She embraces me with the same hug she’s given me since I can remember. Stiff, awkward as fuck, and over before you can blink an eye. Kelly cuts me a look,Don’t, and I bite back my response. Like I haven’t just flown halfway round the world to be here.
“How are you doing?” I ask, ignoring my mum’s question and leaning over to Kelly. She’s in bed, and I give her a slightly longer embrace, trying not to pull at any of the cables she’s attached to.
“How do you think?” Kelly says, looking down at her dressing gown. “I served this little fucker his eviction notice nearly seventeen hours ago, and yet he still refuses to leave. At this rate, I’m going to have to get the bailiffs in to remove him.”
Kelly winces in pain as a contraction starts and squeezes the teddy bear beside her.
“Kelly, stop with the swearing.” My mum whacks her arm.
“Daniel, you better get her out of here,” Kelly says in between short, sharp breaths. Her voice is almost demonic.
Daniel quickly escorts my mum out before World War III erupts.
I give Kelly my hand to squeeze instead of the teddy bear, and immediately regret it. She crushes my fingers with the tightness of her grip.
“The contractions that bad?” I ask.
“Not as bad as her,” she says, nodding to the door where mum just left. “Why Daniel chose to tell her I’d gone into labor is beyond me.” She shakes her head in disgust.
Kelly’s grip finally loosens and her breathing slows.
“Anyway, enough about her. Tell me everything. I need something to take my mind off these contractions.”
“Well, the flight was awful, barely slept a wink. The guy next to me snored the whole flight.”
I can still hear his drone reverberating in my ears.
Maybe I should file a compensation claim with British Airways for damages.
“So that’s why you look so rough.”
Kelly is never one to miss an opportunity to knock me down a peg or two, even in the throes of labor. I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror in the corner of the room, and see my hair is splayed out in a variety of different directions, despite my best efforts to tame it in the airplane toilet before landing.
“Funny,” I say, not needing my character to be sullied anymore today. “Oh, Stephen and Ryan have broken up.”
“Cause we didn’t see that one coming,” Kelly laughs and reaches for her water.
“That’s not the best part. Apparently, Ryan told Stephen the reason they were breaking up is because he’s still in love with me.”
Kelly puts her cup down and whacks my arm. Her heart rate monitor falls off.
“Shut up!”
“Yeah, and Stephen’s blaming me for everything, like he didn’t get himself into this whole mess in the first place.” The anger I’d quelled earlier stirs again.
“God, you gays. You’re all as bad as each other.” She shakes her head again and slides her heart rate monitor back on before taking a sip of her water.
If I wasn’t still so angry at Stephen and Ryan, I’d be laughing right now.
“Anyway, enough about them. How were the Grammys? Who did you see? Did Alexander win?” Her eyes light up as she waits for the gossip.
“They were great,” I say, filling her in on the awards show. I get my phone out to show her pictures from the red carpet and of the ceremony itself. And I tell her about how Alexander thanked me during his speech.
“What did he say?” Her mouth opens wide before she clenches her jaw in pain.
I recount Alexander’s speech while helping her through the next round of contractions, and then tell her what I’ve been dying to tell someone since I said it on Sunday night.
“I told him I love him, Kelly.”
