kept replaying in
his mind over and over again.
He
trusted Kid with his life, but how in the hell could he be the father of her
baby when he never slept with her? Running harder and faster, he circled the
lake for the twentieth time. A woman with one of those running strollers
crossed paths with him and he couldn’t help but glance down at the baby inside.
Although he couldn’t see the child because of the screen, he could hear a tiny
cry as she passed him.
Facing
forward again, he knew the more logical explanation was that Hunter was a
deadbeat dad. It seemed hard to believe because, for all the years Abe had
known him, Hunter had always been a stand-up man. It was clear the reality of
life had fucked with his head too and he was completely turning his back on
Sophia, just like Abe was doing. Could he really raise another man’s baby?
Could he watch the woman he was in love with grow big with Hunter’s child? It
was a lot to take in and all he wanted to do at the moment was run until he
couldn’t run anymore.
****
Three weeks later
Sophia
sat in the waiting room and twisted her hands together. There were a few other
people also waiting, two women with their boyfriends or husbands by their
sides, one girl who couldn’t be more than sixteen, and another who was around
her age and alone as well. The women that had their male counterparts with them
were very pregnant. Their round bellies protruded under their tops, and Sophia
placed her hand on her own stomach. While hers was still flat, she imagined
herself with a big, round belly. Even after she had time to comprehend it all,
it was still so surreal. She grabbed a magazine, one that had a smiling
pregnant woman on it. The cover said something about being fit and pregnant.
After
the incident with Abe, she tried to call him a few times, but it was clear he
wasn’t ready. She didn’t know how long it would take him to get through it all,
but at least she had finally been honest with him. She might not have been able
to tell him about their drunken night of sex, but Sophia would continue to try,
no matter how long it took him to listen. Giving Abe space was the hardest
thing she had ever done.
“Ms.
Kidd?”
Sophia
looked up. An older woman wearing Sponge Bob scrubs smiled at her and gestured
her to come forward. After putting the magazine down, she grabbed her purse and
followed the nurse to the back. First she was weighed and instructed to put on
the required paper gown, and then Sophia could do nothing but wait for the
doctor to come in.
Sitting
in the cold exam room, all she could think about was what Abe was doing and how
she wished he was experiencing this with her. In the three weeks since he had
left her house and refused to talk to her, Sophia had quit her job at the bar
and found one as a secretary for a dental clinic in the next town over. The
drive was only about twenty minutes, and there were a lot of perks that she
hadn’t been offered working at Tiny’s. She now had health insurance, made more
money, and was able to sit down which would be a godsend when she was big and
fat.
There
was a knock on the door and then the doctor pushed it open and smiled at her.
This was her second appointment, the first one being the initial visit where
they confirmed she was indeed pregnant. This appointment was a little more
special, though. Today she would get an ultrasound and actually get to see her
baby, the bean-shaped creature that was growing inside of her anyway.
“How
are you, Sophia?” Dr. Smith sat down beside her and started typing on the
mini-sized computer she carried around. She swiveled around in the small black
rolling chair with a wide grin on her face. “You ready to see your baby and
hear the heartbeat?”
“Absolutely.”
Sophia couldn’t help the excitement in her voice despite the fact that she
wished Abe was there to share it with her.
“Go
ahead and lie back, and put your feet in the stirrups.”
Once
Sophia was positioned and the
his mind over and over again.
He
trusted Kid with his life, but how in the hell could he be the father of her
baby when he never slept with her? Running harder and faster, he circled the
lake for the twentieth time. A woman with one of those running strollers
crossed paths with him and he couldn’t help but glance down at the baby inside.
Although he couldn’t see the child because of the screen, he could hear a tiny
cry as she passed him.
Facing
forward again, he knew the more logical explanation was that Hunter was a
deadbeat dad. It seemed hard to believe because, for all the years Abe had
known him, Hunter had always been a stand-up man. It was clear the reality of
life had fucked with his head too and he was completely turning his back on
Sophia, just like Abe was doing. Could he really raise another man’s baby?
Could he watch the woman he was in love with grow big with Hunter’s child? It
was a lot to take in and all he wanted to do at the moment was run until he
couldn’t run anymore.
****
Three weeks later
Sophia
sat in the waiting room and twisted her hands together. There were a few other
people also waiting, two women with their boyfriends or husbands by their
sides, one girl who couldn’t be more than sixteen, and another who was around
her age and alone as well. The women that had their male counterparts with them
were very pregnant. Their round bellies protruded under their tops, and Sophia
placed her hand on her own stomach. While hers was still flat, she imagined
herself with a big, round belly. Even after she had time to comprehend it all,
it was still so surreal. She grabbed a magazine, one that had a smiling
pregnant woman on it. The cover said something about being fit and pregnant.
After
the incident with Abe, she tried to call him a few times, but it was clear he
wasn’t ready. She didn’t know how long it would take him to get through it all,
but at least she had finally been honest with him. She might not have been able
to tell him about their drunken night of sex, but Sophia would continue to try,
no matter how long it took him to listen. Giving Abe space was the hardest
thing she had ever done.
“Ms.
Kidd?”
Sophia
looked up. An older woman wearing Sponge Bob scrubs smiled at her and gestured
her to come forward. After putting the magazine down, she grabbed her purse and
followed the nurse to the back. First she was weighed and instructed to put on
the required paper gown, and then Sophia could do nothing but wait for the
doctor to come in.
Sitting
in the cold exam room, all she could think about was what Abe was doing and how
she wished he was experiencing this with her. In the three weeks since he had
left her house and refused to talk to her, Sophia had quit her job at the bar
and found one as a secretary for a dental clinic in the next town over. The
drive was only about twenty minutes, and there were a lot of perks that she
hadn’t been offered working at Tiny’s. She now had health insurance, made more
money, and was able to sit down which would be a godsend when she was big and
fat.
There
was a knock on the door and then the doctor pushed it open and smiled at her.
This was her second appointment, the first one being the initial visit where
they confirmed she was indeed pregnant. This appointment was a little more
special, though. Today she would get an ultrasound and actually get to see her
baby, the bean-shaped creature that was growing inside of her anyway.
“How
are you, Sophia?” Dr. Smith sat down beside her and started typing on the
mini-sized computer she carried around. She swiveled around in the small black
rolling chair with a wide grin on her face. “You ready to see your baby and
hear the heartbeat?”
“Absolutely.”
Sophia couldn’t help the excitement in her voice despite the fact that she
wished Abe was there to share it with her.
“Go
ahead and lie back, and put your feet in the stirrups.”
Once
Sophia was positioned and the
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