The Girl is Mine • MJ Fanfic • COMPLETED

Twenty-Four: May I Have This Dance?

"So how far along are you?" She asked simply as she looked at me, giving me a knowing look.

Damn.

She took a couple of paper towels and wet them, before handing them to me.

"Thank you," I said lowly as I took them from her. I wiped my mouth before going to the sink to wash my hands. I hadn't responded to my mother's question yet. And to be honest, I didn't want to. I thought I had more time.

"Lauren," she said simply with a stern tone. I took my time washing my hands as I slowly looked up, locking eyes with her through the mirror. She remained silent as she glared at me. She had a soft look on her face, but she was waiting for me to say something.

I broke eye contact as I cut the water off. I swallowed the lump in my throat as I grabbed a few paper towels and dried my hands. After throwing them away, I turned and looked at her before taking a deep breath. It felt like the walls were caving in on me, and time suddenly stopped. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"Mom," was all I managed to get out before tears clouded my vision. I sniffled as I wiped them when they started to fall. "I'm sorry," I said as I began to cry. She quickly pulled me into a hug as she rocked me, rubbing my back in the process. "I'm sorry," I said again. Hell, that was all I could say. I was literally speechless. "Please don't be mad at me," I said as she pulled away and gently moved my hair out of my face.

"Lauren, I'm not mad at you," she spoke. "You're an adult. I can't stop you from doing anything. I can't live your life for you. I can't make decisions for you." She added as she looked at me. "I may not agree with every decision, but I can't stop you," she continued.

"I hit two months this week," I said lowly, finally answering her question as I looked down avoiding eye contact.

"Does he know?" She asked.

"Yes," I said nodding.

"How does he feel?" She asked.

"I don't know. We haven't talked about it," I told her and she gave me a look.

"Well when do you plan on talking to him?" She asked me. I sighed as I tried to hide my annoyance. I wasn't up for questions. Especially not here and not today.

"Soon, mom," I told her. "I just wasn't ready to talk to him yet," I said. "I've been trying to figure out what I want. If I even wanna keep it," I added. She made a face at the last part, but didn't say anything.

I knew she probably wouldn't go for that, but it's not her life or her body. I just hoped we didn't have to go down that road because I didn't want or need a lecture.

"Well you need to get ready, little girl," she said sternly. "You can't keep pushing it off. That baby's not gonna stop growing. And if you keep this up, you're gonna find yourself at a point where you won't be able to make a decision, because it'll already be made for you," she said giving me a serious look.

I simply sighed and nodded. I was grateful for my mom, and thankful that this talk went better than I thought. I knew she meant well and wanted the best for me. I'm just glad she didn't shame me or make me feel like shit.

"I do have to admit, I'm not a fan of how quick this is. I thought you would wait until you were married, or in a long term relationship at least." She admitted.

"Well it wasn't exactly a planned thing," I said sarcastically.

"Which is why you shouldn't be acting all care free like you are married," she replied. "Besides, what if this isn't a long term thing?" She asked referring to my relationship with Michael.