MY EX WANTS ME BACK

Chapter 2

Erika Pov

The flow of painful memories in my mind was interrupted when I felt the warm liquid suddenly streaming down my cheeks. I quickly wiped it away and then returned to the scene in my mind where Raven told me I was pregnant. At that time, I had just regained consciousness after fainting when I heard Charles' announcement...

I couldn't speak after hearing my friend's news. I felt like I aged instantly upon hearing it. Me? Pregnant? Why now,?

"Are you sure the doctor said I'm pregnant? Maybe you just misheard, Raven?" I asked, tears welling up in my eyes.

It's not that I don't want to have a child with Charles, but in my current situation, I don't think I can accept having a child with the man who hurt me so deeply.

Raven shook her head, causing me to close my eyes. She took one of my hands and squeezed it gently. "You need to accept this, Erika. Be strong. I'm here for you."

Tears finally streamed down my face. I pulled her hand away from my arm and forced myself to stand up and get out of bed.

"No, Raven. His father cheated on me, so why should I accept him? I will abort the child in my womb!" I was blinded by anger towards Charles, so I couldn't think straight. Even the innocent child in my belly was caught in the crossfire of my anger towards my baby's father.

When I got out of bed, I rushed towards the door. I was in the hospital, so I could have the child removed from my womb, which was still developing. But before I reached the door, Raven caught up to me and slapped me hard to wake me up from the terrible thing I was about to do.

"Your child is innocent of his father's actions, Erika! What you want to do is a sin against God!" She hugged me tightly, crying. I knew she didn't want to hurt me, but she did it to make me realize, what I wanted to do. I just hugged my friend and cried. "You can overcome this trial, Erika. You are strong and resilient."

I let Raven guide me back to the hospital bed. She was right. I am strong. I needed to be strong even if I was not. And most importantly, I shouldn't involve my unborn child in my anger towards Charles. The baby is innocent. It's not my baby's fault that she was conceived. And I almost forgot that she was conceived out of my love for Charles.

I silently apologized to my child still inside my womb. I also promised myself that I would never attempt to abort her again.

After a day in the hospital, I was finally discharged. But the doctor advised me not to forget the vitamins he prescribed. And most importantly, he told me not to overthink things to avoid stress because it could be harmful to the baby. He said my pregnancy was a bit delicate, especially since this was my first child.

It was hard, but I forced myself not to think about Charles, especially the pain he caused me. I'm so grateful that Raven has always been by my side, supporting me. If she's not beside me, I don't think I could still be able to pick up myself.

But I couldn't keep myself from thinking about Charles no matter how much I tried. The announcement of his upcoming wedding to Jane was plastered all over the newspapers, television news, and practically every social media platform. It was impossible to miss, given their celebrity status. Jane is a famous actress, and Charles is equally well-known, especially in the business world. After all, he's the youngest billionaire and CEO of Evan Industry.

"Why are you watching that news, Erika? You shouldn't watch news that you know will only hurt you." Raven rushed to grab the remote and turned off the news I was watching, the engagement party that was supposed to be mine and Charles' but ended up being Charles and Jane's. My friend caught me crying while watching the news.

"I was going to watch a show because I was bored, but when I switched channels, I saw the news about them," I explained to my friend while wiping my tear-stained cheeks with my fingers.

"That's why you can't move on because you keep watching those pointless news. You know that stress is bad for your health. Do you really want to lose the baby you're carrying?" my friend continued to lecture me.

I don't get angry or resentful when she scolds me because she caught me several times watching the news or reading articles on social media about my ex-boyfriend.

"I'm sorry. I just can't help myself from looking and reading the news about them," I sobbed. The pain in my chest is still so intense when I remember that night. Charles didn't even bother to come to me to explain why he cheated on me. It's like I didn't exist to him.

Raven hugged me until I stopped crying. "How about we go to the mall to take your mind off things? Let's go shopping now."

I didn't object to her suggestion. It's actually better for me to walk around the mall, it'll be an exercise for my body. I haven't exercised in days because I've just been lying in bed.

When we arrived at the mall, we were surprised to see a lot of people in the parking lot, all media personnel. They seemed after someone. But since we weren't really interested in what they were all gathered for, we didn't pay much attention. When my friend parked my car, we both got out.

As I stepped out of the car, I was stunned to see Charles and the woman he replaced me with walking towards me. My eyes immediately clouded over and my hand clenched tightly on the car window.

Charles walked ahead, with Jane trailing behind. She was being caught by the media who wanted to interview them both. But Charles stopped walking and waited for her, then they clasped hands. Hand in hand, they walked towards me.

I thought they were coming to me, but they weren't. Charles' car was parked next to mine, which I hadn't noticed earlier. Charles walked past me as if he didn't know me, while the woman with him gave me a strange smile as if she knew who I was.

The media was so eager to chase Charles and Jane that they didn't care if they pushed anyone out of their way. That's what happened to me. As the media rushed past, they shoved me, causing me to fall to the ground. I couldn't get up because my hip and stomach suddenly started to ache. A woman approached me and offered her hand to help me stand.

I took her hand without looking at her face. When I finally looked up, my fist clenched as I recognized her. She was the woman Charles had replaced me with.

I tried to pull my hand back, but she suddenly pulled me up. My stomach ached even more, but I endured the pain and didn't let her see how much it hurt.

"I don't need to introduce myself to you because I know you already know me," the woman said to me with a smile, a mocking smile.

When my friend saw who was talking to me, she immediately approached me. "What does that woman want from you, Erika?" she asked me sternly.

I just shook my head at my friend and looked back at the actress. "What do you need from me? Why did you help me?"

"Nothing. I just want to say thank you. Thank you for letting me have Charles. And I hope you don't chase after him because he'll never come back to you," she said with a mocking grin before turning and walking towards the car where Charles was. The windows were tinted, so I couldn't tell if he was looking at me or not.

"That b***h has such a thick face! She's a famous actress, but she's a homewrecker!" Raven said, her voice filled with anger, as she watched the car carrying the two drive away. The media was in the corner of the parking lot, being held back by security guards.

I couldn't stop my tears from falling. The pain of what Charles did to me on the night of our supposed engagement party came flooding back. But then I suddenly stopped and clutched my stomach as I felt a sharp pain again. This time, it was even worse.

"My stomach hurts, Raven," I whimpered to my friend.

"Huh? Why does your stomach hurt?" my friend asked worriedly, seeing the pain etched on my face. She quickly assisted me back into my car. "I will bring you to the hospital," she said before turning to the driver's seat.

I suddenly felt something liquid flowing down my thigh, so my hand reached it and wiped off what it was. My eyes widened as I saw the red blood on my hand.