Find your tribe. Love them hard

 Kyle had asked days ago at the emergency about Hope's mother. Hadn't she told her about the baby? Of course, Hope didn't answer him. Instead, she'd been worried if she'd have more of these Braxton-Hicks contractions. Couldn't they just worry about the baby?

"But don't you think she'd want to know?" Kyle asked again.

"I don't think so." She was solemn about her past. She didn't think about it anymore. Her friends were her family.

"But why?" He wanted to know. They were home in the early evening after supper, and she was in the middle of Bridgerton on Netflix while on the couch, and he wanted to know as he was putting away dishes.

Honestly, she didn't have the energy to tell him but got out her phone instead. Yes, she'd kept the pictures from when it happened. Maybe it was just self-hatred. She didn't really know. Still, a large lump lodged in her throat. She really didn't want Kyle to know. She'd never told Megan nor Caitlin. As it was, no one had ever asked her if she was OK. Not even her mother.

It was evidence, but it hadn't done her any good, how her step-father had beaten her and left her for dead. Thanks to the good old boy network in her little town, he was hardly in jail and her mom went back to him.

"I'd go crazy if I  had anything to do with them," Hope told him. Really, she didn't know that girl from high school. She'd somehow managed to stay with her mother's sister and graduated. "I didn't look back." It would be depressing if she thought about it. And she couldn't do that now. She hadn't even told her Aunt about the baby. 

Of course, she made Kyle cry and he hugged her as if he'd never let her go. He said he was sorry. For a moment, she thought she might not be breathing, but she let the tears emerge and knew she was actually happy. Happy to be with Kyle.