FRACTURES (The Lake House #3) *REUPLOADED*

Chapter Six

Ana

I sat on top of the closed toilet seat, chewing at my fingernails, waiting.

They say never to trust the first one, so I didn't.

I didn't trust the second one either.

So onto the third.

The woman at the drug store gave me a proud smile when I approached the counter with three tests, but she must have seen the misery on my face because the smile dulled.

One fucking time.

All because I was emotional and Justin was there.

I didn't even know it could happen that fast. We had sex one goddamn time, one time in over 6 years.

Pregnant. What a simple fucking word.

I picked up my cell phone, dialing Gianna. "Hey lazy, get your ass up and come downstairs."

"I need you." And because Gianna was my best friend, she knew things were wrong from the tone of my voice. Because she was my best friend, she came running.

We sat on the bathroom floor together in complete silence. Gianna hadn't said anything when I showed her the tests. I wanted her to say something, to yell at me for not telling her about me and Justin, or for being this careless and stupid. I just didn't want this pitiful silence.

"It's gonna be okay, Ana." She finally said. "I promise, everything's going to be okay."

***

Justin

There have been very few moments where I've been so shocked to the point of being numb. The deaths of my family and winning my championship were the only times I could pinpoint genuinely not knowing how I felt. Until now.

Gavin looked at Ana with wide eyes. "What the hell, Ana?"

"The tests are mine." She repeated, wrapping her arms around herself. "Justin and I...we hooked up last week. I didn't want to tell anyone yet with the wedding and everything. They're not Gianna's."

Hooked up. Why did that term sting a little?

"But you just sat there, letting her take the blame?"

"She didn't let me take anything! You just didn't shut your big mouth long enough to let anyone else speak." Gianna snapped and then looked away, crossing her arms over her chest. "But it's really nice to know how you feel about starting a family."

"Gi..." Gavin sighed as he ran his hands through his hair.

"You guys should go somewhere...talk." I didn't take my eyes off of Ana. "I think Ana and I need to have a conversation."

Gavin nodded, walking over to the door to hold it open for Gianna. I waited until I heard their footsteps going down the stairs before I turned back to Ana. She was sitting on the bed with her eyes shut.

"We're not teenagers anymore, Ana." I said hoarsely. "We can handle this."

"My dad's sick. I barely have the money to take care of myself. I'm all alone. How could I be so stupid?"

"Hey," I fell to my knees in front of her, putting my hands on her thighs. "This is my mistake too. We both did this. We will both be okay."

"I can't bring a baby into a world like this."

"If money's the issue, I think I can take care of it all." I said lightheartedly. What else could I do in a moment like this? "I can take care of you, both of you."

Ana laughed bitterly. "You said it yourself Justin...you love your job. You love having no responsibilities and not being tied down. You're finally free. I'm not gonna take that from you."

Something snapped inside me. "You really think I wouldn't change my life for something like this? You're having a baby...my baby. For once in my life, I'm going to have a family. You know more than anyone what that means to me. I'll do whatever I have to do to take care of that."

Ana swallowed, "I don't know what I'm going to do, Justin."

I nodded, taking a breath to calm myself down. "Okay. But know, whatever you choose to do, I'm in it too. I'm not letting you shut me out from this."

--

Gavin was out on the patio when I went looking for him. I stepped out to stand next to him, hanging my hands over the edge. "So is there still a wedding tonight?"

"Yeah, man." Gavin replied. "We talked, yelled a little but we're good. I didn't mean I don't ever want a family. I wouldn't be marrying this girl if I didn't want everything with her. But just not right now. I want to enjoy us a little longer before we bring anyone else into our equation."

I let out a deep sigh. "Times like this, I wish I smoked."

"That shit kills, man." Gavin said. "But yeah, I know what you mean."

"I guess now would be a pretty bad time to start." I thought about the brown bag in my dresser drawer right now. I'd burn it tomorrow if I had to.

"You know it's funny...I thought I've been a pretty good friend to you, Justin."

"What are you talking about, Gav? You know you have."

He shrugged. "Just thought we told each other everything."

"We do, man. I just...are you mad about this?"

"I'm not mad. I'm just--"

"If you say disappointed, I'll kill you."

The corners of Gavin's mouth turned up but the smile wasn't real. "I'm just upset that I'm the only one who didn't know and that I had to find out this way."

"Gavin, I'm sorry."

"It's late." He said, moving away from the ledge. "I'm getting married in a few hours, y'know?"

"Gavin..." I called out to him but he ignored me, going back inside.

--

I felt gross the next morning. After staying up until 3am, I continued to toss and turn for the next 4 hours until my alarm went off. No amount of coffee could fix the headache I was nursing. But I had to pull myself together for Gavin and Gianna.

I had my tux thrown over my shoulder as I walked into the church. Gianna's bridesmaids were standing in front of the bridal room. They did a poor job of hiding their giggles when they saw me walk in.

I sent a polite smile their way, my eyes zeroing in on Ana who looked like she hadn't even slept yet. Her face was blank, eyes showing no emotion when they met mine. We stared at each other for a few seconds before she turned, letting the dressing room door shut behind her.

--

College is a bitch but I managed to bang this out.

Hope you all enjoyed! Thank you so much for sticking by me and this story even though I'm trash at updating.

twitter: bugattibiebxr

insta: supersabrinaa

love you tons x