Five

Corey's POV

You are pregnant.

The doctor's words kept resounding in my ears. How could I have been so dumb? I thought. I kept blaming myself as I knew that there was only one person responsible for the pregnancy.

There was no way I could locate him because I hadn't seen him since that day and it felt like he disappeared into thin air.

I strolled towards the counter in search of a strong drink that could knock me out. I knew that it was wrong to drink while carrying a child, but I wasn't even sure I wanted the child yet.

I neither had a job nor a man, so it would be a herculean task to raise whatever was growing in my belly. My eyes caught the sight of a Stroh 160 rum in the wine cellar. I snatched it immediately and poured it into the glass cup on the counter.

"Maybe I should kill myself." I drawled, taking a huge swig from the cup.

Natasha had escorted me home and she promised to be back the next morning. Though she was doing her best to show her support and I wanted someone around, I was still happy that she wasn't home to boss me around.

What a lonely life I lived!

As I downed each, I remembered the two people who hurt me when I needed them to stand by me. Sometimes I acted like I was over the hurt and the pain, but moments when I was alone, everything came crashing down on me.

Nothing could feel the gap that was in my heart but I wasn't going to allow anyone to make a fool of me again. My eyes became drowsy as I staggered towards the couch in the living room.

It was my life so no one could scold me for being disorganised. Besides, there was no reason for me to be clean.

I sank onto the couch as soon as I got to it and allowed sleep to claim me.

"Wake up, Corey!" The harsh voice of a woman rang in my ears, coupled with her continuous tap on my shoulder.

"Is there any need for me to be alive right now?" I replied groggily as I tried to open my eyes.

"Yes, there is, because you have a child in your womb." She replied and helped me sit up so that my back would rest on the backrest as her eyes scanned the empty bottle of rum I had taken.

My head felt like lead the moment I tried to raise my head and protest about her indulgence. "I feel like my head is going to split into two," I complained through gritted teeth.

"That's because you thought you could kill yourself by drinking excessively. Don't you know that it's wrong to drink while pregnant?" She scolded but I rolled my eyes.

"How can I when I don't even know where the father of my child is?" I cried.

It was shameful to admit that I was pregnant for a man that I slept with once at a pub. And it was more despicable that I didn't know who he was or where to find him.

Natasha stared at me like I was still under the influence of the excess alcohol I took. She moved closer to me, her eyes crinkling with concern and worry. I almost melted because of how worried she was for me.

"I know that you can be crazy sometimes, but I don't know you to be loose. You know the father of this child, why don't you tell him that you are pregnant and hear what he has to say." She suggested softly, wary of my impulsive outburst.

Natasha was beginning to sound like Sarah. The only difference was that she was genuine and really cared about me, while Sarah pretended that she liked me yet was sleeping with my fiancé.

I contemplated keeping the truth from her but there was no need since she was bound to find out later.

"I slept with a stranger at a pub," I announced, causing her eyes to widen in surprise. Obviously, that wasn't the kind of news she was expecting to hear.

"WTF! How did it happen?" She asked, standing up in sheer surprise.

"It started when I discovered that my fiancé and best friend were having an affair." I paused and took a deep breath, still feeling sharp aches in my head.

I stole a glance at Natasha and she looked mortified, exactly the same way I felt when I saw the both of them. It was still fresh in my mind.

"How could they do something like that to you? That's sheer wickedness."

"You're right and that's why I don't trust anyone, though you act differently," I said.

She looked grateful that I was slowly learning to trust her. "I won't be like them because I'm not them." She assured me.

"I hope so.." I shrugged.

"Didn't they feel any remorse after what they did?" She asked and I shook my head.

"They didn't. And while I was in the pub, I got a text from my ex that my things were out on the porch and he couldn't be with me because I lacked self-control. The only thing I felt like doing was smash a bottle on his head, but then, I'll be proving him right about my lack of self-control."

"Some people aren't meant to exist." She spat and I nodded in agreement.

"Then I drove to the club in frustration and ordered a drink. I didn't know that someone was watching and then he ordered some drinks for himself. We drank till we were drunk and then we ended up in his bedroom by his invitation." I added to justify myself.

She opened her mouth to say something and I felt bile rise up my throat immediately.

I jerked up from the couch, ignoring the splitting headache, and ran to the toilet. I retched everything I had taken the last night as my eyes got dizzy.

As my body shuddered, I felt a hand massaging my back. My knees nearly buckled in appreciation as Natasha was providing the support I needed.

"You'll be fine," She promised like she was very sure of what she said.

"Thank you for being here," I replied and walked back to the living room feeling light-headed.

My stomach was unsettled and I felt nauseous but there was nothing left to throw up and I felt very weak. I sank onto the couch and straightened my body, shutting my eyes. Then she asked

"How do you feel?" She sat beside me as I opened my eyes.

"Weak and nauseous, but I guess it came from the alcohol I took."

"I'll get you an apple juice then prepare something light for you to take. You might not want to take anything, but knowing the state you are in, I won't let you starve that innocent child." She warned and I scoffed.

"How come you are more concerned about my baby than me?" I laughed and she gave me the middle finger, disappearing into the kitchen.

Since she had busied herself with kitchen duties, I decided to watch some shows on TV. I stretched my arm to the remote which was on the wooden centre table.

The first station I selected aired an interview that almost got me screaming. Mr stranger on TV in flesh and blood. He looked so important and I wondered what I had gotten myself into.

Apparently, he was a public figure and he wouldn't like to be associated with the scandal of a one-night stand.

"What's the matter?" Natasha's voice cut through my train of thought as I darted my eyes at her. She was wiping her hands with a towel and her brows furrowed, expecting me to say something to her.

"He is here.." I pointed towards the screen and she glanced at it as well then returned her gaze back to me with a questioning look.

"Who is here, Corey? You're actually looking like you've seen a ghost."

I blinked hard and thought of a way to explain it to her. "The stranger I talked about, that's him," I announced and she stared back at the screen with shock glaring all over her face.

"That's good news. At least we know that he exists and we'll know where to find him." She replied enthusiastically and I glared at her like she had gone mad.

I sat up slowly. "Who told you that I'm going to find him?"

"You have no other feasible option than that. He's the father of the unborn child and right now you don't have any money to take care of the baby. It's not like he has hurt you before. Whatever happened in the past was consensual." She advised, standing with arms akimbo.

I heaved a sigh and thought about what she said. She was making sense but it was bad enough that I'd spread my legs wide for a stranger, I wasn't about to look more desperate by telling him about the child.