The Baby

six

Everything in me froze when the door to my apartment opened and Grayson came in calling my name. He was wearing workout attire and his body looked like he was out of breath and he was sweaty.

"What are you doing here?" I awkwardly asked, not understanding how he could've gotten into my apartment without a key.

"You weren't answering your phone. What's wrong? Why're you sitting on the kitchen floor and crying?" Grayson entered my apartment like he was invited in. I put my crying on pause when he knelt down in front of me. He is the last person I want to see me crying.

"Can you please just go away? I'm not in the mood," I looked away from him, almost embarrassed he was catching me in this compromised position. But this is my apartment.

"What happened?" He held my chin in his hand, forcing me to look at him and I've never seen his eyes so concerned. He looked genuinely worried.

"I don't want to talk about it. I feel humiliated," I covered my face with my hands, going back to my large sobs I could not control. Talking about it felt like a terrible idea, but Grayson wouldn't leave me alone until he had an answer. "Joshua asked me on a date."

"Who?"

I squeezed my eyes shut out of irritation. "My boss."

"He asked you on a date? What did you say?" Grayson cautiously asked.

"I said no, of course. But then he brought up my promotion and thinks it's best if I go back to my old position and he's making me move out of my office," I wanted to punch a wall just thinking about this. When I removed my hands to look at Grayson, he looked like the gears were shifting in his head. His jaw was tense and his hands were clenched.

"You got an office? You never told me," he expressed his concerned. I sighed, tilting my head back onto the cabinet behind me.

"I told you about my promotion and you didn't seem to care. I felt no use in telling you I was being upgraded from my cubicle. It doesn't even matter now," I mumbled as I stared at the ceiling, hoping my tears could end. "I really liked this position. I mean, I know it's only been two weeks, but still."

He stayed quiet like he didn't know what to say and I didn't expect much from him. Grayson doesn't seem like the man you go to when you want to be comforted.

"Have you eaten?" He quickly switched the topic which was probably a good idea. I stood to my feet and went to the microwave to bring out my left over pasta which was now looking dry. "Jesus, Kalani. Do I now need to be concerned with all the things you put in your body? What is that?"

"You can leave now. When I said I'm not in the mood I meant it," I threw my food into the trash. My appetite was completely lost.

"I'm going to have my assistant send over dinner," he went on his phone.

"It's fine, Grayson. I'm just going to go to bed," I insisted but he completely ignored me by going to the living room to sit down. "Why are you in workout clothes?"

"The outfit should be self explanatory. I was working out. Do you have food allergies?" He stared at his phone as he typed away.

"No. But nothing with pickles. I hate pickles," I sat down on the end of the couch, bringing my feet under me. He was quiet for a while before he put his phone away in his pocket then turned to look at me. His eyes left mine, landing on my stomach which was the slightest bit noticeable. He looked nauseous the longer he stared at it and eventually had to just pry his eyes away. "So...how is your wife hunting going?"

He chuckled, resting his arm on the back of my couch. "I've put my hunt on pause for the meantime."

I wanted to ask why. It doesn't seem like this pregnancy has affected much of his schedule considering he hasn't invested much time into me or this arriving baby. But I never expected for him to want to be involved so I'm not allowed to be upset.