Happier With You.

Chapter 9

I forced a smile as i sat down.

Dinner proceeded with the usual chatter, but i couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Cody was unusually quiet, my mom seemed preoccupied, barely touching her food.

After a few minutes of silence, my dad tried to lighten the mood. "So, Cody, how's school going?"

"It's alright." Cody replied as he swirled the pasta around his fork. "Same old, same old"

I exchanged a glance with Iris, who looked equally puzzled. Something was definitely up, but now wasn't the time to pry further.

As we cleared the table after dinner Cody helped me with the dishes.

"Thanks for having me over." He said quietly.

"I really needed this."

"Anytime." I smiled. "We'll figure things out okay?"

He smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Yeah we will."

"I have to go, my friend is here to pick me up" He added.

I jutted out my bottom lip. "Okay, love you."

He kissed the top of my head. "Love you more."

"Never." I scrunched my face.

After Cody left i turned to my mom.

"Mom, is everything okay? You've been acting strange all evening."

She sighed, finally looking at me. "There's something i need to tell you all. But let's wait until your father and Iris gets back.

They had left to grab dessert 10 minutes ago.

-

The knot in my stomach tightened as we gathered in the living room. Whatever it was, I knew it was serious.

My mom sat down, looking more serious than i'd ever seen her.

"I know you've all noticed that I've been a bit off since we got back from Utah," She began, taking a deep breath. "I've been feeling sick and tired, so i went to the doctor today."

Iris and I exchanged worried glances.

My dad reached out and took my mom's hand.

"They did some blood test, and we found out.." She paused, swallowing hard. "Im Two months pregnant."

The room fell silent.

"Pregnant?" Iris finally broke the silence, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes." Mom confirmed.

"It was a shock to me too. I didn't realize because of the symptoms i've been having... well, i thought they were from something else.

I stared at her, trying to wrap my mind around the idea of a new sibling. "But you're okay, right? I mean, besides the usual pregnancy stuff?"

She nodded. "Yes, the doctor said everything looks normal for now. But i have to be careful and make sure everything goes smoothly."

Dad squeezed her hand tighter.

"We'll get through this together." He said, his voice filled with determination.

Iris and I nodded in agreement, still a bit stunned but slowly coming to terms with the news. Our family was about to change in a big way, but we were in this together.

-

"IM SO EXCITED, LIKE YOU DONT UNDERSTAND THIS IS SUCH EXCITING NEWS."

"Sage calm down!" I exclaimed, plopping another small shirt in the garbage bag.