Page 35 of Harmonizing Hearts

I nod, my throat too tight to form words. The anticipation and uncertainty have taken their toll on me, but I push forward, desperate for any news about Emma.

Trish sighs, her shoulders slumping with a heavy burden. “Emma is scared, Jax,” she confesses, her voice barely above a whisper. “She’s hurt, and she doesn’t know how to face you.”

My heart skips a beat, a thousand thoughts racing through my mind. “Scared? Hurt? Why?” I manage to utter, concern and confusion washes over me. It can’t be because of what I did. She must know by now how much I love her and I’d never do anything to hurt her. I wanted to finally let her parents rest in peace and find the motherfucker who has ruined a family.

Trish hesitates before speaking, her words delicate and heavy with emotion. “Emma found out she’s pregnant,” her voice shakes, “and knowing you were the one who caused her parents’ accident was too much to handle.”

“Oh my fucking God!” I throw my hands in the air in frustration, "It wasn't me, Trish. It was all Blake's fault. I had no idea and had nothing to do with it." Tears spill over as I choke the words out. The world around me seems to come to a standstill. The revelation hangs in the air, and I struggle to process the weight of those words.

Pregnant.

Emma is carrying our child, our future.

The magnitude of the news washes over me, filling me with a whirlwind of emotions—fear, joy, and a renewed sense of responsibility. “I need to see her,” I state firmly, determination surging through my veins. “I need to be there for her, for them.”

Trish nods, her eyes filled with a mix of relief and hope. “Emma needs you now more than ever, before?—”

“Before what?” I snap my head at her. “Where is Emma?”

“She didn’t want to listen to me and went to Meads Hospital.”

“Why? Is she hurt? Is the baby all right?”

Tears roll over her cheek, as her eyes look like a void. “She said she didn’t want to bind you to her with a baby.”

“No, no, no, no, she can’t do it.” I sprint to the car, stumbling on my own feet. I roll on the ground but get up immediately. The engine roars while speeding like a madman as I leave Emma’s auntie’s house with a renewed sense of purpose, my mind racing with thoughts of her, of our unborn child, and the weight of the situation we find ourselves in. Fear grips my heart as I realize the magnitude of the choices before us. I grab my phone and dial Emma’s number, praying that she will answer, that I can reach her before she does something she’ll regret.

The phone rings and rings, but there's no answer. Panic sets in, and I can feel the seconds slipping away. I can’t lose her. Not now, not when we have so much to face together.

Leaving the car in the middle of the parking lot, I rush through the hospital corridors, my heart pounds in my chest, each step bringing me closer to the truth.

“Hey you, the car!” security complains.

“Here.” I throw the keys to him while I reach the reception desk, breathless and filled with a mixture of anxiety and determination. “Excuse me,” I call to the nurse behind the desk. “I need to know if Emma Wilkinson is here. Please, it’s urgent.”

The nurse looks at me with a mix of sympathy and concern, her eyes scanning the computer screen in front of her. After what feels like an eternity, she nods and points me in the direction of Emma’s room. “Room 302.”

I nod my thanks and take off running, my heart racing faster than my feet can carry me. Each step brings me closer to Emma, to the answers I desperately seek. I burst into the room, my breath catching in my throat at the sight before me. There she is, sitting on the hospital bed, her face pale and weary. She looks up at me, her eyes filled with a mix of pain and tears. My heart aches at the sight of her, and I drop on my knees in front of her, taking her hand in mine.

She tries to pull back but I grip at her hand. “Baby?”

“Don't.” She shakes her head, tears running down her face. “I need to leave.”

“You can't leave.” My voice is almost a whisper. I feel a pain in my chest like someone is trying to rip it off.

“Please don't make it harder.” Her low voice shakes me. Is she giving up on me? What the hell Blake told her?

“Why?” I cup her face, forcing her eyes to mine. Her eyes are empty, and tears are rolling over her cheeks, making me die on the inside.

It can't be true.

It can't be happening for real.

“Let me go.” She backs off.

“Let me explain, please.” I beg her.

“Explain what, Jax? That you lied to me?” She throws her hands in the air in frustration. “I told you I wanted to leave the past in the past and remember my family as they were, but you wanted to go ahead.”

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