Chapter VIII:

Hallway

Jasper arrived at the clinic and saw Sabrina sitting and crying on the bed. He knew what happened. He came near and hugged her for comfort.

"Valerian called me." He said when they were already facing each other.

She did not reply, she didn't even know what to say.

"Where is he by the way?" He asked,"what kind of boyfriend is he to leave you like this?" Bitterness was evident in his voice.

"He's not my boyfriend Jasper..." She finally said.

"What do you mean he's not your boyfriend?" He was confused.

She met his eyes before telling him the truth.

"Jeremy's my..." she paused, "my husband."

He smirked waiting for her to say that she's just kidding, but she didn't.

"You're serious?"

She nodded.

"You can't be."

She just looked at him.

"Since?"

"Almost two months before I transferred here."

"What?!" he couldn't believe it.

"I know it's hard to believe but I and Jeremy are married."

Jasper moved to sit beside her on the bed to think coherently.

"That's why you never want me to go to your place because you live together." He said trying to connect the dots.

"Yes but not after today..."

"What do you mean?"

It took her awhile to answer him. "I have to let him go.." she wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I cannot stand seeing him again Jasper...it's painful."

She told him what happened today.

Jasper reached for her hand and held it tightly.

"You're going to be okay Sab."

She looked at him and found comfort.

However, she could not tell him the other thing.

Not now. Not until she already knows what to do.

Sabrina didn't feel like attending her class in the afternoon so she decided to skip school. She was about to leave the campus when she saw that familiar Valerian Car.

It was his parents, she knew.

The driver opened the door for her and few moments later she was inside with them.

"We heard what happened Sab." It was Mr. Valerian who started.

She just looked away, wanting to cry once more.

"How are you dear?" Angela asked.

"Don't worry about me..." she trailed off.

"Of course we're worried about you Sabrina." The woman intercepted. "He said you're not coming back anymore.

"I'll just take my things out of the house as soon as possible..."

"No." Lester protested. "Jeremy will be the one to leave the house."

"But Mr. Valerian it's his house..." she reasoned out.

"It's yours too, in case you have forgotten."

"Sabrina, Jeremy said that he will be the one to find a new place. Stay at the house." Angela told her. "If you need anything, you can call us anytime, do you understand?"

She nodded.

"Let's take her home." Lester said to the driver.

When she got home, she was not expecting to see Jeremy sitting at the foot of the stairs. Beside him was a huge duffel bag and a traveling bag.

She just stood there. It was a painful sight seeing him leave.

She caught him staring and he looked sad.

"There's so much I wanted to say but I know that you wouldn't want to hear them now," he paused to remove the lump in his throat and blinked the tears forming in his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Just leave." She muttered. She didn't want to be weak.

He nodded. "Can I hug you?"

She wanted to say no but couldn't find the words to say.

He stepped closer and hugged her tightly but her hands remained on her sides.

"I love you." he whispered to her ears before letting go of her and directly turned away from her to the door.

He was gone, she's sure.

She sat on the same spot where she found Jeremy awhile ago and did not how long she had allowed herself to cry.

The weekend came and it was terrible. All the morning sickness and carvings gave her a very hard time. Maddie came over at lunchtime. They were talking when she hurriedly excused herself to go to the bathroom to throw up.

Maddie rushed after her.

"Sab? Are you okay?" she asked but Sabrina wasn't able to answer yet when Maddie clapped her hands to her mouth and gasped. "Oh my! You're pregnant?"

Sabrina knew she could not hide it any longer. She nodded.

"That's awesome!"

She headed to the kitchen for a glass of water while Maddie tailed on her.

"Wait, did Jeremy know about this?"

"Yes."

"So why did he still leave?"

"Because I made him leave."

Maddie smiled weakly. "Now, you'll have to deal with all of these alone."

"I'm fine Mads-"

"For now, yes. What about a few months later? You will not longer be okay Sab. I'll tell mom and dad about this."

"I'm not sure if that's a great idea." she hesitated.

"Sab, forgive me for intruding but mom and dad will for sure be delighted about this. You're going to have Jeremy's child, the next generation of the Valerians. Whether you and big brother are separated or not, you are still part of the family and so you baby will be. And it's not like you're divorced or something so that makes you my sister in law up to this day." Maddie delivered.

"I have a feeling that I'll have to agree with you after that speech."

"Exactly." Maddie smiled.

Monday came, Sabrina pretended to act normally. It was after her first class when Jasper and Becca cornered her at the locker hall.

"Sab." Becca immediately hugged her. "I'm really sorry, I mean he seemed to change. I cannot believe he'll do that. Jerk Valerian."

Sabrina and Jasper just exchanged looks and Becca, of course, noticed it.

"I have a feeling that I'm missing something here."

"Becs, can you sleepover at my place tonight?"

"Sure."

They took a cab after school and went to Becca's house to get her stuff. After that, he headed straight to Sabrina's place.

"Wow, this is a huge place Sab." Becca searched the exterior of the house the moment they got out of the cab.

"Do you live here alone?" She wondered when they got inside.

"I am now." she replied.

"Huh?"

"Follow me." Sabrina said as she led Becca upstairs.
They stopped in front if Jeremy's room. Sab reached for the knob and opened the door. The room still contains some of Jeremy's stuff like pictures, clothes, posters and cd collection.

"Why do you Jeremy's stuff in your house? Becca sounded really confused.

"This is not just my house Becs, it's Jeremy's too."

"What?"

"I am Sabrina Ocampo..." she paused to look at her, "Valerian."

She gasped."You mean, you mean you're married to him?"

She nodded.

"For how long now?"

"For almost six months now."

"These are bunch of surprises." She sat on the bed. "Wait, almost six months? That's means, you were married before the semester started?"

"Yeah." she confirmed.

"All those times, you were Jeremy's wife at school. But, he used to treat you differently..."

"We don't have the typical relationship Becs, we did not get married because we were a couple. It's more of we're compelled to do it." She explained.

"Compelled? Is this some sort of an arranged marriage stuff?"

"No Becs, it's not like that...listen, one day I found myself waking up with Jeremy on his bed not knowing what really happened between us. Now his dad was so mad at him because of all his scandalous acts. He wanted to punish Jeremy, and I came with his punishment. They had us married immediately." She narrated.

"What about your family?"

"My mother died when she gave birth to Ethan and Emily. My dad , well he doesn't really care about me. He just wants money for his vices. He's a drunkard. I think it was easy for him give me to the Valerians in exchange of money."

"That's unfortunate..." Becca muttered. "I'm sorry.. I mean.. Are you sure you're not talking about any movies here, right?"

She smiled. "I hope I am Becs."

"Okay, but lately, you two seem to be madly in love with each other."

"I learned to love him Becs. At first I thought it was crazy but I did."

"Any girl would fall for Valerian Sab, and you're lucky because I am sure that he loves you too."

"We've had better days, but.." she trailed off. "It's all over."

"Or maybe all you need is time Sab." Becca said.

Sabrina glanced at the picture frame on the bedside table. It has Jeremy's picture.

"I have something else to tell you."

"What is it? You're not divorced, are you?"

She smiled weakly, and shook her head. "I am having his baby."

"Whoah! Information overload Sab. I'm going crazy here." Becca's hands flew to her head.

Sabrina couldn't help but laugh at her reaction.

"Really Sab?"

She nodded. "Three months."

"What's you're plan?"

"I'm going to finish school and graduate with this baby."

"Does Jeremy know about the baby?"

"Yes."

"This is sad." Becca looked at her stomach. "Don't worry dear one, your parents are going to to patch things up, we're on the same team, okay?"

They both laughed.

The very next day, Jasper came to her and Becca. They were sitting on the beach near the fountain in front of the Science Hall.

"Did you hear?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Becca wondered.

"That's Jeremy's out of school. They said that he transferred."

So she'll never see him now, she thought.

"Did he tell you about this Sab?" Jasper asked her this time.

"No." she uttered. "This is better, I think. At least we wouldn't see each other at school. Think of how awkward would that be." She tried to to sound happy about it but she knew she couldn't fool them.

"Nice try Sab." It was Becca.

Jasper on the other hand elbowed his cousin.

"Ouch!" Becca cried.

Days went so abrupt and it was good, she thought. Last week Maddie confirmed it that Jeremy is out of the country. He is in Australia. That information broke her. He's miles away now and she misses him. It's too late for her to regret, she convinced herself most of the time.

Mr. And Mrs Valerian were very happy when they found out about her pregnancy. Angela would often visit her or take her out for lunch or dinner. It was a Saturday when Jeremy's mom came over. They were both at the living room.

"How are you feeling now Sab?"

"I'm okay." she smiled at the woman politely.

"Six more months and I'm going to see my grandchild." Angela beamed.

Sabrina was silenced afterwards.

"Is there something wrong Sabrina?"

"I don't know this is the right time to ask but I'm just so curious..."

"About what dear?"

"About what happened that night." she said.

Angela looked at her lap before meeting Sabrina's eyes.

"You knew." Sabrina realized.

"Okay, I think it's time that you know what really happened."

Her heart pounded, finally she'll be able to find answers.

"Lester had everything planned." Angela started. "You know, we were so desperate about Jeremy. He would create news almost every week. Different girls, troubles, bar fights and all other forms of self destruction. We were hopeless."

"How did I get in the picture?"

"Lester knew your father."

"My dad?"

"Yes, Franco was a previous employee in the company. He had some financial case with us. He loaned, advanced and borrowed money. We've been hunting him for years but we couldn't find him. Then one day, Lester saw him but he couldn't even present a cent. He had your dad followed and that's how he found out about you and the twins. Now, Lester also had you watched for a week. He seemed to be contented with your personality and he thought that you might help us with Jeremy. So, Lester had an agreement with your dad. The company will forget about his case in exchange of you."

Sabrina sighed after hearing the story.

"How did I get to his room? How come we're both naked?"

"Did you remember your dad giving you anything to drink?

She tried to recall but she couldn't remember her dad offering her a drink but Emily did.

"Forgive us Sabrina but Lester was right, you did help us with Jeremy."

"That's how we had you. You were unconscious when we got you here. I was the one who undressed you."

She was speechless.

"Jeremy on the other hand was totally drunk. Lester had one of his friends as accomplice. He brough him to the bar and got him drinking until he passed out."

"So nothing happened that night."

Angela seem to watch her reaction.

Becca was right, she thought. Everything was like in the movies.

"How about the marriage?"

"The marriage was real Sabrina. We truthfully intend to make you part of the family."

Angela smiled at her. "And your baby is a legal Valerian."

"Did Jeremy know about this already?"

"Yes, he knew the day after his birthday. He was surprised and angry at the same time but later on he pleaded to keep the truth from you. He said let's all forget that there'd been an agreement. He will keep you, for real and he didn't care if everything was plotted that night."

Sabrina could not believe what she's hearing.

"That's when we realized that our son is in love with you."

"What about Kellsey?"

"Sabrina, Kellsey was just one of those girls he had before you." Angela confirmed. "Please believe that Jeremy loved you. He talked to me before he left for Australia. He said that he didn't know that he's capable of loving someone before you."

Sabrina could not help but cry. It made her miss him even more.

Two more months passed and her pregnancy has become noticeable. Students in the hallway would normally shot her curious or sympathetic stares knowing that Jeremy is the father. One of her professors told her that she should've know what Jeremy is up to. She would just then smile and say "Yeah, I should've."

She being a Valerian remained as a secret except from Becca and Jasper. They always keep her company.

One time, she and Jasper were at the hallway when they saw Kellsey standing ten feet away from them. Sabrina looked at Jasper.

"I thought we're meeting Becca?"

"She told me she wanted to talk to you, she promised not to hurt you." He told her."Do you want to talk to her?"

"Okay, I'll talk to her."

"Okay, I'll be somewhere near, okay?"

"Yeah, thanks."

Jasper left the both of them and walked his way out of the building.

Kellsey walked near her and when they're already facing each other, Kelly smiled at her.

"Hey Sab."

She sounded unusually kind, Sabrina thought.

"What do you want Kellsey?"

"I want to tell you.." Kellsey looked at her, "the thruth."

Sabrina waited. It was obvious that Kellsey was surprised to see her pregnant.

"I know I should've said this to you a long time ago but it took me a while to get over him.

"I don't want to listen to any of your drama-"

"Sabrina, I understand why you're angry at me but Jeremy does not deserve that. I was eager to win him back. I did everything, even stepped inside my uncle's office to become Jeremy's personal tutor."

"I am very well informed about that, now your point it?" She's so mad she couldn't hide it.

"My point is, Jeremy had been loyal to you." Kellsey stated. "One time, I asked him to go out with me and our friends. We went to the bar. I had him drunk, took him to my place...even on my bed. I feel so triumphant to see him there..."

"You're not going into details about that, are you?"

"No, listen. That was what I thought. And yes, I had him with me but his thoughts wandered to you. He was kissing me back but he was calling for your name. That was like a punch in the face. I thought you were just one of his dolls but I was wrong because he was calling for your name like you're the only girl he'd known. So, I stopped. I made him stop." She narrated.

"Right then, he thought that something happened between us. He was so eager to cut his tutorials with me. But I threatened him that the moment he did that, I'll tell you that he slept with me. He knew it'll break your heart so he backed off. He did everything to keep my mouth shut. He would even kiss me just to make me-"

"Excuse me?" Sabrina cannot take to listen anymore. It reminds her of that exact day she saw him kissing her.

"That day," Kellsey continued. "The time you saw him kissing me, that was all part of it Sabrina. Maybe you haven't heard but he cursed me for blackmailing him. He was trying to protect you because he loves you. I can say that because of the way he looked at you. Damn Sabrina, I would exchange anything in the world for Jeremy to look at me that way."

Sabrina looked away.

"I'm sorry Sabrina, I know it was wrong but you should understand... I am only a girl who tried to fight for her love."

"Why are you telling me this now?" She asked wondering.

"I don't know but I hope that you'll consider what I've said." She said looking at Sabrina's eyes.

"He's gone Kellsey." She retorted." It's too late."

"How long will it take to stop him from coming back to you?" Kellsey said before leaving her.

Sabrina didn't know what to say. She realized how unfair she had been to Jeremy. She didn't let him explain.

"Sab!" Jasper called a few minutes later. "Are you okay?"

"Jasper..." She looked at him.

Jasper just looked back at her.

"Is it wrong to say that..." she paused, "that I still love him?"

Jasper couldn't answer for a moment. Ouch, he though.

"Tell me..."

"Well, that hurts but...it's not Sab, it's never wrong to still love Valerian."