Fighting back a yawn, I get to the hospital with lunch for my mom and the card Ivy helped Charlie make. He’s not allowed in the cardiac ICU so he hasn’t seen him in person, though my mom let them talk on the phone this morning.
“Oh, that smells good.” Mom smiles thankfully when I hand her the bag of burritos, chips, and salsa. “Thank you for picking it up. I had a craving.”
The smell is actually nauseating to me but I just nod. “You’re welcome.”
“Aren’t you going to eat?” she asks when I sit beside her but don’t open my burrito.
“Not really hungry,” I say, hoping my stomach doesn’t betray me.
There’s enough going on—this definitely isn’t the time to tell them about the baby. Besides, I have an appointment with my OBGYN next week, and then I’ll have more detailed information.
Mom glances at me a few times and then frowns.
“Are you sure you’re not hungry? You’re really pale.”
“Just tired,” I admit. “Between going to school, running back and forth to the hospital, and staying up late to catch up on my final projects, I’m beat.”
She nods. “Uh huh.”
I’m not feeling so hot and the more she eats, the more I think I’m going to hurl.
Then it hits me out of nowhere and I jump to my feet, running for the bathroom. I make it to the toilet just in time to lose my breakfast.
There’s movement behind me, and then I feel something cool on the back of my neck.
“How far along?” Mom asks softly.
“Wha—” It seems ridiculous to deny it. “About seven weeks,” I whisper.
“Is this why you got engaged?”
“No.” I shake my head. “He wanted to go ring shopping before we knew, but I kept putting it off because I didn’t want to get engaged if you and Dad were going to make it miserable for me. But once this happened…” I pull in a shaky breath, unsure whether I’m going to puke again or not.
“How are you feeling?”
“Just tired. The nausea hasn’t been too bad but some smells send me running.”
She nods. “That’s to be expected.”
“Please don’t tell Dad. Not yet.”
“I won’t.” She smiles and puts a cool hand on my cheek. “My baby is having a baby.”
“Are you…happy?” I ask cautiously.
“Of course I am. Babies are a blessing.”
“This means Jordan will be in your life forever.”
“I know. And that’s okay. As long as he loves you and treats you well, we’ll win your dad over too.”
“I hope so,” I whisper, suddenly overwhelmed with emotion. “I don’t want to lose you guys.”
“You won’t.” She pulls me into a hug. “I’m sorry we’ve made it so hard on you. We just want what’s best for you and I didn’t think that was Jordan. But I’m a big enough person to admit when I’m wrong.”
“I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too. Now how about we find you some ginger ale and I’ll go eat out in the hallway so it doesn’t bother your stomach.”
