Forty minutes later, I was pulling into the Carter’s driveway. BJ, Leslie, and Angel came running out to greet me. I waved to them:
“Hi guys!” They all surrounded me with hugs as Jane appeared in the doorway:
“Hey Kate!” I walked over to her and gave her a hug:
“Hi Jane.” She examined my face:
“You look kind of pale, hon. Are you feeling okay?” I shrugged:
“Okay, I guess. That’s actually what I need to talk to you about but that can wait until later. I just want to catch up with you guys first.” She smiled and led me inside, the girls following:
“Well, dinner is almost ready so why don’t we all go sit down.” I walked into the living room and saw Bob sitting on the couch watching a baseball game. He stood up when he saw me walk in and came over and gave me a hug:
“We’ve missed you, Katelin.” I smiled:
“I’ve missed you guys too.” I looked around the room at all the pictures of the family. I frowned as my eyes fell on a picture of Nick and Aaron, taken last summer. BJ noticed what I was looking at:
“Can you believe they’re both gone? Well, Nick’s not really gone but he is…kind of.” I turned to her with tears streaming down my face:
“I’m so sorry, BJ. I wish there was something that I could’ve done. But everything I tried, nothing seemed to work. He just got worse and worse…I…I couldn’t do it anymore.” Bob, hearing our conversation, came over and hugged BJ and I:
“It’s not your fault, Katelin. It was Nick’s choice. If he wanted to stop, he could have.” Jane walked in the room:
“Dinner’s ready.”
After dinner we all sat around the living room, basically in silence. Everything was so different now. It was so much quieter without Nick and Aaron goofing off while everyone else just laughed at them. Finally, Jane cleared her throat:
“So, Katelin, what is it that you wanted to talk to us about?” I swallowed hard:
“Um, well…there’s no real easy way to put this.” I paused and looked around the room at their earnest faces:
“I’m having a baby.” I looked up to see their reactions. They all looked shocked, to say the least. Bob was the first to speak:
“It’s Nick’s, I’m assuming.” I nodded as Jane stood up and sat down next to me, pulling me into her arms:
“Oh sweetie. I wish I knew what to say. We’ll be here for you every step of the way.” Tears fell down my face:
“Thank you. I don’t know what else to do. Please, promise me one thing.” Bob nodded:
“Anything, honey.” I fidgeted nervously, not knowing how they would react to the next part:
“Please don’t tell Nick, if and when you hear from him. I can’t handle his drinking and a baby doesn’t need a father like that.” Jane was crying now too but she understood:
“We promise, sweetheart. Nick won’t know unless it comes from your mouth. But we will support you in any way you need. We’re here for you. How far along are you?” I answered:
“Six weeks.” Bob came and sat on the other side of me:
“Well, if there’s anything you need, you just let us know. We’ll always be here for you. You’re family.” I wiped my tears away:
“Thank you so much. You don’t know how much it means to me to hear you say that.” They hugged me again and then the conversation turned to more pleasant topics. Well, as pleasant as it could get, under all of the circumstances that surrounded this family.