Page 11 of Wait for the Dream

“No, Bailey Nicole. You are not.” I hear a loud crash, like something heavy hitting a wall, and a muttered “dammit” on the other side of the phone.

“Dad, I am not giving up my baby. I understand what keeping this baby means, and while I have appreciated all the support from you guys in my life, I am not giving up this baby.”

“Be very sure about this decision, Bailey, because if you do not agree to the abortion before this call is over, I will be calling the bank and cancelling your credit cards. I will pull my payments for school and your apartment. I will have your car towed to me. You will have nothing to your name.” He’s entirely too calm. “I should have cut you off a long time ago, but your mother insisted it would look bad to have my daughter working while she was in college, so I have supported you. That will change right now if you don’t make the right choice.”

“Sir, with all due respect, this conversation is over.” Aiden has my phone in his hand. His face is red with anger. “Bailey doesn’t need your support. I have kept my mouth shut my entire life about how shitty you treat your child. Bailey has never been able to count on you guys for anything other than money. The fact that this is the first time she has ever done something less than perfect and you’re cutting her off over it is, quite frankly, ridiculous. Little Bear may not be my blood, but he or she will be loved by me and my family. We don’t need you. So respectfully, go fuck yourself.” Aiden hangs up the phone, tosses it down on the coffee table, sits down on the couch next to me and pulls me into his lap, holding me close while I sob into his chest.

I don’t know how long it takes for me to have some semblance of control over my tears, but once I do, I manage to say, “What am I going to do, Bear? As of right now I probably have no way of even paying for groceries, let alone the copay for my appointment on Monday.”

“I know you wanted to tell them in person, but I think you should call Momma and Pop. I’m sure they will have a way of helping us figure out where to go from here,” he says, running a hand up and down my back.

It hits me all over again how truly incredible Aiden is. He’s not only my best friend, but my protector, my shoulder to cry on, the person I turn to when life gets hard. I don’t know where I would be without Aiden, and I truly hope I never have to find out. This is the biggest reason I keep those secret feelings in my dreams, because I won’t risk losing the friendship we have built by bringing them into the light.

“Okay, I’ll call them. I’m scared, Bear. I know they love me like I’m one of their own, but having them be disappointed or mad at me will be worse than the conversation we just had with my own parents,” I say as I reach for my phone.

“They love you more than they love me,” he teases. “I’m sure they’re going to be ecstatic to have a grandchild,” Aiden reassures me.

I open my phone to see a text from my father

Father: Bailey, this will be the last time you hear from me or your mother. Unless there is an extreme emergency, I do not wish to have any further contact with you. Your credit cards have been cancelled, I have sent an email to your leasing company to reach out to you for further payment information on your apartment. I’m sure I will not be able to get out of this month, so your apartment is paid through the last of the month. You have one week to figure out a way to buy your car from us or it will be towed and sold to someone else. Your phone will be shut off at the end of the month, so I would suggest you figure that out as well. This school year has been paid for, but you will need to make arrangements for next year. These are the consequences of your actions. I hope you’re prepared to live with them.

I look up at Aiden who has been reading the text over my shoulder. He grabs my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze, “No matter what happens, Blue. You will always have me.”

Aiden

“Bailey, you alright?” I can tell her thoughts are spiraling.

I know everything is going to be okay, but Bailey has had one hell of a couple weeks. She is having a hard time realizing that while things suck at this moment, it’s all going to work out. The last couple of days have been some of the hardest in my life. Seeing the fear and sadness in Bailey’s eyes when douchebag Daniel told her he wanted nothing to do with her or Little Bear was hard, but watching her be shattered by her parents was torture.

Her parents have always been shitty, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t think this would have been the outcome, but to hear them say they wanted no contact with her. To leave their pregnant daughter with no way to even buy food was the shittiest thing they could have done. I know my parents will fix this. I know they will take the financial responsibility for Bailey and Little Bear. I know they will help her in any way they can. And I’m prepared to do it myself in the off chance that they don’t. “It’s going to be alright, sweetheart. They love you.”

My family doesn’t like to showcase it, but we are very wealthy. Pop comes from a long line of very successful lawyers. His family owns one of the largest firms in Texas, and the original reason we moved to Colorado was for Pop to open a branch of the firm out here. My grandfather on Momma’s side was a self-made billionaire, real estate developer in Texas, before he died of a heart attack when I was eleven. The trust fund me, my mother and each of my siblings received at the age of eighteen was enough that we didn’t need to work a day in our lives and our children would still have more than enough to live off of. My parents made a deal with us that as long as we keep our grades up, they will pay for school and living expenses until we graduate and find a job. We might be wealthy, but my parents have always taught us the value of hard work. I am more than capable of taking care of Bailey, but I think Momma and Pop are going to want to help. They seriously are the best.

Wordlessly, she finally works up the courage to press Momma’s contact, and puts the phone on speaker and we wait for the best mom in the world to pick up. “There’s my girl! My goodness, I have missed you.” Momma says when she picks up the phone, as if she didn't just see us a couple weeks ago.

“Momma,” The word comes out as a broken sob.

“Bailey, what is going on my girl? Where is Aiden?” The concern in her voice is obvious. She probably thinks someone is dying or something.

“I’m right here Momma, Blue has had a rough couple of weeks,” I respond for her.

“Do I need to come to Alpine? I can stay in your room at the apartment while you stay with Bee,” Momma says. Always ready to come to the rescue of one of her kids. She’s the best woman I know. And let’s be clear, Bailey very much is one of her kids.

“No, Momma, we will be home in a couple of weeks,” Bailey says once she has finally calmed herself down a bit.

“What’s going on Bailey Girl? You’re freaking me out sweet girl.” Her voice has always had this way of soothing us, I’m glad we called her.

“I’m pregnant. The father freaked out and told me to contact his lawyer so he could sign over his rights. My parents just cut me off. They cancelled my credit cards, I have a week to buy my car off of them or they’re selling it to the next buyer. My apartment and phone are both paid through the end of the month and then I will be shit out of luck. I don’t know what to do.” By the end of the rant Bailey is sobbing again. I wish I could fix this for her. I wish I had a magic wand to make this all alright at this very moment.

“Breathe Bailey Girl, you’re not alone. You know we will do everything in our power to help you. I’m not going to let you suffer. You may not have come out of me, but you’re my child just as much, if not more, than Aiden is.” A watery laugh comes out of Blue at Momma’s last comment. See, this is who Momma is. She knows exactly what to say to each of her kids to help them through whatever they’re going through.

“Hey!” I say in mock indignation, throwing a hand over my heart and clutching like I’ve been shot. “I take offense to that.”

“You know it’s true, son," Momma chuckles. "Bailey, I’m going to the bank tomorrow to have a credit card made for you, if you need anything before it gets to you have Aiden use his. If you are going to need something and you guys won’t be together, have him stop at an ATM and take out cash. The card I’m sending you will be linked to our accounts and paid for by us. If you can give me the email address for your landlord I will set up that we pay for your apartment from here on out. I will call your shitty, no good parents as soon as we hang up the phone and buy your car from them, or we can just get you a new one. You might need something a bit bigger anyway if you’re going to be driving around with my grandbaby. When you come for Christmas, we will take you to get a new phone and add you to our phone plan.” Momma has gone into fixer mode.

“Momma, I cannot ask you to do all of that. I will find a job to help pay for all of this.” Bailey is panicking, and there is no way in hell anyone is going to let that shit happen.

“You will do no such thing Bailey Girl. We love you like you’re one of our own, and we have the resources to help you, so we will. I will not have my daughter, and the mother of my grandchild working herself to the bone while pregnant and going to school. Pop and I want to help you, so you will let us.” There is no room for argument in her voice.