Let's play House

18. In which you can lean on me

Prudence pov

I watched at a distance as Harriet alighted from a range rover. She shut the door and the driver sped off immediately. She stood and nervously looked around until she finally saw me. She looked away suddenly and when she turned back she had composed herself compared to how distraught she appeared minutes ago.

She stood and waited for me as I rushed to meet her. My father's driver had just dropped me off for my 10 a.m class. I was about to head towards the lecture halls before I spotted her.

"Hi, Prudence?" She said when I was within earshot.

"Hi..." I trailed off, trying to organize my words. "Is that him?" The question slipped out.

"Who?" She turned to me confused and terrified.

"I know your secret," I whispered near her.

"What are you talking about," she glared as she stopped. Despite acting otherwise, she appeared to be enraged.

"You know..." I hinted pointing at her stomach.

"It was that obvious?" She looked down at her fat tummy and I was surprised she wasn't more annoyed with me.

"Was that the father?" I asked her since I had not seen her with a boyfriend leave alone a friend around the campus.

"Can I trust you?" She gazed at me.

I honestly felt sorry for her. She was her own company everywhere and I wanted to be there for her. To be her friend.

I nodded, "You can trust me." I told her.

"Yes, that was him." She admitted.

Wow! The guy seemed loaded to be driving around in that machine.

"How did you meet?" I burned with curiosity and to have a sneak peak into the life of the quiet and mysterious Harriet. "When can we expect the wedding bells?" I could go on with endless questions. I just loved love.

"He has a wife." She came to a halt and said, deadpan.

I looked around then back at her, i was left speechless. How could she? was the thought that first came to mind. I was taught that you should never break another woman's home, yet here i was staring at her and instead of feeling disgusted by her actions. I felt helplessly sorry for her. She looked so defeated with life.

"What about the baby?" I felt sorry for the unborn angel even more. I was a firm believer that a child should be born from a union and deserved to be raised by both parents. That is why I was opposed to premarital sex and hoped that Leo shared my values.

"There is no baby, Pru." Her body sagged as she spoke.

My brows furrowed in confusion.

"He forced me to abort it." She freed me from the maze of uncertainty.

A.b.o.r.t.i.o.n the word ran circles in my head. My mother would call it murder and in her career as a nurse she never ever accepted to be part of the operation when it would be performed where she worked.

"You are judging me, aren't you?" Like Leo would say, i wore my emotions on my sleeves. I was judging her choices but that didn't stop me from being empathetic to her. It was spilled milk. I could only be there for her, help her heal and the rest would follow in due time.

I then realized how pale she looked. I decided to skip my class as i accompanied her to the hostels.

We found Natalie in the room which was unexpected since she had moved in with her Cadet boyfriend. She was arranging her clothes back in the wardrobe. she stopped once she saw us.