Chapter Twenty-Three: Making Amends

This is 2 months since Miranda has come back. Let's say it's around December..

Joshua had been working at his new job for two months now and he was loving it. It was on the other side of Starlight Shores and the paparazzi weren't as bad there. He could work without fear of being stalked or getting fired. His boss was pretty nice too. He even got a bonus when he started, because he was so good at his job. The only reason the lab let him go is because of the paparazzi issue, but he was good at what he did. He was able to get a loan from the bank to buy a nice house close to his job.

Mimi loved coming into the nursery. It made her feel calm and as if she had no worries in the world. And her mind needed to be at ease when her due date quickly approaching. Joshua tried to get her to sign up for some Lamaze classes, but she declined. She still felt too ashamed and embarrass to leave the house. She only left if it was necessary, such as doctor appointments and grocery shopping. Plus she didn't see why she needed to breathe around other women. She could do that from her home. Joshua chalked it up to her being nervous and just dropped the subject.

"What's wrong?" Joshua asked as he slipped his arms around her and placed them on her belly. Mimi wasn't startled because she had heard him enter the room. She shrugged her shoulders and continued to look at the crib.
"This still amazes me. I can't believe we're going to be parents." Mimi said. Joshua noticed she was changing the topic, but didn't mention it.
"Me either, but I'm excited. I've always imagined having a lot of kids." Joshua replied.
"Really? I never really thought about having kids. My mind was always stuck on owning my own restaurant." Mimi said. Joshua knew Mimi missed working. Sometimes he wondered if she was only having the baby because if she didn't it'd go against her religion and her parent's would be even more pissed. He also thought she'd resent the baby as she grew up, faulting her for having to give up her dream. But maybe he was over thinking.

"You can still have all of that." He stated as he kissed her softly on the cheek. Mimi merely nodded as if she didn't believe him.

Mimi broke their embrace and turned to leave, but Joshua was blocking her exit.
"Where are you going?" He inquired. Mimi sighed.
"We need to talk." She replied. Those four deadly words. Joshua's mind went into a frenzy with worry. She pushed past him and opened the door. He followed her.

Mimi entered their bedroom and motioned for Joshua to take a seat. He raised his eyebrow up at her in confusion. Shouldn't she be sitting down? He thought. Mimi looked down as she thought about what she was going to say. She took a deep breath before opening her mouth to speak.
"I should have told you this a while ago, but I kept it to myself. I went to see Miranda." She confessed. Miranda? Why? When? He thought. She put her hand up signalling for him to let her continue.
"I wanted to tell her my side of the story too. You got to, so why shouldn't I? Anyways it didn't turn out so well. She practically chewed me out, but I deserved that." Mimi continued. "I was upset for a while. I probably had no right to be, but I was. I felt as if she didn't hear me out at all." Mimi said. She looked up briefly but still avoided Joshua's eyes.

"Why are you telling me this now?" Joshua asked.
"Because she contacted me a few days ago. She wants to talk.." Mimi answered.

Joshua slummed further into the couch.
"I don't think you should." Joshua said. "You just have to let it go."
"Why not? I think it'll be good for the both of us." Mimi said a bit defensively. She all but crossed her arms. How could he tell her not to do something? He didn't own her.
"I didn't mean it that way. I just don't think it's a good idea." Joshua explained. Mimi shook her head.
"She's coming over today." Mimi replied. She had already made her mind up and Joshua wasn't going to change that.

Joshua could see that Mimi was resolute in her decision. He fought the topic no longer. 

"I'm sorry baby. I just want you to be careful." He said as he got up. Mimi nodded. She understood his concern, but Miranda just wanted to talk, and hopefully hear her out this time.

"I know." Mimi said before allowing him to pull her into a hug. Joshua glanced over at the clock on the night stand. He had to leave for work.

"I have to go." He said. Mimi gave him a quick kiss before saying good-bye. 

Mimi was about to start breakfast when she heard the doorbell ring. It was barely 9 a.m. She hadn't expected Miranda to arrive this early. She shut the refrigerator after putting the eggs back inside. 

She opened the door to find Miranda staring back at her. She gave her a small smile. Mimi returned it and looked down. She had a bag in her hands. 

"Hello." Miranda said.

"Hey come on in." Mimi said and stepped aside. Miranda entered the home and walked towards the dinning room area. 

Miranda handed Mimi the bag in her hand. Mimi thanked her and sat it on the table before telling her to take a seat.
"You have a nice home." Miranda said.
"Thank you." Mimi replied. She didn't mention that it was actually Joshua's place. "So how have you been?" Mimi asked.
"I've been good. It's been a while since I could say that without lying." Miranda answered. Mimi nodded.
"How about you, how's the baby?" Miranda inquired. Mimi rubbed her belly.
"We're good, any day now she should be making her debut into the world." Mimi answered.


"You know I was surprised when you called me. I thought you'd never want to speak to me again." Mimi said turning the conversation to the real topic.
"A couple of months ago and I wouldn't have." Miranda said honestly. "But I've come to realize I have to forgive in order to move on. And Mimi, I forgive you." Miranda said. She finally said it. She was accepting her apology, but it still felt unreal.
"Thank you." Mimi said.
"You don't need to thank me. It's not about you or Joshua or the affair. It's about me. I'm trying to become a better person and I can't do that by living in the past." Miranda explained. She wasn't trying to sound selfish or anything, but it may have came off that way.
"Well I'm still grateful that you have forgiven me."

"But Mimi you need to forgive yourself too." Miranda commented. She could tell that she hadn't and probably wasn't going to. Mimi didn't respond right away.
"You have to. It's no point of feeling guilty anymore." Miranda added. She has a point Mimi thought. And maybe she could now that Miranda had forgiven her.
"You're right." was all Mimi could voice.

"I should probably get going." Miranda said before the awkward silence took over.
"Miranda?" Mimi said.
"Yeah?" Miranda said as she started to stand.
"Do you think that we could ever be friends again?" Mimi said. The hope glimmered in her eyes. She had missed Miranda. Missed sharing secrets with her and talking about nonsense. And it killed her that she couldn't enjoy her pregnancy with her best friend.
Miranda was unsure how to respond. She slide the chair under the table and thought about how she should answer Mimi.
"Mimi.. she sighed. "This is a process you know? Forgiving is one thing, but rekindling our friendship is another." Miranda stated. "I'm just not there yet. I don't know if I will ever be, but we can be civil if we happen to run into each other." Miranda finished. Mimi looked disappointed, but maybe she was expecting too much.
"I hope you understand." Miranda said before leaving.

Miranda had walked down the stairs and was heading to her car when she spotted Joshua. Great She thought. She was trying to fish her car keys out of her purse and prepare to make a run for it. Unfortunately, she was too slow. Joshua had made his way up to her.
"Um Hi Joshua." She greeted.
"Hey Miranda." He replied. He had forgotten his ID card. When he returned home, he saw an unknown car in the driveway, but didn't want to go inside. He knew it was Miranda. He circled around the neighborhood a bit, but it was still there. She hadn't left yet. He resigned and decided to just run in quickly and come back out. His timing couldn't have been more wrong however. As soon as he stepped out of his car, Miranda was walking out of the house.

"Funny running into you." He joked lamely. Miranda forced a "ha ha" out of pity.
"I guess so, but I was just leaving." Miranda said. She attempted to walk around him, but he just followed her.
"How have you been? You look nice." He said. She really did look nice, especially in that outfit. For a moment he had forgotten all about Mimi.
"I've been good." Miranda said. She didn't want to talk to him, but it looked like he wasn't taking a hint.
"Good Good. I'm glad to hear that." Joshua replied. He looked left and noticed Mimi was watching from the window. That brought him back to reality.
"I have to go. Now. I have a meeting." Miranda said. If he wouldn't take the hint, she would just have to be blunt.

"Good-bye Joshua." Miranda said before walking away. He looked hurt.
"Wait." He said. Again, he blocked her from leaving. She kept her frustrated sigh to herself. She shot her brows up at him, as if saying What now?
"The last time we spoke, we never to talk about that." He replied. Really? Miranda thought. That was over two months ago and he was just now bringing that up. Joshua knew he was grasping in the dark here, but he didn't care. He just didn't want her to leave.
"I told you that was a mistake. And I don't know what you expect me to say by bringing that up." Miranda answered. "Besides, you're engaged and expecting a child. If you think for a second you have a shot, then you are wrong. Very wrong. That ship has sailed and crashed Joshua. Move on." She said firmly. And with that she left. He didn't bother to stop her this time. Joshua felt stupid. He had just made a fool of himself and for what? For nothing. He shook his head before heading inside. He just knew Mimi would have something to say about what just transpired. She didn't have to hear what they said. His attempt at keeping her there said enough. And then a thought hit him, How did she know Mimi and him were engaged?

*If there are some grammatical errors here, I'm aware of them. I just can't edit it right now. When I try to delete something or press backspace it'll delete something that I want to keep. I hate when that happens. I tried to publish and then edit, but it still isn't working. I'll have to try again later. So if you read it and still see mistakes just bear with me.