The Unexpected War

by Jean-pierre Breton

  I knew this was her peace offering for lying to me. I contemplated how to respond and then said, “I like Rashellia.”

  She beamed at me. “I think that’s a beautiful name too.” She wrapped her arms around me, giving me a kiss. We lay there in silence, gazing at each other. “You’re nothing like your father, Lance. I’m proud of you, and Rashellia will grow up to be proud of you too,” she promised me.

  “Thank you,” I whispered sincerely.

  “For what?”

  “For everything—saving my life, changing me into a free man, even making me a part of your family. I didn’t grow up with an actual family, yet you looked past our differences and made this work. Now look at where we are—a house, kid on the way. We’re living the dream. Many aren’t fortunate enough to even come close,” I said emotionally. I nodded toward her belly while thinking about all my buddies, still stuck in this brutal war.

  She shook her head vigorously. “No, I’m not the hero you’re making me out to be. I used to kill humans for pure satisfaction. I once ripped a kid’s heart out and kept him alive, just so he could watch me eat it, and then I slit his throat, leaving him to bleed out with no heart. You saved me from myself, Lance. I was a monster,” she confessed. “I should have asked you before taking the pills. I know that was wrong, and I’m sorry, but I figured once you had the baby in your arms, you wouldn’t be scared anymore.”

  “How did you intend to hide the baby from me at nine months when you’re not even three, and you’re already starting to bulge? Plus, why, of all days, would you decide to have the baby during your tricnoses?” I snorted.

  “I had a hundred percent chance of getting pregnant during my tricnoses, whereas it was only fifty/fifty during a normal day, because during tricnoses, my reproductive system becomes vulnerable. Besides, I didn’t want to fully be conscious of what I was doing to you.”

  “Oh, well. Either way, I’m glad you did what you did, because I never would have been ready. At least now that it’s actually happening, I’m ready.”

  She smiled warmly as we stared at each other affectionately for a while, letting the dull rays of sun bounce off our skin as we lay in the middle of the baseball field in silence.

  A patrol of the city’s guards walked by and stopped in front of us. “Hey, what are you kids doing here?”

  “Ugh …” we both muttered, glancing at each other before breaking up in laughter.

  They seemed confused by our lack of concern for their presence. “We’re going to have to ask you to move along if you’re not here to play a sport,” one of them told us.

  We obediently got up and jogged over to the pool entrance. Lara looked nervous as we entered. There were a lot of hot girls in magnificent bikinis. Lara’s self-consciousness took over, as she seemed to be comparing herself to them. “I’m not really feeling that good,” she said.

  “Oh, come on; it will be fun.” I wrapped my arm around her waist and gave her a reassuring kiss.

  She sighed and then said, “Fine.”

  I could see in her expression how painful the decision was for her. We found two chairs and laid our towels down on them. Then we jumped into the pool. “Aw, this feels so nice,” I said happily, as we swam around for a while.

  “Mm-hm. I’m glad you talked me out of leaving,” Lara said. She turned over and floated on her back, closing her eyes and relaxing in the sun.

  “How do you do that?” I asked, swimming up beside her.

  “Do what?”

  “Float on your back. I’ve always wanted to learn, but no one’s ever taught me.”

  “It’s magic,” she teased.

  I laughed, and she flipped back over onto her stomach, swimming over to the shallow end with me. “Roll over,” she instructed me. She placed her hand against my back and all my worries evaporated. “All right … take a deep breath.” When I did, she said, “I’m going to let go now. Are you ready?”

  “Yeah, good to go,” I said, feeling her slowly take her hand away from my back so that I was floating on my own.

  “Just try to balance all your body evenly, kind of like a star shape,” she instructed me. I wavered a little bit but stabilized myself successfully. “There you go, buddy. You’re a natural,” Lara congratulated me. She lazily flipped back onto her back and floated beside me.

  “I’m having such a good time. I don’t think anything could happen right now to ruin this day,” I whispered to her lovingly, relaxing as the water lapped against our bodies.

  “The baby isn’t yours, Lance,” Lara murmured.

  “What?” I exclaimed. I splashed around as I flipped back onto my stomach and looked at her in shock.

  Lara burst out laughing. “Ha-ha. Got you! You should have seen the look on your face—absolutely priceless.”

  “That’s not funny,” I said but then laughed and gave her a playful splash.

  We swam around for a little while longer, and when the sun began to set, Lara asked, “You want to go back?”

  “Sure,” I said. I followed her over to the ladder and helped her out; then I pulled myself out as well.

  As we dried off, a girl’s voice called from behind us. “Um … excuse me. Are you Lance?” My jaw almost dropped as I turned and saw the girl’s stunning figure. She smiled, tilting her head a bit, probably recognizing that it was me. “I’m Ava, a big fan of yours and Tracy’s.”

  I offered a friendly smile as I shook her hand—and then instantly realized I shouldn’t have done so. I glanced back at Lara, who was pretending disinterest in Ava’s presence.

  “Would you mind giving me your autograph?” Ava asked, handing me a piece of paper. “And could I get one for my little cousin too? He’s a big fan.” She pulled out a ball cap from her backpack and handed it to me. I signed the paper and the cap, and Ava thanked me before saying good-bye.

  I then followed Lara out the exit of the pool and back to the road that led to our place. “Well, don’t you feel like Mr. Popular today, hey?” she asked me playfully as we reached the sidewalk.

  “It won’t last. I’m just a fad for now, until a new player emerges,” I told her thoughtfully.

  She smiled; I could tell she was trying to mask her jealously as she grabbed my hand and swung it back and forth happily. “You’re always so modest, Lance. I’ve seen you play—you have a gift,” she said supportively.

  I smiled thankfully at her. Our house came into view in the distance, and once we were inside, I helped her with supper. We ate in front of the television and watched a little bit of the local Monatello news. After dinner, we washed the dishes together.

  Once we were done with the dishes and relaxing back in our room, Lara said playfully, “Um, excuse me, mister … are you Lance Burns?”

  “Yes, it is I, Lance the superstar.”

  “Could I … um … get your autograph?” she asked, pretending to be nervous.

  “I suppose,” I sighed, pretending to sign a napkin with an invisible pen and handing it over to her.

  “Oh, my gosh, you’re so sweet!” she said, looking at the napkin as if it was a million dollars. “Would you mind if I brought my two friends over to meet you?” she asked, casually beginning to slip off her shirt, bra, and underwear.

  “I suppose so. It’s always nice to meet new fans.” I wrapped my arm around her now-naked body as she stared down at me innocently.

  We had the most romantic night ever, taking breaks in between the sex by listening to the soft music in the background and talking about our childhood funny stories—and then starting up again. I fell in love with Lara all over again, and by the end of the night, I wished that our little girl was there in our arms. Lara rested my head against her chest and told me to go to sleep as she lay sprawled on the bed, purring affectionately and stroking my hair.

  “I love you so much,” she pa
nted groggily into my ear. My breathing slowed, and I returned her affectionate gesture with a kiss, just before sleep overtook me.

  The next morning Lara had breakfast already done up for us by the time I woke up. She was dressed in a tight skirt and tank top, with her plump belly showing.

  “Aw, you look so cute,” I told her, sitting up in bed.

  “Really? It feels a little tight under my belly.” She turned around like a model, showing me the full three-sixty view.

  “You could weigh three hundred pounds, and you’d still look beautiful,” I said affectionately as she approached the bed with a breakfast tray. I kissed her belly and then her.

  She giggled as I kissed her belly again. “I’ve never seen you so affectionate. What happened to the stone-cold killer I know?” she asked, handing me the plate of sausages and eggs before sitting on the bed beside me.

  “He retired,” I told her with a laugh as we dug into our breakfast. “Thank you for making this, by the way. I’ll hit you up with the good ol’ Lance special tomorrow morning.”

  “I don’t think you can call toast and a glass of orange juice a ‘special,’” she joked.

  “Wow, what a hater,” I muttered, pretending to be hurt by her comment.

  She laughed. “I had a really good time last night, Lance.”

  “Me too. It’s too bad we won’t be able to do that for a while now.”

  “That’s not true. I’m still in business until probably around ten months. Then you’ll have to suffer for the next little bit until the big day,” she told me with a laugh.

  “Ten months?” I asked. “Don’t you mean nine?”

  She shook her head, probably realizing that I knew nothing about fiend pregnancies. “A fiend pregnancy can last as long as a full year. At ten months, the pregnancy is at full term—that’s when I’ll probably slip into labor. I’ll be so big by then that sex won’t be that appealing anyway,” she explained to me with a smirk. “It becomes hard to walk and stuff by then. Most girls even crawl for the last bit of their pregnancy until the baby is born because it’s that much of a hassle to try to walk.” She took her fork and pushed some eggs and a sausage onto her plate from mine. When I protested, she gave me a playful poke with her elbow. “Suck it up, muffin. Survival of the fittest!” she joked as she gobbled it up.

  She got up, taking my plate to the kitchen and returning a moment later. “Unfortunately for you, your skirt-watching days are numbered,” she giggled, catching me checking her out as she walked back in the room.

  “I know. I’m going to miss it, but at least I’ll still get to see you in sweatpants!” I retorted.

  She smiled at me. “I’ve already called my boss and Tracy to tell them we’re taking the day off, so what would you like to do? It’s an exclusive Lance and Lara day.”

  I shrugged as I got up to run water in the kitchen sink, starting the dishes. “I’ll help out more around here, so you don’t have to worry about doing this stuff. You can just focus on making our little angel,” I told her affectionately. She came over to dry the dishes as I set each plate into the drying rack.

  “You’re so sweet, buddy, but I’m pregnant, not crippled. So don’t smother me, or I’ll be bored out of my mind.” She laughed as I gave her a playful bump with my hips, insisting that I would dry the dishes.

  “I’ll go take a shower, and then maybe we can go catch a movie or something,” she suggested.

  “Sounds good,” I agreed. I happily hummed to myself and continued washing the remaining dishes. As I did, I glanced outside at the beautiful day and saw a family walking down the street. I realized that soon enough, that would be us.

  Chapter 14

  I woke to the sound of Lara’s eating of crackers—she tried to quietly eat her morning snack before getting up but failed miserably. She was six months pregnant now, with her tummy openly showing. I listened to her munching for a few minutes, pretending to still be asleep, not wanting to get up.

  I was kind of excited—today was Christmas. Lara and the gang had all agreed that we’d celebrate it together. It took a fair bit of persuading Carana and Lara, though, because apparently, the whole idea behind Christmas and worshiping another god was against the laws of Dracona. After explaining the idea behind it and reassuring them that they didn’t have to believe in God and that it was a holiday to unite friends and family, Lara and Carana both agreed to celebrate it with David, Tracy, and me.

  Once Lara had finished her crackers, she got up and tiptoed into the bathroom. The familiar sounds of the shower running soon filled the room, along with Lara’s beautiful voice, singing to herself. I lounged around in bed, peeking out the window at the freshly fallen snow before closing my eyes to go back to sleep.

  The sounds of the shower soon pattered away, and a moment later, I heard the door open. Lara tiptoed back into the room and crawled back into bed, giving me a light shake. “Happy Christmas, Lance,” she whispered, giving me a gentle kiss.

  I beamed up at her, happily returning the kiss. “Thank you, buddy. It’s Merry Christmas, not Happy Christmas, by the way.”

  She giggled, embarrassed, and cuddled under the blankets with me for a little while, doing our usually morning routine of waking up and chatting. “How did you sleep?” she asked.

  “Not bad. What about you?”

  She patted her belly contentedly. “It was all right.”

  “Did the baby keep you up?” I asked.

  She nodded unhappily. “I’m feeling kind of nauseated this morning, so you better have gotten me something nice for Christmas, or I might just puke all over you,” she threatened me playfully. Then she saw my look of guilt and said, “I’m just playing around with you, Lance. I’m fine.”

  I felt bad about what she was forced to go through by being pregnant, but I nodded, pretending to believe her, knowing she wanted to make today a special one for me. I gently gave her stomach a kiss and then sat up, sleepily wiping the crud out of my eyes. “Looks like we got quite a bit of snow last night,” I said.

  She nodded in agreement, hopping out of bed to make me something for breakfast. “We’re supposed to be getting hit hard tonight,” she called to me as she threw four pieces of bread into the toaster.

  “Yeah, I heard.” I got up and put on a pair of jeans, along with a nice dress shirt for the party. I joined Lara in the kitchen and buttered the toast as it popped out of the toaster. I handed her plate to her, and then we went back to the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed. “Thanks a lot,” I said as she handed me a cup of coffee.

  “Anytime,” she answered, but she seemed preoccupied with her thoughts.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Nothing. Why?” She offered me a faint smile.

  “I don’t know—you just seem really quiet.”

  She laughed, returning to her normal self. “It’s nothing for you to worry about—just girl issues,” she said, giving me a kiss.

  “Like what?” I persisted.

  “Well, I was wondering what I’m going to wear for this party since my nice clothes don’t fit anymore, and I feel like a mess right now. I have to do my hair, my makeup—stuff like that; things you don’t want to hear about.”

  I wrapped my arms around her consolingly. “You look beautiful just the way you are,” I reassured her.

  She smiled, giving me a light pat on my leg. “I don’t think a T-shirt and pink maternity underwear is going to cut it.”

  I laughed, finishing off my toast and bringing our plates over to the sink. She watched me as she sipped her coffee. I began to rummage around in her closet, looking for something nice. I emerged with a pair of maternity sweatpants and a nice white button-up dress shirt. “How’s this?” I asked her.

  She laughed unhappily at the outfit I had picked out. She was used to being stylish and beautiful—the kind o
f girl every guy wishes he had—so I realized this pregnancy must be pretty hard on her. I knew she was self-conscious about how big she was getting, but all I could do to help was keep reassuring her how much I loved her.

  “So how are my two beautiful girls this morning?” I asked her.

  She tried on the outfit, looking at herself in the mirror before sitting beside me on the bed. “She’s pretty active this morning. I think she must have missed her daddy,” Lara teased, giving me a kiss. She gently placed my hand on her belly, and Rashellia shifted around inside.

  “You’re getting pretty big,” I said, staring down at her bump.

  She smiled in agreement, snuggling up to me. “Tonight should be fun, hey?” she said happily.

  I stroked her hair softly in her favorite spot and nodded enthusiastically. “If you start bleeding, though, tell me, and we will come back,” I instructed her firmly.

  “Don’t worry about me. I’m not going to ruin our night together by getting myself worked up, Lance.”

  The doorbell rang, and we got up to answer it. “Hey!” everyone called to Lara and me as we opened the door, greeting them with smiles, and stepped aside to let Tracy, Carana, and David come in. Lara and I set out some chairs for everyone, and we all sat down to exchange gifts.

  “Where’s Mike?” I asked Tracy.

  “We broke up a few days ago,” she informed me unhappily.

  “Aw, I’m sorry to hear that, sweetie,” Lara said, rubbing Tracy’s shoulder.

  “Thanks. … You’re getting big, by the way.”

  “Yeah, well, you know, Lance. He just won’t stop stuffing my face,” Lara joked, patting her belly. She looked at me and winked.

  “I still remember a couple months ago, when you had to go to the doctor’s—Lance was so worried about you, he looked like he was going to cry,” Tracy said.

  “Aw, how cute,” David and Carana cooed.

  I felt my face flush in embarrassment. “Hey, I was worried about my wife, okay? I thought there was something wrong with her,” I said defensively.