The Hook-up

Chapter 80

"Lauren....stop crying...." He laughed a little watching her hold onto his hand looking down at the ring.

"I...." she paused sniffing and wiping away the tears. "I can't..." she told him.

He leaned into her smiling against her lips as she continued to say I can't. "Elle..." he said softly pulling away lifting her chin up smiling at her.

"But Bruno....I'm a mess. Don't marry me." She said starting to cry again.

"I think you're a mess because of those babies...." He said poking her stomach feeling how warm she was. He poked her just enough to make her laugh. "Now come on....let's go lay in the bed, eat some of this melty ice cream and finish watching the Knicks game."

"The ice cream!" she exclaimed reaching around his back picking it up. "Mmmmm. The Jalapeños are perfect." She said handing him a spoonful of ice cream. He made a grossed out face pushing away the ice cream.

"I have my own...." He said pulling out a sytrafoam cup.

"What is that?" she asked him glancing in the cup seeing a bright colored ice cream.

"It's a mangonada." He told her taking a bite. "Mmmm."

"A what?" she asked taking a bite of it. "There's chili powder on that."

"It's a blended fruit thing. And don't even make that face. Look at what you're eating." He said sarcastically sitting down on the bed motioning for her to sit down with him.

"On any other day I would tell you you're weird." She told him sitting down in the bed adjusting herself placing a pillow near her feet to finish watching the basketball game with them. "The Knicks are going to lose."

**

Lauren fell sleep on top of Bruno during the middle of the third quarter. He moved her body over a bit so he could get up to take a shower. He glanced over at her stretched out on the bed laughing at her. Oh god. What did I do? What did I do? He asked himself throughout his quick shower. I mean...I know this is what we should do. I know it's the right thing. It's the right thing. It's the right thing. Right? He got dressed glancing over at the mess they made out of the ice cream they had eaten. "Oh Laurrennnn..." he sang to himself picking everything up.

"Whaaatttt...." She moaned half asleep.

"Nothing, boo. Go back to sleep." He said laying down in the bed running his fingers along her back helping her fall back asleep.

"Thank you." She said half awake. "Did the Knicks lose?"

"No. They won. Jeremy Lin saved them." He told her.

"That's Linsane." She said in her sleep.

"Lauren...shut up and go to sleep." He laughed at her.

"I'm trying." She answered turning her body toward him. "You woke me up."

"I'm sorry." He said laying his head on her shoulder closing his eyes.

"Bruno?" she asked hearing him breathing lightly already asleep.

"Whatevverrr." She said rolling back over to the other side of the bed. Wait. What am I doing? She asked herself feeling the ring on her finger again. What am I doing? He's doing this because he feels guilty. Something else is going to happen. And then this is going to be a huge mistake. We don't have to be married to be a family. What if we get a divorce? What if he really gets mad at me and hits me? Or the babies? What happens if.....she continued to think throughout the night glancing at the clock every few minutes seeing the clock go from 1 am to 6am quickly. She tried to readjust herself trying to fall asleep with the thoughts flying through her head with her sister's comments from earlier in the evening having a lasting impact on her inability to fall asleep. "Ewww...." She moaned a little after 6 o'clock feeling the morning sickness coming back.

"Laurreeennn....." Bruno whined seeing her get up. "Come bacccckkk...."