Ticket for Two

Jessica sat by her family’s poolside, watching the beautiful sunset dip down into the horizon far away from her. The orange glow of its fading light moved on the surface of the water. Her mother, Janet, joined her over at the poolside, a cup of warm tea in her hands. There was a moment of silence between them as both women took in the jaw dropping view in front of them.

“You haven’t spoken to him about the baby, have you?”

“C’mon mum. You’ve ruined the moment.” Jess sighed, taking off her sun shades to look at her mum with a sad look on her face.

“I saw no use in telling him because he had made it clear to me where I stand in his life. There is really no need dragging him back into my life and that of my unborn child.” She finished, picking up her mum’s cup of tea and taking a sip as revenge for ruining the mood.

“But you know he has a right to know, Jess. He is the father of the child.” Janet insisted, placing her hand on her daughter’s chin and turning her face to hers.

“That still doesn’t change anything if you ask me mum. Telling him would only complicate things even more and I’m not ready for that. Olivia has him wrapped in her spell so I’d be doing myself good by moving on also. He doesn’t deserve to know of this child’s existence.” Jessica replied, her voice becoming firm as she spoke.

“But Jess, do you really think you’ll be able to do that forever? He’ll find out one way or another.” Her mother frowned, letting her motherly instincts kick in.

“Maybe, but then none of it would matter anymore. I’ll be away from here and our lives would be far different from what it is now.” Jessica mumbled, going closer to pool and dipping her feet in while she sat on the ground above.

“I know what carrying a burden can be like, that’s why I don’t want that experience for you. This right here is a lot to bear.” Janet spoke, watching her daughter remain relaxed over the matter.

Jessica bit her bottom lip knowing she could have only gotten this stubbornness from her mum, Janet. Unknown to Janet, Jessica had also been thinking about this but the fear of Ethan’s reaction to the news was stopping her from taking any action. The thought of him turning her down one more time was too much for her to bear especially now that she needed to be careful with her pregnancy after waiting years for it.

“I’ll be fine, mum. I promise.” Jessica guaranteed, splashing water with her feet in the pool.

Before Janet could say one more thing, her husband, Joseph appeared in the patio area, his mobile device in his hand. He seemed more relaxed than both ladies but Jessica could smell that something was up by looking at him.

“Jess, I just ended a call with my lawyers a few minutes ago. Your divorce will be finalized in a few weeks, Ethan sent over the papers faster than we anticipated.” He announced before joining them by the poolside, also taking a sip of his wife’s tea.

“Good. That’s just the news I wanted to hear.” Jessica nodded happily with a big smile on her face.

“Are you sure, baby girl? You really don’t have to rush into anything.” Joseph replied, studying his daughter’s body language as she spoke.

“I’m not rushing at all, dad. I’ve played this scenario in my head over and over again and this is the best decision that I can make for myself and my child.” Jessica replied confidently.

“That’s what she keeps saying. And can both of you go get your own tea and leave mine alone.” Janet joked, trying to lighten the moment.

“Yes, love.” Her husband said before taking the cup of tea and leaving to go join Jessica in the pool.

“What of the baby? What’s your plan?” Joseph asked, shoving Jessica gently with his shoulders.

“I’ll keep the baby but I wouldn’t let Ethan know about it for now.” Jessica looked at both parents as she answered.

“Jess, it might not be fair to the child. Ethan might be a douchebag but he is still the father of the child.” Joseph frowned at his daughter, trying his best to convince her otherwise.

“I know, dad. But he didn’t care about me when we were together and I’m worried the same may happen to my child.” Jessica answered softly, her heart breaking as she said those words.

“Alright, love. We are not here to influence your decision so whatever you chose, we will stand by you no matter what.” Joseph assured her, gesturing his wife to come join them with his hand.

“We are always here for you, no matter what you’ll need.” Janet finally spoke after being quiet for a while, making her way to join her family in the pool.

As the sun fully disappeared into the hills, their conversations moved to lighter topics. Joseph made jokes about the golf game that he had earlier on with the boys and Jessica finally managed to let out a genuine laugh. Though she was still worried about this decision she was making, she wasn’t going to let it ruin her happiness.

*

*

“There’s a place in Italy that I have been planning on acquiring. It is quiet and it’s secluded from the rest of the world and perfect for peace.” Jessica announced to her parents as they all sat at the table for breakfast the next morning.

“Sounds and looks like just what you’d need in this phase of your life. A fresh start away from every and any drama.” Her father said, taking her tablet and going through the images she had to show him.

“Exactly. I’ll have the time to focus on the baby without being distracted.” Jessica agreed, munching on her French toast.

“That sounds perfect. When do you leave?” Janet added, finally finishing up in the kitchen with the servants before joining them.

“As soon as possible, I believe.” Jessica answered, smiling at the thought of having a fresh start at life.

While Jessica spoke to her parents about her departure to Italy, she suddenly heard her notification tone go off and her phone buzz on the table. She picked it up and stared at the screen that showed a message from Ethan.

We need to talk

Her skipped a beat as she read these words. She had hoped that after the papers were signed, they would both go their separate ways. But now, with those four words on her screen she knew that Ethan wasn’t getting the memo.

“Jess, is everything okay?” her father asked after noticing that she had been silent for a while.