Golden Lockets

Baby, It's You

After John had locked the door he slid to the floor, his face in his hands. He was still having trouble processing what had just happened outside. He was terrified, but he was also angry. He had been part of a group for years now and he was hoping to become really successful in the next year or so, yet here was George dropping a massive bombshell on his hopes and dreams. John clenched his hands into fists of rage and began bashing his head repeatedly against the door, as if he could physically beat his worries away. It didn't work. When he opened his eyes he was still sitting on the doormat with a slight headache... and his friend was in the other room in extreme danger. John could hear George moaning and groaning, obviously in immense pain.

"Ugh..." John muttered, staggering to his feet, "How am I going to do this?"

He pulled himself together, quickly rubbed his sore head, and walked towards George's room. John poked his head around the door. The sight wasn't a pretty one. George was curled up in a ball on his bed, clutching his stomach, moaning as the contractions tightened. He noticed John lurking in the doorway and looked up at him, his expression pleading. 

"Please, John..." he gasped, "Help me..."

John didn't move a muscle. He wanted to help, of course. George was his friend and he wanted him to be healthy and happy. He was like a baby brother to him. He just didn't know what to do. John just stood motionless in the doorway, watching George writhe and struggle. John could feel his heart breaking. It was terrible. His eyes slid to the pale green telephone that was sitting on the nightstand.

"Don't call anyone," George groaned, "They'll never believe you."

John hovered over the phone, but he soon saw sense and took his hand away. He sat beside George on the bed and once again put his head in his hand. (John always did this when things were getting too weird or frustrating. It helped him think better.) John had no idea what he should do, or indeed could do. Here was his friend who had announced he was pregnant just as he was going into labour. John had never been in this bizarre of a situation before. He was lost.

"Oh, my God!" George gasped, "It's coming!"

"How would you know?" John asked miserably.

"Get off you arse and help me!" George screamed. He stopped panicking for a moment and slid his hand into John's sweaty grasp. John turned and looked down at him glumly. George squeezed John's hand, then he smiled weakly at him. "Please, John. I need you. I can't do this alone."

John wanted to pull his hand free and run out of the room, far away from this dire situation, but he found he couldn't. Instead he sighed heavily then got to his feet. John glanced reassuringly at George, rolled up his sleeves, and began the procedure. 

I won't go into details about the birth as some readers may find it too disturbing, but I will explain how George's surprise pregnancy came about. George, being the young and naive boy he was, had been madly in love with his girlfriend but she was never too keen on him. She wasn't the sort of girl to maintain a proper relationship and really only dated guys for the fun of it. She had slept with George on many occasions yet she never expected anything drastic to happen. After three weeks she decided enough was enough and did a runner, leaving George alone and heartbroken.

George didn't know what to do. He'd never had a girlfriend like this one before. She had been so beautiful, so seductive, so exotic. He was up a creek without a paddle. Things became worse when he discovered he was going to have a baby. It was the shock of a lifetime and George had no idea how to react, or how it even happened! "There were two possible explanations," he often told himself, "Either the reproduction process worked backwards and I conceived instead of her... or I'm just a freak of nature and did this to myself." He had panicked and decided the  best solution was to keep this situation a secret. He'd had enough stress in his life already, and he didn't need anymore.

George had kept quiet for nearly nine months. No one knew what he was going to go through.

Until now... and he was completely terrified.