Scarred ➵zauren

Chapter 12

"Go fish," Lauren chuckled as Harry mumbled an array of profanities.

"You have to be lying, what the fuck," Harry shook his head.

"I don't lie," Lauren stated matter of factly.

I chuckled at the both of them bantering as they had been most of the card game. Harry hated losing and Lauren was too good at winning. After a few games I'd decided to sit aside and watch them play as we waited for our flight to Washington D.C. from Paris. I was kind of exhausted after our nine hour flight here from Yemen and I'm sure it had to do with the same dream I'd had the night before, plaguing me again on the flight. The whole plane was sound asleep when I woke up out of breath and sweating, so I figured I must not have yelled like I did last night with Lauren.

Speaking of the gorgeous girl, thinking about meeting her son ate up my mind for the rest of the flight once I was awake. I was worried about the impression I'd make. Lauren frequently noted that he saw me as a mega super hero but would he still think that when he saw the state of me in person? When he saw the limited capabilities I had as I sat in this wheelchair practically 24/7, would he still think that I was this hot shot hero he dreamt of being? Maybe that was what was bringing these terrible dreams into my head. The fact that someone who meant something to me had a son who was already looking up to me when I felt so far from a hero. That day was what I was being honored for but in reality I felt ashamed. I felt like I'd let so many people down. The last thing I wanted was to let Ryan down, too.

"Fucking hell!" Harry tossed down his cards as Lauren laughed. "This is such bullshit!"

"Don't be a sore loser, Harry," Lauren giggled.

"I'll be what I wanna be," he groaned as he stood up. "I'm going to the bathroom, it's back on when I get back Lau."

"Make sure you give yourself a pep talk," Lauren called after Harry as he walked away, he flashed her the bird and continued walking.

Lauren laughed before looking over at me, God the gleam in her eyes when she laughed was heart stopping. The way her eyes crinkled up at the corners and her nose scrunched up was worthy of an award; she was truly a sight to see, yet there were so many people walking by her without even glancing.

"You okay?" She asked.

"Yeah," I smiled softly as I reached for her hand. "Just tired."

"We'll be on the flight soon, then you can really sleep. I can't believe you didn't get much rest on the plane. It was nice and dark."

"I was just thinking a lot," I admitted, though I wasn't going to tell her it was about Ryan. I didn't want her to feel like we shouldn't meet. Despite my nerves, I was overly excited to meet him.

"About what baby?" Lauren's eyebrows furrowed.

"I just....I'm excited for you to meet my family and I was thinking..would you be okay with me introducing you as my girlfriend? I know you wanted to have this just be between us for now cause of Paul and everything and I agree but my family has no idea about any of that and they're really private people. I can talk to them and let them know to-"

"Z, it's okay," Lauren chuckled. "If you think it's the right time to tell them, go for it. It's been almost two months and I feel a lot more comfortable now," she squeezed my hand encouragingly. "I'll just be a nervous wreck about meeting them now though."

"You have nothing to be nervous about, they're going to love you," I smiled, slightly relieved that went well.

"You think Harry has any idea?" Lauren wondered.

"He's pretty observant but I don't think he's caught on, we haven't really given any signs today."

"That's the thing, I really wanna kiss you right now," Lauren bit her lower lip bashfully.