A Twist Of Magic

Chapter Thirty Six

"Jack, I need a favour." I announced as I walked into the lounge.

I blushed as Jack, Henley and Merritt turned in unison to face me.

"What?" he said shortly.

"I need to go to the shops and Danny doesn't want me going alone." I said quickly.

"Well tough, I'm busy." he snapped, before quickly turning his attention back to the TV.

I sighed and watched him for a moment. Even though we hadn't really been getting along for a while, I never expected him to be like this. He had no idea how much I'd missed him the last few weeks. There was a time when we would mess around and laugh together, when being with him would finally allow me to forget all of my problems. But it seemed like those days were long gone. I turned away from him, pausing with my hand on the doorknob as I heard laughter echoing around the room.

"I was only kidding." Jack beamed as he quickly stood up and followed me.

I smiled at his cheeky expression and breathed a sigh of relief as he followed me. As we walked to the shop I couldn't help but glance around nervously. It seemed as though everyone was a potential threat and someone to be suspicious of.

"You look beautiful." Jack said quietly.
"Thanks." I muttered.

I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Jack had been there for me when I had nobody to talk too. He'd supported me and taken care of me and I'd re-paid him by giving him false hope. It had never been my intention to hurt him, or to get back with Daniel. But when Daniel had asked me to marry him, I just couldn't say no. We were soul mates that belonged together. I just wish that I didn't feel this way about Jack.

"So why are we going to the shops, do you fancy some chocolate?" he chuckled.

"No, I need to do a pregnancy test." I said quietly.

He fell silent and continued walking in step with me.

"Have you told Daniel that we spent a night together?" he asked eventually.

"No not yet, I don't really know how to tell him." I admitted.

"You need to tell him, he thinks you might be having his baby, but instead it could be my baby." he pointed out.

"We don't even know if there is a baby yet." I sighed.

"But if there is, you'll need to tell him." he insisted.

"Not necessarily, I can work out the dates and then I'll know who's baby it is." I sighed.

"And what if you are having my baby?" he asked.

I fell silent as I pondered his words. What would I do if I was having Jack's baby? Daniel would be devastated, my engagement would likely be called off and I would lose everything. But this was my fault and either way I had to be honest with the two of them.

"Let's just wait and see what happens first." I whispered.

I watched Jack as he kept glancing behind us nervously. I jumped as he quickly grabbed my wrist and pulled me into an alley.

"What are you doing?" I hissed.

"Sshh." he whispered in my ear, gently pressing his finger against my lips.

My heart thumped as he leaned against me in the narrow alleyway. I could feel his warm breath on my face. He glanced around as a police car drove past, clearly just out on a routine patrol.

"I don't think they saw us." Jack stated, sighing in relief as the car drove past.

"Are you okay?" Jack asked quickly as I remained silent.

"Yeah, let's just get to the shops." I said, walking quickly.

I gasped as Jack stood beside me in the supermarket and we gazed at the huge selection of pregnancy tests. It was so confusing and so many to choose from that I had no idea which one to pick.

"Can I help you guys?" a dark haired girl asked us.

"I don't know which one to pick." I admitted.

"Aww no problem, it must be your first time." she smiled.

"I bet you guys are really excited!" she added, glancing between Jack and myself.

"That depends on what the test says." I said quietly, glancing at Jack. She clearly thought that me and Jack were together, but I couldn't be bothered to correct her. I just wanted to buy the test and get back to the safehouse as quickly as possible. We weren't safe here, out in the open.

"Right, I recommend this one, it'll tell you how many weeks you are too." she announced, handing me a box.

"That's perfect." I mumbled.

"Just get that one and let's get out of here." Jack said quickly, glancing around nervously.

I nodded and quickly followed the store assistant to the till. As soon as I paid for the test, Jack placed his hand on my waist and gently steered me out of the store. I glanced at him as I realised how fast he was walking.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Nothing, I just don't want to linger." he said quickly.

A few moments later we were finally back at the safehouse, I could see that Jack was visibly relieved when he closed the door behind us.

"Thanks for coming with me." I said.

"No problem trouble." he replied quietly.

I nodded slowly and quickly made my way upstairs and walked into the bathroom to do the test. I needed to know one way or another whether I was pregnant or not and then I could figure out what to do. As I sat on the bathtub gazing at the test, I heard footsteps climbing the stairs. Time seemed to be passing painfully slow, a few minutes felt like an eternity as I waited for the result. My head snapped up as I saw Daniel casually leaning in the bathroom doorway.

"You've done the test?" he asked quietly, his eyes darting to my hands.

"Yeah, but I'm still waiting for the result." I answered.

He nodded slowly and crossed the room, perching on the bathtub with me. Both of us stared at the test, my heart pounding against my chest, terrified of the result. I gasped and turned to face Daniel as I saw that it was positive.

"What does two bars mean?" he asked.

"It means I'm pregnant." I whispered.

He watched me closely, clearly in a state of stunned silence.

"How the hell did this happen?!" I exclaimed as I quickly stood up and paced the room, the panic setting in. I couldn't do this, I couldn't be a mother, I could barely even take care of myself.

"I think we know how it happened." Daniel chuckled.

"It's not funny Danny, what are we going to do?" I cried.

"Well, we're going to have a baby." he stated quietly.

"I don't know if I can do this, how could I have been so stupid!" I yelled.

"Of course we can." he said quietly.

I shook my head slowly and continued pacing.

"Mia." Daniel said tentatively.

"I need some time alone." I said quickly.

"What?" he frowned.

"I just need a couple of hours to get my head on straight and I can't even go out for a break, it's like being in prison!" I exclaimed.

"In fact it's worse than prison, at least in prison you can go outside!" I ranted.

"Okay, I'll give you some space." he said quietly. I knew that my reaction was hurting him, but at that moment I didn't care, I was too terrified by what I'd just found out.

"I'll be downstairs if you need me." he quickly added as he left the room.