Mason's Narration:
I don't know how long I've been sitting here without reacting. My secretary comes in to check on me and takes my hand to get my attention, as I have a lost gaze.
"Are you going to let her go? That's crazy, for sure. He's been distressed for months because he couldn't be with her, and now he lets her go as if it were nothing. How crazy!" she tells me, shaking her head.
My secretary is absolutely right, but she doesn't know everything that Paige hid from me. Damn it, without her, I'm nothing. I get up to look for her, but she's already gone. My phone rings, and it's a call from my mother, so I pause my search for Paige.
I have to go see them and tell them they're going to be grandparents, that it's actually true, but with Paige. I answer the call and say, "I'm coming to see you. We need to talk about something important and urgent." I end the call without giving her a chance to respond or tell me the reason for her call.
My secretary nods before I say anything, and she says, "Go calmly. I'll take care of everything. I don't think I'll be coming back to work today." I remind myself that I need to give her a raise; she's the best.
I don't say anything and head to my car. I feel strange—on one hand, happy because I'm going to have a child, whether it's a son or daughter, it doesn't matter to me. On the other hand, I'm annoyed by all the time I wasted with Paige because of Peyton.
I'm irritated by the fact that she wasn't planning on telling me anything and would have had our child without informing me. That's something I don't even want to imagine.
I arrive at my parents' house in a very short time. I park the car poorly, but I don't have time for those details now.
My mother receives me, surprised by my behavior. I take her hand and lead her to where my father is sitting in the living room.
"I'm going to be a father. You're going to have a grandchild," I tell them with a smile, but they don't seem surprised—or maybe they're just in shock.
Neither of us reacts, and it's scaring me. I look for my father's gaze and see him looking behind me. I turn around and see Peyton coming from the bathroom, I suppose.
"Hello," she says timidly.
"What are you doing here? I told you in the office that I didn't want to see you again," I say, annoyed.
Now I understand my parents' reaction. They might think I'm considering adopting that woman's child. My father clears his throat and says very seriously,
"If you're thinking of adopting that woman's child, it's your decision, but we refuse to do so when she proposed it to us," he says, leaving me shocked.
"Putting her child up for adoption? What are you talking about, Dad?" I ask, genuinely confused.
"Well, she came because she can't afford to raise the baby she's expecting, and she asked us if we wanted to adopt it because she's looking for a good family for the child," says my mother with teary eyes.
"I understand, but that's not the child I'm talking about. Peyton, this is a family matter, and I need you to leave and never come near anyone in this family again," I say, angry at her audacity to come and say such things to my parents.
We watch her leave in complete silence. My mother gets up to say something, but I don't let her.
"I'm going to have a child with Paige," I say abruptly.
My mother sits back down and brings her hands to her mouth.
"Well, son, congratulations. I suppose you're already looking for a way to get married again. We can organize a wedding in no time," says my father, excited. He always wanted Paige to be my wife.
"Well, actually, no. Let me explain..." I begin to tell them that Paige is two months pregnant and everything else.
My parents listen attentively, and when I finish speaking, my mom looks at me to say,
“I understand her. If I were in her shoes, I might have acted the same way. You weren't the perfect husband, especially when that witch claimed she was pregnant with your child and ruined any future you could have had with Paige. Now, what you need to do is start a relationship from scratch, show her how you feel, and try to be friends. If you want to win her over and prove that you're still in love with her, you'll have to find a way to woo her, but that will take time, and you have to give her space. We'll be part of the pregnancy, we'll be there for her at every appointment, and we'll make sure she and the baby are well taken care of. Patience and calmness are what you need with her. Pregnant women are a bit sensitive, and sometimes hormones take over. That's why I advise you to take it easy being by her side as a partner," my mother tells me, looking at me with love.
"Thank you, Mom. The first thing I'll do is explain to her that I want to be with her as a friend and as the father of the baby. Although you know how I am, I'll tell her everything—that the love I feel for her never stopped being present in me and that if she doesn't want to go back to what we had, I respect that. She'll be staying at Sarah's place, so I'm going there now. I'll let you know if she wants or can come to see you tomorrow. I think she's eager to see Simba," I say, thinking of the baby we had, whom I've been seeing daily lately. He's my anchor to remember the past I had with Paige.
"Now I understand why she only showed her face in the video calls. No problem at all. Tell her I'm eager to see her, just like Simba," my mother replies with a smile.
I say goodbye and go eagerly to see her. I can't not tell her that I still love her. I prefer that she knows finally. If she doesn't want to be by my side, I'll wait and try to win her over. And if she's already with someone else, then I'll have to settle for being just her friend and the father of our unborn baby.
I arrive at Sarah and Ethan's house without notifying them. One of the people who helps Sarah with household chores opens the door for me and says they're on the terrace. As I approach, I see something that I don't like at all. What is Paige doing hugging that guy? Who is he? My hands clench with jealousy.
I clear my throat, and everyone looks at me. Paige looks surprised, and the guy she was hugging separates from her, but I can see hatred in his eyes. The feeling is mutual, then.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to talk to Paige, if she's available, of course," I say seriously, looking at her intently and only at her.
"Friend, take a seat," Ethan says, smiling.
"Thank you, but what I need to discuss with Paige is private. Later, we can all share and get to know each other," I reply to Ethan without looking at him.
"Alright, let's talk. The sooner, the better," says the beautiful Paige. I no longer say "my beautiful" because I don't even know what will happen between us.
We go to Ethan's study; both of us know where it is. As we enter, I see her nervous and trying to conceal it. We sit down, and before she speaks, I say,
“First of all, there are several things you need to know. Since the trip, I haven't stopped thinking about you. The truth is, during that time, I realized that you're the only woman who has my heart, even though I didn't know it then and made mistakes that cost me the happiness we could have had together at that time. I still love you, and I understand that I hurt you and caused you a lot of pain. I will never have enough time in my life to apologize for everything I've done to you. Now I understand that you don't want to be in a romantic relationship with me again. It's logical that you would find another man who can give you what you deserve. But that doesn't mean I want to be far from your side and our child. I hope that we can, at the very least, be friends. However, you must know that I love you more than anything, and if you give me the chance to win you over again, I will fight every day to make you fall in love with me once more," I speak non-stop, overcome with nerves.
"I will never deny you the opportunity to be by our baby's side. As for the rest, the truth is that I'm not with anyone. If you're thinking about Lucas, he's just a brother to me, and I'm a sister to him. He might have seemed upset with you, but he takes care of me a lot and has been by my side every day, looking out for me. Maybe he doesn't like you because of everything we've been through, but that doesn't mean I'm giving you a chance. I don't want to make decisions about that right now. I want to be alone and experience this pregnancy without accepting or rejecting what we could have been a few months ago. I prefer that we start from nothing as friends and see what happens later," she says nervously, blushing.
"Okay, I support your decision, and I'll always be there for whatever you need. I like the idea of starting from nothing. By the way, my parents want to see you. I've already told them everything, and my mother says she's eager to see you, just like Simba," I tell her, and her eyes light up at the mention of our first baby.
"Can I go see them now? I miss my baby and your parents too," she says, blushing even more than before.
"Of course, they'll be happy to see you," I respond as we leave the office and go back to the living room.
Upon arrival, I notice that Lucas is not there. My friend Sarah, upon seeing Paige looking for him, says to her,
"Riley arrived, they're talking," it's all she says, and Paige understands immediately.
"I won't be able to go now, better tomorrow," she tells me, and Ethan asks,
"What won't you be able to do?" he does it with a different intention.
"I was going to see my parents and Simba, I understand. Tomorrow, I'll invite you to have lunch at their place," I say, getting closer to her.
"Alright, I like that idea," she says, smiling.
I can't help myself and I hug her. At first, she stays still, not responding to the hug until I sigh and whisper in her ear,
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. I missed you so much." She hugs me back, and I feel like I'm in heaven with her scent and warmth surrounding me.
She doesn't say anything, but I don't mind that she doesn't. I won't pressure her, and I'll wait for her to be ready to tell me anything she feels for me.
I let go of her and say goodbye to my friends. I head straight to the house my mother gifted to Paige and me, the home where I live to remember the beauty, I had with her.