After putting the twins and Addie to bed, I went out to the backyard. Zara, Trey, and Alex sat in lawn chairs. Zara suddenly hopped to her feet and hugged me. I froze with surprise and looked to her large smile as she let go. She rushed off before jogging back over to me with a bottle of beer.
"Un-congratulations!" She cheered and I looked to the guys with confusion.
"Lauryn forgot something in the lab and had to go back in after hours. She called because a test came back."
Zara bounced slightly, "you're not pregnant!"
I instinctively hugged her as I let out a deep sigh. I tried not to cry, but a few tears escaped. Once I settled down, I happily took the bottle from Zara. I went with her and sat between her and Alex.
"I'm happy for you. That must be relieving."
I nodded to Trey, "more than you can imagine."
I leaned back in the chair and let out another deep sigh, "three kids is enough."
Zara looked at me with slight pitty, "but if the treatment works, you might be able to have kids with someone you love." She gasped slightly, "not that you dont still have feelings of love towards their dad. But love for someone you choose of entirely your own free will."
"He already has someone in mind." Zara and Trey looked to Alex in surprise, probably shocked as they thought that he and I had a heart-to-heart talk of some kind. He scoffed at their slightly shocked faces, "Lauryn and Will talked about it earlier."
"Its that Asher guy, right?" I nodded slowly as Zara's face brightened. "He clearly loves you. I can tell just from that facetime."
I took a swig and Trey smiled, "how'd you meet?"
I smiled and let out a small chuckle, "he was a friend of Hunter's when we were roommates. He brought him home when they were both drunk." I sighed, but my smile didn't leave. "I went into heat while he was spending the night and he was able to fight his urges somewhat. He offered to help me through my heat without bonding and I accepted. He ended up doing that until I crossed paths with my destined partner."
"Is he the one Elijah said wants to move out here? Something about expanding his buisness."
"Yeah, but I told him not to. I need time to heal and I can't do that with him near me."
"Doesn't that mean you want him as a partner?"
I glanced to Zara sadly, "it probably does. But right now isn't my time to find a partner. The kids need time and so do I." I felt emotions rising from my gut and knew I was about to cry. I drank the rest of the beer before smiling to the group, "I should get to bed. Thanks for the drink."
I went inside quickly, but stopped at Chase's room. I knocked lightly on the door and Emit opened the door with a large smile. "Hey."
I smiled back, "would you be okay with Chase and I talking alone for a bit?"
He looked to me with surprise, "is everything okay?"
"Actually, things are going really good. I just need to talk to him about something."
He came out of the door, kissed my head, and went towards the kitchen. I went inside and Chase looked up from his textbook. He smiled sweetly towards me and gestured for me to sit with him on the bed.
As I sat beside him, he laid his head on my shoulder and lightly hugged me from the side. "Something good happened?"
I smiled to him, "I'm not pregnant." Chase looked to me in shock before hugging my side tightly. I heard him choking back tears with hard gulps and breaths.
"Thank god."
I gently stroked his hair and he looked up to me. "Are you still sure about bonding with Emit?" He nodded energetically.
"I've never been more sure about anything."
"You're heat is in a few days, right? Have you been taking your medicine?"
He looked away as he blushed, "after everything that's happened, I've reflected on what I want in life. If I really want to go to college, if I want to move away, if I want to be with Emit for life." He let a few tears out but his eyes shined with love. "I want to go to college, one nearby. I want to be near you and the kids." I began to argue but he shook his head, "it's what I WANT. Not what I think I should do or feel obligated to do; it's what I want and it's what will make me happy." He choked up a bit and had to clear his throat to continue. "And I WANT Emit. I need him with me to be happy and I don't ever want to be without him. He..." I wiped tears away as they fell down his face. "Will...he's the first person to respect me and not look at me as an Omega. He makes me feel a way I've never felt before. I'm safe and loved."
I felt love strike me, "you want to bond during your upcoming heat."
He nodded, "I know its fast..."
I took his hands in mine, "I support you." I took something out of my pocket and Chase's eyes doubled in size.