Beating For Two

Chapter 8

I didn't take Harry up on the offer to text him if I needed to talk, even though I really did need someone to talk to. The reason why I didn't just pick up my phone and messaged him was because after a lot of thinking, I'd come to the conclusion that he'd only offered because he felt sorry for me or because he wanted to be polite. It was like when you were a kid and you got an invitation for a birthday party, but you knew that the only reason you got one was because everyone in your class had been invited and your mother wouldn't let you invite everyone but that one kid.

No one really wanted you there, it was just an invitation of politeness.

So I didn't text him and I virtually never saw him either, except for when we passed each other in the hallways and I always made sure not to make eye contact with him then, saving him the trouble of having to say hi to me or whatever else he felt obligated to do. His social status shouldn't have to suffer just because I'd decided to keep my baby.

Because of this, the next time I really talked to him was when we met at the doctor's office a little over a week after we'd had our talk in the park.

Monday, January 10th

Seventeen weeks

I arrived the office thirty minutes earlier than strictly necessary that Monday. I'd taken the day off from school and walking around at home without anything to do just made me incredibly restless, so at nine thirty, I was sitting on a rather uncomfortable chair, waiting for my name to be called out. There were two women sitting there as well, both in their late twenties it looked like, both very pregnant and both with their husbands by their sides. All four of them kept looking at me curiously, no doubt wondering what I was doing there, especially without a girl by my side. As the minutes passed by and the staring didn't stop, my patience for Harry to arrive started to wear rather thin. If this was how bad it was now, when it wasn't even possible to see that I was pregnant due to the huge sweater and coat I was wearing, how on earth were things going to be a couple of months from now?

When it was only five minutes left until my appointment, I heard the glass door that led into the waiting room from the corridor on the other side open and when I looked up, my eyes spotted a cold-looking Harry walking towards me.

“Holy fuck, it's freezing outside,” he said. His curls were covered by a knitted beanie that had a tassel on top and a huge, dark blue scarf was wrapped around his neck. I had to admit that he looked rather adorable.

“It's January, it's supposed to be cold,” I said.

“Yeah, yeah,” he said dismissively as he removed the hat and ruffled his curls a little. He sat down on the chair next to mine and then threw me a glance. “So you never felt the need to talk then?”

“What?”

“I told you to text me if you wanted to talk, but I never heard anything.”

“Oh, that. No, I figured you were busy with Lauren or football or parties or something,” I said uneasily.

“My everyday life isn't that busy, so don't worry about that if you ever do want to talk,” he said.

“This whole thing is mine to deal with, you shouldn't have to suffer for it,” I said.

He cocked his eyebrows. “Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I'm fifty percent responsible.”

I shrugged. “Yeah, well, if it hadn't been for me being a complete sap, I would have just had an abortion and you wouldn't have to have anything to take fifty percent responsibility for.”

He smiled before he leaned forward a little and placed a hand on my knee. “I didn't want you to have an abortion either, remember?” he said, “And it's not that much responsibility considering you're gonna give it up for adoption, you know. So if you ever need someone to talk to, or need anything really, please don't hesitate to text or call, okay? I want you to.”