Summer's Last Breath

Part 29

And there he was, Mr. Perfect for Ally, heading straight for us. He wasn't carrying a lunch tray. No, school lunches weren't good enough for Jax. He usually managed to have some form of takeout brought in. Today it was a sandwich from AJ's. And it smelled... interesting. I swallowed, wondering why it was suddenly so warm in the cafeteria. I could feel the sweat rising in my pores.

"Mind if I join?" Not waiting for a reply, he slid onto the seat across from us. Since the alligator incident, he tended to wear long-sleeved shirts, even on warm days. All his shirts had collars and tiny whales on the left side of his chest. I imagined even his socks had logos on them. And then I remembered he was a no socks and loafers kind of guy.

I looked over his shoulder, noticing Derrick and Tyler in the lunch line. No doubt they'd be joining us too, and the thought made my stomach rumble. These guys were best handled in small doses, one at a time. I didn't know if I could stomach all three of them at once. Turns out it didn't matter. Jax unwrapped his sandwich, revealing his shrimp po' boy and a cloud of.... ugh, the smell. My stomach revolted.

"You okay? You look a little pale," Jax said then took a bite of his sandwich. A pink shrimp plopped on the table.

I leaped from my seat, covering my mouth as I sprinted for the nearest bathroom, horrified to realize I wasn't going to make it. I swallowed, holding my hand tighter over my mouth, and dashed down the hallway. I burst through the bathroom door, bumped into a girl coming out, then crashed into the first stall, falling on my knees.

"Oh God," I moaned, leaning my head against the stall's door after I'd emptied the entire contents of my stomach and then some. I'd been in denial, the possibility of a baby unthinkable. But I knew now. I slumped against the wall, my head falling back and stared at a yellow water stain on the ceiling. I was pregnant. I didn't need to take a test to know. All the signs were there.

"Erin?"

My eyes closed at the sound of Ally's voice. Legs and arms still shaking, I got off the floor and made it to the sink, where I rinsed my mouth and splashed cool water on my face.

"Are you sick?" Ally handed me a paper towel. I wiped my face and met her gaze in the mirror.

"No," I said, trying to still my quivering legs. "I'm late."

"Late?" Her brow furrowed.

Yeah. Late, Al. Did I have to spell it out?

"No, Ally. I mean, I'm late. Uncle George. He hasn't come in two months." I don't why I reverted to using the code name we'd made up for having our periods in middle school. Maybe a part of me wanted to go back to those days when my biggest worries were the zits popping up on my face.

God, a baby.

"You and Jamie?"

"Of course, Jamie." I tossed the wadded towel in the trash.

Jamie. I wished he were here. Thank God he wasn't. How was I going to face him? Tell him?

"You had sex with Jamie and didn't tell me?" Ally turned an accusing glare on me, as though my lack of confiding in her was the issue at hand. "Erin..."

"I know." I covered my face with my hands. "It happened so fast."

We'd been careless and somehow I'd thought it wouldn't matter. I knew procreation was an issue with Jamie's kind. Their species was declining, conception becoming a rare occurrence. Our two species weren't compatible. The baby I carried would be wholly and simply human. I had assumed it would be harder for Jamie to get me pregnant, if he could get me pregnant at all. Apparently, he could since I was.

Ally's shoulder's slumped and she deflated against the sink. "I just always thought that I would be the first to you know, lose it."

She actually sounded disappointed that I beat her to it, and then I was just irritated because she seemed to be missing the point.

"Ally, are you hearing me at all?" I said, feeling slightly better now that my stomach was empty. I was numb and dazed and confused, but oddly this little seed of excitement was growing underneath all those emotions.

"Yes, I'm hearing you. I'm just a little shocked is all. I mean, a baby?"

"Don't tell anyone," I pleaded. "I just figured it out for myself."

"I won't." Ally shook her head. "But Erin, what are you going to do?"

Sixteen and pregnant. My mind spun with so many thoughts it was hard to settle on one. I knew I had to get out of here though. This day was a bust as far as school went.

"Right now, I'm checking out. I need some time to think."

Ally rushed forward and hugged me. I blinked and for a second, I imagined this had to be someone else's life. Now that the idea was sinking in, I was too stunned to do more than pat her on the back as though she were the one in need of comfort.

"Call me later," she said as I wandered into the hallway toward the office, but then decided to skip the whole checkout process. I was pregnant. Ditching school without permission seemed like peanuts in comparison.

I pushed through the front door of the school in a haze. I barely remember getting in my Tahoe. Barely remember driving. Somehow, I found myself parked in front of my mom's storefront. I think I sat there for fifteen minutes before getting out.

When I finally mustered up the courage, I found my mom behind her desk, talking on her phone. Her real office was in the back. The desk was more for show and was probably for sale. It didn't look like the same one she'd been using the last time I was here. When she looked up and saw me, she waved me over.

"Yes, that sounds perfect. Can you hold on a minute?" She held the phone away from her mouth. "Honey, what are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you," I said. My hand splayed over my chest as if it would ease the pressure growing there.

"Teresa, I'm sorry. I'm going to have to call you back. Something's come up." She set the phone down and came around the desk. "Are you all right? Are you sick?"

"Yes. No." I hiccuped around a broken sob.

"Then what is it?" She reached for me, her hands running over my upper arms, her eyes soft with worry. I opened my mouth but the words wouldn't come.

"Come on," she said and led me to the back of the shop and up the elevator that took us to her flat. My stomach stayed in my throat during the ride up to the third floor. It was still there when she guided me to one of the stools at her kitchen counter.

I sat woodenly while she made me a cup of cocoa. She was taking her time, and I suspected it was because, somehow she knew what I was going to say. She wasn't only giving me time, but herself as well.

"Now, what is it?" She slid the cup across the counter.

I picked it up, cradling it in my hands. She reached out, running a finger through my hair. The motherly gesture gave me the courage I needed.

I took a sip of the cocoa and met her gaze. "I'm pregnant."