CHAPTER 14
"Zoe, I'm so nervous," Lydia said as she paced back and forth across her living room. Jeff's plane had come in two hours before and he had called to say he was on his way.
"Don't worry hun. Just remember that he isn't going to take it easily. No guy would. Don't blame him but let him know that you need him. He cares about you and wouldn't let anything bad happen."
"I know, I know," Lydia sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair. She jumped when she heard the knock on the door. Collecting herself, she took a deep breath and opened the door. A cute, muscular guy in Marine fatigues walked in and scooped her up off her feet.
"Hey there, beast," he said, greeting Lydia with a hated nickname. She hit him and laughed.
"You know I hate that," she reprimanded.
"I know," he said, kissing her. When they pulled apart, he noticed Zoe standing there.
"Hey, it's the wonderful girl!" he cried, walking over to her and giving her a big hug. "How've you been?"
"Just great. I'm getting married."
"What??!!" Jeff cried, his mouth dropping eerily similar to Lydia's. "You and Justin?"
"Yup, me and Justin."
"That's great," he said. "Congratulations."
He looked from Lydia to Zoe for a moment, then sat down. Lydia sat next to him and Zoe said she needed something from the kitchen. Giving Lydia a look, she exited quickly.
"So, how have you been?" Jeff asked Lydia, his finger twisting softly in her hair.
"Oh, fine, I guess," Lydia sighed. "I missed you."
"I missed you too," he replied. He looked at her for a moment. "Something's bothering you. I can see it in your eyes. What's wrong?"
Lydia swallowed hard. She was doubting if she could do this. Shaking her head, she gathered her strength.
"Jeff," she said slowly, carefully choosing her words. Deciding to be blunt, she went with it. "I'm pregnant."
He stared at her for a moment, not quite registering what she had just said. "Excuse me?" he whispered.
"I'm pregnant," Lydia's voice shook as tears began to trickle down her cheeks. She looked at the stunned expression on his face. It was more than she could bear. Excitement, anger, violence, any reaction would be better than the blank stare that was plastered across his face.
"Please, say something," she whispered.
"How did this happen? This can't be happening. We were careful. What are we going to do?" he questioned, firing off one after the other.
"There's a we in this Jeff? You're not going to leave me?" Lydia asked.
Jeff looked at her silently. "Leaving really isn't an option is it? No, I'm not going anywhere," he assured her.
Lydia stared back, then broke down in sobs. Zoe smiled from her listening stance in the kitchen. Smart boy, she thought to herself. Always was.
********
A week later...
"So he's going to stick around?" Ayla asked Zoe as they sat in Zoe's mother's house. Justin and Lance had taken Zoe's younger brother down to play some baseball.
"Yeah, he's not leaving. I think Jeff realizes the importance of this. Neither one of them is ready to get married but they're going to work it out. Maybe see if Lydia can live on base with him."
"But what about school? Lydia hasn't finished college yet."
"Well, I think the baby is a bit more important to her than college is," Zoe replied. "She wants to give this child the best when it comes into this crazy world." The conversation stopped when the phone rang. Zoe picked it up. Ayla watched her face as the expression went from shock to tears.
"Zoe, what's wrong?" Ayla asked as Zoe hung up the phone.
"Lydia's at the hospital. She miscarried," Zoe whispered as she and Ayla ran out the door and headed to the ballpark for Lance and Justin.
********
Running down the corridor of the hospital, Justin grabbed Zoe to slow her down.
"Zoe," Justin panted. "You're going to run into someone!!"
"I have to see her!" Zoe cried. As she ran past a waiting room door, Zoe spotted a familiar high-and-tight. She ran into the room where Jeff sat with his head in his hands. Zoe kneeled in front of him as the others finally caught up with her.
"Jeff," Zoe whispered. "What happened? Where is she?"
"They took her to clean her up. She fell and I didn't catch her in time. I wasn't there in time....." his voice trailed off as he broke down in tears. Zoe cradled his head in her shoulder as she cried with him. A doctor walked up to the pair.
"You can see her now," he said.
Justin sighed. "I've heard those words way too often recently."
Jeff jumped up and walked to the door where Lydia was. He took a deep breath, then entered the room. As the others followed, they saw Lydia's tiny, fragile frame lying delicately in the huge hospital bed. As Jeff moved toward her, she looked up.
"Hi there," she whispered, attempting to smile.
"How-How are you feeling?" Jeff asked.
"Tired," came Lydia's quiet response. She looked around to the others in the room. Slowly her head turned back to Jeff. "How are you?" she asked.
Jeff looked back at her. "Scared," he replied.
Lydia shook her head. "Me too."
The others quietly gave their apologizes and left the room. Justin and Lance had all they could do to drag Zoe and Ayla away from the bed.
"They need to be alone," Justin whispered in Zoe's ear. She understood and followed him slowly out the door. Once outside the room, Ayla broke down in tears against Lance.
"This shouldn't have happened," she moaned. "Not to Jeff and Lydia."
"It shouldn't happen to anyone," Lance said, trying to comfort her. "But it does. Now we just have to be good friends and try to see them through this."
"He's right," Justin agreed, his arms wrapped around Zoe's shoulders. She leaned against him heavily.
"Everything always seems to happen at once. Things begin to go good then, bang. Someone gets screwed," Zoe said, swallowing the lump in her throat. The four turned as Jeff came out of the room.
"She's sleeping right now," he stated stoically. Zoe moved towards him and hugged him close.
"It wasn't your fault," she whispered in his ear. "Remember that."
She felt him laugh through the tears that were making her shirt damp. He pulled out of her embrace and looked at her.
"You know what?" He looked up at her with wet eyes. "That's exactly what she said."