The Consequences of Forever (Lainey)

by Kaitlyn Oruska

  I dressed and brushed my teeth, trying to ignore my reflection in the mirror. I looked paler than usual, with dark rings under my eyes. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gotten a good night’s sleep, and I was always tired. All of that added to the extra stress of the night, and I looked more like a zombie than a girl celebrating her sixteenth birthday.

  I left the bathroom and found Adam already in bed, flipping through channels. He had his shirt off, and I noticed most of his clothes folded on top of one of the dressers. I felt butterflies, surprisingly, as I made my way over to the bed and climbed under the covers.

  “It’s cold in here,” I commented.

  “Yeah, Nolan has the air conditioning on.” Adam replied, not taking his eyes off the television.

  “Why? It’s the middle of November.”

  “I know, but he likes the cold. Why do you think I always bring my jacket when I know I’ll be here?”

  “Because you think you look cool.”

  He grinned. “No, but thanks for the compliment.” He finally settled on a channel and put the remote on the nightstand, rolling over so he was facing me.

  “You know, it’s both your birthday and five months since the first time we did this,” he leaned in and kissed me.

  I responded, caressing the side of his face. He’d shaved earlier, I could tell. “Five months isn’t a really long time,” I whispered when the kiss broke apart. “I’ll be pregnant for almost double that.”

  “I know, but it’s been a great five months. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

  “Really?”

  He laughed softly. “Yeah, really. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  He kissed me again, this time more intensely. I realized it had been a while since we’d been alone together, like this. The house around us was silent, save for the sound of the television set playing softly in the background, and a quick glance told me the door was locked; no chance of anyone walking in on us. For the first time in forever, I let myself relax and be led by all the emotions being with Adam made me feel, instead of the constant battle going on inside my own mind.

  We fell asleep that night, tangled in each other, our breathing becoming synchronized. I knew right before I drifted away that that I’d never love anyone more in my life than I loved Adam in that moment and no one would ever love me the way he did. For once, I fell asleep not worrying that we wouldn’t be able to make this work.

  Chapter Ten

  I woke up the next morning to find the bed beside me empty, the clothing I had worn the day before folded nearly where Adam had slept. The alarm clock beside the bed read ten o’clock, and I realized I’d slept for nearly twelve hours.

  I pulled myself out of bed and dressed, making the bed the best I could and placing the clothes I’d slept in on top, then splashed my face with cold water and brushed my teeth in the bathroom. I had no idea where to find anyone, so I left the bedroom and started exploring.

  Bella Vista had been a home before it was converted into a bed and breakfast, but even still, it was nowhere near as expansive as the Reeves house. There were at least seven or eight bedrooms, but they were much bigger than the ones at Bella Vista, with some of the attached bathrooms looking to be the same size as the bedroom Hannah and I shared. There was even a living room on the second level, with yet another big screen television.

  It was all impressive, but I found myself feeling sad for Nolan. He was an only child, and his parents seemed to be away more than they were ever around. Maybe that was a teenaged boys dream, but it had to get lonely. If I felt lonely with people like Adam and Hannah in my life, I couldn’t even imagine how Nolan might feel at times.

  I found all three of them downstairs, in the kitchen, with Hannah and Adam sitting at the breakfast bar while Nolan rummaged around the cabinets, pulling out random food.

  “Hey,” I said, noticing Hannah wearing pair of men’s pajama pants and a shirt that looked a lot like one I had seen Nolan in on a number of occasions. I raised my eyebrows at her, but she just grinned in response.

  “Good morning, sleepyhead,” Adam reached for me and I walked over to him, allowing myself to be embraced. “Sorry I left you up there, but I couldn’t fall back asleep and I figured you’d know where to find me.”

  “It’s okay.” I could feel Hannah’s eyes on me, and I caught her glance just for a moment. She looked wistful.

  “Okay, I seriously can’t find anything that you’re going to say is okay for breakfast. I’m usually not up this early on weekends.” Nolan closed the last cabinet and walked over to us, leaning his elbows on the breakfast bar counter. “Want to just go out somewhere?”

  “I think we should probably get home,” I told Hannah, but she was too busy gazing at Nolan to answer.

  “I really don’t want to take you back there,” Adam protested.

  “I know, but there isn’t a choice. That’s where I live, Adam.”

  “Then let Nora go out and try and find you,” he said. “Don’t go back there until they say something.”

  “I definitely need a shower and a change of clothes,” Hannah admitted. “But maybe we should all meet up again later?” Her voice was full of hope.

  “Yeah,” I agreed. “I doubt Nora is going to want me hanging around the house all that much anyway.”

  “I have no plans,” Nolan confessed.

  “Alright, then I’ll drive you home and wait outside in the car,” Adam decided.

  “No. You can drop us off and I’ll call you when we’re ready. Okay?”

  He hesitated, but finally agreed. “Fine. But if she says something to you, I’m not going to sit back and do nothing anymore. Want to come with?” He asked Nolan.

  “Nah, I’ll stay here and shower or something. Just let yourself in when you get back.”

  “Okay.” Adam stood up and headed to the living room, gathering our jackets from the night before. He helped me and Hannah into ours then led us to his car outside. Instead of sitting into the passenger seat, I got into the backseat with Hannah.

  “Why didn’t you get changed?” I whispered, keeping my voice low enough so Adam wouldn’t overhear.

  “I needed an excuse to come back in case he didn’t want to hang out again,” she whispered back.

  “Nora is going to flip out when she sees you wearing his clothes.”

  “No she won’t. She’s too angry at you to even notice me.”

  “Thanks.”

  She shrugged. “What? It’s true.”

  I turned away and looked out the window. The ride was silent the rest of the way.

  When we got to Bella Vista, Adam got out of the car with us and kissed me for what felt like an eternity. I finally pulled away, knowing he was just trying to stall the inevitable, and offered a small smile.

  “I’ll see you in a little while, okay?”

  He nodded. “I love you, Lainey.”

  “Okay, okay, okay. We all know who loves who. Now let’s get this over with, alright?” Hannah grabbed my hand and yanked me towards the door. I smiled at Adam over my shoulder and he waved, standing there and watching until we were safely inside the house.

  The first thing I noticed was the quiet. I peeked into the kitchen, but Nora wasn’t there. Hannah noticed what I was doing and grabbed me again, yanking me up the stairs and into our bedroom.

  “We’ll shower at the same time,” she decided. “That way we can get out of here faster, maybe before she even knows we’re home. Do you want to use one of the empty guest bedrooms, or should I?”

  “I will,” I offered. “But before you go anywhere, I want to talk to you.”

  “Nothing happened, Lainey. Well I mean, not anything, but we didn’t have sex or anything like that.”

  “How did you know I was going to ask?”

  “Because I know you.”

  “Okay, fair enough. But what did happen?” My instincts, or whatever they were, were telling me to be protective of Hannah, and it wouldn’t be eas
y to do that if I didn’t know exactly what she needed protection from.

  Hannah sat on the edge of her bed and sighed. “We stayed up and talked for a while, if you can believe that. I didn’t think Nolan ever talked, but apparently he does, and he’s pretty deep, too.”

  I tried to imagine Nolan Reeves, boy of the crooked smile and cocky attitude, known for parties and surfing, having a deep side. It was a stretch, but I assumed anything was possible. I sat down next to her and nodded, prompting her to continue.

  “Then he asked if I wanted my own room or if I just wanted to stay in his, and I said that was up to him, and he said I could sleep in his room because no one’s ever done that before. Can you believe that, Lainey? I’m the first girl to ever sleep in Nolan Reeves’ room.” A dreamy look crossed her eyes, and I bit back an urge to sigh. I actually didn’t believe that, but I opted not to tell her so.

  “He gave me some of his clothes to sleep in, and then when we got into bed, he kissed me. I mean, I get that having your first kiss with the guy of your dreams in a bed isn’t exactly romantic, but I’ll take it. We made out for about an hour. It was amazing.”

  “Hannah…”

  “Don’t say it, Lainey. I know you’re thinking he was just using me because I was there, and I kind of thought so at first, but the more I think about it, the more I think he actually really likes me. And I really like him. It isn’t just a silly crush like you’ve always thought. I really, really like him.” Hannah was known for her dramatics, and her tendency to change her mind at the drop of a dime, but this time, I believed her.

  I smiled softly. “Then I’m happy for you, Hannah. I hope everything works out.”

  She threw her arms around me, hugging me suddenly and tightly. “Thanks, Lainey. That means a lot.” She flashed me one more smile and then disappeared into the bathroom. I turned back to my dresser and began looking for something to wear, when our bedroom door opened and Nora appeared.

  “Nora, um, hi,” I said, immediately feeling awkward.

  She continued to just stare at me, a hard look on her face. “Where were you last night?”

  “Oh, didn’t Julia call?”

  “Yeah, she called, but I didn’t speak to her and your father wouldn’t tell me what she said. I am not going to allow you to corrupt my daughter.”

  I blinked in surprise. Corrupt Hannah? I didn’t think that was possible. Hannah had always been the wilder one, at least in comparison to me. “It was Hannah’s decision.” I told her calmly. “Adam offered to drive her home, but she wanted to stay with me.”

  “And it was just Adam with you two?”

  So she didn’t know about Nolan. I nodded. “Yeah, it was just the three of us.” There was no point in ruining Hannah’s chances with Nolan by letting on that anything could have happened between them. I believed Hannah when she said they hadn’t had sex, but at this point, I highly doubted Nora would.

  “I spoke with Erin Foster this morning about your situation, and she’s fit you in the schedule this afternoon. You have an appointment with Dr. Foster at twelve, so I suggest you start getting ready.”

  “An appointment?” I repeated.

  “Yes, Lainey, an appointment. He’s going to try and determine how far along you are, and then we’ll discuss our options from there.”

  “Options? Nora, I told you at dinner last night that Adam and I already decided what we’re going to do.”

  “You’re not keeping this baby, Lainey. Now get ready.” She left, closing the door behind her.

  I sat at the edge of my bed, full of new fears. Hannah emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, her eyes wide. She must have heard the whole thing.

  “You can’t let her boss you around like that,” she said, but I said nothing in return because I was afraid that maybe I didn’t have a choice.

  “Can you call Adam for me?” I asked. “Just let him know that I won’t be able to see him today, but he should still come pick you up. It might be better if you’re not here when I get back.”

  Hannah didn’t look convinced, but she agreed to call Adam after I’d already left, so he couldn’t make an attempt to come back and stop Nora. As much as I didn’t want to go to the doctor, I wanted another scene even less.

  The ride over to Dr. Foster’s office took forever, and the fact that Nora seemed completely uninterested in saying a single word to me didn’t help. I signed in and obediently sat down in the waiting room, hoping that Nora was mistaken and I didn’t actually have an appointment today, after all.

  “Ms. Winslow?” I glanced up when I heard my name. A young woman stood there, dressed in pale blue scrubs with an expectant look on her face. “Dr. Foster is ready for you.” I stood up slowly, and followed her back into one of the patient rooms. Nora followed close behind.

  “Sit here, please. I’m supposed to get your blood pressure before the doctor comes in,” the woman said. I sat up on the examining table, feeling numb as she hooked a blood pressure instrument to me.

  “It’s a little low,” she remarked. “But that’s pretty common during pregnancy, so I’ll just make a note of it and see if the doctor thinks it’s of any concern. He didn’t mention me giving you any sort of an exam, so I’ll just let him know you’re here and ready for him.”

  “Thanks,” I whispered. She offered a brief smile before leaving.

  I turned to Nora. “You don’t have to be in here with me,” I told her.

  “Don’t worry about whether or not I’m in here with you, Lainey.” It looked like she wanted to say more, but the door opened again and Dr. Foster appeared.

  He looked like an older version of Scott, though a little taller and with short grey hair instead of curly black hair. He had his same light blue eyes though, and a similar smile. He walked over to me and extended his hand.

  “Hello, Lainey. It’s nice to see you again,” he greeted me. “And you, Nora.” His hands were warm, but from what I could remember, they always were.

  “You too,” I said, though I wasn’t sure I really meant it. I was so full of anxiety in that moment; I didn’t know what to feel.

  “So I understand there’s a concern you could be pregnant?” He asked, reciting the words as though they weren’t strange at all. As if he weren’t asking that question to the girl that, a year ago, was dating his only son.

  I nodded. “I’m actually pretty sure that I am.”

  “You took a home pregnancy test?”

  “Yes.”

  “Just one?”

  “Yes. It came back positive pretty fast so I didn’t think I’d need to take another one.”

  “When was this?” He picked up a chart from his desk and began making notes.

  “Halloween.”

  I could see a look of surprise cross Nora’s face, quickly replaced by an even angrier one. I guess the fact that I’d known for two weeks before telling her wasn’t going to win me any points.

  “Alright. And when was your last menstrual cycle?”

  I felt my face turn bright red. “I don’t know.”

  He looked up at me and smiled, as if I didn’t sound like a total moron for not knowing the answer to a simple question. “Would a calendar help you remember?”

  “Maybe.”

  He took the calendar off his wall and handed it to me. I skimmed through it, finally resting on a date.

  “I think I had it the sixth of September last.”

  “Was that the day it started, or ended?”

  “Started, I think.” I remember coming home from school that day and curling up on my bed, miserable with cramps. I never thought I’d miss the nuisance of it all, but suddenly I did, very much.

  He nodded and made another note before taking the calendar back and placing it on his wall. “That puts you at about ten weeks,” he said.

  “Ten weeks?” I repeated. “That seems a little long.”

  “Pregnancy is calculated from the first day of your last menstrual cycle. Conception likely happened about two weeks after
that.”

  “Two weeks?” I asked, feeling my face pale.

  “Yes. Is something wrong?”

  I glanced over at Nora, who stared at me expectantly. Dr. Foster noticed and cleared his throat.

  “Nora, why don’t you go and see if Erin can get you a cup of coffee? Lainey should be finished soon; I’ll send her out after a few more questions.”

  “No, I’m fine, but thanks, Simon,” Nora smiled.

  “I really think you should go see if Erin can get you some coffee,” Dr. Foster said again, this time a little more firmly. Nota’s smile disappeared and she nodded, standing up.

  “Fine. Lainey, I’ll be waiting.”

  We watched as she left the room, closing the door behind her. “I could tell she was making you uncomfortable,” Dr. Foster said.

  “I only just told her last night. She’s really angry.”

  “I can see that,” Dr. Foster smiled. “You can sit in her chair if you’d like. I don’t need to perform any exams. I can get a urine sample before you leave, and do a quick test just to confirm, but that’s up to you. I generally like to leave all of the baby stuff to the doctors that know more about what they’re doing.”

  I slid off the table and into the chair that Nora had been sitting in. Dr. Foster sat in his chair behind his desk, and looked at me expectantly.

  “You look surprised when I mentioned two weeks.”

  “I think I know when, um, conception happened,” I admitted.

  Dr. Foster removed the calendar from the wall again and handed it to me. I went back to September and ran my finger from the sixth down two lines. The twentieth. I tapped my finger on it. “That day.”

  “And you’re sure?”

  “Yeah, it’s the only possible time it could have happened.”

  “Alright.” He added another note onto his chart. “That puts you at ten weeks and one day. You’re almost at the end of your first trimester already.”

  “Wow.”

  He smiled. “It goes fast.”