THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

It was a relatively warm autumn morning, at least going by the standards of Norwegian weather. Camilla was browsing the morning sports news in the living room of her apartment in Trondheim. The peculiar blend of nerves and worry that had recently become a norm in her life was already taking over her mind like a tiny flying insect stuck in her ear. But she forced herself to continue focusing on the articles on her phone while occasionally sipping her coffee.

As usual, she was following the news updates about Zachary, the only guy she couldn't seem to push out of her mind no matter how hard she tried. "Zachary Puts Up another Incredible Display during Juventus' game against AC Cesena." Her eyes took in yet another catchy headline, and she couldn't help but smile despite her worries.

Her mood lifted, and her mind became perkier. She quickly started reading through the article and taking in all the details of Zachary's performance against AC Cesena. A few seconds later, her spirits attained an even higher level of brightness after she learned that Zachary had scored another goal from a free kick before providing an assist that set up Arturo Vidal for another. She was happy that her boyfriend was doing well in his new club. From the bottom of her heart, she wished he would continue shining like a star during Juventus' upcoming matches.

"If he could be as focused as he was on football in other aspects of life, he would be perfect," Camilla thought to herself with a sigh. "But I guess it's true what people say: Nobody is perfect, nobody is a superhero, and the ideal prince charming doesn't exist."

Camilla shook her head and took another sip of her coffee. Once again, her mind started wandering as she thought about her relationship with Zachary. He could be sweet and considerate at times. But most of the other times, he was annoyingly detached and uncaring as a lover. He had his imperfections as a person, but she still loved him.

"If only he could call or text more often, that would solve everything," Camilla thought and returned her attention to browsing the internet on her phone.

While her eyes glazed over the same article repeatedly, without registering its contents, she heard the shy knocking echo in the dim and narrow hallway. She raised a brow and quickly noted the time indicated on her phone. It was only coming to 8:00 AM, but someone was already knocking on her door! Who could it be? Who was disturbing her peace that early in the morning? But all those doubts didn't stop her from getting off the couch and walking towards the front door. She reached it within seconds and then glanced through the peephole.

"OMG!" She muttered a silent exclamation and stepped back in surprise the next moment. She had gotten the shock of her life after noticing the person standing before her door. Her heart was racing, and she couldn't keep a lead on her volatile emotions for a few seconds.

"Knock! Knock! Knock!"

A couple of more knocks sounded, pulling her back to reality. She took a few deep breaths to make herself appear more relaxed and stepped forward to extend her hand toward the door knob. She was trying her utmost to conceal her eagerness as she slowly opened the door.

It finally opened with some slight effort on her side, and her eyes glowed with excitement as they took in the visage of Zachary standing at her doorstep. But they also contained a trace of puzzlement deep within them. His arrival was totally unexpected.

"Zachary!" She exclaimed, trying her best to sound nonchalant. But clearly, she was doing a shoddy job at it while fidgeting around like a little girl. "What are you doing here?" She asked. "Aren't you supposed to be in Turin, recovering from your post-match fatigue?"

"Ta'da!" Zachary replied, summoning a bouquet of red roses from behind him. "Happy birthday, babe!" He presented them to her with glowing eyes.

"Oh my God! You remembered!" Camilla exclaimed while receiving the roses. Her eyes moistened as she felt warm on the inside. A blissful sensation of sweetness flooded her entire being, and she couldn't help but jump into Zachary's embrace. "Thank you for this pleasant surprise. You have made my day." She whispered while burying her head into Zachary's chest.

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Zachary had traveled to Trondheim specifically to celebrate Camilla's birthday. So, he spent the entire day hanging out with her. They started their day together with a sumptuous breakfast at home before heading out on a shopping trip around Trondheim. They soon began entering various malls and bought several items that interested them.

Camilla, on her part, had even excused herself from going to work by claiming that she wasn't feeling well that day. As a result, she was living in the moment and celebrating her birthday without any worries weighing down her mind. She felt as free as a bird traversing the expansive skies while spending time with her boyfriend.

"This watch will look good on your beautiful wrist," Zachary said after they entered a jewelry shop in City Syd, one of the biggest shopping malls in Trondheim. "It's for you." He smiled at Camilla while handing her an 8000 Euro Panthère de Cartier watch.

"Oh, thank you," Camilla responded and received the watch. She didn't try to put on any pretenses, like claiming that the gift was too expensive or saying anything else along those lines. She immediately wore it on her wrist before they continued their shopping spree.

The evening hours soon arrived, and they returned to Camilla's apartment. They had an intimate dinner together before falling into each other's arms and surrendering themselves to the sweet throes of passion.

The golden rays of the setting sun shone through the window and curtain, just the same, illuminating their tangled bodies as they gyrated and rose up and down with some uncanny rhythm. They were at the zenith of blissfulness for hours and didn't stop their age-old ritual of intimacy until long after sunset.

Zachary regained his wits minutes after the intensive love-making session. "I love you," he said, leaning over and kissing Camilla while she snuggled warmly under the duvet.

"I love you too," she responded, shifting slightly and meeting his gaze with her bright emerald-green eyes. "Thank you for today. I really had a good time."

"Don't mention it. It's what I should do. I'm sorry I haven't been communicating more often over the past few weeks. I always lose myself training."

Zachary reached his hand to her head and gently combed her tangled brown hair with his fingers. The dim artificial lighting in the bedroom made her emerald-green eyes brighter as she held his gaze. She looked so beautiful, so vulnerable, and so pure.

"I'm pregnant," she whispered, turning her gaze away.

Zachary's heartbeat accelerated within an instant. He thought he had misheard and asked again, "What did you just say?"

"I said that I'm pregnant," Camilla said in a louder voice. "And please don't act like most men and ask whether it's yours. I'm very sure that it's yours."

"Oh!" That was all Zachary could manage in response. He was so shocked. His heart jumped as the gears in his mind turned and churned, trying to attune to the unexpected situation.

If he were to be totally honest with himself, he would have to admit that he wasn't keen to commit to any girl yet. He was still nineteen in his new life and wasn't ready to surrender his freedom due to responsibility. He wanted to continue progressing in his career while enjoying life for a few more years. His plan was to succeed in other areas before considering the prospects of marriage or raising children.

Additionally, he was shouldering a few insecurities. He feared the notion of totally surrendering himself to another person due to experiences from his previous life. He was worried that he might experience the bitter emotions of heartbreak again if he was to love another person wholeheartedly without leaving any room for retreat. As a result, he had subconsciously always left some leeway for himself during his interactions with Camilla. He loved her, yes, but he'd not elevated her status to the level of his confidant within his mind. He hadn't told her everything, and he'd neither told her about his fears nor his vulnerabilities. He would even spend days without calling her simply because he had always rejected the idea of making her his wife on a subconscious level.

"Say something, babe," Camila said to break the silence. "Aren't you happy that we're getting a child?"

Zachary sighed. "Of course, I'm happy. But I am also shocked and surprised as well. The news came out of nowhere. How far along are you?"

"About two months," Camilla replied, sitting upright on the bed.

"That far!"

"Yes," Camilla confirmed. "But I only found out about three weeks ago. I have been meaning to talk to you about it, but there wasn't any right timing over the past few weeks. You know how we have been."

"I see," Zachary said. "I need to process everything. Give me some time." He jumped out of bed and went to pour himself a glass of water.

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