Red

Chapter Twelve

Veronica POV:
I freeze for a moment. She's pregnant. She must be. One test could be faulty, but three? That's too many to not have at least one be successful. This is insane. There's a living thing growing inside of my girlfriend.

I go back into the bedroom where Chandler clutches her stomach, still crying. I move over to her, cautiously sitting on the bed. What can I say to her to make her feel better? She must feel like her whole world is falling apart. I doubt I could make that any better, but I try. Saying something probably won't help, however, so I just sit down and begin to rub soothing circles on her back.

"I'm sorry," she chokes out, trying to breathe between soft cries. "I understand if you can't..." She stops, trying to find the right words. "You don't deserve this," she says finally. "I understand if you want to leave." She thinks I want to leave her. She thinks I would leave her over this.

"Oh, God, no," I say. "I'm not going anywhere. I won't let you go through this alone, okay? I promise. I'll be here."

"Why would you want to stay with me?" she asks, looking up with tears in her eyes, confused. "It's a kid. There's a fucking kid growing inside of my uterus." She seems to come to a realization then. "Jesus Christ... My mother's going to disown me. There's no way I'll be allowed to live here after this." There's more fear on her face now than there is sadness, and I take her hand, squeezing it tightly.

"If she does, you can stay with me or Mac," I tell her. "You won't have to do this on your own."

"That's a lot to commit to, Sawyer," she says, tears slowing but a look of tired sadness still on her face.

"I know," I reply, "but that's okay. You're worth it." I get into bed next to her, getting under the blankets. She sighs, and I put an arm across her midsection.

"How the hell did I find someone like you?" she asks, taking my hand.

"I'm below-average," I reply with a laugh.

She squeezes my hand. "That's not true. You're... you're special. Highly above-average."

I smile, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I love you," I say. I freeze. Did I really just say that? Damn. Neither of us have said that yet. I feel her tense up, and I move my arm away, sitting up and clearing my throat. "I, um... I'm gonna go get us slushies from 7/11. Is that okay?"

"I don't want one, but you can get one if you want," she replies, turning to face me. She sounds as uncomfortable as I feel. God, why did I say that?

"You don't want anything?" I ask.

"I'm fine," she replies.

"Okay, I'll be back soon then," I tell her. With that, I leave the room.

As I head down the stairs, I can't help but reprimand myself. Why would I say that to her? She hasn't said it to me. For all I know, she doesn't feel the same way at all. She likes me, sure. We're dating. But love? Love is different.

I keep thinking about it over and over in my head as I walk down the block. I know I shouldn't overthink it, but I can't help it.

I walk through the glass door of the 7/11. There's exactly one other person in the whole store, and of course, he's standing right next to the slushie machine. I didn't think I'd actually have to talk to people when I came here. Damn it.

I walk over, taking a cup out of the dispenser and filling it with blue shushie. The kid is staring at me, taking sips of his slushie as I get mine. I sort of recognize him from school. Where have I seen him before? Then I remember: he was the kid who stood up to Kurt and Ram in the cafeteria a month ago. He's pretty good at throwing a punch.

"Blue's the best," he says suddenly.

"What?" I ask.

"Blue," he replies. He points to the slushie in my hand.

"Oh, yeah," I say. "Blue's good."

"What's your name?" he asks.

"Veronica," I tell him.

"Oh, you're the girl who's dating Heather Chandler," he says, a smile spreading across his face. It's not a mocking smile. He just seems proud that he could identify who I was.

"And you're the kid who punched Ram Sweeney in the cafeteria," I reply. "That was really something."

He laughs. "They're assholes," he says, "and they don't know how to punch." He extends a hand. "My name's JD."

"Does that stand for anything?" I ask.

"Jason Dean, but I never go by Jason," he says.

"Noted," I reply.

We're both quiet, and I put a lid on my slushie, occasionally glancing over at him. He's still staring me. Do I say something? I hate confrontation, but I do feel slightly uncomfortable.

"You don't seem up to conversation," he says with a knowing smile. "I'll see you around, Veronica." With that, he's gone, disappearing down another aisle. I breathe a sigh of relief. He makes me somewhat uneasy. Maybe it's because he's tall and punches jocks and wears a trench coat.

I walk up to the counter and pay for my drink. I'm still nervous about what I said to Chandler. What will she say when I get back? Will she hate me? Probably not, but my mind seems to go to the worst case scenario in every situation.

I walk back down the block. I'm terrified to go back to Chandler, but she needs me, even if I did just majorly screw up. With a sigh, I go back up the driveway and into the house, walking back up the stairs towards Chandler's room. Chandler's still in bed, but she's sitting up now, her legs crossed. When I appear in the doorway, she looks up at me, and I try to read her expression.

"Hey," I say hesitantly. "Listen, I'm really sorry about... um..." My voice trails off. 

She stands from where she's sitting and walks over to me, looking as perfect as ever, if not a little disheveled from crying earlier. I'm not sure what I'm expecting, but she cups my cheek with her hand and gives me a gentle kiss. 

"You don't have to apologize," she says quietly. "I love you, too."

***

A/N: 

This chapter was way more fluff, and I introduced JD far later into this than the musical did. Hope you don't mind. Also, I know that the 'I love you's were a little quick, but I hope that was a nice touch of fluff for you guys after all of the angst I put you through. Still not sure what to do with JD yet, but we'll see. As always, don't forget to comment (should you feel so inclined) and let me know what you think, and leave a vote if you'd like! 

Thank you for reading.

-LittleMissBlitz