctor Bennett was the first to warn her that she would have trouble conceiving. The man sat her down and attempted to discuss her options. Things like surrogacy and adoption were thrown in the air and pamphlets that she later tossed in the trash were pushed into her hands. Nessa wasted no time dropping Bennett as her gynecologist. 'He's a man he doesn't understand what the hell he is talking about.' is what she told herself when she left his office that day. After Doctor Bennett was a list of others all of which said they could help but all ended up being the same. After dozens of test and being poked and prodded they eventually lost hope. The only thing left to do was to try...and try and try. Vanessa was just tired of trying and failing. Alone she could live life just fine without creating another but she was wife. A woman married to the love of her life and she couldn't even give him the child he always wanted. 

Vanessa looked in the mirror giving herself the same look she gave to the outside world. A bright smile and gentle eyes. Maybe she could fool herself into thinking everything was fine. like once again the rug wasn't pulled out from under her. The smile didn't stay up for very long. She left the bathroom looking just as bad as she felt.

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Ray knocked on his brother's door loudly, hard enough that his knocking could have been mistaken for banging. He was in the mood for a stiff drink and these days a stiff drink came with the company of women he knew he had no business being with. That's part of the reason why he was here. Andrew the do-gooder was just the mood killer he needed. Ray needed someone to talk him down from the edge of destruction, even though his beautiful wife and two children should have been reason enough. 

His brother's house door came swinging open and there stood Vanessa. She looked like somebody just ran over the puppy she never had. 

"Well, you look like hell"

Visibly annoyed Vanessa rolled her eyes "What do you want Ray?" She wasn't in the mood for his shit, Not today.

"To see my dearest brother of course." Why else would he be here... it definitely wouldn't be to talk to Vanessa's uptight ass. 

"As you can see from the driveway Andrew isn't here yet."

"Eh, it's alright I'll wait." Ray shrugged pushing past Vanessa and strolling inside like he owned the place.

"Sure why don't you just come right in!" Her tone of voice screamed sarcasm.

"Sure thing . You mind fetching me a cold one?"

"Yeah you have lost it. Ray as you have said so many times before you're not a guest in your  brother's home. Get it your damn self!"

Vanessa and Ray didn't have much in common aside from their love for Andrew . If it wasn't for him Vanessa would never bother speaking a word to Ray. Especially now. After the accident and his wife losing her ability to walk Ray upgraded from Drews annoying older brother to a complete grade A asshole.