LABYRINTH | Scarlett Johansson x Daughter

12 | i love you.

"What does it say?" I question anxiously as Scarlett holds the result of the pregnancy test in her hands.

"Um...can you take another one, sweetheart?"

My heart feels like it gets stuck in my throat as I snatch the stick from her hands so I'm able to see for myself. This can't be happening.

"There's no line?" I frown, gazing back up at her with a look of confusion on my face.

"Here," she says, pulling me around to the side of the bathroom she's on, taking the test back from me and holds it up in the light coming in from the window. The line is extremely faint, but it's there.

"Oh."

My words are lost. Well, the kind of words I can say aloud in front of the woman who carried me for nine months. Words like shit, and fuck, and fuck, and fuck, and shit again are on the tip of my tongue.

"It's extremely faint, Kenz. Take another one because it very well might just be a faulty test," she suggests calmly. "How on earth am I supposed to take another one? I have no pee left inside me!" I freak, unaware that I'm raising my voice.

I half expect a slap across the head or at least some kind of cruel comment in return, so much so that I internally brace myself to not show any sort of pain that she might use for granted, but instead Scarlett places the test down and holds out a hand. "I know you're scared, sweetheart, but I am here no matter what the outcome is. Now, lets go get you some water."

Without a word, I take her hand as she guides me back downstairs to the kitchen whilst I'm desperately fighting back the pool of tears in my eyes.

A part of me resented Scarlett for giving me up. More so in the beginning. But now I'm afraid I might be in the same boat she was sixteen years ago and I have a much broader understanding for why she did what she did. She made a decision that she thought would be better for me. It's not her fault my parents turned out to be the way they did. She didn't know. She was seventeen and probably terrified of the thought of being responsible of a newborn.

There is absolutely no way I could raise a child at the age I am now without royally screwing it up. I don't know the first thing about being a mother.

It took twenty minutes of anxious pacing, two glasses of water and one borderline panic attack before I had the urge to pee again, but then Scarlett suggested that if I wanted more accurate results I should wait a while. So, I painfully held on for an entire hour. In the meantime, she showed me out the back of her house to the pool, she spoke about her skincare line and gave me plenty to take home with me, and she tried teaching me how to play chess. I wasn't very good at it and she won both rounds. Once the hour finally was up and we went back upstairs.

This time, I took the remaining two pregnancy tests and when the waiting period was over, both of us looked at one each.

I made sure of the results before looking to Scarlett with a hopeful smile. "There's no line."

"This one doesn't have a line either," she admits, returning the smile.

"I'm not pregnant?"

"I don't think so. I'd say that you should take another one in a few days time if your period still hasn't come, just to be completely sure, but if both of them are negative I'd say that you're not pregnant."

"Oh, thank goodness," I sigh heavily, no longer able to hold back as a few tears begin to fall down my cheeks and the lump in my throat starts to lessen.

"Come here, babe," she speaks gently, pulling me into her arms and holding my head against her shoulder. It's the kind of hug that is so safe, you feel like nothing could ever hurt you again. It's a hug I've only ever received once that I can recall, from my fourth grade teacher. My parents had forgotten to pick me up from school that day, and it took until six P.M. to be able to get a hold of them. I was distraught, thinking something terrible had happened but that wasn't the case at all. My father had gone out for a few drinks after work with a woman I'm sure he was having an affair with now that I look back. As far my mother, she was as asleep on the couch when I finally got home.

"Thank you, Scarlett," I mumble, turning my head further into her shoulder so I'm able to wipe my tears on the fabric of her sweatshirt.
"What for?" She questions, resting her chin on top of my head, rubbing a reassuring hand on my back.

"Well, for making me feel safe and for doing this with me," I explain, half-heartedly giggling at the fact she even had to ask.

"Oh, it's my pleasure, sweetheart," she speaks lowly, her voice hoarse.

Several moments pass before I slowly peel myself out of her arms, and before I can completely, she grasps firmly onto my shoulders and presses her lips gently to my forehead. "I'm proud of you."

"Why?" I asks, utterly confused by her statement.

"Because I know this wouldn't have been easy."

"Yeah, but why are you proud of me?"

"Do I really need to give a reason why? Just take the compliment," she giggles, curling her lips into a smirk and quirking an eyebrow.

"Fine. I'll work on it," I decide.

"Good."

I smile before getting to work on cleaning up my trash and once I've finished with that, we go back downstairs to get my backpack.

"Do you have to be anywhere this evening, Kenz?" Scarlett questions, leaning against the banister of the staircase.
"Uh, no. I'll probably either go to a coffee shop or go home and work on my art portfolio," I admit, lifting my shoulders to my ears.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" She offers. "Of course there's no obligation, but I just thought I'd ask."

"Really?" My question is asked in a hopeful manner as I refrain from smiling like an idiot.

"Yes, really. I was planning on making a cottage pie since the gloomy weather calls for it," she explains.

"I'd really like that," I admit, dropping my backpack back down to the floor.
"Great," she smiles widely, "just make sure you're parents know where you are."

"Yeah, I'll message them," I tell her. They still are unaware of the fact I've been spending time with Scarlett and I don't have any intention of informing them anytime soon because they'll either forbid me from seeing her which is the worst possible scenario, or they'll not say anything and use it against me later on, so I just tell them that I'm at a friends house for dinner instead. Of course, I don't expect a response.

__

"Did you pick a show?" Scarlett questions, coming to join me in the living room with two bowls of cottage pie. It smells amazing.

"I don't really watch tv so I don't know what's good and what's not, but this one looks interesting," I admit, pressing play on the first episode of 'Suits'. "I've never seen this before but I have heard good reviews," she adds, sitting down beside me and pulling a blanket over our legs.

"Thank you for dinner," I smile lightly. It's been a few years since somebody has made me a meal. "You're welcome," she returns the smile.

"You know, I watched one of your movies the other week," I state.

"Oh yeah? Which one?"

"'We Bought A Zoo'. I watched it with Marty because I don't have Netflix or Disney+ or anything like that, but I really liked it. You're very good at your job."

Her face softens and her lips curl into a warm smile. "Thank you, sweetheart. I love you," she says, once again pressing her lips to my forehead.

She said she loves me.

Not even my own parents tell me that.

It takes me a few seconds to wear off the initial shock but I cuddle closer to her, resting my head on her right shoulder. "I love you too."