Griffin just smiled sympathetically. “All right. Go ahead and try. I’ll wait for you here.”
A shaky sigh escaped me as I shut the door.
This is it,I told myself.
I found the pregnancy test box and took the test out. My hands trembled and my skin felt clammy with nerves. What was I so anxious about? If it was negative, all we had to do was try again and again until it finally happened.
Despite the situation, I wanted to laugh. The pre-Griffin Jake would have dropped dead before ever being excited about something like this. But now it felt like I didn’t even know that version of me anymore. The old Jake was closed-off, bitter, and afraid. He was so afraid of taking chances that he became jaded.
Now, I was hopeful. There were so many possibilities, ones I’d shut myself away from because I was afraid of facing them. Not anymore.
I stared at the pregnancy test in my fingers.
“Here we go…” I mumbled.
After following the instructions correctly, all I had to do was wait. I paced around the bathroom. I washed my hands. I stared at myself in the mirror. I tried to distract myself from the horrendously slow passage of time.
A quiet rap on the door alerted me. Griffin’s voice was gentle. “You okay in there, Jake?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Just waiting now.”
As anxiety swelled inside me, I bit the insides of my cheeks. How did people stand this shit? This was worse that finding out I’d gotten hired for my job, or landing this apartment, or -
Something flashed on the test’s tiny screen. I rushed over to see two vertical lines.
My heart flipped over. I double-checked it with the legend.
Pregnant.It was positive.
I yelped and ran out the door and immediately into Griffin, who grunted. “Whoa! What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” I cried. “Griffin, it’s positive!”
He paused. His whole expression softened as his eyes widened. “It’s positive? Then… you’re - ”
“Pregnant!” I confirmed.
Griffin was overwhelmed with emotion. He wrapped his strong arms around me, holding me close and safe. A moment later I noticed his chest was trembling and wetness seeped into my shirt. He was crying.
“Oh, Griff,” I said. “Don’t cry.”
He pulled away with a weak laugh and a smile. “I’m sorry. It’s just a lot to process.”
“Are you happy?” I asked.
“Yes. Oh, absolutely.” Griffin kissed me. “You have no idea how much this means to me. How much it means that you’re excited about this…”
I rubbed his back while he wiped his face. The joy on his face was clear as day beneath the tears.
We stayed wrapped around each other for a moment until one of the bedroom doors creaked open. A sleepy Skylar trudged out.
“What’s all the commotion about?” he mumbled, rubbing an eye.
Griffin looked at me and nodded. It was my news to tell.
“So… I’m pregnant, Sky.”
Skylar furrowed his brows like he was still dreaming, and trying to wake up. “What?”
