Chapter 17 Darius
Darius
Putting the cigarette to my mouth, I inhale long and hard as I people watch.
The energy around this hospital compared to Bolton General is a lot more relaxed.
Amelia’s appointment is in ten minutes for her next scan, and she still hasn’t arrived.
I know she’s left the house because Frankie let me know the second she drove away.
It’s been a month since the dinner with her father and there’s been little contact.
She doesn’t reach out to me unless it’s to tell me a time for a doctor’s appointment.
During these routine appointments she doesn’t speak to me.
I text her every morning asking how she’s feeling and each time I receive a one worded answer. Fine.
Taking one last puff on the cigarette, I flick it across the neatly trimmed stretch of lawn.
Her car pulls into the parking lot and I stand from the bench.
Shoving my hands deep in my pockets, I keep a close eye on her as she climbs out of her car and walks toward me.
She wears a pale-yellow summer dress, showcasing her small bump and her wedges make her taller than she is.
Even pregnant, she’s the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen.
The moment she sees me, her shoulders tense, and she slows her step.
“You’re cutting it close,” I say.
“We’re not late, so it doesn’t matter.”
She doesn’t stop to talk, and I walk beside her as she heads inside. She books herself in and we take a seat in the waiting area.
“What’s with the mood?” I ask quietly.
“I would kill to be able to go pee right now. Forgive me if I’m focusing on not peeing myself.”
I keep my mouth shut until another woman sits opposite us and her stomach is much more rounded than Amelia’s.
Her partner puts his arm around her protectively and places his hand on her stomach lovingly.
The woman smiles at Amelia and drops her eyes before looking at me again.
I get it. She sees the differences in us and she’s being judgemental like every other rich fuck in this city.
Under different circumstances I’d hold her hand, murmur positive shit to her and we’d share this moment together. But I keep my hands to myself, my mouth shut, and she does the same.
“Amelia Haynes.”
Thank fuck.
I walk beside Amelia and take the chair while she changes into a gown. I help her onto the bed, and I soak in the moment having her skin on mine. She takes her hand back once she’s settled and I miss her touch immediately.
I watch everything the nurse does and move the chair closer to the bed when she runs the white stick thing over Amelia’s stomach.
I try to work out what the sonographer is seeing on the screen but it’s all blurry to me. Though I hear the heartbeat just fine. That’s my kid and it sounds strong.
“Would you like to know the sex?”
I hadn’t given much thought about finding out what we’re having but Amelia doesn’t hesitate to answer, “Yes.”
Her excitement makes me smile. I’ve grown used to her guarded walls when she’s around me, I forgot how much I’ve missed her smile.
“You’re going to have a girl.”
Amelia’s chest caves as she sobs a silent cry of joy and I swallow thickly. A daughter.
She looks to me and before I know what I’m doing, I’m leaning over and hugging her. Her arms wrap around me, and her fingertips dig into my back. Kissing the top of her head, I sit back in the chair and take hold of her hand.
The sonographer prints out a bunch of pictures and clears up the gel from Amelia’s stomach.
This was something else today and it re-establishes it was never an option not to be involved.
My kid is healthy and strong, and I can finally say, she.
I help Amelia down off the bed and wait while she dresses behind the screen. Not much is said as we leave and once we’re outside, she hands over one of the scan pictures. You can clearly see the baby on the image, and I store it away in my wallet where it’ll be safe.
“I’ll let you know when the next appointment is.”
She goes to walk off and she makes it halfway across the parking lot before I catch her up.
“What now?” she huffs.
“We need to lose this tension between us. It’s not good for you or the baby, and I’d like it if we could be… friends.”
“Friends?”
“Yeah.”
“How about no, but from now on, I’ll try not to be so sharp with you.” It’s better than her animosity.
“I can live with that.”
I turn to head to my car when she asks, “Have you seen Clare lately?”
Turning around, I say, “She’s been around. She hasn’t been in contact with you?”
“Not in the last few months.”
“She’s still a pain in my ass and still loved up with Tariq.”
“Is she… still on the coke?”
“More than ever. She’s not the same girl you knew. Don’t trust her anymore.”
Sadness creeps over her and I feel it in my soul.
“Sure, I’ll see you next week.”
She climbs in her car and drives away. Fuck. I wish things were different. I’m hyper aware of the scan in my wallet, nestled in my back pocket all the way home.
No one is out front of Tariq’s house, and I head into my house and show my grandmother the scan.
“I’m having a daughter,” I tell her.
Her smile warms me through as it usually does and I’m looking forward to her meeting my kid.
“Why don’t you marry Amelia?”
Not this again. It’s all I hear when either Amelia or the baby is mentioned. It’s so clear cut to my grandmother. She can’t understand why I wouldn’t put a ring on Amelia’s finger.
“No.”
“You care for her.” There’s no question about it, it’s a statement.
“Yeah I do.”
Mom comes through the door, and I show her the scan picture. “We’re having a girl, Ma.”
For the first time since I told her Amelia was pregnant, she softens and takes the picture from me to get a closer look.
“No more boys,” she murmurs with a smile on her face.
“No more boys.”
I pluck the picture from her and store it away in my wallet.
“I’ll check in later, make sure the twins go to bed without giving you trouble.”
Kissing her cheek, I head out. Puffing on a cigarette as I stroll down to Tariq’s, the scan is tucked back into my wallet, and I sit beside Jermaine on the swing seat.
“I found out this morning I’m going to have a daughter.”
“You happy about that?”
“Yeah, I am actually.”
Inhaling one last time on my smoke, I flick it across the yard. Being a boy in Dog City, the statistics of ending up shot, dead, or in prison is ninety-five percent higher than ending up in a good job with no criminal record.
Tariq pulls up with Clare hot on his ass and I muster the energy to deal with them. Before they can slip in the house, I ask, “Hey, why haven’t you been to see Amelia lately?”
She stops and is shocked I’m talking to her. She gets over it pretty quickly and says, “All she does is talk about the baby now. Like, she literally has nothing else going on in her life.”
The need to bounce her ass off the porch intensifies and Tariq catches on quick and pushes her inside.
“Her pussy must be lined with gold for him to keep her this long,” Jermaine mutters.
“Thanks to her big mouth, I know it’s her ass that must be golden.”
“It’d be better if he kept his dick in her mouth, then we wouldn’t have to listen to her whingy ass voice.”
Laughing, I agree with him. As usual, for every shit part of my life there’s something that’ll make me smile.