It didn't take long for Jeannine to find out the reason for her sickness. She was pregnant. Since the only person she'd had sex with was Calvin, it had to be his baby.
A practical person, Jeannine knew that she didn't know much about babies. Or anything, really. So she went over to the public library. She was sure that somewhere among the books on horseback riding and murder mysteries, there had to be something about children and pregnancies.
As she was walking in, Jeannine noticed a woman holding a toddler. She'd never seen this woman before, so she wasn't sure if the face she was making was just her normal face, or if it was due to the baby in her arms. Either way, it was a good thing that the little boy was so young. Jeannine vowed that she would not make her baby feel like it was a hardship on her. She would love this child. In fact, she already did.
Jeannine found what she was looking for rather quickly. It was actually a pretty good read. Full of information, but not too science-y. Jeannine might be a genius, but she hadn't paid much attention in biology class, so if the book had been more like a textbook, it wouldn't have made much sense to her.
Just as she was finishing the book, Calvin's little sister, Chantrelle, walked in. Jeannine thought it might be rude not to go and talk to the child, so she made her way over.
"Okay," Chantrelle agreed. "But, can I feel it?"
Jeannine wasn't sure exactly how much Chantrelle would be able to feel this early in the pregnancy, but she let the girl try anyways. It lit up her face, and Jeannine couldn't help but smile back.
Back at home, a crib arrived for the baby. Jeannine didn't have room anywhere for it, so it just went in the corner next to the door. It was cute and blue, and Jeannine wished for a baby boy to lay his head on the robin's egg fabric and sleep the sleep of babies.
Of course, just because there was a baby coming didn't mean that Jeannine could just forget about her job. She might be on forced maternity leave, but she could still practice her guitar. She wished that her baby boy would enjoy music just as much as she did.
Maybe it was the excitement, maybe it was the nervous feeling that the idea of telling Calvin gave her, but whatever it was, it took a while for Jeannine to make it over to the Riffin residence. Before the pregnancy, she'd been over there every day, but since she found out, she hadn't seen her boyfriend once.
He obviously knew what she had to say as soon as he saw her, but he still invited her in and let her explain.
"Look," Jeannine said as soon as the door closed behind her, "I know you have a lot on your plate. And I know that's not going to change any time soon. I don't need a husband, and the baby doesn't need a father there all the time. But I would like to keep 'us'. Whatever 'us' is, and however 'us' changes, I want to keep it."
Calvin nodded. He reached out a tentative hand and Jeannine pushed her stomach out a bit more so he could feel it better.
"I don't know if I can be a father, actually, I don't know that I want to be," he said. She wanted to believe him, but the way his face lit up just told her that this, this little fist punching his hand, was all he wanted in life. As many times over as possible. But she also knew that he felt a duty to his little siblings. They were so much younger than he was, and he almost thought of them as his children.
"But I can be here for you," Calvin continued, "I can be your boyfriend however much and however often you want me to be."
"That's all I needed to hear," Jeannine said as she pressed her lips against his. It wasn't a heavy kiss like the ones they'd shared before making her stomach grow. It was sweet and innocent and encapsulated everything she loved about him.
A blood-curling scream destroyed the moment. It almost took Jeannine a second to realize that that noise, that horrible noise had come from her. She clutched her belly. She didn't know what was happening. Oh, God, the pain hit her like a train. She screamed again.
Calvin was even more useless, just jumping around, freaking out.
Somehow, that scared expression was what made Jeannine calm. She stood up, walked out of the house and hailed a cab. She was having a baby, but she wasn't having it in a living room.
The cab driver looked at her, "Where you headed, miss?"
"The hospital," she gasped out, "and make it quick."
"Anyone else coming?"
"No," Jeannine said. If Calvin had been that freaked out just by her first contractions, he would likely still be screaming. In any case, she couldn't wait. She really couldn't wait.
Up front, the driver mentioned something about no-good boys who can't even be there for their own kids being born. Jeannine ignored it. Calvin was a good man, he was just also a bit of a coward.
Jeannine walked herself into the hospital, glad she'd made it on time. She wasn't sure if Calvin was coming - he certainly wouldn't be in the room with her - but she hoped that when she walked out with her baby boy, his father would be waiting for them.
Hey! Thanks for reading!
Just a little thing - I am aware that the crib fabric switches between one picture and the next. That's because my game crashed just after I put in the crib and took the picture. So when I put in the next crib, I didn't bother to make it the same and just bought a different one.
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