Chapter Thirty-Seven
Anastacia
“I need you to do me a favor,” Kelsey says quietly, darting her eyes to the kitchen.
“Okay…” I say carefully, following her gaze. Tommy is in there, so I can’t imagine why she’s so nervous.
She’s lying on the couch, having said she needed a break from the bed.
Tommy had to help her down the stairs because she was so dizzy.
For a couple days, she was too sick to come down at all.
Tommy and Grizz offered to carry her then, but she said no.
It’s nice seeing her down here now, even if she looks pale and like she lost a few pounds.
Her gaze flicks to the kitchen one more time before coming back to me.
“Tommy is going to the store shortly to pick up groceries for Thanksgiving. I need you to go with him and get me something.”
“Uh, okay… why can’t you ask him to get it?”
She sighs, then takes a few breaths, like she’s trying to stop herself from being nauseous. I prepare to get up and run for a bucket.
“I don’t want to get his hopes up.”
“Kelsey, you know I’ll do whatever you need, but I’m lost…”
She grimaces, running a hand through her greasy hair before saying, “I need a pregnancy test.”
I gasp. I can’t help it. That is the last thing I was expecting her to say. I’m not sure what I thought she would ask for, but that?
“Kelsey,” I hiss excitedly, getting up from the recliner to sit beside her.
“Shhh, please. I don’t want him knowing anything is up.”
“Okay, okay. I’m sorry,” I say. “But this is good news, right?”
Frowning, she shakes her head. “I don’t know. We always…” She swallows, taking a breath before saying, “We always get this far. But after a couple of months… I can’t see him go through that pain again.”
I take her hand. “You have my word that I won’t say anything. Whatever you need from me, just say it. I’ll do it.”
“Thank you,” she whispers.
I lean over to hug her, and when I pull back, I say, “You should really try to shower today, though.”
She whines, running a hand down her face. “God, I know. I’m so sorry. I probably smell.”
“A little like sweat… maybe a tinge of vomit.”
“Gross!”
We both laugh as Tommy walks into the room. “Grizz will be here in about twenty minutes, and I’m going to head out. Do you need to add anything to the list before I go?”
I jump to my feet, taking my opportunity. “Can I go with you?”
He frowns, his mouth opening and closing. “Uh, sure. If you want to. But I could just get you what you need?”
“No, it’s, um… female stuff.”
He laughs. “I’m not fifteen, Anastacia. I buy Kelsey tampons and pads all the time.”
“It’s other stuff, babe,” Kelsey adds.
“Other stuff?” he asks with a raised brow, seeming utterly confused. For a moment, I don’t even know what other stuff Kelsey could be talking about.
“Soap for… down there,” I add, not sure if that even makes sense.
“Oh—uh, okay. Yeah, I don’t know anything about that, so I guess that’s wise. But… would you feel more comfortable going with Grizz?”
“I’m fine to go with you,” I say happily. “Unless you’re uncomfortable?”
“No offense, but I saw you deliver a baby. Soap for your vagina isn’t going to bother me.”
He walks away, and me and Kelsey erupt in a fit of laughter. I’m vibrating with excitement.
I play with Dorothea while I wait for Grizz to get home. I have a fresh supply of milk in the fridge, so he will be able to feed her while I’m gone, if she’s hungry.
“Hey, Anastacia?” Tommy calls from down the hall.
I pop my head out the door. “Yeah?”
He holds his phone up. “Grizz says he’s going to be late tonight.”
“Oh… well, we can take Dorothea.”
He looks into the living room, where Kelsey still is. “You going to be okay alone?”
“Of course, babe.”
“Leave in five?” he says to me.
“I’ll get her ready right now.”
I hadn’t thought of how I would do this.
Kelsey offered to give me money, but I told her not to worry about it.
I have my card to use, and they’ve done so much for me.
The least I can do is buy her a ten dollar test. But Tommy knows I’m not supposed to be off on my own, so hopefully I can convince him to leave me for a few minutes.
Just long enough to purchase the test. No clue how I’m going to do that, but I guess I’ll have to figure it out.
I can’t let her down—especially not with this.
The baby babbles to herself quietly as we drive to the store.
Classical rock plays softly from the speakers.
It’s a beautiful view. Snow covers some of the trees, piles of it along the shoulder of the road—though a lot of that has gotten dirty.
My favorite are the fields full of snow. It’s white for what looks like miles.
We pull into the lot before I know it, and butterflies go crazy in my stomach.
Here goes nothing.
I hop out of the car and go to the back to pull out the car seat. Tommy meets me with a cart to put her in. Her seat locks right into the front of it, but it isn’t easy to see over since I’m not very tall.
“Should you get another?” I ask.
“Another…”
“Cart?” I question as we walk to the door. “This way I can look at what I need and you can grab what you need.”
“No, we can stay together.”
His words are firm, leaving no room for argument. But I can’t give up. I have to do this.
The automatic doors slide open when we reach them, and we step inside. Something sweet fills my nose, like freshly baked pastries.
“Wow, that smells good,” I comment.
“We can grab something from the bakery.” He points to the left, and we head that way.
This isn’t a big grocery store, but I’ve never been here before.
I can see where the back walls are from here, and all the signs hang over the aisles letting us know what is there.
I try to search for the one I need, but I think it’s on the far end—but I can’t read that far. My vision is good, but not that good.
We order a box full of goodies from the bakery, my mouth watering as I point out the different things I want. I ate not too long ago, but this all looks so good.
“I should not be eating that stuff,” Tommy comments, patting his stomach as the girl puts the last donut inside the box.
“You’re far from fat.”
Tommy is in shape. You can tell he’s spent a lot of his life doing physical activity.
“Oh, it’s not my weight I’m worried about. It’s the sugar, the carbs, the cholesterol, and who knows what else is in this stuff.”
The girl laughs as she hands us the box. “Enjoy.”
We walk away, passing premade pastries that look good but nearly as good as the fresh stuff. I don’t get out of the house enough to do this sort of thing. I like how this feels… being out, shopping, doing normal stuff.
“Can we go to the area I need first?”
“Sure.”
We walk to the opposite end of the store, until I finally find the aisle I need. It’s the very last one, lined with all sorts of non-food stuff. Body wash, shampoo, pads, acne medication, condoms, pregnancy tests…
I browse slowly, looking up and down the shelves for what I need. I spot it but I can’t grab it in front of Tommy.
Or… could I?
I could pretend this is for me. Why didn’t I think of that? Good god, sometimes my brain doesn’t work.
Though… that could go very wrong. What if he tells Grizz? I’m sure he would want to keep the secret, but I can’t be sure he would. I also can’t guarantee that he would assume it’s for me and not Kelsey.
Her sickness suddenly makes sense, and Tommy is a smart guy. He may put it all together.
Tommy does a good job of acting like he isn’t watching me, but I know he is. He was a cop for many years, I’m sure he can see out the back of his head. I offer him an awkward smile.
“Sorry,” I say.
“No need. And don’t feel embarrassed.”
“Yeah, that’s easier said than done,” I mutter.
“Should I turn around?” He chuckles.
“Well,” I say, looking at the end of the aisle where all the body wash is. “I wouldn’t be mad if you went to the end of the aisle.”
Hi sighs, but nods. “Fine. If it’ll make you feel better.”
“It really will.”
He stands there for a long moment before walking to the end of the aisle and busying himself with looking at soap. He even picks up a few things and pops them open to smell.
I already have my eyes set on the test I want, so I quickly grab that and some soap that claims it’s safe to wash your vagina with. I shove them both into the front part of the carriage, beneath Dorothea’s car seat. Now all I have to do is buy this stuff without him noticing what I have.
Tommy doesn’t seem to care one bit about what I put in the carriage.
Maybe he saw it, maybe he didn’t, but he says nothing.
I just really hope that if he did see it, he doesn’t say anything to Grizz.
All I need is for him to think I’m the one who could be pregnant.
No doubt in my mind he would be happy about it, but I don’t want to give him hope over something that isn’t.
Which is why I understand Kelsey’s need to keep this quiet from Tommy for now.
We get in line to pay, and there are two people in front of us. It’s the only register open, but I don’t mind waiting. Grizz is going to be late, and being out of the house is nice.
“Shit,” Tommy mutters, looking up from his phone and towards the aisles.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“Kels just texted that she forgot to put brown sugar on the list.”
“You can go grab it,” I say, glancing at the women who is grabbing her bags off the counter. If the lady in front of us is quick, I could pay for my things before Tommy gets back.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he says with a shake of his head. “I’ll let her know I’ll get it another day.”
I put my hand on his arm. “Tommy, I’ll be fine. I’m in line. There are people here. Nothing is going to happen.”
“I’ve seen shoot outs in more populated areas.”
“This whole town isn’t a populated area,” I comment with a small laugh, trying not to be annoyed.
Typically, their protectiveness doesn’t bother me, but right now? When I’m trying to be sneaky and get away with something? It’s annoying as hell!