"So what are you going to do, Sonia?" Allie asked calmly after I explained everything to her.
"I don't know, Allison. I really don't know. I'm confused. I haven't even heard from Ben since then. It's been four days now. He hasn't called or texted and hasn't even responded to my calls and texts, and that's not even the worst part" As I said that, I wondered if I could fully trust my best friend.
"But I need to be sure you aren't letting anyone know until I get this all figured out. No one must know"
"Come on Sonia. I'm your best friend. Of course I'll keep my lips sealed. After all, when you had your first kiss with Damian back then in..."
I laughed and shut her up. Of course I could trust her. It's just that, this was a very sensitive story and Dr Caldwell, was a prominent man in New York.
"Okay okay. Fair point. The thing is... I've been having headaches and feeling nauseous and dizzy these days. I don't really know what to think. I haven't actually taken a test yet, but then I'm scared"
"You're worried you're pregnant for Ben" Allie stated plainly, and I nodded.
"It's alright Sonia. First of all, let's go take a test. Don't just assume. You might not be pregnant after all. It could just be stress and worry about the news"
"But what if the test is positive? How can I be pregnant with my stepbrother's child? It's absurd"
"It will be well, Sonie, just believe" Allie said and I nodded.
I stood up and went into my bedroom to get properly dressed.
BEN
"Son you've been down these past few days. You've not even been coming to work. Angie told me you've not even been eating well" Dad said as I opened the door for him.
"Hello to you too Dad. If all Angie does is to report to you how I'm living my life, then it's high time you get her fired" I responded weakly.
"Come on. I didn't mean it that way. She's worried about you. I am too. Now would you please tell me what's going on with you?"
Dad has always been wonderful to me, so it really was hard to confront him with this information about Sonia and her mum Lisa Gordon. He's always been perfect, never denying me the love and attention I needed. I only found out about my dad's connection with Lisa Gordon two months back. My secretary brought it to me accidentally. The letter Lisa wrote to my dad was tucked neatly in between some office documents, and my attention was captured, when I found Lisa's name on it. It was a resignation Lisa wrote to the company, which showed she initially worked here. I kept the information since then wondering when was the right time to talk to my dad about it, since it was obvious that Sonia didn't know. I hadn't even met her mum, until that fateful day the secret was let out. That was why I stayed away, against my feelings, from Sonia. I needed to find out from my dad first before going further.
"What was your relationship with Lisa Gordon?" I said, and looked at my dad's face.
"Lisa?? Lisa was my employee about two decades ago. How do you know about her? And why bring her up now?" Dad asked.
"What happened to her, while she was here?" I demanded.
"I still don't know why you need this information, but well I'll tell you. She was one of the best interns and that was why I decided to retain her as a staff, after her internship program. She lied about a lot of things, but I'm grateful I got to find out early. I was in love with her and we even slept together a few times, but well, she used that against me. She lied about her age, lied that she had no siblings, lied that she was an orphan and the height of it all was the fact that she leaked some confidential information to some of the company's rivals. I would have gotten her arrested, but then I just couldn't. I just fired her and got her out of my life completely, and a few months later, she said she was pregnant for me, which was impossible..."
"Why was it impossible dad? Didn't you sleep with her?" I asked, my voice going a bit higher.
"I did, but she had a boyfriend at that time, so I strongly believe that he is the father of her baby, not me. What's the reason for all these questions, Benny?" Dad asked.
"Lisa Gordon is Sonia's mother, and apparently we can't get married because Sonia is my stepsister" I stated.
Dad pulled off his glasses immediately, and stood up.
"When she didn't get back to me after telling me she was pregnant, I thought she was actually lying again. But how can that be? How couldn't she have told me she gave birth to my child? I need to go see her and we're going to take a test to see if this actually true. I can't just assume where Lisa is concerned. This needs to be verified. What this could do the my company's reputation if it gets out...."
"So all you care about is the company's reputation??? Really dad???" I asked in anger, wondering how he could still be inconsiderate after harbouring a grudge over Lisa Gordon for over two decades.
"If you know how I felt after Lisa did what she did over twenty years ago, you'll understand why I sound this way...."
"What about how I feel now, dad? How Sonia feels too??" I interrupted.
"I'll get to the bottom of this, Ben. But for now, stop telling at me. I understand how you feel. I'll sort this out in the best way possible, okay?" My dad said calmly, and hugged me.
"What are you going to do?" I asked him, after pulling from his embrace.
He looked at me and smiled.
"Make sure you start eating well. I don't want Angie complaining about you not eating well anymore. See you later son"
"Bye dad" I said, and he left.
I decided to call Sonia. She must be really angry with me after ignoring her calls all week. It rang straight to voicemail. I called several times and she still didn't answer.
I decided to leave her a message.
I really loved her, and couldn't let her go.
I reminisced on how we met for the first time.
She was a first year student in Columbia University, while I was in my third year. We met at a church actually. She was a chorister, with a very nice voice and I was playing the violin. We exchanged pleasantries after the service and have been best friends ever since. When I was about to graduate, I proposed to her and surprisingly, she accepted.
Our love story has just been filled with ecstatic bliss. We've had our ups and downs, but we always knew how to sort things out and move on together.
But this time around, the case was very different, and I doubt the fact that we'll sort things out.
I really doubt.