"Zac, it's Taylor�call me please," I said into the phone later that day. I'd called his cell phone about a million times and he refuses to talk to me. He's not at home�either that or he told Mom to say he wasn't at home�and I can't get a hold of him anywhere. I cannot believe this. I don't know what to do! I am absolutely clueless on what to do.
"He'll come around," Kris reassured me. "You should probably just give him some time to calm down. He's upset and he won't talk to you now anyway."
"I'm just so afraid he's never going to talk to me again."
"Come on, Taylor," she said, giving me a smile, "He's your brother. Yeah it may be a while before he talks to you but this isn't it. You two are too close for something like this to come in between you." I sighed. "This never would have happened if you didn't sleep with your brother's girlfriend, you know."
"That doesn't help!"
"I'm sorry," she said, shaking her head. "I'm sorry. That was out of line." She stood up. "We need to get your mind off this. Why don't you introduce me to Leo?"
"All right," I said. Maybe talking to Leo would get my mind off of this, at least after I told him what happened. "I'll call him." I called Leo and he was there in twenty minutes. He came in through the front door. "Leo!" The sight of my best friend brought a small smile to my face.
"Taylor! I haven't seen you for three days, man! Where've you been?" Leo asked, laughing a bit. "Okay, what happened?" He knew immediately that something was wrong.
"We'll get to that in a bit," I said. "First, I'd like you to meet someone. Kris." Kris got up and walked over to us. "Leo, this is my girlfriend Kris. Kris, this is my best friend Leo."
"Nice to meet you, sweetheart," Leo said. "Taylor doesn't shut up about you."
"Really?" she asked, looking at me. I looked away. "He doesn't shut up about you either. Its always 'Leo did this' and 'Me and Leo the other day' and 'One time Leo accidentally ate this snake�' " Leo laughed.
"Yeah, that wasn't a good time," he said. "It wasn't poisonous, though, so it was all good."
"I would think so�" she said, laughing at the obscurity.
"So tell me what happened," Leo said, taking a seat on the couch. I sat down with Kris. "It's about Zac, isn't it?" I nodded.
"He found out�about me and Ginger."
"Oh my God, Taylor."
"I know, I know," I said, shaking my head. "I don't know what to do."
"Well the only thing there is to do is just wait until he comes around," Leo said. "He'll get over it. He's going to hate you for a while, but he'll get over it."
"Yeah, that's what Kris said."
"So how�"
"Wait, what is that?" I interrupted. We all grew quiet and I heard a soft but distant melody from another room. "It sounds like�like the Harry Potter theme?"
"Oh shit my phone," Kris said. She ran into the bedroom. I shrugged.
"Whatever�"
"Anyway," Leo said. "How did he find out?"
"It was this morning," I said. "I was talking to Kris and the subject of Ginger came up and I decided to tell her about it. Well, while I was telling her about it, Zac came in and he heard everything."
"Oh man," Leo said.
"And the worst part is the other day he came over here and he said that he thought Ginger was cheating on him. I tried to give him advice but now if he'll look back on it all I was trying to do was make him forget about it."
"Whoa, whoa, what are you doing in Tulsa?" Kris asked, walking out of the bedroom. I looked back at her and she had a panicked expression on her face. "Oh my God�hold on." She put her hand over the speaker. "Ginger's in town and Zac just broke up with her."
"What?" I asked.
"She went over there to surprise him and he just broke up with her. He said he never wanted to see her again."
"Where is she now?" I asked.
"I don't know; she's driving around. I don't know where's she's going. I can barely understand her. She's hysterical. Do you think she could come over here?"
"I don't think so," I said, shaking my head. "If Zac found her here that would be terrible." I looked back at Leo. "Leo?"
"What?" he asked. "Do you want her to go to my place?"
"Would that be all right?" I asked.
"I guess it's better than driving around. Here, give me the phone, I'll give her directions to my place." Kris handed over the phone. I grabbed my keys and the three of us left to go to Leo's place. "Oh man, you're really far out there," Leo said. He made a face. The three of us got into his car and I drove it back to his place as he continued to give directions to Ginger. After we got there Ginger was nearly there and when she showed up she looked like a mess.
"Honey, come here," Kris said, holding out her arms. Ginger fell into them and began to cry. She looked absolutely terrible. She must have loved him more than she ever let me know. "It's okay�it's okay. We've just got to move on from this."
"No, you don't understand," Ginger said, letting go of Kris. "You don't understand! I'm pregnant."
"You're what?" Kris asked.
"You're what?" I asked.
"She's what?" Leo asked. We all looked at him. "I'll be in the other room." He left quickly.
"That's why I came out here, to tell him. But when I got there he started yelling at me and then he said he never wanted to see me again!" she said, breaking down again. "I don't know what I'm going to do!" She looked at me. "It's all your fault! If it hadn't been for you, none of this would have happened!"
"Listen Ginger," I started. Kris shook her head.
"Maybe you should just wait out there with Leo," Kris suggested. I nodded and left the room. I found Leo in his living room with the TV on. I sat down next to him. Oh my God this was crazy. I ran my hands through my hair and let out a heavy sigh.
"This is whacked," Leo said. I nodded. "So she's pregnant, eh?"
"I guess so�"
"Is it Zac's or is it yours?" he asked. I didn't even think about that. If she just found out she was pregnant it had to have been, what, a month or so ago? I was still sleeping with her at that time. It could be mine. Oh my God this kid could be mine.
"�I don't know."
"Well you better find out," Leo said.
"Yeah, I think so," I said. "Thanks for letting Ginger come over here. I'm sure she'd thank you herself, but�you know�she's kind of hysterical."
"You know, it was either here or your place and frankly I don't think Zac really would have liked that all that much." I shook my head.
"No, he wouldn't."
"So, that's Kris, eh?" I nodded. "She's one beautiful looking girl."
"Yeah, she is," I said.
"Tell me again how she ended up with you?"
"Shut up!"
"Ooh�getting defensive! You are in love with her."
"I am not!"
"Well have you slept with her yet?"
"That's none of your business!" Leo laughed.
"You are so in love with her."
"So what if I am?" I asked. Leo stopped. "What?"
"I was just messing around," Leo said. "I didn't actually think you were in love with her." I shrugged. I didn't actually believe I was in love with her either, not until now. "Taylor, you hardly even know her!"
"That doesn't matter!" I heard the door opened across the room and Kris came out. She walked over to us. "How is she?" I asked.
"Well, she stopped crying but she's still really upset."
"I'm going to talk to her," I said, standing up.
"I don't think�"
"I just need to ask her something." Kris allowed me to go and I saw her sit by Leo on the couch and strike up a conversation with him as I walked into the room Ginger was in. She was sitting on the windowsill looking out. "Hey," I said. She looked over.
"Hi."
"Do you�do you mind if I ask you something?" I said, walking over and sitting down on the bed, near her.
"Go ahead."
"Is this baby�"
"It's Zac's," she said. I let out a deep breath. "Don't worry, I made sure about that. It happened when he came to see me, not when I came to see him."
"Okay." She looked back out the window. "Do you know what you're going to do yet?" She shook her head. "That's okay. You have time to think about it. Kris and I are going to be there." She looked back over at me.
"You?"
"Come on, Ginger, I'm dating Kris now. I'm going to be around. I might end up being your friend." She raised an eyebrow. "Now that would be weird, wouldn't it?"
"Maybe just a little bit." She wiped at her eyes and stood up. "Well, I better find myself a hotel room." I would normally have asked her to stay with me, but I didn't want to risk Zac possibly seeing her there. I was in it deep enough with him now; if he saw her at my place he really would never talk to me again.
"Yeah�" I got up and followed her out of the room.
Kris and I got back to my apartment after the sun set. I was exhausted. Today has been the worst day of my life. "You look so tired," Kris said as I plopped down in a chair at the kitchen table. "I'll make you something to eat."
"I'm not hungry," I said.
"Taylor, you haven't eaten all day," she said. "I'm making you something."
"You already sound like a wife," I muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing." She shook her head and opened my pantry. After sorting through what I had, she turned to me.
"What the hell kind of food is this?" she asked.
"What are you talking about?"
"Nevermind," she said. "You have white food." I looked at her, confused. "White people food. I'm sorry but I'm Cuban. Where I come from, I wouldn't even know what to do with half of this stuff."
"Usually if you read the directions on the back�"
"Shut up, you." I got up and walked over to her. She turned back to the pantry and I slid my arms around her waist.
"I'm really not hungry, babe," I told her. "You know, with all that's happened today, food is the last thing on my mind." She turned around and looked up at me.
"So what is on your mind?"
"You." I kissed her. After a moment she let go.
"You know," she said, "you look exhausted. Maybe you should just crash."
"I'm not tired anymore," I told her. She started walking backwards.
"No, I think you should." I opened my mouth to protest but she raised an eyebrow, giving me a sly look and I got it.
"Ohhhh�are you sure?"
"I've been sure. You're the one who's been hesitating." She kissed me again. "Come on." She turned around and walked into my bedroom, still holding onto my hand. At my bed I kissed her again as I pushed her down onto it. We started to get undressed and I'd gotten both her shirt and her pants off when I hesitated again. "Taylor?" she asked. "What's wrong?" I sighed.
"How can I put this without sounding like a whore?" I asked, more to myself than to her. "I've had sex with a lot of girls."
"Oh, wow, that doesn't make you sound like a whore at all!"
"Let me finish," I said, a smile crossing my face. "I've had sex with a lot of girls but it was just sex. It didn't mean anything to me. This means something to me. I don't want it to be like all those other times because you're so different. I�I'm in love with you, Kris, and I want to show you that but I'm just really scared." She smiled.
"Oh, Taylor," she said, pausing briefly to kiss me again, "It's already going to mean something because you feel something. It's not going to be just sex."
"Really?"
"Yeah�It's not going to be just sex because you said you love me."
"In love. I said I was in love with you." She gave me a look. "But I do love you too." She smiled.
"I love you."
"Doesn't it just seem really early to say that?"
"Do you want to get laid or not?" she asked.
"Okay, okay. I'll shut up." I kissed her again.