It was with a sinking, horrible, swooping feeling that Mabel was forced to face the facts. He may have let her go, but she might not have given him any choice. Finally, she felt the tears she’d been holding back spill over. She’d been scared. The idea of raising a family with Dory when she hadn’t been done right by her own family…it had been too much. It had been easier to force his hand; decide it was all for the best and trick herself into believing that it was his decision instead. She took a shuddering breath. We were going to be a family. Even with the realization that she hadn’t been pregnant, the gravity of the situation had already done its damage and come crashing down on her like a ton of bricks.

It felt hard to draw breaths. She covered her mouth to try and minimize the pathetic sounds she made, tried to start to explain what had just gone through her mind and hit her like a bolt of lightning, but she couldn’t. “I’m - I’m sorry, I need…I need a moment.” She managed to say before fleeing, not to the door to leave, but further into the flat to where she supposed the nearest wash room was.

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