The Tranquil Vintessa

This year hadn’t been easy for Henrietta. First, she and her forever partner broke up, and though it was a difficult decision, it had happened before her birthday. Then, on her birthday, they had a brief hookup. Since that night, there had been nothing but dead silence between them. To cope, she picked up an additional job to break the monotony of her life and bring in some extra cash to help with her schooling. She met some great new friends there and was starting to get back into the groove of life. She even had a new love interest—Brian, a 50-something real estate broker who just needed a little extra cash. They’d talk on breaks, but it wasn’t anything serious. Henrietta wasn’t looking for anything new; she was still healing from her breakup. But in the spirit of just having fun, she threw caution to the wind and decided to give him a chance.

They went on a few dates, and Brian started to show real interest. They’d talk about their shared dreams and aspirations, imagining where their lives might go together. He spoke about building a home and starting a family—everything Henrietta had always wanted. She had thought that dream was for her and her ex, but maybe it could be with Brian.

Henrietta was always cautious around people who made grand promises—the ones who looked deeply into your eyes, asked about your dreams, and promised you the world, only to vanish before the dust even settled. She wasn’t sure what to make of Brian’s promises, but she was willing to see where things went.

Then, one day, Brian left without a word. As expected, financial troubles had caught up with him. He was also dealing with an ex-partner who was trying to pin a child on him—his words, not hers—and he couldn’t juggle that with a relationship. So, he broke things off with Henrietta. Three days later, he came back with a Tory Burch bag and promises of a future together. They sat down and had a deep conversation about their relationship, discussing how things might pan out and whether they could build a life together. The night ended more romantically than Henrietta had expected.

She went on with her life—drinking, dancing, and admittedly falling a little harder than she had planned. Suddenly, Brian started making jokes about her stomach rounding out, teasing her about being pregnant. Henrietta had been told years ago that she wasn’t capable of getting pregnant. She never gave it a second thought. But out of curiosity, she took a test—not expecting it to come back positive. She didn’t check it for a few days, until one day, she remembered it was in the second bathroom. It was there she saw those two dreaded lines.

She stared at the test, her heart pounding in her chest. The two lines stared back at her, mocking the quiet certainty she had lived with for years. Henrietta wasn’t sure what to feel—surprised, terrified, hopeful? All she knew was that everything had just changed.