She sat down at the end of the bed, and dropped her head slightly; looking down at the floor below her. Her auburn hair cascaded down her slender neck, and made delicate patterns of curls across her shoulders.
I watched her closely, inwardly marvelling at just how beautiful she was...Even if there was something bothering her.
"Lance..." she started, blinking quickly...She always blinked a lot when there was something wrong.
"Are you alright?" I asked her, sitting down next to her and pulling her into my arms. She layed her head on my chest, just above my heart, and sighed.
There were tears in her voice as she spoke, something wasn't right...not right at all...
"I...I have something to tell you." She stammered, pulling away from me and wiping an errant strand of her hair from her face.
I searched her face, her eyes, her mouth...Desperate for some kind of a clue as to what was troubling her...Call me over-protective, but the first sign of distress on her face, I jump like a lion ready to attack...she means that much to me.
"What is it?" I asked her, reaching up and placing my hand at the side of her face. She turned her lips in and lay a soft kiss on my palm, her lips wet with her tears.
Her green eyes changed color slightly, taking on a dark undertone. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. I kept my hand planted on the side of her face gently, staring at her.
"I'm pregnant Lance." She said after a long pause, "I went to the doctor today, and I'm two months pregnant."
Her words reverberated in the depths of my soul...hitting me like a tidal wave. I couldn't speak at first, the only sound I could conjure was a low, grumbling kind of sigh.
"You're angry!" She sobbed, burying her face in her hands, "See, I knew this would happen!"
You better say something, dummy!
"No!" I managed finally, shaking my head to knock some sense into myself, "I'm not mad...I'm..." I stopped, searching for the right word, "Shocked..."
She looked up at me, her face tear-stained and red. I reached over and pushed her hair away from her face, keeping my hand pinned gently to the top of her head.
"You're...not angry?" She choked, reaching up and taking my hand. She squeezed my fingers tightly, as though she were trying to draw strength from me.
I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed it.
"No, I'm not angry." I told her again, "This is just unexpected."
She laughed - Almost sadistically.
"You're telling me it's unexpected!?!" She demanded, her entire demeanor changing suddenly.
"I thought...I thought you were on the pill." I said quietly, those two words still slamming their way into my brain. "I'm Pregnant...
She looked at me incredulously.
"Lance...nothing is 100 percent safe." She sighed heavily, and looked away from me.
"I suppose this means it's over..." Her words trailed off and left a heavy silence in their wake.
What was I supposed to say? I couldn't lie...I couldn't tell her that I was THRILLED with the prospect of being a father at twenty-one years old.
It Seems My Life Is Gonna Change...
Here I sat; My future staring me in the face. Goodbye aeronautics school...Goodbye NASA...Goodbye hanging out with my friends and not coming home until dawn.
Hello diapers, midnight feedings, and PTA Meetings.
Hello Fatherhood.
I looked into the worried eyes of the woman I loved.
My Becca. My high-school sweetheart. When we met, we were frightened fourteen-year-old kids, facing a whole new world together. Now, some seven years later - Here we stood at the threshold of a whole new GALAXY.
Becca stared at me for several moments, awaiting my response.
"Lance?" She said, biting her lower lip like she always did when she was nervous.
"What was the question?" I asked dumbly, looking back at her.
She let out an exhasperated sigh.
"If there was EVER a time when I needed you to listen to me, Lance...It's NOW!" She cried, "This is SERIOUS!"
"I know it's serious, Beck." I said guiltily, "But god, let it sink in fully!"
"Fine," She said...God, I hated that word! "I'm going home...call me when it sinks in!"
She got up and headed for the door. I followed.
"Are you okay to drive?" I asked, putting my hand on the doorknob to stop her from opening the door.
She rolled her eyes, and pushed my hand out of the way.
"For the love of god, Lance...I'm pregnant, not drunk!" With that she walked out the door.
"Well shit!" I called after her, "I don't know the first thing about pregnancy!"
"You better learn!" She called back, "That's all I can say."
I closed my eyes, and began to pray...
"This is it, Bass..." I said aloud to myself; staring out at the ocean from a bench on the end of the pier, "This is the end of the rest of your life."
A few feet away from me, I watched a father and his two young children attempting to fish. The father held the fishing pole, while the little boy, who must have been about four or five, chased his little sister around with a meal-worm threatening to put it in her hair.
"Daddy!" The little girl squealed, clinging to her father's leg.
Daddy...the word sounded in my ears - beating against my brain like a gong. Someday, in the not too distant future - a child was going to be calling ME "Daddy."
The father of the two kids noticed me watching them, and looked at me curiously.
"You okay, kid?" He asked, breaking my trance.
"Huh? Oh...yeah. I'm fine. Sorry if I was staring...I..."
"Let me guess," He started, handing the fishing pole to his son, and scooping the little girl up into his arms, "Someone's about to make you a dad, huh?"
I blinked, unable to believe he had guessed that.
"How'd you know?" I asked. He chuckled, and sat down next to me on the bench, plopping the little girl into his lap.
"Let's just say I know the look of a man who just got news he's not ready for."
I nodded gravely.
"What's your name, kid?" He asked.
"Lance." I told him, shaking the hand he offered me.
"I'm Chris," He said, "Chris Kirkpatrick. And this is Sophie." He said, poking the little girl in the sides, causing her to giggle, "Say hi to Lance, Sophie."
"Hi!" She said, then hid her face in Chris's shirt.
"Hi Sophie." I said with a smile, "Nice to meet you both."
"So when's the big day?" He asked.
"Excuse me?" I said, not understanding.
He laughed.
"When's the baby due?"
"Oh..." I said, not sure what the answer was myself, "She said she's two months pregnant...so..."
"`Bout seven months, then." He said. I was grateful that he finished for me. I couldn't remember if it was nine or ten months...
"You married?" He asked.
"No." I said, "She's my girlfriend."
"And you're sure it's yours?"
"Yeah!" I said, "I'm the only person she's ever been with."
"They like to tell you that..." Chris said cryptically.
I laughed.
"We've been together since we were fourteen."