CHAPTER TWELVE:
A LITTLE LEAP OF FAITH

LOSING YOUR CHILD WAS THE WORST PAIN IMAGINABLE. It was a different type of heartbreak. It was the type of pain that would follow you to the grave. A tattoo of sadness, a mark on your soul for as long as you lived.

Juliette had witnessed it firsthand when her older brother died. It happened over ten years ago, but she could still remember her mother's reaction. The image of her mother collapsing to the ground with a gut-wrenching scream would forever be engraved in her mind. Even now, no one dared to speak the name Nathaniel Reyes around the older Latina woman because if they did, her mood would plummet and her eyes would water.

Losing a child was a wound that never healed. Juliette knew this. And as she stared down at her blood stained seat, there was only one thought running through her mind: I'm losing my baby.

In an instant, fear and panic washed over her body. The phone she was holding fell onto the floor as her grip loosened. "Hello?" the person on the other end questioned. "Mrs. Drysdale?"

Juliette pushed down her emotions long enough to end the call, but they quickly resurfaced. She slowly stood up from her chair.

Ransom heard the loud clunk of the fallen phone and went upstairs to investigate. Really he was just looking for an excuse to see Juliette. To his surprise, she was already calling his name. The trembling of her voice caused him to pick up his speed.

"Juliette, are you—"

As soon as he opened the door to Juliette's office, he saw her hunched over her desk with her hand on her stomach. Her face was scrunched up in pain. His eyes landed on his wife's bloody dress and his heart dropped to his stomach.

"Ransom," Juliette squeaked.

Ransom's body reacted faster than his mind could process. He rushed forward and scooped Juliette up in his arms. Within five minutes, they were en route to the hospital. One hand was gripping the steering wheel and the other was holding Juliette's hand. He tried his best to ignore the harsh vibrations coming from his ankle monitor.

When they arrived at the hospital, Juliette was whisked away immediately. Ransom wasn't allowed to follow and was told to stay in the waiting room. He put up a fight but fell defeated, deciding to call his lawyers to deal with his breach of house arrest instead. When Juliette's doctor called for her, Ransom rushed forward and followed closely behind him as he led him into Juliette's private room.

"Juliette," Ransom sighed as he moved to stand beside her. He leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

She looked up at him from her place on the bed. Her eyes were full of tears and it broke his heart. "Ransom," she said worriedly, "I'm sorry—"

"Hey, hey. It's not your fault." Ransom turned to Juliette's doctor. "Doc?"

The doctor turned to them after setting up the ultrasound machine. "Let's see, shall we?" He offered them a comforting smile as Juliette rolled up the hospital gown she had changed into.

Juliette winced as the cold gel made contact with her skin. She immediately reached out to grab Ransom's hand.

There was silence as the doctor moved the probe around. The longer the silence was, the more Juliette's heart broke. There was no heartbeat.

Tears began to blur her vision, but just before they fell, the sound of a baby's heartbeat filled the room.

The tears in Juliette's eyes quickly turned into tears of joy. "Oh, thank god," she said, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Holy shit," Ransom said, bringing Juliette's hand up to his lips.

Juliette tore her eyes away from the screen and averted her gaze to her doctor. "What happened?"

The doctor gave them a small smile and turned to face them again. "Pregnancy is a fickle thing sometimes. It's slightly different from person to person. You've been taking it easy, right? No extreme stress recently?"

Juliette hesitated for a moment before answering. "I wouldn't say extreme."

The doctor nodded. "You need to take it easy, Mrs. Drysdale. You've close to your due date, but added stress could cause an early delivery."

The doctor gave her instructions to follow and left the room. The married couple was left in a mess of emotions.

Ransom helped his wife sit up and took her hands in his. She looked up at him and he moved one of his hands to rest on her cheek. "I'm so sorry," he apologized.

Juliette shook her head. "I should've been taking better care of myself."

"Damn it, Juliette," Ransom snapped. "Stop putting the blame on yourself. This wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for me. The reason you're so stressed is me. I am to blame for this, not you."

Though it was nice to hear him admit that he was at fault to a certain extent, Juliette still went to protest. "No—"

"Juliette," he interrupted, "let me take the blame."

She hesitated for moment. She surveyed his face and saw just how serious he was. Ransom didn't just want to take the blame, he needed to. In that moment, she was faced with a simple decision: let him take responsibility or continue in the unhealthy cycle she had been living in for the past week and a half.

"Okay." Juliette sighed and nodded her head slightly. "Let's go home."

The process of reconciliation was never an easy one. It was often long and challenging, but it started out the same every single time—with a small leap of faith.

If someone were to look into the small hospital room, they wouldn't see a arguing couple or a troubled relationship. They would see a girl taking the first step towards forgiveness. A little leap of faith.

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SHE SPEAKS!

juliette is starting to take the first steps towards forgiving ransom and herself and we love to see it

aLSO thank you for 10k reads!!