Sweet on You

Chapter 29

Lydia couldn't stop throwing up. Ever since she had that sushi last night with Xander, she was constantly in and out of the bathroom. Xander, on the other hand, was completely fine. She had just finished puking her guts up for the third time today when her eyes landed on the box of tampons on the back of the toilet. Lydia's eyes widened, not remembering the last time she had her period.

When she was done washing her hands and brushing her teeth, she wordlessly stormed out the bathroom, out her bedroom, and into the living room, where Xander stood from the couch. He saw her frazzled expression and he approached her with concern. "What's wrong?"

Lydia took her purse from the side table, her hands shaking as she fumbled for her keys. "I-I need to go to the store. I'll be back in a bit."

She made a move to leave when Xander took her by the wrist, his brown eyes narrowed onto her. "What is going on, Lydia?"

Lydia closed her eyes, inhaling deeply in attempts to calm her nerves, and then exhaling after she counted to ten. Keeping her eyes closed, she answered, "I'm late. My period is late."

She opened one eye to see his expression and then she opened the other when she noticed he did not look happy. In fact, Xander looked pissed. Xander dropped his grasp on her, clenching his jaw.

Lydia took a step back. "I didn't plan for this to happen, Xander. I'm on birth control but things happen. Nothing is one hundred percent effective." When she noticed his expression hadn't changed, she felt her heart drop in her stomach. This was it. He blamed her for this and he was going to leave. She shook her head and raised her hands. "I'm not going to hold you to anything so you can drop the pissed-off act. If you want to leave then leave."

"Is that what you think?" Xander snapped. She thought she had seen him angry but now he looked downright furious. "I'm not mad because you may be pregnant. I'm pissed because you look like the possibility of having our child is the worst possible thing that could happen to you."

Lydia was startled by his revelation. She gripped her keys tightly, her eyes never leaving his. "It wouldn't be the worst thing for me, Xander. But our relationship is new. Bringing a child into this world while we are still figuring this out wouldn't be fair to us or them."

"What's there to figure out, Lydia? I love you and you love me," he took her hand that wasn't gripping her keys. "This is it for me, there is no one else."

Lydia's defensive demeanor softened. She let go of his hand and cupped his cheek. "We've been together for a couple of months, Xander. I love you and I promise you there is no one else for me either, but you have to admit this is all so much so soon."

Xander sighed, closing his eyes as he rested his forehead against hers. "I know, I'm sorry I got upset. It was just the way you told me you were late, it seemed like the thought of having a family with me was the worst thing you could imagine."

"It's not," she whispered, kissing him lightly on the lips. "But let's get the test before we get ahead of ourselves, okay?"

Xander nodded his head. "Okay, angel."

###

Twenty minutes and four pregnancy tests later, Lydia and Xander sat on the edge of the bed. She hated the silence while they waited, so she nudged Xander playfully. "What are you thinking?"

Xander chuckled. "I'm thinking about the fact you had no problem puking your guts up in front of me last night but you refused to let me in the bathroom while you took the tests."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "The peeing on the stick part isn't the important part, the results are. You didn't need to see me hunched over awkwardly like some feral animal."

"Fair enough," Xander chuckled once again, kissing her temple softly. The timer on his phone went off and the two made their way to the bathroom to inspect the tests.

Lydia looked at each of the tests. "They're negative."

Xander's shoulders slumped ever so slightly and Lydia touched his arm. "What's wrong?"

Xander pulled her close, but wouldn't meet her gaze. "I never thought about having a family until I met you. I know it's too soon to have a kid but I can't help but feel a little disappointed that we aren't."

"Oh, love," Lydia said quietly. She cupped his cheeks with both her hands, forcing him to look at her. "When the time comes, we will have a family. I'll even be nice and let you help me pick out names."

Xander grinned, a grin that Lydia would never tire of. "How about XJ?"

"XJ?"

"Xander Junior, obviously," Xander replied, although Lydia was fully aware he meant it as a joke.

She rested her hands around his neck and looked up at the ceiling. "Lord help me if I have two Xanders in my life. You, my love, are a handful."

Xander nibbled on her ear playfully. "That's not very nice, angel."

Lydia laughed at his feigned tone of hurt. "You know I love you."

Xander pulled back, his eyes pouring into hers. "I'll never get tired of hearing those words leave your lips."

Lydia smiled. She couldn't remember, evident food poisoning aside, the last time she felt this happy. It must have been before her dad died because the feeling of love and happiness overwhelmed her, tears burning her eyes.

"Hey," Xander whispered. "Why are you crying, angel?"

Lydia waved away his question, feeling like an idiot for crying whenever she was happy, or sad, or mad. She cried far too much for the average person. "You just make me happy, sometimes it hurts."

Xander chuckled softly as he wiped her tears away with his thumb. "You make me happy too. How about we spend the day in bed? We'll watch some shows, I'll make you that ginger tea you like when you don't feel well, and just relax. You've had a lot on your plate, you've been so stressed, that's probably why you're sick and why you're late."

Lydia nodded her head, blinking away the rest of her tears. "Can we watch cheesy rom coms?"

Xander kissed her forehead as he led her out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. "We can watch whatever you want, my love."