Chapter 5: Unexpected

Callie's POV

***WARNING: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUAL CONTENT. 18+ ONLY ***

"I know a guy who sells chloroform, that's the easiest way you're going to drug someone long enough to get him where you want them to be," Melanie twirled her spoon into her coffee, mixing the contents.

We were sitting in the back of a Waffle House a few blocks from my apartment, having a late breakfast and gossiping over my latest scheme. I diligently jotted down her information into a composition book which pages were now filled with an act of hostility much greater than anything I was used to.

"Melanie, there's only one thing I'm forgetting," I peaked over the edge of the book and at her, "How am I going to drug him? I can't even get a phone call, much less a text message from him."

Melanie sat across from me, her hand resting on her chin holding her head up. I could see the wrinkles slowly forming across her forehead as she sunk deeper and deeper into her train of thought. She was thinking so hard it was near possible to see the steam of her brain at work seeping out of her ears. "He doesn't know me," she began as a pure look of confusion spread across her face, "What if he met me, at Georgie's, the same way he met you?"

A wave of disbelief had swallowe over me, "Are you insane? That wouldn't work. He won't talk to me, which justifies he's making attempts to mend his marriage with her."

"You said so yourself, he's not satisfied with her. What if you were right? You got in too deep, so he had to pull the plug," she paused her speech as a waitress brought forth our plates of food, laying the spreads before us. I slowly felt my stomach begin to churn, something that had been happening almost daily now.

Melanie didn't waste a moment before digging into her biscuits and gravy continuing her plot against Stefan, "I meet him at Georgie's, I'll be sure to dress my absolute best. We can also get that waiter on board, the one who fancies you."

The circling of my stomach didn't seem to stall as I brought the food closer to my mouth, "Jeremy, you mean Jeremy."

The nausea became unbearable, and I found myself clinging for dear life onto the porcelain lid that was the toilet, as the stomach acid escaped from my body.

Melanie was in a frantic at the door, "Callie, are you okay in there? I'll get the check, let's get out of here."

I sat on the cool tile floor of the public restroom, regaining my composure and catching my breath. The stomach contents still sat in the toilet as I tried to gather the strength to flush them away. The nausea I thought I had spewed up, still sat in the pit of my stomach. Constantly churning as my stomach rumbled from being way past empty. I splashed some water onto my face as a mechanism to calm myself, and the nausea, down before retreating out of the bathroom.

I glanced at Melanie sitting in the car back in the parking lot, flashed our waitress a reassuring smile, and made my way outside. Melanie reached over to the passenger side opening my door to let me in, "You look like garbage."

She meant her insult in the upmost complimenting way, "Thank you, asshole. Just drive." I piled myself into the car, placing my belongings into the backseat as Melanie threw the car into reverse.

The car ride back to my apartment was silent, except for the mechanical gears constantly turning in my head. Melanie's hands tightened around the steering wheel, and loosened on occasions revealing the overwork of her mind also. I was amazed at how involved she was, she had never crossed me as someone who'd sought acts of vengeance as a way of 'getting even' with someone. She, however, had dedicated as much time as I in planning my revenge against Stefan.

In a way, though, guilt clouded over me. I wanted to be able to let him go, forgive him for making me fall for him as greatly as I did. I wanted to let him move on, mend his marriage.

Another side of me knew if I didn't act upon him, history was deemed to repeat itself. I didn't want another woman enduring the pain, the heartache, that was shadowing over me constantly.

The grumbling of my stomach made me jump and I watched as Melanie's eyes darted in my direction for a moment, "Was that you?"

She laughed hysterically as I responded, "I didn't eat at the restaurant, actually I've been so depressed lately I couldn't tell you the last time I've been able to stomach a decent meal."

Melanie pulled into the lot of the complex abruptly putting the car into park, "No wonder you're getting sick, your stomach is screaming at you to eat something. Get those left overs, get your ass in the house, and eat. I'm not leaving until you do."

I could sense in her tone she wasn't exaggerating, her actions proved it. She grabbed her purse and exited the vehicle, versus going our separate ways as we had originally planned.

"I thought you had work," I reminded her as she hurriedly walked the stairs leading up to my apartment.

She shrugged her shoulders, "I'll call in sick, stop rushing me off." She grabbed my keys from my hand and unlocked the door, and ushered me into the apartment. I made my way over to the couch, opening the container to my leftovers.

The aroma that escaped from the food was more nauseating now than it had been when it was freshly brought out, making my stomach circle uncontrollably. I crinkled my nose and tried to nibble on the toast before me, showing Melanie some effort of fueling my insides. She wasn't pleased in the slightest of my pitiful attempt,

"Cut the shit. Why aren't you eating? If you say depression, I'll be sure you're seeing a therapist by sun up tomorrow. Keep this in mind, your therapist won't like the sound of you constructing a plan with your best friend to potentially kill your ex-lover."

"I just haven't felt the best lately," I fiddled with a piece of bacon as the circling in my stomach became almost unbearable.

The bacon sent me rushing into the bathroom towering over the toilet again, sending Melanie into a frenzy. "Not trying to sound overly modest, but I think you need to see a doctor," I felt her kneel beside me, moving my hair from in front of my face.

I shook my head trying to regain my breath, "I'm okay, this is just a stomach bug. A bad one, it's been lingering for a good week now."

Melanie finally got up from towering over me and made her way back to the doorway, "Callie, you don't have a fever. This isn't a stomach bug, I'm going to the drug store for a few things. I'll be back in an hour."

As much as I didn't want to admit it Melanie was right. I had been sick for a couple of weeks now, some days were better than others. Some days I stayed in bed, not only for the sake of planning my vengeance, but because I lacked the strength to get out of bed. I was either sick to my stomach due to a lack of appetite brought on by excruciatingly severe nausea, or my thoughts were drowned by the memories of Stefan.

As much as I wanted to gather the courage within myself to move forward with my life, to hate him with every ounce within me, I couldn't do it. I didn't want to hate him when I was longingly clinging to the memories he had left me with. Memories that would soon fade, just as our relationship had.

I cradled myself into the fetal position on the bathroom floor, the tiles cooled my skin enough for me to control my breathing. I closed my eyes trying to picture myself in a place where time could've stood still. A time I wanted to relive, but also a time that had now seemed to be a distant memory.

∞∞∞

I was lighting candles all over the motel room to set the mood for the night. Room service had already been ordered; two romantically prepared steak dinners over the candlelight. The clock had just struck 5:30, and Stefan was deemed to arrive any moment now. My teal dress hung just below the knee, hiding the distinct coverings of the black laced lingerie underneath. I looked over myself in the bathroom mirror, tidying the minor issues in my makeup and tweaking my lipstick once more. I readjusted the pin in my hair when I heard the swift three knocks on the door, signaling Stefan's arrival.

He stood there in a fitted black tux fit with a matching teal tie, his hair slicked back and shining in the evening sunlight. Just behind him was a rolling cart displaying the two silver shellings over our dinners, "I tipped him graciously, you didn't have to order room service. We aren't going to have much time for eating, not with you being dressed like that. Steak is the last thing on my mind."

I nibbled at my bottom lip looking over him seductively, "I wanted tonight to be special, but I didn't think you'd show up looking better than the main course." I grazed my hands over his chest giving his tie a slight tug before pulling him in for a kiss. Our tongues danced around each other, and I could feel the firm tension building inside of him.

I craved him.

His hand traveled up my back as he slammed the door behind us, hunting for the zipper. I could hear the frustration in his tone as he gave out a slight moan when I nibbled his bottom lip. He gave out a slight chuckle when he found it, only revealing the lingerie underneath. "Woman," he groaned beginning to kiss and nibble my neck, "You know how I feel about lingerie." He picked me up, wrapping my legs around his waist as he made his way to the bed. "It just," he threw me down pinning my arms above my head, "Gets in the way." I felt the ripping of the fabric as the lingerie slowly became just shreds. He was on a mission tonight, and his notion was more than just sex. He was like an animal on the hunt for the last piece of prey in the land, if looks could kill I was dead.

His tongue made it's trail from my neck down to my abdomen, before he started slowly kissing down to my core. His tongue had always seemed to be magical, and the second I felt him my toes began to curl into the bed sheets profusely. Each second grew more intensifying, and he pried my legs open until he felt I had enough.

Stefan's motive during sex was always profound, making sure I had reached a climax before climbing his way back up to get his. 'A gentleman' as he would call it. Once he had his fun with me, he licked his way back up to my lips, sealing me with a kiss before he would begin inserting his member slowly. The heat growing between us.

"You want me," he chuckled as I moaned from underneath him near begging for him.

I let out fake cries, "Please."

∞∞∞

The door to the apartment slammed breaking me away from my daydreams of Stefan, Melanie unloaded bags onto the countertop and I could hear her rummaging through the kitchen putting things away. "Callie, are you still in the bathroom? I need to talk to you," I could hear her heels clanking across the floor, growing louder and louder as she got closer to where I was.

I frantically sat up so I wouldn't startle her, and so she wouldn't realize I had been laying there on the floor. She was out of breath dancing a single plastic bag on her wrist, "I talked with a pharmacist, I told her your symptoms. I need you to do this for me." She held the bag out towards me, ushering frantically for me to retrieve it from her hand.

I rolled my eyes, "I told you, stomach bug."

She began shaking her head, "Callie I've been around awhile now. Every day. I take out your trash, all of it. You haven't had a menstrual for as long as I've been here. You're hardly out of bed, you're getting sick, you've been sick for over a week."

She was absurd but I had to hear her out because I was growing concerned myself, "What do you suppose is wrong with me? People get sick all the time."

She stood there a few moments before beginning back up, "Callie, I think you're pregnant."