Chapter 45
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
ASTRID
“I’m so nervous,” Diya whispered to me, her arm locked around mine as we walked into the café ten minutes before four. She dropped her arm and grabbed my hand instead, her opposite hand on her belly, almost instinctively. “Do you think she’ll judge me?”
“No, you shouldn’t worry.”
“But … it’s just …”
I faced her and placed my hands on her shoulders. “Why don’t you grab us a table? I know that you’re nervous. It’s natural because this is all so new. I’ll get you some tea. Go sit and relax a bit, so Sakura won’t know that you’re the one pregnant.”
Diya grimaced, but nodded and found a table near the window.
Once she sat, I walked to the cashier and ordered two hot teas. My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I glimpsed quickly at it, my stomach in knots. Two missed texts from Calix and one missed call from an unknown number.
I had been avoiding Calix like the plague today because I didn’t know what to say to him. He had noticed that his sister was acting weird and even texted me about it, but I couldn’t tell him this. He would actually kill his stepfather.
“Two green teas!” the barista shouted.
After scooping them up, I headed to our table and sat next to Diya.
“What do you think she’ll say?” Diya asked.
“I don’t know.”
“It’s after four,” Diya said. “You think she’s actually coming?”
It was five after four in the afternoon, and Sakura wasn’t here yet.
“She’s probably running a bit late.”
I sipped on my drink and stared out the large window, watching Mr. Avery pull up in his car, parking right near the front. He helped Sakura out of the car, and she waved him off as if she didn’t want him to come in with her.
Then Sakura hurried into the café, her hair a mess on her forehead and her belly bump definitely noticeable. From what I had gathered from the rumors, she had been pregnant since September or October, which meant that she was several months pregnant now.
“Sorry that I’m late! I had a doctor’s appointment,” she said.
“It’s okay,” I said with a small smile. “Thanks for coming.”
“Of course.” She sat down across from us. “Anytime.”
“Do you want anything? Coffee? Tea? I can get you something,” Diya said.
She shook her head. “No, no … I’m good.”
“Are you sure?” I asked. “It’s no problem.”
“If I drink anything, I’m going to have to pee again,” Sakura said.
Once Sakura settled into her seat and pulled off her coat, she placed her forearms on the table and leaned forward. “So, tell me all about it. Who is it? What happened? How far along are you? Anything you want to know?”
Diya and I glanced at each other for a few moments, and then I cleared my throat and peered at Sakura, unsure about how much Diya wanted me to say.
“It’s … a bit complicated. I don’t know if he wants me to tell anyone that he’s the father yet.”
“Oh, that’s totally fine,” she said. “I shouldn’t have asked. I know it’s a touchy subject.”
Another small silence fell upon us, and then I sat up taller because Diya really didn’t want any part in this. She just wanted to listen, which was fine because we needed to come up with some type of solution before her brother found out.
Sakura reached across the table and grabbed my hand. “I know it’s hard.”
“It is,” I whispered.
“You don’t have to tell me, but you’ve told him, yes?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “Well … not yet.”
“You should.”
“What if I don’t know how he’ll react?”
“Do you want to keep it?” Sakura said.
“I don’t know. Did you want to keep it?”
After a slight pause, Sakura smiled softly and stared out the window at Mr. Avery, who sat in his car, waiting for Sakura. From what I had been told, he had been particularly protective of her lately and shielded her from a lot of the drama throughout her pregnancy so far at Redwood.
“I did,” she said. “I didn’t think I would want to, but … I love him.”
Diya glanced down at her lap, her gaze softening and a smile crossing her face. I smiled to myself and nodded as if in agreement, though I couldn’t relate at all to this. If any of the guys got me pregnant during high school, I didn’t know what I would do.
But maybe I should keep a better eye on that with all the fucking we had been doing …
“You knew when you found out if you wanted to keep it?” Diya asked.
“Sorta,” she murmured. “But I was really scared.”
“Aren’t we all?” I said.
“How did Mr. Avery respond when he found out?”
“Overall, he was really”—another pause—“really, really happy.”
With a redness to her cheeks, Diya smiled. “That’s good.”
Sakura glanced between us, then turned toward Diya. “I’m not going to lie to you. It’s going to be really hard, especially in the beginning and once everyone at Redwood finds out. We’re almost in the middle of second semester, so it might not be too bad. You may be able to hide it.”
“Oh,” Diya said, stiffening and peering at me. “It’s Astrid …”
After moving closer, Sakura lowered her voice. “Yes, of course. Astrid’s pregnant.”
Except the look in her eyes made it obvious that she knew who really was the pregnant one out of the two of us. She wasn’t going to be named the valedictorian for nothing. Sakura was smart and could pick up on the smallest of things.
“If she needs anything throughout the pregnancy, I’m always here,” Sakura said to Diya.
Diya nodded softly, tears welling in her eyes. “Thank you.”