Alexander slumped in his car, his head heavy against the steering wheel. His furrowed brow betrayed the deep thought consuming him, and he shut his eyes, trying to drown out the world's noise.
His shallow breaths came in quick succession, his white-knuckled grip on the wheel showing the weight of his troubles.
He felt suffocated under the palpable weight of his thoughts, gasping for air when he finally lifted his head after what felt like an eternity.
With trembling fingers, he fumbled for his phone, dialing his sister's number. When she answered, her excitement was a beacon of familiarity.
"How's my favorite brother doing?" she asked, ready to catch up.
"I... I don't know," Alexander replied, his voice cracking. "I just needed someone to talk to. Can you talk?"
"Of course," Isabel replied, her voice soft and reassuring. "What's going on?"
Alexander took a deep breath, pouring his heart out to his sister about Camilla passing out at his house and the shocking news from the doctor.
As he spoke, Isabel's excitement bubbled over, her words spilling out in a flurry of joy.
"That's incredible news! I'm going to be an aunt! I'm going to be an aunt!" she gushed, before her voice sobered. "But wait, why don't you sound excited?"
Alexander let out a deep sigh into the receiver. "I don't even know what I should be feeling right now," he said, his frustration growing.
Isabel's voice sounded surprised on the other end. "What do you mean you don't know how to feel? You're going to be a father, Alexander. This is a big deal."
"I know, but I'm just not sure how to process it all," Alexander replied, still feeling uncertain.
Sensing his uncertainty about the situation, Isabel tried to reassure him. "It's normal to feel overwhelmed, but trust me, it's going to be an amazing experience. And you're going to be a great father."
Alexander didn't respond, lost in thought.
"Alexander?" Isabel called out, concerned.
Suddenly, she blurted out, "Wait, hold on a second. The child Camilla is expecting is yours, right?"
Alexander let out a tired sigh. "Yes, it's mine. Why would you even ask that?"
Isabel sounded relieved. "I'm sorry, it's just that you weren't saying anything and I didn't know what to think." She said and Alexander rolled his eyes at her wild imagination.
"Anyway, you know what you need to do now?" Isabel asked, her tone becoming more enthusiastic.
"No." Alexander responded, confused as to where she was heading with the conversation while Isabel facepalmed herself at her brother's inability to understand her.
"You know this is why Mom and Dad should have given birth to me first." She said jokingly and Alexander rolled his eyes again.
"What you need to do now is put a ring on that girl's finger! Now that she's going to make you a dad it's only fair to make things more official between you two." She finished excitedly
Alexander hesitated for a moment before blurting out, "She's not keeping it."
Isabel was taken aback by his statement and gasped in disbelief then let out a derisive laugh."What? You're joking right?!"
But as the silence stretched on and Alexander didn't say anything more, Isabel realized just how serious he was. "Wait, are you serious?" she asked, her tone shifting from disbelief to concern but Alexander still didn't say anything.
"Wow," Isabel exclaimed in amazement, her voice filled with disappointment.
A moment of silence passed before she spoke again, her tone quieter and more thoughtful. "But why?" she asked.
Alexander shrugged, trying to dismiss the heavy feeling that had overtaken him and left him speechless.
"I don't know," he eventually responded, his voice heavy with defeat as he stared blankly at the dashboard of his car.
"She just doesn't want to keep it," he continued, taking a deep breath and trying to clear his mind.
"Oh, so it's her who doesn't want to keep the baby?" Isabel asked hesitantly, and he nodded silently even though she couldn't see him through the phone.
"Yes, but now I'm not even sure if I want her to keep it either. We're both just trying to figure this out, you know?" Alexander said, frustration seeping into his voice as he ran his hand through his hair.
Feeling sympathy for him Isabel asked, "Does her family know about this? I remember you mentioning they were excited about the news."
"No, they don't," Alexander admitted in a low voice. "Her mom has hypertension, so she'll probably wait until the dust settles before telling anyone."
"That's tough, man," Isabel consoled him.
"At least she told you early on so you didn't get your hopes up and then get disappointed later."
"What's your point?" Alexander asked dryly.
"I mean, it's better to know now than later," Isabel explained, but Alexander was not having it.
"You're not helping," he snapped.
"I'm sorry," Isabel apologized softly. "I'm..." She trailed off, causing Alexander to furrow his brow in confusion.
"Isabel?" he asked hesitantly.
"Stop it!" she exclaimed, confusing him further.
"Stop what?" he asked, feeling lost.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Isabel's heart dropped.
She had just blurted out something meant for her lover to Alexander instead.
She could feel the man's hot breath on her neck, his teeth gently nibbling at her skin as she desperately tried to come up with a way to fix the situation.
"Oh no, not you," she backtracked, her voice strained with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, I totally wasn't talking to you." Isabel let out a nervous laugh, hoping to make light of the awkward moment.
"Oh, I see." Alexander's response was placating, but she could sense the hint of unease in his voice.
"You're busy," he said, and she knew that he had figured out what was happening.
"I'll just...talk to you later, probably," Alexander said, his voice hesitant.
Isabel could sense that he was uncomfortable and felt guilty for putting him in that position.
"No, no, I'm not busy, I'm available... let's talk now," she suggested, her own nervousness apparent in her voice.
Alexander hesitated for a moment before responding. "I don't want to intrude on your time with him. It's fine, I'll talk to you later."
Isabel opened her mouth to protest, but the call ended before she could say anything.
After hanging up, Alexander stared at his phone screen for a moment before slumping his head onto the steering wheel and dropping his phone onto his lap.