Baby Be Mine

by Rosie Praks

  “I am smart.” Max praised himself. “Now are you ready, Fern?”

  “Ready.” Fern nodded to Max.

  “Good. Big bro?” Max asked, turning to Hunter.

  “Yeah, but you go first since you’re the grandson,” Hunter urged Max.

  “All right, watch the pro.” Max smirked, wiggling his eyebrows, ready for some good acting. He then donned his dark sunglasses. “This is how you act.” He came out of the bushes, and with his cool gait that he’d perfected in the mirror all last night, he walked to the entrance of the restaurant.

  “Wait!” Hunter jumped out of the bush and pulled Max back by the collar.

  “What?” Max scolded, turning to face Hunter. “I’m about to perform some magic here.”

  “Can’t you just tone your outfit down a bit?” Hunter whispered, staring at Max’s long black wig, baggy jeans, and oversized hoodie. “Why do you have to wear that wig? You look like a punk.”

  “Yeah? And you’re supposed to be a blind old man so shut up and act like a good blind grandpa would,” Max said just to irritate Hunter.

  The truth to the long black wig was he was obsessed with his favorite anime show, No.6. He wanted to be like Rat, with his long black hair tied back in a ponytail. What harm was there in donning your favorite anime character in your daily life anyway? It was only cosplay. It just spiced up his life even more. And God knows how he’d prepared for this day. He’d been practicing his Rat persona since they’d concocted their plan at the grocery store. Now he had to get back in character all over again.

  “You rascal.” Hunter seethed. “Wait until we finish this—”

  “Grandpa, here we are,” Max shouted loudly, announcing their presence.

  Clarice and Anton stared casually at the three strange patrons. With all three wearing sunglasses in the restaurant, they looked like three blind mice standing at the front entrance.

  Clarice saw the old man with grayish-white hair, wearing dark shades, with a walking cane, his back bent a bit as if he’d suffered from arthritis throughout his hard years. Beside him was a kid, about Max’s age, wearing sunglasses too, with long black hair tied back in a ponytail. He looked almost half Asian. Then there was the woman. It was so hard to determine her real age, but the grey hair gave off an old vibe. She looked very high class based on her clothes, from her Prada heels to her one-piece dress by Dolce and Gabbana and her Gucci handbag. The old lady exuded elegance, but again, she wore sunglasses like the rest of her family, the lenses so large it was hard to distinguish any facial features. They were a strange family, yet they reminded her of someone, especially that blind old man and that young guy.

  “Strange family, aren’t they?” Anton voiced her opinion out loud.

  “Mmm.” Clarice smiled, watching the eccentric group still standing at the door.

  Clarice didn’t know for sure because of their large, dark glasses covering their eyes, but she had an uncomfortable feeling that all three directed their stares in her and Anton’s direction. Even stranger, when the waitress tried to seat them, they refused outright and opted to seat themselves right next to their table instead.

  Clarice turned back to her meal, having seen enough of the strange family. She had a more important task to deal with right now. Her heart drummed a frantic beat. This is it. She must tell Anton about their baby. She didn’t know if he would be pleased. Heavens, he might not even remember that night in Queenstown at all.

  It was all her friends’ fault for beating into her head that she needed to tell him. The guilt was eating her alive. She finally succumbed and phoned Anton to have a private meeting during one of this lunch breaks. It was best to clear the air. Then she wouldn’t feel guilty or regret anything. Now here she was, perspiration dotting her forehead at the impending event about to unfold before her.

  “Anton, I—”

  “Would you pass me the salt, Cory?” Hunter shouted.

  Clarice glanced to the table next to them again, unable to finish her sentence. They spoke like they were also deaf.

  “What, Ojiisan? I can’t hear you. Speak louder,” Max shouted across the table, adding in the Japanese word for grandpa for effect.

  “How loud must they speak?” Anton muttered under his breath. “They sound like they’re using a microphone already.”

  Clarice just smiled and leaned her face closer to Anton’s, then whispered, “I think they’re a cute family, don’t you?”

  “Cane, where’s my cane, Cory?” the old man shouted. “I feel like hitting someone in the head. I can’t help it.”

  Hunter was gritting his teeth. What the hell was wrong with her? Trying to kiss his cousin right in front of him. So she wanted to confess to his cousin so much that she’d even resorted to kissing him right in front of the man who fathered her baby. No way would he allow it. And Anton, his cousin, he was smiling like the cat who’d just been given a grand prize rat. If only he had that cane in his hand right now, he would bonk the hell out of his cousin’s head. “I said where’s my cane?” Hunter shouted even louder, angry, as he watched Clarice smiling at Anton.

  “Obaasan, help Ojiisan with his cane. I’m busy drinking my lemon juice,” Max shouted to Fern, who was sitting closer to Anton.

  Fern was also seething through her teeth when she saw Anton and Clarice this close. How was her plan going to work if his attention was elsewhere? She didn’t blame Clarice for attracting him, but it was Anton she wasn’t happy with. So she picked up Hunter’s cane and poked Anton in the ribs.

  “Oowww,” Anton growled, turning to the high-fashion grey-haired lady. Anton, being the sensible one, only stared at the old lady and forced a polite smile, though his face was flustered. But he thought it must be an accident. She must have eye problems like her husband.

  “I think your husband is on the other side of the table,” Anton said.

  “Oh, I… I… thank you, young man,” Fern said.

  “Cory, where’s my cane?” Hunter wanted to laugh his head off. He’d never seen Anton so flustered before, especially staring at Fern dressed up as an old woman. Then he thought of an idea. He wobbled out of his chair and pretended to find his way to the cane while grumbling to Max. He knew where he was going since he could see perfectly well, but when he reached Clarice’s table, he…

  “Ahhhhh.” Hunter cried out and fell. “Help me.”

  And where did he fall? Right onto Clarice, where his head nestled nicely on her lap.

  Oh hell! Hunter thought. It was damn comfortable. Even his extra soft custom-made pillow at home didn’t provide that much cushion to support his head. Damn, how was he supposed to sleep on his pillow from now on?

  “Sir?” He heard her speak, shaking him from his comfort.

  “Good God, Grandpa?” Anton said, coming around to Clarice’s side. “Are you all right?”

  I’m fine down here. In fact, I’m enjoying my time very much, so leave me alone. Hunter kept silent as he felt his cousin heaving him up. But he wanted to stay in this position a little longer, so he put all his energy into trying to make himself as heavy as possible so Anton would give up his task.

  “Good God!” he heard Anton say. “This grandpa is heavy.”

  Hunter couldn’t help but smile a sneaky smile.

  “It’s all right, Anton,” Clarice said, smiling.

  Clarice looked at the old man in her lap. She felt a connection with him she couldn’t describe. She felt she could trust this man. This was odd because he was just a stranger. Maybe she had this trust for him because he was blind. Her hands itched to caress that rough stubble forming on his chin.

  This old man was contradictory in all aspects. The blind man had grey-white hair, which was the normal pigmentation for most elderly people, but his skin looked so youthful, like that of a man in his early twenties. Perhaps she needed another eye surgery. But to appease her curiosity, she lightly stroked that cheek.

  Hunter just wanted to purr like a cat. Why did Clarice have to touch his cheek? Her finger pa
ds felt just right when they grazed his rough stubble. He could get used to that every morning.

  Fern, who was on the other side, saw the whole fiasco and understood immediately what Hunter was doing, so with the goal of helping her friend, she pretended to walk with the fake old lady’s gait and when she got near Anton, she swooned right into his arms. Except she miscalculated her distance and fell onto the chair instead and accidently hit her forehead on the corner in the process.

  “Ow!” God, that hurts. Immediately, Anton came to her side and rescued her from her embarrassing situation, which put a smile on her face again.

  “Grandma, are you okay?” Anton asked in a worried tone, Clarice all forgotten with the grandpa sleeping on her lap.

  “My weak knees,” she said as she rested her head against Anton’s shoulder when he picked her up. “They’re playing up again.”

  Max, who was busy sipping his lemon drink, watched the whole hilarious scenario. It was so entertaining that he almost choked on his drink when began laughing.

  On one side was Hunter, trying to gain Clarice’s attention by pretending to fall and then practically falling asleep on his cousin’s lap. On the other side was Fern, acting like she was a damsel in distress by swooning on her Prince Charming. God, he should pull out his iPhone and film the whole scene just to watch again and again. And then out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a waiter approaching them. Oh shit. Game over. He had to get them out of there fast.

  “Oh, I think my grandma and grandpa aren’t feeling well. They must be suffering from their love sickness,” Max said, standing up. “Please excuse them.”

  This comment made Fern and Hunter snap up their heads. Hunter woke from his delirium and simply rose out of Clarice’s lap, and Fern seemed to have the strength in her legs to stand again. Hooking his arms around the two people, Max led them out door again, a perfect exit for a strange family.

  Hunter gritted his teeth. What was Max on about? He was trying to stop Clarice from confessing to Anton she was pregnant with his baby. He was merely trying to save her and his cousin from utter humiliation. Plus, he wanted to sleep with her so he could get a good night’s sleep again.

  “Why did you lead me out? I was distracting Clarice.”

  “And you did your job perfectly well, big bro. So let’s finish here,” Max said.

  “Why?” Hunter asked again.

  “Because the waiter was about to approach us. I can’t have Clarice finding out it’s me who’s helping you. I’ll be dead meat before I even get through my growth spurt.”

  “But they’re still in there together,” Hunter argued, wanting to go in there again, but Max kept pulling him back.

  “No, look, Clarice is leaving,” Fern said. And then all three hurriedly scrambled to hide in the large bush again.

  Through the parted foliage, Hunter watched Clarice walked out of the restaurant first. She got into a red car and then drove off. He was so relieved his mission today was accomplished. As he was about to exit the bushes, he jumped back in again because he saw Anton coming out of the restaurant.

  Anton scanned the bushes for a full minute, as if he were a botanist. After another few seconds passed and no more sound or movement came, he turned in the direction of his car and walked briskly away, leaving Hunter, Fern, and Max to sweat in nervousness over almost getting caught red-handed.

  Chapter 28

  “So did you tell the guy he’s the father yet?” Hunter pretended to act innocent and asked Clarice if she’d made her confession to Anton.

  Clarice couldn’t look Hunter straight in the face. Not again. Why had she agreed to meet up with him for lunch when she was supposed to be talking to Anton about her future? And why did she have to make all kinds of excuses just to postpone that moment of confession?

  The truth was she didn’t really want Anton to interfere with her life. She just wanted to raise her baby alone. But now, even Hunter had urged her to tell Anton. How was she supposed to tell the man sitting in front of her that the man who had impregnated her was his very own cousin? Would he be happy? Would he jump for joy? Or would he look sulky like Max did when she told him her news?

  She was a little saddened when Max didn’t show his usual happy behavior. Maybe he was really scared she might not show him her usual love. She had to ring him to tell him that so he wouldn’t misunderstand.

  “Not yet?” Clarice said, scanning the array of fruit on her platter. Not again. Why was everyone forcing her to eat fruits? First Max and now Hunter. Did everyone want to turn her into an herbivore or something?

  “Good,” Hunter said, smiling. Then he watched Clarice with concern as she just forked around her fruits.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked. “Don’t you want to eat the fruit I ordered for you?”

  “Of course not,” Clarice said sharply. “Why did you order me a fruit platter? I don’t like fruit all that much, not enough to eat it all the time.”

  “Well, at least eat that apple there,” Hunter suggested. “I’ll cut it up for you.”

  “I don’t like apples,” Clarice said, annoyed. “I’ve eaten enough apples to last me until the next life.” Clarice pushed the plate away from her as her gag reflex acted up. She closed her eyes and covered her mouth.

  Hunter jerked out of his chair so fast it made a loud screeching sound. He ran to Clarice, and in the next second, he had her in his arms.

  “Hey, are you okay? You should rest. You should have rejected my offer to come out to lunch today.”

  “It’s only morning sickness.” She laughed, the jingle of her voice doing crazy things to his heartbeat again.

  “Stop laughing, Avocado. You’re sick, for Christ sake. Here, sit down.” Hunter led her to the seat beside him.

  “Why did you ask me out anyway, Hunter?” Clarice asked, feeling a sense of empowerment all of a sudden.

  Well, after that episode of pretending to be Max’s blind grandpa, Hunter was so agitated he had to call Clarice to meet up for lunch, just to ask whether she’d confessed to his cousin yet. Thank God she hadn’t.

  When Clarice didn’t hear Hunter reply, she leaned in closer to him and asked again. “I said why did you ask me out? Shouldn’t you be somewhere else, trying to chase up some woman or something?” Dear heavens, this had to be her fluctuating hormones again. Otherwise, she wouldn’t behave like this. “Just because you’re the first one to know I’m pregnant, you’re not under any obligation to look after me, you know.”

  As if her behavior wasn’t strange and embarrassing enough, Clarice turned to Hunter then and leaned forward until her nose almost touched his. Then she spoke softly, which to Hunter’s ears sounded so seductive it made his heart drum so wildly it almost leapt out of his chest. “I am pregnant with another man’s child, you know. You shouldn’t be staying too close to me. People might suspect you’re my… you know, tick-tock, tick-tock.” Then she laughed like a silly schoolgirl and moved back to her seat. Heavens, she really was crazy today.

  Hunter could only blink randomly at Clarice’s strange behavior. He knew exactly what she meant, but damn his past life. Right now, Clarice was more important.

  Shit, did he just admit the avocado was the most important thing in his life right now? Yes, he guessed he did. And it felt like a heavy weight had just been lifted off his shoulders. As to the reason he thought of Clarice as his most important, he knew it was a responsibility a father of a child has when looking after its mother, but he was sure that wasn’t the only reason. For now, though, he was willing to stay by her side.

  Hunter turned his gaze to look at the woman sitting beside him again. Why did she agree so suddenly to see him again? She looked tired, really, really tired, like a little kid fighting a nap.

  He released a deep sigh and went to pay for their meals, knowing full well that Clarice would not be eating any more of the fruit he ordered for her. Maybe he should do some more research on what kinds of food were best suited for pregnant women. Clarice needed to eat healthy for t
heir baby to grow up strong.

  After Hunter paid for their meals, he helped Clarice into the car.

  Once inside, Clarice held a faraway look on her face. She stared into the far distance, her eyes not seeing anything.

  “Maybe I should tell him,” she said to Hunter quietly when he got into the driver’s seat.

  Hunter shook when he heard this. God, please no, not yet. He hadn’t decided yet what was wrong with him. He wanted to spend a little more time with her first. In fact, he needed to confess to her that he was the father to their baby, not his cousin, before she told Anton.

  “When?” was all Hunter could say. “When would you tell him?”

  “At the pre-conference ball next week.”

  No! No! It was only a few days away. That wasn’t enough time to compose himself. He needed to confess to her now. Right now. Otherwise, he would never be with Clarice. He could feel his heart pounding and his ears ringing.

  “Clarice, I have a confession too,” Hunter croaked, his throat dry, and then he turned to face her. “I am the man—”

  But he couldn’t finish his sentence as he saw Clarice’s sleeping form. She was so beautiful, this avocado. She looked so peaceful.

  Hunter couldn’t help himself as his body leaned itself forward of its own accord and his lips brushed themselves gently across her supple cheek.

  “Clarice,” he whispered softly into her ear, his heart swelling with an emotion he didn’t know existed. “It’s me. I’m the father of your baby. Not my cousin.”

  But she didn’t hear him. She was too exhausted to register what he’d said.

  Once again, Hunter had to wait. And this time, he would make sure she would stay awake and hear him say those words, loud and clear.

  Chapter 29

  Hunter almost forgot to breathe. Clarice was really his goddess. He had to pinch himself in the arm just to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.

  His goddess was so beautiful in that one-shoulder white silk dress, draped to the left, like a Grecian goddess. He found it hard to breathe. All his anger, the previous feeling of madness that was there before she arrived, had completely vanished as soon as he laid his eyes on her.