The Ultimate Chance-Chapter 174

A few days ago.

Mina had spent hours every day debating whether or not she should go back to Imperium.

She had missed Avery’s entire pregnancy despite having wanted to be a part of it, and she didn’t think that was her fault. After leaving the city, her body had become weaker and she’d needed to have a doctor hovering over her most of the time. In the end, the doctor moved into the apartment next door just in case.

For months, she’d thought about calling Gabe and telling him all about it. Once, she had even dialed his number but hung up as soon as he answered the call. She had been the one to leave. It wasn’t fair to go crying to him when things got tough.

But she couldn’t deny she felt something when she heard his voice, something she was not willing to face. For the rest of the term, she only accepted help from the doctor and the two had become fast friends. She’d even told her about why she was experiencing a troublesome experience on her own.

So when she couldn’t decide whether or not she was ready to go to the place she knew she would meet Gabe no matter what, she knocked at her door.

Dr. Freya was surprised to see her. Usually, she was the one going to Mina to check on her.

"Are you feeling alright?" She asked, even though Mina had already given birth weeks ago.

"Yes. Can we talk?" She asked.

"Of course." Freya stepped away from the door to let her in.

Mina sat on the couch closest to the door, looking like she wanted to flee. Freya brought her water but she held the glass in both hands with no intention of drinking it. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"What’s going on?" asked the doctor.

"It’s my niece’s christening in a few days."

She didn’t need to say more. The doctor said, "You should go."

Mina frowned. "Why? I mean, it’s not that I don’t want to, but you came to that conclusion quite fast."

Freya smiled, as if she had been waiting for this. "Why did you come here, Mina?"

"To ask for your opinion."

"No," said the doctor. "You want to go and you know it. You came here because deep down, you needed me to convince you to go."

She couldn’t deny it. Freya had good insight, which was one of the reasons why she was such a good doctor.

Seeing that Mina was silent, Freya continued, "Have you ever wondered why you really ran away?"

"Because I was a coward?"

The woman opposite the table shook her head slowly with a bzzzt sound. "Wrong again. While leaving may seem like the easy way, there’s nothing easy about leaving the people you love behind, especially when you have lost so much that it’s just them left. You left because you regretted asking your husband for a divorce and you couldn’t bring yourself to take it back."

Mina thought back to the time she left, when he’d hugged her and wanted to say something. He didn’t say it in the end but she knew exactly what he was thinking. That moment had haunted her in her dreams.

"So basically, I was a coward."

Freya nodded. "I am not a shrink, Mina. My job is not to coddle you and make you think you are not to blame for your actions. Because let’s face it. If you murder someone while drunk, the law might excuse you for doing something under the influence but deep down, you will know you are a murderer.

But I am your friend, and it’s my duty to make you see when you’re making a mistake. If you don’t go, you will regret it."

As Freya pointed out, she already knew this. She just needed to hear it before she put one foot in front of the other.

"Can you do me a favor?" she asked. "Can you watch him for me? I’ll be gone five hours at most."

"Of course."

....

Even after Freya told her she had to come, it had taken a while more to convince herself but here she was.

Gabe was stunned to see her for a while, his eyes roaming her frame. She wondered what he was thinking. She’d had a baby not too long ago and was yet to shed most of the baby weight, so she was a bit self-conscious under his stare. But when she remembered how fascinated and lustful he’d been when her boobs had started growing bigger, she realized he wouldn’t think less of her.

Was that...

She had just started to convince herself the look she was seeing in his eyes was disbelief and a hint of longing when it faded, replaced with loathe. "Whilelmina Romano. What the hell are you doing here?"

She frowned. "I came for Sophie’s christening."

He looked her up and down again, this time no such a thing as warmth in sight. "Why? Are they out of things to do in hell, where you buzzed off to?"

She deserved it, so she didn’t argue with him. "I’m sorry."

He went silent.

"Can I hold her?" She asked after a while.

He didn’t say a word, simply passing the baby over to her and walking off. She thought that was all but he tapped Damon’s shoulder on his way out. "Watch her. Make sure she doesn’t take off with your baby too."

The hurt cut through her like a knife to her chest.

She took several deep breaths. How would he react if he knew she’d had their baby?

Ignoring her feelings, she looked down at the cutie in her arms. "Hi, Sophie. I’m Aunt Mina." The name felt fake. Was she really Sophie’s aunt? She may not have signed the divorce papers but maybe Gabe submitted them in court and thanks to her disappearance, they’d been ruled as divorced.

What if he had married again?

She knew she had no right to control whether or not he got together with other women after her vanishing act but it hurt anyway, and she didn’t want to think about it anymore.

To her relief, the priest arrived and the ceremony started.

She was sitting on one side of Avery while the latter’s family sat on her other side. At some point, she noticed an intense gaze on her and looked over to see Angel staring at her face.

Good heavens. He was yet another reason why guilt had been consuming her. She didn’t even say goodbye to him. She was considering whispering something to the boy when she caught sight of a glare directed at her from Gabe. It was going to be a long few hours.

As soon as the ceremony ended, she said hello to Mabella, Chloe, and the kids, and decided to rush out.

"I left Angelo with the doctor but she’d quite busy, I don’t want to inconvenience her."

"Angelo?" Avery blinked. "Oh, Michaelangelo. I see what you did there."

Mina smiled bitterly. "I didn’t think I’d see you guys again. I named him Michaelangelo so I’d call him Angelo."

"Named who Michaelangelo?" Came a booming voice from behind them. She didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

She hadn’t even thought about how to tell him.