"Charlotte, please!" Dan begged outside my bedroom door. I had locked it and sat against the door. I didn't see why I had to forgive him, he wanted nothing to do with me and our baby, especially if it took him a week to come back. I crossed my arms over my chest and rested my head on the door frame.
"I take back everything I said, I really didn't mean any of it." He sounded tired and his voice was giving up.
There was a stretch of silence for a few minutes and I got up to open my door. I looked around and then at the floor, where Dan was sitting hunched over. His head was resting on his arms and he looked up with teary eyes. My heart broke at the sight of a man who was broken, one who I know that doesn't cry easily. How cold hearted would I be if I just left him there, or made him leave?
I sat down next to him and put my hand on his arm. I was conflicted between hugging him and not doing that. He could either hug me back or push me away, and I really couldn't blame him.
"I forgive you Dan. I can't stand to see like this." He looked back up at me with a faint smile and I stood up with him. We looked at each other, not really knowing what to do next. He leaned down and hugged me, throwing me off guard, and it took me a second to hug him back.
He pulled back slowly but not completely. Our faces lingered closely and his eyes stayed on my lips as he moved closer. Dan's mouth connected with mine and it was like glue was holding us together. We were synchronised but I was the first to pull away. I stared into his sparkling brown eyes with wonder and noted that it was our first sober kiss.
What compelled him to kiss me? I wonder if it was just a heat of the moment thing or had he been planning this? I chose not to think about it too much, especially since he was pulling away and I had to move my legs. They felt like lead and I couldn't move easily, resulting me in tripping backwards over my own feet. I landed on my tailbone and Dan stood there laughing his ass off in front of me like it was the funniest thing in the world.
He extended an arm and I took it while I lifted myself off the ground. Dan pulled me by the hand closer to him and he kissed my cheek, making me blush in deep ruby tones.
My face turned serious and I asked, "What are we?" I scanned his look of worry and didn't know why he was sending me mixed signals. For the sake of our child, I hope he finds out soon.
"Problematic."
"Dan in eight months you'll need to take care of a baby with me. Your baby. My baby," I pointed my index finger at my belly button, "It'll need both parents. I can't do this on my own and I need to know that you'll be there. Will you?"
He passed a hand over his hair and nodded, "Yeah, yeah I will." I cocked my head to the side and raised my eyebrow questioningly. He mimicked me dramatically and I burst out laughing. He knew how to bring humor into serious conversations and I knew that our baby would find it amusing. I placed my hand on the bump that was just barely forming and I smiled.
"Hey, do you want to go to my place? We can hang out with Phil, maybe play a video game?" he had a hopeful look on his face and of course I couldn't say no. Especially because if I said no I would have nothing to do home alone.
"Of course! I'm sure Brooke will want to come as well, if that's alright. She's off trying to get a job." Speaking of Brooke, she should be home soon. There was a library somewhere around here that she said she wanted to check for openings for. Brooke is a bookworm like me and she thrives when she is around them.
"Yeah." Dan motioned for us to leave and I grabbed my purse, keys, and phone. I was conflicted whether or not to leave Duke out free for an hour opposed to putting him in his cage. I decided to lock him up because he is still a puppy and therefore he's going to chew something up.
I smiled at Dan and locked the door behind us. We carried on our conversation up to his floor and into the threshold. I pulled Dan aside and whispered something in his ear. He gave me a thumbs up and his face claimed a grim expression. He walked around the corner and I stood listening from around the corner.
"Aw, Dan," Phil spoke with a sympathetic voice, "Did she reject you?" I heard him get up and walk over to Dan. Dan gave a fake sniffle and a faux sob escaped his lips.
I cautiously looked around the corner at Dan standing with his face buried in his hands and Phil's back to me, trying to comfort him, "It's alright, Dan it's probably for the best." I tiptoed as quietly as I could and inched closer to him. A grin formed on my face as I approached Phil, my mischievous plan falling perfectly into place.
I was standing directly behind Phil and I poked him in the sides and shouted in his ear, "Boo!" He yelled in fright and turned around to face me with wild eyes and a racing heart.
"Charlotte don't ever do that to me again! You guys tricked me!" Phil turned back around to see Dan's tear free, laughing face. I reached up and hugged Phil to praise him for being a good sport. He hugged me back and I pulled away, wiping a tear from my eye.
"Oh, Phil, you're so easy to scare."
***
There was a knock at the door and Phil went to answer it while Dan and I were playing against each other at Mario Kart. He kept trying to knock me over because I was currently in first place and he was in third.
I heard Brooke's voice and looked over at the door for her appearance when I heard Dan whooping loudly. I quickly turned back around and found Dan gaining on me. I yelped and stepped up my game. I managed to get an item box and I threw the turtle shell I got at him.
Dan reached around me and pulled me closer so he could cover my eyes. I yelled and shook him loose, pulling ahead of him in the race. The final finish line was ahead of us and we were neck and neck. It was close but I came in first and Dan was in second.
I threw my arms up in the air and Dan pouted, sticking out his lower lip. At this point Phil and Brooke had come in and were watching our race from the couch. They seemed mildly amused by our show.
I looked back over at Dan and he spoke, "How did you win against the King? Impossible!" I inched closer and looked him in the eyes. I smiled and pecked him on the lips, and turned back around. Brooke paid no attention to us and was talking with Phil about who knows what.
I got up and motioned for Dan to follow. We sat next to the pair and I got her attention. "Brooke, I have to tell you something. It's important."
Phil looked over at me, down to my belly, and back up with a thumbs up. I smiled and looked behind me at Dan, who was sitting close to my left. I turned back, "Brooke, Dan and I are having a baby. I'm pregnant."
Her mouth dropped open and she closed it, only to gape like a goldfish again, "I should have known, after that big deal with... the thing that happened." She gave me a reassuring smile and I felt relieved. Dan slipped his hand into mine and I could feel my life falling into place, everything turning out alright and I'm happy with that.
