What If

Chapter 19

Jeffrey's breath was stolen away as he stepped into the exhibition, his supportive entourage mere paces behind him; Grace and Kassim were beaming.
Kiara stepped forward, looping her arm through her brother's and squeezing gently.
Jeffrey glanced sideways to see her sapphire eyes shining.

"This is it," she whispered.
On his other side, Jeffrey could feel Grace bouncing up and down in excited anticipation.
Kassim pulled away from the group, side stepping out and around Kiara to lead them. "We have to find your piece." He turned back to look at them before leaving off, taking long, purposeful strides, forcing the others to pick up their pace to avoid losing sight of him.

Finally he stopped and turned sideways so the artwork was still visible from out the corner of his eye, but he'd still be able to see the others when they caught up. Grace was the first to arrive, followed by Kiara and Jeffrey, arms still looped through one another.
"Sorry Kassim," said Kiara between desperate pants for breath.
Kassim shook his head, the error in his charging ahead dawning upon him. "No Kiara, I should be the one apologising," he said. "I knew you needed to go a bit slower."
"It just makes the prize at the end of the wait more worthwhile," said Jeffrey; Kiara nodded half-heartedly, the majority of her attention focused on steadying her breathing.
Grace's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. Jeffrey followed her gaze to see a delicately drawn pale pink flamingo hanging in a frame adorned with a matching pale pink bow. "This isn't it." Kassim looked and shook his head.

"So where is it?" Grace was bouncing up and down in place again, her gaze on her brother. Kassim glanced over his shoulder than back at the group gathered in front of him, realising he was blocking their view; he took a step sideways, throwing an arm out sideways to indicate it.

Unlinking his arm from Kiara's, Jeffrey stepped behind and around to stand opposite Kassim.- he already felt bad that he'd missed seeing Kassim's reaction, he had to see the girls' faces when they saw it for the first time. His position mirrored that of his sponsor. Jeffrey sighed with relief; he'd gotten into place just as Kassim stepped aside to reveal Jeffrey's artwork; his masterpiece.

The moment Grace and Kiara laid eyes on his painting was obvious; their entire faces lit up.
"Is it a painting or a photograph?" Grace asked, and Jeffrey couldn't help but smile; he'd wanted to create the illusion of a photograph, to fool the viewer into thinking it could have been a camera's snapshot- her question told him he'd succeeded.
Beside her, Kiara was silent, though Jeffrey could see tears welling up in her eyes. "Oh," she gasped, closing her eyes as her hand fluttered to her chest. She squeezed her eyes tighter still, her hand moving to her swollen belly before gasping again.
"That good huh?" he asked. "Must be if I've left you speechless."
Jeffrey's eyes widened as understanding set in; he gasped along with his sister and waited till she'd opened her eyes and was looking at him before he spoke. "Baby time?"
Drawing on all her strength, Kiara mustered a weak nod. She squeezed her eyes shut, the tears starting to fall as she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Jeffrey."

"Sorry?" Jeffrey moved closer, whispering in her ear.

"This was supposed to be about you." Kiara's apologetic gaze hardened slightly as her eyes moved to her bump. "Not a certain little someone."

Jeffrey found his sister's hand, squeezing gently until her gaze returned to him. "Hey," he said softly. "You can't help it; if baby's ready, she's ready."

Kiara squeezed her eyes shut tight, sucking in air through her gritted teeth. "Yep," she said. The contraction passed and she relaxed again, opening her eyes to look at her brother. "Wait.. She?"

Before Jeffrey had the chance to respond, Kassim stepped forward. "Let's get you to the hospital," he stepped round to lead the way as Grace took her place on Kiara's other side. "We don't want you having your baby in the middle of an art exhibition."