It worked

"I can't believe it." Zac sighed happily. He whistled a cheery tune as he walked down the hallway to his bedroom after getting back from dropping me off at my house. Taking a detour, he stepped in Isaac's old room and leaned against the door frame, watching his brother read a text book. Sensing another presence in front of him, Ike looked up.

"Can't believe what?" he'd heard the last comment from his little brother.

"That it worked." Zac replied.

"I told you it would. I know women." A huge grin played across Ike's face as he leaned back against the headboard on his bed and slipped his hand behind his head.

"Sure.. and how many girlfriends have you had in your life?"

"Maggie's not your girlfriend yet," he indignantly reminded Zac. "And as a matter of fact, I happen to prefer quality, not quantity, when it comes to my relationships."

"So how many was that again?" Zac snorted.

"... Two." was the mumbled response.

"Two? Who else besides Sarah? Which, may I remind you, was eons ago."

".. Kelly."

"Kelly doesn't count!" Zac burst into laughter in reference to Ike's so-called 'college sweetheart' from last semester.

"Yes she does. We went out a couple of times.."

"Yeah, but she treated you more like a chauffeur than a date. You just followed her around like a sick puppy dog. Only to have her fall in love with your roommate, if my memory serves me correctly. Face it Ike, she used you."

"Well, I never got mushy over flowers before." Isaac retorted, his male ego slightly bruised. "I thought I was going to hurl after hearing you and Maggie tonight.."

"Hey," he thought for a moment before continuing, "Besides my brilliant idea, how on earth did you get a girl like her to go out with you?"

"It wasn't just your idea. Some guys have it, some don't." He blew on his fingernails and polished them on his shoulder.

"Yeah, whatever." Ike sneered at his brother's overconfidence. "If you hadn't tried to make her jealous by talking about another girl like I suggested, she wouldn't have even considered asking you out."

"That's not true," Zac said indignantly. "She just needed.. a little push, that's all."

"Well, dating you is like getting pushed all right - off a cliff." Ike laughed at his attempt at humor.

"When did you say you were going back to school?"

"Don't worry. Early Sunday morning." He smiled.

"It actually went pretty well," I admitted later.

"That's so cool," Sarah sounded more excited about date number two than I did. I could almost feel it through the phone line.

"I guess so. I find the whole thing a little weird though."

"How so?"

"I used to have a crush on Taylor. Then I got in a huge argument with him and we haven't spoken in five years. Now, I'm dating his little brother.. well, not officially 'dating' but at least casually seeing." At least I could always salvage the fact I didn't have a boyfriend. That was the only thing that could possibly be worse right now..

"You're right, it is pretty weird. And you haven't dated anyone in the last five years either.."

"Don't rub it in." I laughed. "Hey, speaking of weird, did Mark get a new job yet?"

"No.. he's still looking.." Sarah didn't want to tell me how he'd been living on the couch for the last six days, buried by corn chips and cheap liquor. She hoped that he would snap out of his rut soon.

"For your sake, not to mention the baby's, I hope it works out for the best."

"I know." Sarah patted her stomach. She'd been shocked this morning to discover she couldn't see her feet anymore, even while bending over slightly. The days until her daughter saw the first light of day seemed to be flying by.

The next morning..

"Amen." Sarah whispered. She uncrossed her fingers and lifted her head. Although not much of a church-goer, she'd felt compelled to attend the Sunday service early the next morning to open up to the only one she felt she could trust now. She prayed the baby would be healthy. She prayed she would do well on her cosmetology examinations. Most of all, she prayed Mark would stop drinking and start working again. Their fights lately seemed to be growing, not only in frequency of occurrence but also in emotional size. She wasn't sure how much more she could take, it was taking its toll on her physically as well as emotionally.

"Sarah?" she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she found herself face-to-face with Mrs. Hanson again. Although she liked the woman, for some reason Sarah found herself unwilling to trust her. Maybe because it was the heart of her oldest son that Sarah had broken four years ago. Maybe it was the way Diana looked into her eyes and saw her pain. Maybe she was over-reacting.

"Oh, hello."

"How are you?" Mrs. Hanson's eyes briefly traveled down to her mid-section.

"Good." Sarah rested her arms over her stomach, as if to hide the bulge of her daughter.

"I was just wondering if you were interested in coming over for lunch today."

"I.. I'm not sure. I wouldn't want to impose." On any other day, she would've declined immediately. However, with her limited salary, rent to pay, and Mark's recently formed wasteful spending habits, food money was short. Not to mention she was eating for two.

"It's no trouble. None at all." Diana smiled.

"Um, ok. Sure." She returned the warm smile with a weak one of her own.

"Wonderful."

Sarah found herself wishing she could be so ecstactic about the idea herself. She crossed her fingers that the only person she'd spend any time with was Mrs. Hanson, but still had an uneasy feeling in her stomach that it wouldn't work out quite that way.

"Thank you," Sarah said, accepting the cup of hot chocolate. She looked around the cozy kitchen of the 'new' Hanson house. Not that it was new to the Hansons, just Sarah.

"With the weather being like it is right now, I figured you needed it. Rather than coffee." Diana smiled and sat down at the table next to her. "So how does it feel to be pregnant? It's such a wonderful feeling."

"Yeah, I guess so. I don't care too much for the morning sickness and swelling ankles though." She grinned.

"But it's completely worth it- it's a little girl." She added, placing her left hand lightly on her stomach.

"That's wonderful. I remember being pregnant with Zoë." Diana's eyes sparkled.

"How could you do it? I mean, seven times?" The thought was unbearable to her. She did the math in her head: seven times nine months is sixty-three..

Five and a quarter years?

"You'd be surprised at how you get used to it."

"I guess.. I'm not so sure if I want to have any other kids. At least not for awhile."

"Was your pregnancy unexpected?"

"Oh, absolutely." Sarah sighed, picking up her cup again. After lifting it to her lips and taking a small sip, she added,

"My boyfriend and I are engaged now because of her. Well, we love each other too.."

Although he's making that very difficult right now.

"Is he a high school sweetheart?"

"Yup," Sarah laughed at her use of the ancient term. Well, not ancient as in century-old relics, just something her parents would say. So.. ancient.

"We've been dating for about three years."

Off and on.

"That's good you're getting married. Best time for it." Diana winked at her.

"Don't tell me about it." She rolled her eyes. "He just lost his job last week too."

The words spilled out before she could realize what she'd said. She didn't want anyone to worry about the situation with Mark, especially her ex-boyfriend's mother, so she quickly added,

"He's looking for a new one though."

"Where does he work?" The concerned look in Diana's eyes seemed to stare right into Sarah. It was making her more than a little nervous.

"In construction."

"Isaac is studying business at the university." Mrs. Hanson said proudly. Sarah was just relieved to have a change of subject.

"Yeah, you mentioned that before. That's.. great." She attempted a smile; it didn't work too well. "I hope he's successful someday."

"He will be.. Oh, listen to me go on about him. What are you doing with your life now?"

"I'm taking classes at the beauty school downtown. I have a couple weeks before my examinations. I'd like to own my own business someday. For right now, to get me through school, I work part-time at the Hair Flair place."

"Sounds like a good plan. Not much room for a new baby in there though." Mrs. Hanson noted.

"I'm sure I'll manage." Sarah replied meekly.

I hope.

"Isaac, how nice to see you again." Sarah managed to choke out at the sight of her ex-boyfriend. She began to wish Mrs. Hanson would hurry up and get back downstairs so she could leave. It was starting to feel like she'd been there a little too long, probably because of the presence of her oldest son right in front of her.

"I umm.." he stumbled, staring at her. She was the last person he'd expect to see sitting at their kitchen table.

She's not just pregnant, she's huge. He wondered if maybe she was having twins. Aside from her stomach, though, she looked extremely thin, he decided after blatantly staring at her for a few seconds.

"How are you?" Although pale, her face shined of an inner happiness that he'd known and loved.

"I'm... uhh.. ok I guess. Forgot some of my laundry though. What's new with you?" he managed to spurt out.

"Besides the obvious?" She grinned and pointed at her stomach. "I'm taking classes at the local beauty school."

"That's cool. I remember you could always make yourself look beautiful... Well, umm-not that you aren't." He stammered nervously.

"It's ok. I think I know what you mean." She gave him a familiar, warm smile, gesturing for him to take the seat next to her.

"If you don't mind me asking," he took a seat next to her, feeling a little more relaxed. "What are you doing here?"

"I came back to haunt you, Isaac Hanson. The girlfriend you broke up with is back in your life." Sarah laughed. "Actually, I ran into your mom at church this morning and she invited me over for lunch. I think she's still looking for baby stuff in the attic."

"She'll be gone awhile then," he replied. "You wouldn't believe the amount of baby junk that's up there."

"I can only imagine... So what's new with you?" Even though she'd already heard a little from his mother, she figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"Studying business.. same old, same old. Still single.." The wistful look in his eyes softened her heart. "Still looking."

"I guess you heard about this." She held up her right hand, wiggling her fourth finger.

"Yeah. I had to admit, I was surprised to hear about that."

"I know, it's pretty wild." she agreed. An uncomfortable silence followed.

"Well, I better get that laundry and head back to school.." He stood up and reached to shake her hand. "It was nice seeing you again."

"Isaac.." Sarah started.

"After all we've been through, I think maybe you owe me a little more than a handshake. Come here," she motioned for him to lean forward. After he complied, she kissed his cheek gently.

"Take care of yourself Sarah." He whispered, his eyes dark with concern.

"I'll be fine." She assured him, placing her hand softly on his cheek. If only she could do the same for herself.

"I'm only sorry I couldn't find more," Diana apologized again. Inwardly, she was pleased.

"Really.. it's ok. I don't have that much room left as it is." Sarah pointed at her car, now crammed full with boxes of baby supplies. She could only imagine how much more was still left in their attic.

Now I know why they moved into a bigger house.. where am I going to put all this?

"You're welcome here anytime." Mrs. Hanson smiled from the front porch. She was doubtful Sarah would return. Having overheard the uncomfortable conversation between her and Isaac, she couldn't have been happier. Diana knew her oldest son was visiting that afternoon for his laundry; she'd noticed it this morning before leaving for church. Running into Sarah there was more than convenient.

"Thank you.. very much." Sarah smiled and waved good-bye.

"Poor thing." Diana said to herself, returning the wave. "You deserve so much more."