Aunt Jane looked at me. “Mad at you? Why… wait a second. You know who the father is, right?”
“I’m not you,” I said and slowly started to stand up. “It’s King’s baby. It’s always about King.”
Aunt Jane then did some kind of weird dance on her toes. She waved the pregnancy test and shook her head. When she stopped, her eyes were glistening.
That’s when she finally hugged me.
I broke down into tears myself, the shock giving away since I saw the first pregnancy test pop up positive.
“I want to ask how but I know the answer,” Aunt Jane said.
“Everything has been so crazy lately,” I said. “I should have been thinking of it sooner. But I was sitting there last night and going through my work schedule. That’s when it hit me. I was actually late. Whoops.”
“Whoops,” Aunt Jane said. “Just what every woman should say when she finds out she’s pregnant. Does King know?”
“I haven’t told him yet,” I said. “I wanted to tell you first. I wanted… what the hell do I do?”
I started to cry again and Aunt Jane sat me down. She crouched in front of me.
“Hey, Lindsey. Look at me right now. A baby is nothing to cry about. You go to the doctor and you make sure that little peanut is healthy. That’s what matters.”
“You know the way King lives,” I said. “Am I going to be taking his baby to a prison for visits?”
“Don’t think like that,” Aunt Jane said. But I could see sorrow in her eyes. We both knew King was unpredictable. “I got a call one night that changed my life. I lost my sister and I gained basically a daughter. Think about that. You were suddenly mine. I was terrified. I wanted to quit so many times, Lindsey. Not on you, but on the idea of it all. Of being a mother. Of being in control of someone’s life. Making big decisions. Making hard decisions. Doing all I could do to protect your innocence. And I really sucked at it all.”
“No you didn’t,” I said. “You didn’t suck at any of it.”
“Look at the position I put us in so many times.”
“And we survived.”
“Right,” Aunt Jane. “My point is that you take whatever you have in front of you and go with it. No matter what happens with King. Right now you need to think about yourself. Your body. You’re pregnant! I’m going to be…”
“Grandma,” I said.
“Wouldn’t it be Great Aunt Jane?” she asked.
“No. I may have lost my mother and I may have called you Aunt Jane… but you raised me. And this baby will know all of that. But this baby will call you grandma.”
Aunt Jane wiped a tear from her eye as she backed away from me. “Well, as special as that it, it makes me feel so old. I need to have a little fun before this all settles in and I get wrinkles, gray hair, and actually look like a grandma.”
I laughed. “You’re so dramatic, I love it.”
“Gather up your pregnancy tests and go talk to King. Maybe something like this will help him in whatever he’s going through. A baby changes everything.”
I nodded.
Yes, a baby would change everything.
But so would a single phone call.
King called me a little bit later, wanting me to meet him at his brother’s grave.
35
(King) *NOW*
LINDS HAD to pee in a cup. Then we waited in the small exam room. She sat on the table with her feet dangling over it while I paced the room back and forth.
Pregnant? A baby? A father? Me?
Talk about a reality check. Getting a one-two punch to the gut.
Being put away was one thing. Being killed was another. Losing Linds was the worst case scenario for me. But now all of that changed. Losing my unborn baby was the worst case scenario. Sending Linds out to the world as a single mother - a pregnant, single mother - was not right. She didn’t sign up for this shit. In a way, neither did I. We couldn’t change it now though. We fucked like rabbits, all unprotected. Whoops.
The doctor came into the room with a big smile on her face.
“You’re pregnant,” she said.
I stopped dead in my tracks. I pointed to the folder the doctor was holding.
“You’re sure?” I asked.
“It’s there,” the doctor said. “Now we need to get blood work done next to check your levels. We’ll repeat and make sure everything increases. You can schedule your first ultrasound appointment when you checkout, too.”
I looked at Linds. I swore her eyes were spinning in circles.
I got the doctor to focus on me for a second. “Can we get the blood work done right now?”
“Sure. The lab is open.”
“That’s our next stop. Thank you, Doc.”
“Congrats,” she said. “Take deep breaths. Enjoy the ride. And get yourself some prenatal vitamins.”
The doctor left the room and I put a hand out for Linds to take. I stood her up and pulled her close for a hug.
“Holy shit,” Linds whispered.
“Holy shit,” I said. I cupped her face and kissed her. “Holy fucking shit, sweetie. You’re pregnant.”
“I’m pregnant.”
“With my baby.”
“With your baby.”
“I’m…”
“What do we do now?” Linds asked.