Status: Complete - Check out the sequel :)
When Duty Calls
Chapter 25
For two days Brian’s words repeated over and over in Andie’s mind. She barely thought of anything else and was thankful that she had a few days off work so she didn’t have to see him.
Lying quietly in bed, his words played over in her head again, with his voice as clear as what it had been Christmas evening. She ran her hands over her protruding stomach, just wanting to feel Abigail kick. She always seemed to go quiet when Andie was stressed or worrying about something and she had barley moved over the past day and a half.
She concentrated on blocking Brian’s words out of her mind, and began to hum a song softly with her eyes closed. As she got half way through hummingI Won’t See You Tonight Abi gave a hard kick before moving around.
“Morning sweetie, mommy was getting worried about you.” she whispered quietly with a small smile.
Abi continued to give her gently kicks as she continued to hum songs, listening to Rhian pottering around the house as she got ready to head into work. Finally Andie heard the front door open and slam shut and the house was left in silence. She pushed the bed sheets off her body and slowly hoisted herself up.
She showered quickly and got dressed before heading back into her bedroom and taking out the large suitcase from under her bed. She had decided that it was time to do what she should have done when she first found out she was pregnant. She should never have allowed Brian to talk her into staying when he found her packing the first time. She should have just gone. Things would have been so much easier.
And after what Brian had said in the car Christmas night she knew she had to leave. She couldn’t stay and see Brian again. She had to leave before he fell for her even more and he ended up loosing everything because of her. She couldn’t let him risk loosing his family for her and Abigail.
She would never say that she regretted her affair with Brian as it had resulted with her having Abigail, but she couldn’t let it continue. She had to allow Brian and Michelle the chance to be the happy family they were before she came into their lives.
She packed quickly, keeping to the essentials she would need for the first couple of weeks. She would get in touch with Rhian and ask her to get the rest of the stuff to her once she was settled. She wasn’t planning to go far, just far enough away from Brian. of course she knew that Brian probably wouldn’t let her hide for too long, not once Abigail was born, and if he found her then she knew she couldn’t stop him from seeing her and spending time with his daughter.
Once she had packed everything she needed she wheeled the suitcase to the top of the stairs, leaving it there as she made her way down to the kitchen. She went straight to the drawer where she knew that Rhian always kept paper and pens and sat down at the counter with a notepad and began to write Rhian a letter explaining her actions.
Wiping tears away from her eyes, Andie left the notepad on the counter and took her cell phone out of pocket and dialled the number for a cab firm.
****
Rhian sighed loudly as she finally finished going through and replying to the emails she’d received in work over the past couple of days. She would never understand the urgency of some people. Would the world really come to an end if certain business matters weren’t sorted out over the Christmas break? Surly it wouldn’t make that much of a difference if they waited until the New Year.
She’d had this argument with her bosses for the past six years that she had been working at the company, but it never made any difference. They would still arrange for a handful of employees to spend a few hours of their day at the office making sure that business still ran smoothly over the holidays.
Slowly running a hand over her tired face, she glanced through her fingers at the clock on her desk, a small smile appearing on her lips as she saw that it was soon time to go home. She took her cell phone out of her bag and dialled Andie’s number. Frowning slightly as it ran through to her voicemail, she cut off the call and dialled the number for the house.
“Huh.” She muttered quietly to herself as that too rang through to the answer machine. She ended that call too and rang Jimmy.
“Hey babe are you almost done in work?” Jimmy answered.
“Hey, yeah thankfully. Are you at the house?” she asked.
“At mine, yeah. Why?” Jimmy replied.
“Oh, it’s just that I’ve just tried calling Andie and there’s no answer.” She explained.
“What, on her cell and at her house?” Jimmy queried.
“Yeah, it’s not like her not to answer her phone.” She replied.
“You don’t think she’s gone into labour and is at the hospital do you?” Jimmy asked.
Rhian was quiet for a moment before shaking her head. “No, she would have called me, I’m her birthing partner, and if she was at the hospital someone would have called me.”
“Okay, then maybe she was just resting or something and didn’t hear the phone ring. You worry too much you do.” Jimmy replied calmly.
“Yeah I know.” Rhian replied with a sigh.
“Okay, I’ll be over to pick you up in five, and then we can head back to yours and find Andie and then lock ourselves in your room for a few hours.” He replied suggestively.
“Sounds good to me.” she replied with a smile on her face. “See you soon.”
She hung up the phone and looked over to the clock again before shutting down the computer, gathering her things and leaving the office.
“Babe are you okay, you’re quiet. Are you still worried about Andie?” Jimmy asked as he drove them back to her house.
“She’s just been quiet these past two days; I can’t help but think there’s something wrong.” She replied quietly.
“Babe, she’s probably just starting to feel the strain of the pregnancy. She’s not got long left, and it’s been a hectic couple of days.” He replied as he pulled up into the driveway.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right, she’s probably just asleep on the sofa.” She replied stepping out of the car.
She walked into her house and was greeted by silence as she made her way through the living room and into the kitchen. She spotted the notepad straight away and picked it up, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as she began to read the note Andie had left her.
“Babe?” Jimmy asked as he came to stand next to her.
“It’s from Andie, she’s gone.” She said quietly.
“Gone? Where?” Jimmy asked, moving himself so that he could read the note over her shoulder.
“It doesn’t say, she just says that she can’t stay around here any longer and she’ll be in touch soon to get the rest of her stuff.” She replied, her voice shaking as she re-read the note.
“Fuck!” Jimmy muttered.
“Exactly! Where the fuck has she gone? She’s eight and a half months pregnant! She can’t be on her own right now!” she yelled.
“Do you think she would have gone to her mom’s?” Jimmy asked hopefully.
“No, they’re still not talking to her because she’s not getting married to the father of her baby. I really don’t have the faintest idea of where she’d go.” She continued to yell.
“Does she even have any money to go anywhere?” Jimmy asked.
“She has some saved up, but I really don’t know how long that will last.” Rhian answered with a shake of her head.
“What about Brian?” Jimmy asked quietly after a moment of silence.
“Shit.” Rhian muttered running her fingers through her hair.
“We need to tell him Rhi, he needs to know that she’s gone. The kids need to be told too.” Jimmy said placing his hands on her shoulders.
“I know. Shit, I’ve got to go tell him haven’t I?” she replied quietly.
“Yeah, do you want me to come with?” Jimmy asked.
“That might be a good idea. Guess there’s no time like the present.” She replied.
***
“Do you want me to tell him?” Jimmy asked as they stood on the doorstep of Brian’s house.
“No, its okay I’ll do it.” She replied quietly as the door opened.
“Hey guys, what’s up?” Brian asked with a smile, standing away from the door to allow them in.
“Hey, um, I need to talk to you about something. Is Michelle around?” Rhian asked stepping passed him.
“Um, no, she’s taken the kids to see her mom and dad. What’s going on?” Brian asked with confusion.
“I think you better sit down dude.” Jimmy said as Brian led them into the living room.
“Okay. Guys what’s going on, you’re kinda freaking me out.” he replied taking a seat on the sofa.
“It’s Andie…” Rhian began nervously.
“Oh my god, is she okay? and Abi?” Brian interrupted sounding panicked.
“As far as we know they’re both fine.” Rhian said calmly.
“What do you mean ‘As far as you know’?” Brian all but yelled at them.
“She’s gone Brian, sometime this morning. She left me this note.” Rhian said quietly passing him the note Andie had left her. Brian took it from her and read through it.
“Where’s she gone?” he demanded lifting his eyes to meet Rhian’s.
“I don’t know, all I know is in that letter.” She replied.
“Don’t give me that, you’re here best friend, of course she told you.” Brian said with a raised voice.
“Brian, I promise, I don’t know where she is.” Rhian replied.
“Its true dude, she doesn’t. Andie’s not stupid, she obviously doesn’t want anyone knowing where she’s gone.” Jimmy said.
“But she’s having my baby. She can’t just leave.” Brian replied.
“I know, believe me I’m just as worried about her as you are.” Rhian said quietly.
“She shouldn’t be on her own right now.” he said with tears in his eyes.
“I know Bri, but I don’t know where to start looking for her. I wish I could tell you where she is. I’m sorry.” Rhian replied, reaching over to take hold of his hand.
“Connor’s going to be devastated. And what do I tell Michelle?” Brian said quietly after a brief moment of silence.
“I really don’t know Brian. I’m sorry, I really don’t.” she replied honestly.
Lying quietly in bed, his words played over in her head again, with his voice as clear as what it had been Christmas evening. She ran her hands over her protruding stomach, just wanting to feel Abigail kick. She always seemed to go quiet when Andie was stressed or worrying about something and she had barley moved over the past day and a half.
She concentrated on blocking Brian’s words out of her mind, and began to hum a song softly with her eyes closed. As she got half way through hummingI Won’t See You Tonight Abi gave a hard kick before moving around.
“Morning sweetie, mommy was getting worried about you.” she whispered quietly with a small smile.
Abi continued to give her gently kicks as she continued to hum songs, listening to Rhian pottering around the house as she got ready to head into work. Finally Andie heard the front door open and slam shut and the house was left in silence. She pushed the bed sheets off her body and slowly hoisted herself up.
She showered quickly and got dressed before heading back into her bedroom and taking out the large suitcase from under her bed. She had decided that it was time to do what she should have done when she first found out she was pregnant. She should never have allowed Brian to talk her into staying when he found her packing the first time. She should have just gone. Things would have been so much easier.
And after what Brian had said in the car Christmas night she knew she had to leave. She couldn’t stay and see Brian again. She had to leave before he fell for her even more and he ended up loosing everything because of her. She couldn’t let him risk loosing his family for her and Abigail.
She would never say that she regretted her affair with Brian as it had resulted with her having Abigail, but she couldn’t let it continue. She had to allow Brian and Michelle the chance to be the happy family they were before she came into their lives.
She packed quickly, keeping to the essentials she would need for the first couple of weeks. She would get in touch with Rhian and ask her to get the rest of the stuff to her once she was settled. She wasn’t planning to go far, just far enough away from Brian. of course she knew that Brian probably wouldn’t let her hide for too long, not once Abigail was born, and if he found her then she knew she couldn’t stop him from seeing her and spending time with his daughter.
Once she had packed everything she needed she wheeled the suitcase to the top of the stairs, leaving it there as she made her way down to the kitchen. She went straight to the drawer where she knew that Rhian always kept paper and pens and sat down at the counter with a notepad and began to write Rhian a letter explaining her actions.
Wiping tears away from her eyes, Andie left the notepad on the counter and took her cell phone out of pocket and dialled the number for a cab firm.
****
Rhian sighed loudly as she finally finished going through and replying to the emails she’d received in work over the past couple of days. She would never understand the urgency of some people. Would the world really come to an end if certain business matters weren’t sorted out over the Christmas break? Surly it wouldn’t make that much of a difference if they waited until the New Year.
She’d had this argument with her bosses for the past six years that she had been working at the company, but it never made any difference. They would still arrange for a handful of employees to spend a few hours of their day at the office making sure that business still ran smoothly over the holidays.
Slowly running a hand over her tired face, she glanced through her fingers at the clock on her desk, a small smile appearing on her lips as she saw that it was soon time to go home. She took her cell phone out of her bag and dialled Andie’s number. Frowning slightly as it ran through to her voicemail, she cut off the call and dialled the number for the house.
“Huh.” She muttered quietly to herself as that too rang through to the answer machine. She ended that call too and rang Jimmy.
“Hey babe are you almost done in work?” Jimmy answered.
“Hey, yeah thankfully. Are you at the house?” she asked.
“At mine, yeah. Why?” Jimmy replied.
“Oh, it’s just that I’ve just tried calling Andie and there’s no answer.” She explained.
“What, on her cell and at her house?” Jimmy queried.
“Yeah, it’s not like her not to answer her phone.” She replied.
“You don’t think she’s gone into labour and is at the hospital do you?” Jimmy asked.
Rhian was quiet for a moment before shaking her head. “No, she would have called me, I’m her birthing partner, and if she was at the hospital someone would have called me.”
“Okay, then maybe she was just resting or something and didn’t hear the phone ring. You worry too much you do.” Jimmy replied calmly.
“Yeah I know.” Rhian replied with a sigh.
“Okay, I’ll be over to pick you up in five, and then we can head back to yours and find Andie and then lock ourselves in your room for a few hours.” He replied suggestively.
“Sounds good to me.” she replied with a smile on her face. “See you soon.”
She hung up the phone and looked over to the clock again before shutting down the computer, gathering her things and leaving the office.
“Babe are you okay, you’re quiet. Are you still worried about Andie?” Jimmy asked as he drove them back to her house.
“She’s just been quiet these past two days; I can’t help but think there’s something wrong.” She replied quietly.
“Babe, she’s probably just starting to feel the strain of the pregnancy. She’s not got long left, and it’s been a hectic couple of days.” He replied as he pulled up into the driveway.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right, she’s probably just asleep on the sofa.” She replied stepping out of the car.
She walked into her house and was greeted by silence as she made her way through the living room and into the kitchen. She spotted the notepad straight away and picked it up, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as she began to read the note Andie had left her.
“Babe?” Jimmy asked as he came to stand next to her.
“It’s from Andie, she’s gone.” She said quietly.
“Gone? Where?” Jimmy asked, moving himself so that he could read the note over her shoulder.
“It doesn’t say, she just says that she can’t stay around here any longer and she’ll be in touch soon to get the rest of her stuff.” She replied, her voice shaking as she re-read the note.
“Fuck!” Jimmy muttered.
“Exactly! Where the fuck has she gone? She’s eight and a half months pregnant! She can’t be on her own right now!” she yelled.
“Do you think she would have gone to her mom’s?” Jimmy asked hopefully.
“No, they’re still not talking to her because she’s not getting married to the father of her baby. I really don’t have the faintest idea of where she’d go.” She continued to yell.
“Does she even have any money to go anywhere?” Jimmy asked.
“She has some saved up, but I really don’t know how long that will last.” Rhian answered with a shake of her head.
“What about Brian?” Jimmy asked quietly after a moment of silence.
“Shit.” Rhian muttered running her fingers through her hair.
“We need to tell him Rhi, he needs to know that she’s gone. The kids need to be told too.” Jimmy said placing his hands on her shoulders.
“I know. Shit, I’ve got to go tell him haven’t I?” she replied quietly.
“Yeah, do you want me to come with?” Jimmy asked.
“That might be a good idea. Guess there’s no time like the present.” She replied.
***
“Do you want me to tell him?” Jimmy asked as they stood on the doorstep of Brian’s house.
“No, its okay I’ll do it.” She replied quietly as the door opened.
“Hey guys, what’s up?” Brian asked with a smile, standing away from the door to allow them in.
“Hey, um, I need to talk to you about something. Is Michelle around?” Rhian asked stepping passed him.
“Um, no, she’s taken the kids to see her mom and dad. What’s going on?” Brian asked with confusion.
“I think you better sit down dude.” Jimmy said as Brian led them into the living room.
“Okay. Guys what’s going on, you’re kinda freaking me out.” he replied taking a seat on the sofa.
“It’s Andie…” Rhian began nervously.
“Oh my god, is she okay? and Abi?” Brian interrupted sounding panicked.
“As far as we know they’re both fine.” Rhian said calmly.
“What do you mean ‘As far as you know’?” Brian all but yelled at them.
“She’s gone Brian, sometime this morning. She left me this note.” Rhian said quietly passing him the note Andie had left her. Brian took it from her and read through it.
“Where’s she gone?” he demanded lifting his eyes to meet Rhian’s.
“I don’t know, all I know is in that letter.” She replied.
“Don’t give me that, you’re here best friend, of course she told you.” Brian said with a raised voice.
“Brian, I promise, I don’t know where she is.” Rhian replied.
“Its true dude, she doesn’t. Andie’s not stupid, she obviously doesn’t want anyone knowing where she’s gone.” Jimmy said.
“But she’s having my baby. She can’t just leave.” Brian replied.
“I know, believe me I’m just as worried about her as you are.” Rhian said quietly.
“She shouldn’t be on her own right now.” he said with tears in his eyes.
“I know Bri, but I don’t know where to start looking for her. I wish I could tell you where she is. I’m sorry.” Rhian replied, reaching over to take hold of his hand.
“Connor’s going to be devastated. And what do I tell Michelle?” Brian said quietly after a brief moment of silence.
“I really don’t know Brian. I’m sorry, I really don’t.” she replied honestly.
♠ ♠ ♠
A bit of an abrupt ending sorry guys! :)And that's it for this story! Well, apart from the sequel (the summery of which is up already, so feel free to go check it out and subscribe and stuff )
I would like to thank all of you who have read, subscribed and commented on this story over the past 8 1/2 months, I hope you'll all stick with me for the sequel! :)
Andie