We'd only been out of touch for a few weeks.But, then again, look at the huge newsI got in those few weeks.
"We had a scare," he said. "And that put things into perspective for us."
"A pregnancy scare?" I swallowed hard. "But, she's not?" For just a second, I almost wished she were pregnant. Misery loves company, and all that.How screwed upcan you get, Jocelyn?
"No, she was just late," he said, relief evident in his tone. "But we realized while we liked one another and had fun with each other, we weren't so sure we were in this for the long haul. A baby would have changed everything."
Tell me about it.
"No doubt," I said, knowing exactly where he was coming from. I had spent many sleepless nights these past few weeks, trying to decide if I was what Alex wanted.
I knew we liked each other, but did he want to be tied to me forever? The more time I had to get used to having a baby, the more I wanted to share this with Alex. I wanted him to be involved and tell me it would all work out. "Sorry I wasn't around for that."
"Yeah, you kinda flaked on me," he said, but his smile took the sting from his words. "But luckily your other half was there to talk to me."
"Alex?"
"Who else?"
"What was his take on the whole situation?" I was curious to know. Maybe it would help me get my act together.
"He was very supportive when we didn't know for sure," he said. "He called me like three times a day to make sure I was okay and to see if I needed to talk things through."
"That's Alex." I smiled, wishing I could call him and tell him my current situation.
"But once we knew for sure Cali wasn't pregnant, Alex agreed we were too young and had our whole lives in front of us, and if we weren't sure we wanted to spend forever together, it was best to break up and do what was right for each other."
"Oh." I suffered a pang of disappointment. "Alex didn't think you were meant for Cali?"
"He said we had time to figure it out, and if it was meant to be, it would happen.
We didn't need a baby to complicate matters."
"No, I guess not," I said.Complicate matters? Is that how Alex would view this? Acomplication?
"It all worked out." He sighed. "But I would have done the right thing and supported Cali any way she needed me to. Alex was adamant about that. Responsibility and all."
A complication and a responsibility? This is not looking good.
"Hey." He took my hand. "It's over, and I'm moving on. There'll be lots of new girls for me to charm the pants off at school." He winked.
"Pig!" I laughed, despite my growing melancholy.
"Well, I can't have you. You're taken."
I smiled. "You didn't want me before Alex came home."
"Maybe I didn't realize what a catch you were," he said.
"Please." I rolled my eyes. "It would never have worked."
"Come on." He pulled me toward the door. "My mother is waiting for you."
"Good. I've missed miss her too." We walked into the house. I didn't know why, but I immediately felt at home once I got inside. Probably because everywhere I looked I was reminded of Alex and all the time we spent there. I liked being surrounded by him, and I wanted to take it all in, since this was probably the last time I'd be there until he came home.
Chapter Twelve
I came home from an eight-hour shift and collapsed on my bed. Never in my life had I been this tired. I'd felt like my eyes were going to shut right there at the cash register. The nausea wasn't getting any better, and my back was starting to hurt, and I wasn't out of my first trimester yet.
