Pain & Gain

Chapter 11

"What?" I ask, this is only making my headache worse.

"Yep." He nods. "Congratulations."

"Oh my god..." I mumble to myself.

"So just take it easy, don't do anything too exerting, and be mindful about what you eat. That will help the nausea." He explains. "And stay hydrated. Lots of water."

What is Marshall gonna say? What is mom gonna say? What is Ren gonna say? The world seems to be spinning at the speed of light around me. I bend over the bed to the trash can on the floor. The vomit I've been holding in finally comes out and Dr. Ellis pats my back.

"We'll need to get you scheduled for some appointments." He says, handing me a napkin. "Is your husband here?"

"My boyfriend is." I nod.

"Sorry for the mistake." He says calmly.

"It's okay." I reassure. "But would you mind if we did this another day? I don't know if I can tell him today."

"Of course." Ellis smiles and walks with me out the door of the room. "Come in whenever you like, just don't wait too long okay? I wanna keep that baby monitored."

Baby. He had to say baby. Shit I'm having a baby. I'm having Marshall's baby. Ellis and I part ways and I walk back towards the waiting room door. I stop about five feet away and sit on a bench. I'm eighteen years old. There is a child growing inside of me. The thought makes me nauseous again. This isn't just a kiss. This is a child. Our child. Who's going to be brought into this world with a psycho grandfather who is nowhere to be found. I clench my stomach, feeling sick.
Marshall and I just got over a fight. We just recovered from something I kept from him. I can't tell him. Not now. There's too much going on and I don't even know who that man in the truck was. Our lives are too complicated to add a baby to the mix. This is insane. How could this happen? I put my head in my hands. I have to at least tell mom first. I can't tell Marshall until I tell her.
My head is spinning. Sooner or later I'm going to have to go and confront him. How am I going to act like nothing is going on? It was only a kiss with Emmett and Marshall knew something was wrong. He knows everything about me, there's no way he won't see straight through this. I take a couple deep breaths, trying to get my nausea under control. I stand, and before I can decide against it, I push through the door into the waiting room.
Marshall doesn't see me until I'm only a few feet away from him. He stands up and hugs me. His torso presses against mine and I feel nervous. I know my belly isn't big yet but for some reason I'm worried he can feel it.

"Hey..." He says, kissing my cheek. "Is everything okay? What'd the doctor say?"

"I fainted." I answer. "But I'm okay."

"You're sure?" He asks. "Because I really don't want to come back here again for a while." He flashes a hint of a smile and I shove his shoulder playfully.

"Yes I'm sure lets go." We laugh and he takes my hand, trailing us towards the door.

We'll be back here sooner than he thinks. This is going to be way harder than I thought.

***

The apartment hasn't changed. Other than the fact that the door to the building actually works now. It's late now, almost nine o'clock. The events of today have drained me completely. I'm unsure whether I've processed it all or not. Marshall places his keys on the counter and kicks the door shut, bolting it. I walk straight to the bedroom, changing out of my clothes. Marshall watches as I take it all off and put on one of his shirts.
I walk around to my side of the bed and he catches me by the waist, pulling me to him. We're back in this awkward torso-touching position and I squirm uncomfortably. Marshall looks down at me, confused. I mentally pinch myself. The normal me wouldn't do this. The normal me would like to be grabbed and kissed by him. However, the pregnant me doesn't feel sexy at all. She feels that she has a deep dark secret and every time he looks at her she wants to tell him. But she thinks about the greater good, remembering that it isn't time for him to know, and bites her tongue.