No Such Thing As A Hollywood Ending

chapter 32

Lucy slumped into the bus seat, the early morning light filtering through the windows. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass, trying to calm the jumble of thoughts racing through her mind. The bus was filled with the usual chatter, but something felt off. She could feel Sarah's gaze burning into the side of her head from across the aisle.

After a moment, Sarah couldn't hold back anymore. "Hey, where's Henry?" she asked, her voice filled with concern. "He never misses school. Like, ever."

Lucy sighed, pulling herself away from the window to face Sarah. She had been dreading this conversation all morning. It was bad enough that she had to go to school without Henry by her side—explaining why was going to be even worse.

"Yeah, I know," Lucy said, her voice low. "But... well, we were both asked to stay home for a couple of days. I decided not to because I felt like I needed to talk to you about everything."

Sarah's eyes widened. "Wait, what? Why? What happened?"

Lucy bit her lip, trying to figure out the best way to phrase it. She had known this question was coming, but now that it was here, she wasn't quite sure how to explain everything that had gone down.

"It's... kind of a long story," Lucy started, fiddling with the hem of her jacket. "You remember what happened at your party, right? You know, when I got sick, and then you made me take the pregnancy test?"

Sarah nodded, her expression growing more serious. "Yeah, I remember. I've been wondering about that."

Lucy's stomach twisted as she prepared herself for what came next. "Well... the test was accurate."

Sarah's jaw dropped, and she stared at Lucy, speechless for a moment. "Wait, so you're saying—"

"I'm pregnant," Lucy finished, her voice barely above a whisper. The weight of those words still felt surreal to her, even after the weekend's whirlwind of emotions and decisions.

Sarah blinked, her shock slowly giving way to a mixture of concern and curiosity. "Oh my god, Lucy. How are you feeling? What happened with Henry? Is he... is he okay?"

Lucy exhaled slowly, leaning back into the bus seat. "Yeah, he's okay. Actually, he's handling it better than I thought he would. We had to see a doctor to confirm everything, and... well, we decided we're keeping the baby."

Sarah's eyes widened even more. "Wow... I mean, I kind of thought that was where this was heading, but hearing you say it... That's huge."

Lucy nodded, feeling the gravity of it all weighing her down. "Yeah, it is. And the school found out—well, they found out enough to know we've been through a lot. They asked both of us to take a couple of days off to process everything."

Sarah was quiet for a moment, her expression shifting between sympathy and disbelief. "And Henry agreed to that?"

Lucy cracked a small smile. "Yeah, believe it or not, I convinced him. He wasn't too thrilled about missing school, but... I think he needed the break, too."

Sarah gave a short laugh. "Wow, Lucy. You really got him to skip school. That might be the biggest surprise of all."

Lucy couldn't help but chuckle softly at that. "It wasn't easy, but after everything... I think he's just trying to make sure we're both okay."

There was a pause, and then Sarah leaned in a little closer, lowering her voice. "So, um... what's your plan? I mean, now that you know it's real."

Lucy's heart skipped a beat. That was the question, wasn't it? The plan. She and Henry had talked about it over the weekend, but the weight of it still felt so overwhelming.

"Well," Lucy began, "Henry's being really practical about it all, which honestly surprises me. He's already thinking about where we'll live, how we'll handle everything. We've got his book money and the restaurant, so... financially, we're not in a terrible spot. But it's still scary, you know? I don't think either of us was ready for this."

Sarah nodded, her face serious. "Yeah, I get that. It's a lot to take in. But I've gotta say, you're handling it better than I would be."

Lucy gave a half-hearted shrug. "I don't know if I'm handling it. I'm just... dealing with it, I guess. One step at a time."

Sarah's expression softened, and she reached over to gently squeeze Lucy's arm. "Well, whatever happens, you've got me, okay? You don't have to go through this alone."

Lucy smiled, genuinely touched by Sarah's words. "Thanks. That means a lot."

The bus rumbled to a stop in front of the school, and as the students began to gather their things, Lucy sat there for a moment, taking a deep breath. It felt like the weight of the world was on her shoulders, but at least she had people by her side—Henry, Sarah, and even their families.