The Wrong Way Back To You

Her hands were sweating as she listened to the ringing on the other end, waiting for him to pick up. The knot in her stomach grew and she felt like she was going to vomit. She did not want to do this. This was not on her things to do list when she woke up this morning, but she allowed herself to be convinced to do it today, without any delay. She had to tell him, he would find out soon enough and if he discovered the secret before she had the chance to tell him, she knew that he would be upset and furious. He sounded a little out of breath when he answered, and she wondered what she had interrupted. She hoped that he would not be upset with her call in the middle of the day. Their calls were made during the evening hours because of his work schedule and it was not like her to ring him mid-day. "Hey, Babe. Is everything ok? Is something wrong? Are you okay?" She could hear the panic start to rise in his voice. "Are you busy?" "What's wrong? Are you okay?" "I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. Are you okay to talk for a few?" "Uh, you kind of caught me in the middle of something. I mean, if it is an emergency I can but I really need to get this finished. Do you think that you can give me about a half an hour and I can call you back?" "Yeah, that's fine." "Are you sure? Are you okay? I mean, I can talk now if you really need to." "No, no, it's fine. Can you please just call me back as soon as you can when you have a few minutes to talk?" "Yeah. Will do. Love you." "Love you, too." Allie ended the call and flopped onto the sofa. "That didn't sound like you told him." "He is going to call me back in about a half an hour. He was busy at the moment." "Really, Allie?" "Yes! He was busy. He is going to call me back and I will tell him then." "I do not know what you are so worried about. You should have known that this was going to happen." "I know. I should have known better." "Listen, I am here for you no matter what. You know I love you and I would do anything for you." "I know. I never doubted that for a minute. I just don't have a clue how he is going to react and handle the news. I feel like I am completely blindsiding him." "I know that I do not know him as well and as intimately as you do, but if he says that he is blindsided by this, he is a complete moron. It is just common knowledge." "I thought that you liked Jake." "I do like him. I do not have any issues with him. Well, one issue but, that is neither here nor there anymore. You made your decision and, as your best friend, I respect that." "Sure, you do." "I do. And no matter what, I will always be here for you. "I always have your back." Steve grabbed her hand and held it, when he noticed she was starting to fidget. "I know you do. I'm nervous, but I'm not too worried, though. I mean, it is done and over with. Not like I can change it. So it is just time to accept it and move on." Allie and Steve sat on the sofa waiting for Jake to return her call. She was so lucky to have someone like Steve in her life. They first met when he was a senior in high school, and she was a freshman who was completely new to the school and district. She had just switched schools after moving in with her father, so she had no friends. Steve noticed her lost and confused on the first day and took her under his wing. They hit it off immediately. At the end of the day, when he offered to give her a ride home, he was shocked to learn that she lived directly across the street from him. It didn't matter that there was a four year difference in age. They surprisingly had a lot in common, from food to taste in music. They went to concerts together and where one was, the other was not far behind. They tried the dating thing, but decided they were better off as friends and that is what they were, best friends. Steve had wanted to give it another try with Allie, but she wasn't willing to risk ruining their friendship. Steve accepted the fact that he would rather have Allie as his best friend and in his life than not have her at all, should a romantic relationship head south. They needed each other and depended on the other one to be by their side through the events in their life. They had been with each other through their other relationships and break-ups, sometimes their partner not understanding their dynamic and becoming jealous. Neither one of them would choose their current partner over their best friend. They figured if they could not see their relationship as platonic, that was their problem, and they were not going to spend every waking moment trying to prove it as such. Allie jumped when her phone rang. She lost track of how long they had been sitting in silence, hand in hand. She took a deep breath and answered. "Hello." "Okay, all done. What did you need to talk to me about? You have me a little worried here. I tried to get done as soon as I could." "It's fine. It's not some major emergency that needed to be talked about right away. I mean, we can even wait to talk until you get home and showered and eat dinner." Steve nudged Allie and shot her a dirty look. "Tell him," he mouthed to her. "No, it's fine, babe. I can talk. I will be home in a minute anyways. What is going on?" "I really would prefer for you to be home and in the house before we get into this long conversation about things." "Allie, we talk all the time when I drive. What is going on?" "Jake, I really-" "Allie, tell me now. You are really starting to freak me out and make me worry. Are you okay? Is there something wrong?" "I'm pregnant," she blurted out. "What? What did you say?"