Kevin sat on the living room couch watching TV. The rain was tapping against the window. Letting out a sigh of boredom, he clicked off the TV and walked to garage. Grabbing an ice cream bar from out of the freezer, he suddenly heard the garage door open. Sarah pulled up in his car. A smile spread across his face as she shut off the car and got out.
"Hey," he said as he opened the door for her. "How did it go today?"
"Ugh, terrible. I didn't get any of the jobs I applied for. Then I locked my umbrella in your car so I winded up getting soaked on the way back to the car. Rainy days just totally suck. I hate them."
Kevin gave her a warm smile and brushed away a wet strand of hair from her face. "Come on, you need to get out of these wet clothes."
Sarah nodded in agreement. She walked to her room and changed into some baggy shorts and a gray sweatshirt. Pulling her hair back into a loose bun, she made her way back to the kitchen where Kevin sat. "So what have you been doing all day?" Sarah asked as she took a seat across from him.
"Not a whole lot. I just woke up about an hour ago. This is my breakfast," he said gesturing to the ice cream bar.
Sarah wrinkled her nose. "You're not only a bum but a pig too. I don't know if I can live with this," she joked.
Kevin grinned and threw away his ice cream stick. "What can I say, when I'm on vacation I really live it up."
Sarah let out a snicker. "If you say so. Do you have anything planned for today other than lying around the house?"
"Nope, not a thing."
"Boy you're such a constructive person. I don't know how you do it."
"Oh ha ha. Very funny. What do you want to do smart ass?"
Sarah thought for a moment. "How about we play a board game. It's the perfect thing to do on a rainy day. Do you have any?"
"The only game I have is Scrabble. Is that okay?"
"That's perfect."
"Okay let me go grab it out of my closet." Kevin got up, grabbed the game, then set it up. "All right let's get started," he said sweetly.
The two of them played for over two hours. After the third round, Sarah looked up at Kevin and smirked.
"That's a double point word. I'm ahead of you."
"Remind me again why I agreed to play this with you?"
"Because it's raining and there's nothing else to do. Besides it's fun."
Kevin scoffed. "For you maybe. You're the one winning."
"Oh you big baby. It's your turn."
Kevin started at his slate of letters. Sorely he picked up a P and an A then placed them next to a vacant T on the board.
Sarah busted up laughing. "Pat? That the best you can do?"
"Hey all I Have are P's, Q's, and Z's. Of course I can't do any better."
Sarah controlled her laughter. "Okay okay I'll be nice. I'm gonna go to the bathroom. I'll be right back. Don't you dare think about cheating."
"I won't," Kevin said innocently.
Sarah gave him a playful grin and walked to the bathroom. Kevin quickly began to rearrange the letters on the board. He fixed them up the way he wanted them then patiently waited for Sarah to come out of the bathroom. When she finally came out she noticed the change on the board. There on the middle of the board were the words: WILL YOU GO OUT WITH ME.
Kevin stared up at Sarah. Her face went blank as she stared at the board. Scared to move, he continued to watch her. Her brown eyes narrowed down at Kevin then back at the board.
"I. . .I," she stuttered, with a quivering lip.
"Sarah?" Kevin said as he stood up and walked toward her.
"No! Please. . .don't," she sobbed as she pushed Kevin away and ran to her room, slamming the door behind her.
Kevin ran after her and knocked gently on her door. "Sarah?" There was no answer, just the soft sound of her sobs.
Chapter 38
Nikki lazily laid on her couch flipping through a magazine when the doorbell rang. She got up to answer it and there stood Howie with a bouquet of assorted summer flowers. Nikki smiled and kissed him on the cheek.
"What are you doing here?"
Howie smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. "We're going on a picnic."
"We are?"
"Mmm hmm. Come on let's go."
Nikki took his hand and got in his car. The two of them drove to a nearby park. Howie parked the car and got out a picnic basket and a blanket. They set up in the middle of the park and sat down. In the picnic basket were ham and cheese sandwiches, apples, oatmeal cookies, potato chips, and a small bottle of grape juice."
"You picked all my favorite foods. That's so sweet."
Howie grinned. "I try. Does it taste okay?"
Nikki kissed him on the lips. "Perfect."
"Good, I was hoping I didn't screw anything up."
"You didn't. Everything's great. I just remembered something. I thought you had rehearsal today."
"We were supposed to, but Nick hurt his leg a couple of days ago. So we canceled."
"Nick hurt his leg? What did he do now?"
Howie shook his head. "I don't know. He's always doing something. I just found out this morning."
"But he'll be okay for the tour right?"
"As far as I know yeah."
"That's good," Nikki commented, then took a sip of her drink.
"Speaking of tour, are you still coming with us?"
"Of course. You know how much I love touring with you guys."
"Good," Howie said as he placed his hand over hers. "It wouldn't be the same without you."
Nikki smiled and squeezed his hand. "Do you wanna go swing?"
"Sure," Howie answered then followed Nikki to the swings. He sat in the swing next to hers. He smiled as he watched her gracefully swing back and forth. Nikki stopped and looked at Howie. He continued to smile at her.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing I was just thinking of something."
"About?" Nikki asked, searching his face.
"Remember when we were little how we used to pretend we were boyfriend and girlfriend for fun?"
"Uh huh," Nikki answered, smiling at the memory.
"Do you also remember how we promised it would be for real when the time was right?"
"Yes, I do."
"Do you think the time is right yet?"
Nikki stared into Howie's deep brown eyes and smiled. "Yes. . .I do."
Howie smiled back and kissed her. "Me too."
Chapter 39
Amanda walked out of her building from her English class with Nikki at her side. The two of them headed to the cafeteria and met up with Rachel and Kristin.
"Hey guys!" Kristin said with a smile. "How was your weekend?"
"Mine was great!" Nikki said with a grin.
Amanda smiled. "That's only because Howie asked you out."
Rachel grinned. "Howie asked you out?" Nikki nodded with excitement. "That's great! I knew you two would hook up soon. I'm happy for you."
"Thanks," Nikki replied. "So how was your weekend Kris? I heard Nick hurt himself."
Kristin rolled her eyes and grinned. "Yeah, and he's being a big baby about it too. He whines constantly. That boy can't handle pain very well," she said with a laugh.
"Most guys can't," Rachel said.
"Yeah and most of them try to act all macho about it, but you can tell their screaming on the inside," Nikki stated.
The girls chatted for a bit longer, as Amanda sat there quietly listening. Nikki was the first to notice that she had not said a word within the past ten minutes. She looked over at her in concern.
"Amanda you okay? You're being really quiet today."
"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired," she lied.
"Are you sure? You're looking a little pale," Kristin added.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was a little sick over the weekend. I guess I'm still getting over it. But really I'm fine."
Kristin wrinkled her brow then looked at her watch. "Well, girls I need to head on to my next class. I'll talk to you all later."
"I need to get going too," Rachel said. "Bye Nikki. Feel better Amanda."
The girls waved good-bye, leaving Nikki and Amanda alone at the table. Amanda sighed and cupped her hands over her cheeks, then closed her eyes.
"I can tell when you're lying you know," Nikki said.
Amanda opened her eyes and looked over at Nikki. "What?"
"You said you were fine, but I can tell you feel like shit. Why don't you just go home and get some rest?"
Amanda groaned and rubbed her temples. "I can't. I've got to make it through the next class. You know how that class is. Missing a day is like missing a week. I can't afford to miss all those notes."
"Amanda we're in the same class. I can give you my notes and fill you in on all the homework. You'll feel better if you get some rest."
Amanda shook her head. "I'm fine. Really, I am. Come on let's get to class before we're late," she said as she stood up and grabbed her backpack. As soon as she stood up she began to feel dizzy. "Whoa," she said then sat back down.
"What's wrong?" Nikki asked, concerned.
"Nothing, I just got up too fast that's all."
"Are you- -"
"Nikki, I'm fine. You have nothing to worry about. Come on we have five minutes to get to class."
Through out the whole class Amanda was fighting back her nausea. Determined to make it through the whole class, she forced herself to focus. When class was over, she and Nikki walked out to their cars.
"So do you want to go shopping with me this afternoon? I need some new shoes."
Amanda shook her head. "I'm not really in the mood," she said softly.
"You all right? You don't look so good."
"To be honest I feel like complete shit. I'm trying everything in my power to not throw up. I think I'm gonna go home and lie down for a little while."
"Sounds like a good idea. We'll go shopping some other time. Go get some rest. I'll call you later."
"Okay," Amanda said as she got in her car.
"Bye!" Nikki waved.
Amanda smiled and drove off to her apartment. When she opened the door, she found AJ sitting on the couch watching TV. "Hey," she said as she put her backpack down.
"Hey," he said as he shut off the TV. Feeling any better?" he asked.
Amanda shook her head and sat down next to him "I feel terrible."
AJ nodded in sympathy. "I told you, you should have stayed home today."
Amanda sighed and laid her head on his shoulder. "I know, but I really hate missing class. You know that."
"I know, but when you're sick, you're sick. Maybe you should go to the doctor. It might be some type of flu."
"No, I don't want to go to the doctor. I hate doctors."
"Well, do you promise to stay in bed and rest if I don't take you to the doctor?" Amanda nodded. "Okay, then I won't take you to the doctor. Well, I'm going to get some stuff at the store. Do you want me to get you anything? Some soup or something?"
"Get me some Sprite. That might help my stomach."
"Okay, I'll be back in a little bit. You stay here and rest."
"Okay," Amanda said then laid down on the couch. AJ had left the apartment and Amanda couldn't get herself to fall asleep. Feeling restless she went to her room, gathered up her pillow and a blanket, then went back into the living room. She laid down on the couch, and watched some TV. She was in the middle of watching a movie on HBO when she felt her stomach growl. After much thought she got up and fixed herself a few pieces of toast, then grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. She made her way back to the couch and continued watching her movie and ate her toast. After a couple of hours, AJ finally came back, with both arms full of groceries. Amanda smiled from her position on the couch. "Hey."
AJ put the groceries away and walked over to her with a teddy bear. "This is for you."
"Thank you."
"I figured it would make you feel better."
"It does thanks," she said with a smile.
"You're welcome," he said then kissed on the cheek. He could feel the heat from off her face. He placed his hand on her forehead. "Amanda you've got a fever. Are you sure you don't want me to take you to the doctor?"
"AJ I told you I'm fine. I just need to sleep it off."
"Are you sure?" AJ asked in concern.
"Positive. Now did you bring me anything for dinner? I'm hungry."
"I got you some chicken broth. I figured you'd want something light on your stomach. Do you want it now or later?"
"Now, I'm starving."
"Okay, you stay put I'll fix it up for you." Amanda waited, and soon AJ came back with a bowl of chicken broth. "Here you go," he said, then sat down next to her.
"Finally, some food!" Amanda said as she picked up her spoon and began to eat it. She ate half the bowl, then set her spoon back. "Okay I don't want any more," she said with a look of disgust.
AJ took the bowl, set in the kitchen, then came back. "You need anything else?"
Amanda shook her head. "I think I'm gonna go back to bed. I'm not feeling too hot," she said as she picked up her pillow and blanket.
"Are you going into your room?"
Amanda nodded. "My room's more quiet."
"Okay, sleep well baby."
Amanda weakly smiled then headed back to her room. Feeling the nausea build up inside of her, she slowly crawled into bed and laid down on her stomach. After a few hours, she opened her eyes to the sound of her bedroom door creaking. A small ray of light spidered across her room. Amanda looked over at the door to find AJ standing there. "AJ what are you doing?"
He shut the door and walked over to her bed. "You've been asleep for over four hours. I thought I'd come in and check on you."
"Oh," Amanda said softly and laid her head back on her pillow. She felt AJ get off the bed and walk back toward the door. "AJ?"
"Yes?" he answered, turning back around.
"Could you stay? Hold me for a while?"
"Sure," he said as he walked back to her bed.
Amanda scooted closer to him and settled herself in his arms. AJ kissed her on the top of her head, then gently rubbed his hands up and down her arms. Amanda slowly fell back to sleep, along with AJ. She woke up later that night in a cold sweat. She kicked off the blankets and tried to cool herself down. Amanda looked over at AJ who was sound asleep. Gradually she sat herself up and looked around. Everything looked blurred in her view. Her head pounded as she tried to make out images around the room. Amanda winced as she felt her stomach churn. She let out a small whimper as nausea began to rise. Knowing what was coming, she clamped her hand over her mouth and dashed to the bathroom. Almost not making it, she began to vomit into the toilet. Once she finished, the bathroom light was flicked on. AJ's blurry figure stood at the door.
"Are you okay baby?"
"Yeah. . .I'm okay," she said as she stood up. Her stomach churned once more. "Oooh! No, I'm not," she said then hovered over the toilet. She felt AJ's hand rubbing her back as she released the rest of her dinner. When she finished, AJ flushed the toilet and put the top down.
"Sit down," he said. Amanda did as she was told, while AJ looked through her drawers. He found a digital thermometer and placed the ear piece in her ear. At the tone of the beep he read her temperature. "Oh geez baby you've got a high fever," he said as he placed her hand on her forehead.
"AJ. . ."Amanda gasped. "I- -I- -I don't feel so good," she choked out.
AJ picked her up and sat her up in a chair. Her clothes were soaked with sweat. "Stay right here, you need to get out of these clothes." AJ went through her dresser and grabbed a pair of jogging pants and a T-shirt. He helped her out of her clothes and into the new ones. Amanda shivered as she put on her clothes. "Are you cold?" he asked. Amanda nodded. AJ grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her. "Do you think you can walk?" he asked her gently.
"I. . .I don't know," she said with tears in her eyes. AJ picked her up and carried her to the front door. "Where are we going?"
"The hospital. You need to get to a doctor," AJ said as he opened the door.
"No, I don't wanna go!" Amanda sobbed.
AJ carried her to his car and sat her in the passenger seat. "You're going whether you like it or not. Sit tight we'll be there in a few minutes."
"AJ. . .I don't. . .wanna. . ." Amanda's voice faded, then everything went black.
"Amanda!" AJ shouted. "Damn it!" he shrieked and stepped on the gas pedal, hurrying to the hospital.
Chapter 40
AJ paced back and forth through the waiting room, hoping someone would have some news soon. With a long sigh he plopped himself into a chair and put his head in his hands. He jumped when he felt his pager go off. Looking at the screen her saw Nikki's number was on it. AJ got up and went to a pay phone to call her. His hands were shaking as he dialed the number.
"Hello?" Nikki said when she answered.
"Nikki?" AJ asked.
"Hey Bone! What's up?"
"You paged me a few minutes ago. Did you need something?"
"Yeah I just called over at Amanda's and no one answered so I paged you. Is she around?"
AJ fought back tears. "Yeah, she's around but not with me."
"What are you talking about? AJ you sound upset is something wrong?"
"Nikki I'm at the hospital. Amanda got really sick tonight."
"Oh my gosh! Is she okay?"
"I don't know. I'm still waiting for someone to tell me something. I've been here for two hours."
"Which hospital are you at?"
"St. Marie's," AJ said softly.
"Okay I'll be right over," Nikki said quickly and hung up.
AJ hung his head down and hung up the phone. Not sure what else to do, he went back to the waiting room and sat down. A few minutes later Nikki and Howie came racing into the waiting room. AJ stood up and hugged Nikki.
"Have you heard anything?" Nikki asked softly.
AJ shook his head. "No, I'm starting to get worried."
Howie put his hand on AJ's shoulder. "Don't worry AJ, I'm sure she's fine."
"I hope so. Man I should have never let her go to school this morning. It probably made her worse."
"AJ you know Amanda as well as I do. You couldn't have stopped her if you had tied her to the bed. She's an extremely stubborn girl. Besides Howie's right, she's probably fine. There's not point in worrying until we find out anything."
"You're right. We'll just have to wait."
Just then, a doctor came into the waiting room. "Excuse me are you the gentleman who brought in Amanda Banks?"
"Yeah, that's me. Is she all right?"
"Well, I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?"
AJ sighed apprehensively. "The bad news."
"The bad news is that Amanda has a bad case of the flu."
"And the good news?"
"The good news, the baby is fine."
AJ's mouth dropped. "B--b--baby?"
The doctor smiled. "Yes, Amanda's two months pregnant. Which would explain the vomiting. It's common for women to have morning sickness this early in pregnancy."
AJ stood there in shock. "She's pregnant? But. . .how?"
"Surely you know the process of the birds and the bees," Howie joked.
"I know how it works smart ass. I just don't understand how this is possible when we always used a condom."
"Well, condoms aren't 100 percent reliable. It's possible for her to be pregnant," the doctor explained.
"But isn't that rare?"
"It happens more often than you think. Would you like to see her?"
AJ nodded. "Yes, please."
"Okay let me see what room she's in. I'll be right back."
AJ gave Howie and Nikki a blank stare. "I can't believe it. I'm gonna be a daddy."
Nikki reached out and gave AJ's hand a squeeze. "Are you happy about this?"
AJ smiled. "I couldn't be happier. I always visioned Amanda being the mother of my child. I just never thought it would happen so soon."
"Well, you two have been together for over two years now. It was bound to happen," Howie pointed out.
"I know, but I figured we'd be married, you know?"
Just then, the doctor came back. "Amanda's in room 132. You can see her now."
"Thank you," AJ said then swiftly walked to her room. Howie and Nikki followed close behind. Amanda was sound asleep in her bed.
"We'll be keeping her here for a few days to make sure she recovers okay. After that she'll be free to go on home," the doctor said.
AJ walked over to her bed and sat down in the chair next to it. He placed his hand over hers. His eyes wandered down to the IV in her arm. "What's this for?" he asked.
"We gave her an IV to keep her hydrated. She had a high fever, so the IV was necessary. It's nothing to be alarmed of. There's a call button to her right. If she needs anything press the button and a nurse will come in. I will be back in a few hours to see how she's doing," the doctor said then left the room.
AJ looked at Amanda and smiled. "She's having my baby," he said in almost a whisper. "Do you guys have any idea how happy I am? I mean I know this all happened out of the blue and it wasn't planned. But she's having a child. . .my child. It's the most incredible feeling I've ever felt," AJ said with misty eyes.
Howie smiled. "You really love her don't you?"
AJ nodded. "More than words can say. I've never loved anyone the way I love her. No one has ever been able to touch me the way that she has. I wouldn't trade anyone else for her."
Nikki grabbed Howie's hand and smiled. "Well, we'll leave you two alone. We'll come back in the morning."
"See ya," AJ said then looked back at Amanda. A small strand of hair lay on her face. AJ reached over and tucked it behind her ear. He placed his hand on her cheek and gently kissed her lips. Amanda stirred and opened her eyes.
"AJ?" she said in a hoarse whisper.
"I'm right here sweetie," she whispered to her.
"Oh my head," she groaned. "I feel like I just got ran over by a semi."
AJ let out a small chuckle. "Get some sleep baby. You need it."
Amanda shifted her eyes up to him. "I'm sorry," she said.
"For what?"
"For scaring you like that. I didn't mean to."
"It's okay baby. The important thing is you're okay now. Get some sleep," he said as he caressed her face with his hand.
"I love you," Amanda murmured.
AJ smiled. "I love you too," he replied, then watched her sleep.
