Pain. That was all Jenna felt. Her nightmare had been cut short by the excruciating pain in her stomach. She would have been thankful if she hadn't walked from one nightmare to another. She tried breathing through her mouth but it kept getting worse and worse. "Jeremy" she called out but was met with silence. She turned her head to his side of the bed but it was empty, still untouched meaning he hadn't come back yet. Or maybe he slept in the other room. No turned it to nursery. The living room then. "Jeremy! Jeremy!" she yelled but she was still met with silence.

She threw the covers away and froze when she felt the wet sheets. She was wearing just a T-shirt and when she touched her hand to her thigh, it came away wet and sticky. She lifted it up and the sliver of light from the slightly parted curtain indicated blood. Another sharp pain hit her causing her to double over pressing her arms to her stomach. She knew what was happening and she was alone with no one to help her. When the pain was bearable she looked at the night stand and the clock said it was four in the morning. Her phone was next to the lamp. She grabbed it and called 911. "Hello" she said and cut the operator off "Am bleeding and pregnant. Please send the ambulance"

"Ma'am can you tell me about....."

"Just send the damn ambulance" Jenna yelled then giving the woman her address, she flung her phone against the wall. The screen shattered into tiny little pieces just in time for another jolt of pain. She screamed calling out for Jeremiah but she was all alone. Again. Some time later she passed out from the pain.

Jeremiah shut his phone off. He was drunk off his ass talking to a tired looking Robert. The bar was already deserted and when one of the waiters came to tell them they were closing, Jeremiah threatened to buy the whole place and shut it down leaving the employees jobless. One guy was left behind the bar, looking at them drowsily probably hoping they would leave. "Okay that's it man. Am taking you home." Robert said taking Jeremiah's hands and lifting him from the chair. They stumbled knocking down his chair startling the waiter who had dozed off.

"Let me go. Am not done talking. You're my friend Robbie, you should listen to me" Jeremiah stammered while Robert pushed him outside. "Hey what are you doing with my wallet?" he slapped the other man's hands away.

"Tipping this lovely man who has worked way beyond his hours. Now stop being a miser"

"Don't you have your own money?"

"Yeah. In the bank. I don't walk around with cash" Robert told him grabbing a couple hundred bills and shoving them in the waiter's hands. The man's eyes widened all sleep disappearing from his eyes. Robert dragged Jeremiah outside who kept mumbling to himself. Once in the car he fell asleep and Robert sighed in relief. He was Jeremiah's friend but drunk Jeremiah wasn't good company. He was sloppy and bossy and really loud. They had talked at the beginning but he got more and more frustrated when he started talking about his wife. Robert was single, what did he know about marriage? Nothing. So he let him talk and drink. His house was nearer so they went there. He didn't think Jenna would appreciate a drunk husband.

Jeremiah's head was pounding. He felt like a tribal ceremony was going on in there while the drummers used his head as the drum. He opened his eyes and winced closing them immediately. Why did Jennifer open the blinds so early in the morning? "Jennifer, please close the curtains and get me some painkillers. My head hurts" he called out thinking he was at home.

"Lucky for you am not Jennifer or I would be kicking your ass." Robert said startling him

"Ugh it's too early Robert. Why are you in my house?"

"I should be asking you that question Jere."

That got him to snap his eyes open and look around. "Okay how did I get here?" he rephrased his question

"Let's see. You called me, used me as your shoulder and drunk so much booze you didn't even know where your mouth was. Are you remembering anything or should I keep going?"

"Shit Jennifer must be worried." he got up too fast groaning loudly and searched for his phone.

"Here. You turned it off last night" Robert handed him the device placing a cup of coffee in front of him.

He switched it on and saw a few missed calls from his doorman. "Did I come with my car?"

"No. Thank God you had the mind to get a cab. I'll drive you home"

"She's going to be so pissed. Maybe we should stop at a florist and I'll buy her flowers."

"And chocolate too. Women love that shit" Robert added.

"No. Cake. My Jennifer likes cake."

"Okay. Flower shop then bakery got it. Let's go make up"

"Thanks man. For everything but I'll take it from here" Jeremiah told him when they were at his apartment building.

"I think I should come up. Maybe she'll soften the blows with a third party present. Think about it"

"That's the coward's way out but I see your point. Promise me you'll keep your mouth shut unless it's to testify that I was with you all night" Robert made a zipping motion across his mouth indicating he was quiet.

"Mr Maxwell?" Alan the day guard called but they didn't pay attention to him. They flew into the lift while Alan kept calling out to him.

"I think.... " Robert started but the glare Jeremiah shot him made him stop.

"Jennifer, baby am home and I come bearing gifts." he called out walking to the kitchen. Turning around he almost bumped into Robert who was right behind him. "Dammit Robbie stay put and stop getting in my way. Jennifer?" nothing. He went upstairs thinking she was still asleep. He dropped the flowers he was holding. "JENNIFER!" he ran to the bathroom. She wasn't there. There was blood on the bed, floor. So much blood. Her phone was lying on floor shattered.

Jeremiah ran back downstairs calling out her name. He searched everywhere while Robert called the front desk. "Jere let's go. She's at the hospital" he called a panicked Jeremiah who wouldn't stop calling out for his wife. "What do you mean she's at the hospital, what happened?

"I don't know. Alan said Daniel told him to inform you about it the moment you got here because your phone was off" Robert had to push him to the lift to get him to move.

"Shit. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck" Jeremiah cursed banging his head against the steel doors. "I shouldn't have left. I shouldn't have left her alone Robbie. She's pregnant. What kind of a husband leaves his pregnant wife alone? What is wrong with me?"

"Calm down. You can't go to her looking like that. You have to calm down"

"I can't. I don't even know what happened. There was so much blood Robbie."

"Get in we'll find out at the hospital." Jeremiah could have kissed Robert if he wasn't freaking out. The man drove, breaking all traffic rules getting him to the hospital in record time.

"My wife where is she?" Jeremiah bust in through the emergency doors before the car had even stopped.

"Sir calm down and tell me your wife's name. I'll look...."

He cut the nurse off "Jennifer Maxwell. Where is she?"

"Fourth floor room 408"

Jenna woke up. Disoriented, she looked around. The place was white and something was beeping. She closed her eyes then opened them again trying to remember where she was. Blood. So much blood. Everything came back to her in a rush making her jolt up. The machines beside her bed started beating in sync with her heart. "My baby" she whispered then looking around the room for the first time she realized she was alone. "Hello anyone?" she called out the same moment the door opened. A woman in a white lab coat walked in with a nurse behind her.

"You're awake. That's good, how are you feeling?"

"Is my baby okay?" Jenna asked.

"Am sorry Mrs Maxwell but we tried our best. You lost so much blood really there was nothing we could do to stop you from losing the baby. Am really sorry"

Jenna stopped listening at 'Mrs Maxwell". She went numb zoning out everything around her. This is what she got for hoping. Hoping for a family of her own. Hoping for the one person who would love her unconditionally. Hoping that she would get her happy ending. It was all clear to her now. There was no way she was ever going to have a normal life. How was she going to come back from this? How was she ever going to close her eyes without the image of her baby hunting her? "My husband" she whispered but the doctor heard her.

"He's not here yet but am sure he's on his way. The nurse at the nurse station is trying to get in touch with him" the doctor told her clearly trying to make her feel better.

"Leave me alone please" They left seeming to understand that she needed time to herself. Where are you Jeremy when I need you. She asked herself breaking down. Jenna didn't know if she  could go on. It was all too much even for her. Why. Why. Why. She cried curling up bringing her knees to her chest. Her stomach hurt but the pain in her heart was too strong threatening to suffocate her. Why God. Why. Why was this happening to her? Jenna cried for a whole two hours before a nurse sedated her forcefully. When she woke up again Jeremiah was there next to her bed looking like crap and smelling like a brewery.

"Baby am sorry.... "

"You were drinking." she said. Not a question but a simple statement.

"Jennifer please. Am so sorry, am sorry baby" he was begging crying and she would have tried to comfort him. Tried to tell him it wasn't his fault or anyone's fault. She would have done all that if he hadn't left. If he had stayed she would have said she was sorry too and embraced him. But looking the way he did, stinking of alcohol, Jenna couldn't find the strength to even spare him a glance. She was hurting so much and she needed someone to blame. In the past she blamed everything on her mother. This however she was going to put it on him. It was the only thing she could do to stop herself from drowning in that sea of pain she was in. Maybe later when it didn't feel like her heart was ripping itself apart, when the pain wasn't too much, maybe then she would be able to look at him and lie to him. Maybe then but not now. Not at that moment.

"Leave me alone" she said turning to face the other side of the bed.

"Jennifer please don't shut me out. It was my baby too" he tried but she just ignored him.

Jeremiah sat on the chair beside her bed crying. I shouldn't have left her alone. He kept chanting over and over in his head. This was all his fault. His life was falling to pieces and it was all his fault. How was he going to fix this? Jennifer had gone through so much hardships in her life and instead of making her happy like he had promised he would, he was ruining it. Making her sad with everything he did. All he had to do was keep his mouth shut and not talk about Terry. That's all she had asked from him but he wouldn't listen. He kept pushing and pushing and now look where she was. Where they both were. She was going to hate him and there was nothing he could do to make it right.

The doctors kept her at the hospital for one more day before discharging her. She wouldn't let him touch her. When he tried to help her she slapped his hands away and called for a nurse. When they got home she went straight to the nursery and locked herself in there. He didn't try to get her to come out. He knew she needed to be alone in order to grieve for the baby that could have been. She stayed in the nursery for two days without stepping a foot outside it. Jeremiah got worried on the second day and threatened to knock down the door if she didn't come out. That worked for a while. She would come out, shower, eat whatever he gave her then go back. No words were said between them.

Days turned into a week, then two, three, four. The pain wasn't so suffocating anymore. So Jenna would wait until her husband left for work then she would sit on the stairs and daydream. She would picture a little boy running around the house refusing to eat or shower. Sometimes they were on the sofa watching a movie or waiting for Jeremiah to come home so they could brag about how their baby came first in class. She cried silently for that life that didn't have the chance to even know it's own mother. She would have been a good mother, that she was sure of. She would have been there for her child like no had been for her. She would have moved heaven and earth to make her child happy. Give him everything she never had.

One day her husband came home and found her sitting on the stairs staring at nothing. He dropped his suitcase and went over to her sitting a few steps down. He didn't say a word just sat there with her trying to collect his thoughts and find a better way to tell her whatever was on his mind. "Jennifer" he said expecting no answer. He hadn't spoken to her in weeks. All he did was make her food and make sure she ate. He slept on the couch even though he knew she didn't sleep in the bed. He couldn't even walk in the bedroom without seeing blood everywhere. Of course he had cleaned the place up and not a single drop of blood was there anymore but he couldn't do it.

"I need to talk to you. I know what am going to tell you will probably make you hate me more but I can't sit around and do nothing." he stopped waiting for her to say something but when she still kept quiet he touched her knee forcing her to look at him. She blinked then looked away. It didn't matter. So long as she was listening he would keep talking. "Terry isn't doing well. She's getting worse and I've tried to find her a donor Jennifer. I've called everyone I know, every favor owed to me, my business partners, friends, everyone Jennifer. I couldn't find her a match. That's why am here begging you."

"I know you don't want to even hear her name but at the end of the day she's still your mother. You are the only one who can help her Jennifer. I know you baby and I know you're a good person. You wouldn't let someone die when you know you can save them. I've seen you give away half of your paycheck to people you don't know. I know you have a good heart and I hope you can help her. Because I can't have another death on my conscious. My brother, my mother, our baby. Please help me out here. Am begging you please help me by helping her. Please Jennifer"

"How?" she asked speaking to him for the first time since she left the hospital.

"You just have to don......"

"No how do you know am the only one who can help her?"

*************************************************

Yikes. Shit's about to go down.

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