Wait For It (Sequel to Challenge Accepted)

Chapter Fifteen: Babies, Marriage, and Breaks

I was late.

My period was late. That was the most terrifying thing I have ever realized. I stood outside of McLaren's working up the courage to go inside and tell Barney that I might be pregnant.  I took a deep breath, walking into the bar.

"Lauren, hey." Ted greeted. I smiled at him.

"Barney, I need to talk to you." I grabbed his hand, pulling him away from the others and over by the jukebox.

"What's up?" He saw the look on my face and his eyes filled with concern. "Are you ok?"

"I...I'm late, Barney." He raised his eyebrows.

"You...Are you sure?" I bit my lip.

"I've got a Doctor's appointment tomorrow morning to make sure, but...I don't know." He ran a hand through his hair, and I had tears in my eyes. "I'm sorry, Barney."

"Why are you apologizing?" He asked, hugging me. "You didn't do anything." I hid my face in his shirt, trying not to cry.

"You don't want kids." I said, pulling away from him. "Heck, I don't want kids. I can't..." He put his hands on my face, kissing my forehead.

"It's ok. We'll figure it out. I'm gonna finish my drink and then I'll meet you back at my place." I nodded, leaving the bar.

~~~Barney~~~

I sat back down.

"Huh." I said.

"What?" Ted asked.

"Apparently I'm gonna be a dad." They all looked at me with wide eyes.

"What do you mean you're gonna be a dad? How did this happen?" Ted questioned.

"I don't know. Lauren's not sure, she's gonna go to the doctor in the morning."

"Maybe it's a false alarm. Maybe she's not pregnant." Lily tried.

"Lily, no part of Barney Stinson does anything less than a hundred and ten percent. This is a nightmare. I don't want kids. Who in their right mind would ever want kids?"

~~~Lauren~~~

I laid in Barney's bed, curled up in a ball when he got back.

"Lauren?" He walked into the bedroom, saw the current state I was in, and sat on the edge of the bed next to me. I burst into tears, crying into his shirt, with my forehead pressed against the side of his neck. He rubbed my back, trying to calm me down. "We'll figure it out, ok? Everything is going to be fine."

"How do you know that?" I asked, looking up at him. He tucked my hair behind my ear.

"Because I love you, and I'll do whatever it takes to make sure everything is fine. I mean...financially, we're more than fine, room wise, we're more than fine. We're set in every way aside from mentally and emotionally."  I wiped my eyes. "We'll get there. It may take some time...but we'll get there."

"I love you." I said tearfully. He smiled, kissing me.

~~~

"You're not pregnant." Barney and I looked at each other.

"What?" I asked.

"You're not pregnant. The test was negative." The Doctor told me. Barney hugged me, kissed me briefly and then ran out of the office.

"He seems happy." The Doctor noticed. "How are you?" I stopped.

"I...I don't know. Thank you." I got up, leaving the room, feeling...disappointed. Last night, I was dead set against having kids. I didn't want kids. But now that I'm not having them...Something has changed, somehow.

~~~

I sat in the booth at McLaren's, thinking about everything that had gone on that day, as Barney initiated some guy into his little "Not a Father's Day" cult. Maybe I wasn't ready to have kids, but maybe...maybe I was ready for something else. I think I'm ready to marry Barney.

"Look, don't paint me as some sort of a freak for wanting to remain independent. There are plenty of normal people out there who don't want to have kids." Robin and Ted argued as the entered the bar.

"Brother, lay your hand on this bottle of birth control pills and repeat after me. 'I' the fake name you give to women." Barney said.

"I, Johnny Banana." I slammed my head down on the table.

"Yeah, you're in great company there." I heard Ted say.

"I'm gonna look for Lily in the bathroom, while I'm thee I'll grab you a tampon."

"Great, great. And maybe when you're done shaking off at the urinal you can ask the wizard to give you a heart."

"You know what? Maybe I should find somewhere else to stay this weekend." She told him.

"No argument here." He sat down next to me.

"Fine."

"Great."

"My apartment's open." I called as she walked back to the bathroom. I looked to Ted.

"What was that all about?"

"The age old, 'do I don't I have kids' argument." I nodded.

"Sounds like a blast." I said, taking a swig of my scotch.

"Congratulations, by the way."

"Thanks. I was a bit disappointed at first, but looking back on it now, I wasn't ready to have kids. I'm young still, and I have my book deal and all of that."

"Do you think you'll ever want to?"

"Maybe someday. I might not be ready to have kids right now, but...I am ready for the step that comes before that."

"You're ready to marry Barney?" I nodded.

"Yeah...Yeah, I think so."

"Welcome, to our fraternity of non-paternity. He's one of us!" Barney called.

"Lucky girl." Ted said sarcastically.

"I know, right?" Robin's phone rang in her purse, and I looked back at Barney. He smiled at me, and I smiled back. I love him...and I want to marry him.

I'm ready to be Mrs. Lauren Stinson.

~~~

I sat on the couch with Barney, still pondering the decision of marriage.

"Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something." Barney said.  I turned to him.

"Ok. What is it?"

"I don't want to get married." My heart sank. "I thought about it, and I love you. I do, but I'm not a marriage guy."

"You don't want to get married right now, or...you don't want to get married...ever?" I asked.

"Ever."  He replied. "Is that ok?"  I shook my head, standing up.

"No." I looked up at him. "No, that's not ok. Because if I want to get married...and you don't...then what are we doing?"

"Well, we can just date." He replied.

"Forever? Barney, that...that makes no sense."

"Well, it's what I want." I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

"So, we want different things...maybe we should..."

"What?" He asked.

"Maybe we should take a break. Asses what we really want." I suggested.

"What? Lauren, come on." I shook my head.

"I'll...I'll see you. Later." I stood up, leaving his apartment.