Chapter Six
“Yes?” she says.
“Hi,” Alexis says. “I’m…here to have an…” She quickly glances around the waiting room – wondering if anyone can hear what she’s about to say. She decides to speak more quietly. “An…I’m here for an…abortion…Your ad said that I don’t have to have an appointment…”
“That’s right,” the young brown-haired woman answers. She reaches to her right and pulls a form out of an upright folder, affixes it to a clipboard, and hands it to Alexis. “Have you eaten anything today?”
“No.”
“Okay then, fill out that form and we’ll call you.”
Alexis takes the clipboard.
“Thank you.”
Alexis turns and slowly walks to an empty seat on the other side of the room. As she sits, she studies the faces of the other women in that waiting room wondering which of them are there for the same reason – an abortion.
She puts her pocketbook down on the floor next to her seat, reaches down into it to get her pen, and begins to study the form.
The sooner that this is over with, she tells herself, the better…
___________________________________________________________________
Kristina carefully tears the pages out of the telephone book and quickly skims the names.
“So many…” she whispers. “Alexis, you are making the biggest mistake of your life…” She considers it briefly – her promise not to tell anyone -- before taking a deep breath and plunging in. “And I can’t let you do it…”
She hurries to the front door, pulls it open, and continues across the hall to Sonny’s apartment, where she encounters a very dutiful-looking Johnny.
“I need to talk to Sonny,” Kristina states.
“He’s not available.”
“Johnny, this is an emergency. Now I need to talk to Sonny so you’re gonna have to let me in…”
“He is not available,” Johnny insists.
“Well fine,” Kristina says. “Maybe he’ll be available if I make a little noise out here…” She goes to the vase on the floor just outside Sonny’s door, prepared to smash it to the ground. “Exactly how much does he like this vase?”
“Miss…”
“And my name isn’t ‘Miss-anything’. My name is Kristina and I want to see Sonny – right now!”
“He’s not here,” Johnny blurts. “He’s not here right now.”
Kristina steadies the vase once again.
“Then you’re gonna have to call him.”
“Kristina…”
“Look, it’s an emergency and my sister needs him right now! And he’ll never forgive himself if he doesn’t do something…Call him! Please!”
“I’m not supposed to…”
“Johnny,” Kristina pleads, “time is critical here so either you get Sonny on the phone right now…or deal with the fallout if you don’t…”
___________________________________________________________________
Alexis sits in the waiting room, thumbing through a magazine.
Why is this taking so long, she asks herself. They have my information. They know why I’m here. They've confirmed that I'm pregnant...Let’s just get this done…
The door next to the receptionist’s station swings open. A small woman with dark brown skin and big eyes stands in the doorway holding a manila folder.
“Miss Davis?” she calls.
“Here!” Alexis quickly answers. She puts the magazine down on the table in front of her, picks up her pocketbook, and stands. “I’m here…”
“This way, please.”
Alexis walks to the door and steps in.
___________________________________________________________________
Johnny stands – cell phone pressed to his ear.
“Well?” Kristina says.
“There’s no answer.”
“No answer? Honestly, how can this perfectly dreadful man run this so-called business of his and not be able to be contacted when he’s needed?”
Johnny shrugs.
“Then tell me where he is and I’ll find him!”
“Now that I definitely can’t do.”
“Johnny…”
“I’m sorry, Miss Carter,” Johnny says. “I have my orders.”
“Well I don’t particularly give a damn about your orders…”
The elevator doors slide open and Kristina turns to see who’s coming.
Out steps Sonny, followed closely by Max.
“Thank God,” Kristina mutters. “Sonny, I have to talk to you!”
Sonny rolls his eyes and walks past her to his apartment door.
“Not right now, Kristina,” Sonny says.
“Yes,” she insists. “Right now – this minute!”
“I got no time for you right now.”
“Then make time, Sonny. Look…there’s something that you need to know…and if you ever cared about my sister…you’ll want to know as soon as possible…”
Sonny looks at her – wondering what on earth she can be talking about this time.
Then he shakes his head, turns the doorknob, and pushes the door open.
“Two minutes,” he says.
“Believe me,” she says as she walks past him into the apartment. “That’s all I’m gonna need…”
___________________________________________________________________
“Is this your first pregnancy?” Connie the counselor asks.
Her voice brings Alexis’ wandering mind back to the present.
“Yes…”
“And you’re certain that you want to terminate?”
“I’m certain,” Alexis says. “I’m an attorney and I keep rather strange hours…and I’m a workaholic and I don’t know anything at all about children in general – let alone babies…It just…wouldn’t be practical.”
“Well, babies are never really practical, are they? And I’ve known many women – just like you – with the same busy schedules and work ethic who are wonderful mothers…What about the baby’s father?”
Alexis stiffens.
“What about him?”
“Would he be involved?”
“We…We’re not together anymore…His life is even more complicated than mine…Bringing a baby into our lives at this point…wouldn’t be fair – to any of us…It’s my decision.”
“And you’ve considered other options?”
“Yes, I have,” Alexis answers. “This…This is the best option.”
“Okay,” Connie says. She finishes writing one last note on Alexis’ chart. She quickly gives the chart another look. “I see we’ve got your information and you’ve had your exam…” She stands up from the desk and walks to the corner closet. She opens the door, reaches up, and pulls down a cloth hospital gown. “Take off your clothes and change into this gown. There’s another waiting area at the end of the hall.”
Alexis stands and takes the gown out of Connie’s hand.
“Do I change here?”
Connie’s large eyes crinkle when she smiles and nods.
She picks up Alexis’ chart, goes to the door, opens it and steps out into the hall – closing the door behind her.
Alexis stares at the hospital gown in her hand, her heart pounding.
She shakes off her fear and begins to unbutton her blouse.
“This is the best option, Alexis,” she reassures herself.
___________________________________________________________________
Sonny drops his keys on the desk.
“Okay,” he begins, “what’s so important and what does it have to do with Alexis?”
“It has everything to do with Alexis,” Kristina says. “You bring my sister into your life and you get her to fall in love with you and then you just toss her aside? How could you do that to someone like Alexis?”
“You know what?” Sonny begins, making his way to the door. “If this is gonna be another one of your lectures about somethin' you know nothin’ about, you can leave…”
“Alexis is pregnant!”
The words stop Sonny in his tracks. He turns around and stares at Kristina, his heart thumping wildly.
“What’d you say?” he asks quietly.
“You heard me, Sonny,” Kristina says. “Alexis is pregnant…with your child…”
Pregnant? Wait a minute, wait a minute…
“Wait a minute,” he manages, trying to get his thoughts together. “Is this something you know? I mean…are you assuming something or…”
“Alexis told me herself,” Kristina interrupts. “She’s pregnant…”
Sonny takes a deep breath and paces back into the living room.
“Why didn’t she…Why didn’t she tell me?” he asks.
“You broke up, Sonny. Look, all I know is that I came home the other morning to find Alexis lying on the sofa with the windows closed and the curtains drawn. When I asked her if she was sick, she said that she wasn’t sick – she was only pregnant. Anyway, none of that is important right now. Sonny…I think she’s gonna have an abortion!”
“An abortion?” he asks. “What makes you think that?”
“Look at these pages,” Kristina says as she holds them up for him to see. “I found the telephone book on the sofa and it was open to these pages. Alexis kept saying that she couldn’t have this baby…but I hoped she wouldn’t do anything rash…”
Sonny looks at the torn pages in front of him and tries to catch his breath.
“You have to find her, Sonny,” Kristina insists. “You have the resources to find her quickly. She’s at one of these places. You have to find her before…before she does something that she’s gonna regret…something that you’ll both regret…”
Sonny eyes connect with Kristina’s.
He goes to the desk and picks up the telephone. He dials a local number and waits while Kristina watches, puzzled.
“It’s me. The guy that’s on Alexis – where is he now?”
“Oh my God, Sonny,” Kristina exclaims. “You’ve got someone following her?”
“He lost her? What the hell do you mean ‘he lost her’? I’m not payin’ for screw-ups…Where did he lose her? Forget it. Look, just get the car. I’ll be right down!”
He slams down the telephone receiver. Then he grabs the pages out of Kristina’s hand and moves quickly to the door. He pulls it and lets it swing open while he walks past a surprised Johnny and Max.
“Max,” he says as he presses the elevator button, “you come with me! Johnny, you stay here.”
Kristina walks out of Sonny’s apartment and watches as he paces back and forth, waiting for the elevator.
“You’ve got to find her, Sonny,” she says, tears glistening in her eyes. “Before it’s too late…”
The elevator doors open and Sonny and Max step in.
“I will,” Sonny says.
___________________________________________________________________
Alexis sits in the uncomfortably cold waiting room, clad only in the cloth gown and a pair of paper slippers, shivering. She sits in that room with four other women – three much younger and one who looks to be about Alexis’ age. The television up high plays one of the local talk shows and the room is quiet except for the sound of the television and the periodic rustle of turning pages.
I never imagined that I would find myself in this situation, Alexis tells herself. You see what happens to you whenever you lose control? You plotted with Luke to kill Helena and you killed Catherine Bell instead – even though she didn’t stay dead – thanks to Helena. You cross the line with Sonny, ruining your friendship in the process and now you can’t even work for him anymore. And you’ve compounded an already complicated situation by getting yourself pregnant…
Pregnant? The word still seems so foreign to her – as if she’s talking about someone else. She must be. She certainly can’t be talking about Alexis Davis, brilliant attorney and woman of the world.
How on earth did something like this happen?
I mean, I know how it happened, her mind says. I was careless and irresponsible and this is the result – me sitting here virtually naked in a room with other virtually naked women, waiting to have some anonymous procedure that will return my life to what it once was.
But can that happen? Is it even possible? I’m not sure…
“Alexis Davis?” the nurse calls from the doorway in front of her.
Hearing her name called so suddenly startles Alexis and she jumps.
She takes a deep breath and stands.
“That would be me,” Alexis says.
___________________________________________________________________
Sonny sits on the edge of his seat as the limousine pulls away from the curb – away from the tenth clinic that he has been into and out of in just the last hour and a half or so – on his way to the next one on the list.
And he knows that time is running out – he has to find Alexis and stop her from doing this terrible thing. He knows that what Kristina said is absolutely true.
If Alexis goes through with this abortion, she will never forgive herself for it.
And neither will he.
She didn’t look well, he reminds himself. I should’ve known that something was wrong when she came by the other night…
She’s actually pregnant with our child…
The words feel every bit as magical to Sonny now as they have always been. In a few months a baby will come into the world – simply because he and Alexis love each other.
As Sonny thinks about it, it seems perfectly natural for Alexis to be the mother of his child. No one knows him the way Alexis does. No one else understands him or has ever understood him the way she understands him.
Alexis has seen into the depths of his soul and hasn’t run away from the horror that she found there. Instead she seemed to love him all the more.
I know what you think, Alexis – that, you know, this whole thing with us was getting too complicated for me – that I didn’t love you enough. That's what I wanted you to think…
But I do love you, Alexis. If you only knew how much…
This shouldn’t be happening, sweetheart. You shouldn’t be feeling so alone that you would even consider doing this…
But we can, you know…we can fix this. I need to talk to you and…I can make you understand why I pushed you away. I did it for your safety, Alexis. I didn’t want you to ever get hurt again because you didn’t have sense enough to run away when I barged into your life…
Now – with this baby – everything’s different.
Just give me a chance to make you see that…
The cell phone in Sonny’s pants pocket rings. He reaches into his pocket and takes it out. He presses the button and puts it to his ear.
“Yeah?” he says. “The park? You’re sure it’s Alexis? Got it. Listen don’t go near her. I’m less than five minutes away. Just keep watching her. I’ll be right over there…”
Sonny presses the button and disconnects the call.
“Take me to the park on 22nd and Grand,” he instructs his driver.
“Yes, sir.”
He puts the phone back in his pocket and wonders what he’ll say to Alexis when he sees her.
He wonders if it’s too late to say anything.
___________________________________________________________________
Alexis sits on the bench, her pocketbook in her hands. She sits motionless, staring into the playground with the brightly colored climbing equipment directly across from her.
She sees women and carriages. She sees children in swings and hears them squeal with delight every time the adult with them pushes them just a bit higher.
A woman rolls a carriage out of the playground. In it, a little person lies sleeping peacefully – totally oblivious to the noises around.
Alexis shakes her head in wonder.
“Such a different world…”
Sonny sees Alexis sitting on the bench a few feet ahead. Somehow he relaxes at the sight of her and tenses at the same time. He approaches slowly, not wanting to startle her.
He moves closer and closer to the bench, his pulse pounding in his ears.
Finally he is close enough.
He takes a deep breath.
“Hey,” he manages when he finds his voice.
Alexis turns toward the sound of that all-too-familiar greeting in that all-too-familiar voice.
She sees Sonny standing next to the bench.
Their eyes connect.
“Hey,” she says.