Jack didn’t put up much resistance. As I slid a dollar into the drink machine, he complained, “In my defense, Jen, this isn’t the welcome I had hoped for.”
“What were you hoping for?”
“You in your birthday suit, maybe.”
I tried to elbow him, but he ducked me and grabbed the bottle of water that shot out of the machine.
“You could try to be a little more romantic,” I told him.
“I can be romantic in a couple of days. Right now, I’m dealing with primal urges.”
Him talking about sex reminded me of what had happened just before we left the apartment. I wasn’t sure whether or not to tell him. His reaction would be like a bomb going off. Maybe it was better to wait? As I wavered, Will walked over, grabbed the bottle of water from Jack, and said, “Get two or three more of those.”
We did as he said and went back to Naya’s room, where we waited until the nurses kicked us out. After that, all of us but Will lingered out in the hall—as the father, he must have had special permission to be inside. Chris showed up half an hour later with his parents, and last of all came Sue and Lana, who looked furious to be running into each other.Some welcoming committee, I thought.
Waiting for a baby to be born was a new experience for me. With my sister, they induced labor, and in an hour, Owen was out. For that matter, this was the first time any of my friends had been pregnant. I was nervous, and it felt like the ordeal would never end. Jack and I passed the time coming up with names.
“I think Kim is awful on its own,” I told him. “And the thought that she likes it because of Kim Kardashian just makes me want to pull my hair out.”
“She could call her Kylie, after Kylie Jenner,” Jack said.
“Shut up,” I told him.
“Maybe it’ll be a boy anyway,” he said. “If so, I like Jeremy.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. It’s not too long and not too short. It’s not common, but it’s also not weird. It’s just right in the middle.”
“So you’re saying you want mediocre kids,” I ribbed him.
“Easy there, Michelle. We’re talking aboutakid, not kids.”
We talked over a few others: Elizabeth, which I thought was elegant and Jack thought was boring; John, which was pointless, because it was the most common name in English; Jay and Ellie, which were the two we agreed on, leading Jack to say, “We should get to work, then. Little Jay and Ellie aren’t going to make themselves!”
The conversation started getting dull, and we examined Naya’s and Will’s families, who were acting like they’d be struck by lightning if they so much as looked at each other. Chris noticed the awkwardness and tried to start a conversation, but it didn’t go anywhere. Jack whispered in my ear that both sets of parents were divorced. I guess that was part of the problem.
I had almost fallen asleep when Will finally opened the door. He was smiling, and I breathed a sigh of relief.
“We did it!” he said. “They’re resting, but everything was smooth. The baby’s healthy, and Naya’s doing great, too.”
“What is it?” Naya’s mother shouted.
“A little girl,” Will shouted. “I hope all of you are ready to meet Jane.”
22
New Roommate
Jack huffed and puffed and beat the pillow with his fist.
“For the love of God, don’t they make muzzles for babies?” he asked.
I tried not to laugh. I was as tired as he was, but my attitude was a little more realistic. Naya had brought Jane home a month ago now, and ever since, our nights had been filled with the baby’s wailing. She cried like clockwork starting at eleven each night, and not what you’d call softly. She made sure everyone knew something was wrong, and nothing anyone did ever calmed her down.
I heard Will’s footsteps in the living room. He was walking her back and forth and rocking her, which irritated Mike, and when they started arguing, that only made the whole thing worse.
“She cries all night and sleeps all day,” I murmured. “She doesn’t have a regular biological clock yet. It’ll get better with time.”
