Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. Any and all original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: Hey, everyone! So, this is the final in a series of revamps I did on my stories. I came up with a cool idea and thought I may as well write it out. I already know where I want to go with the next chapter, so it will likely be up sooner rather than later. I will keep my fingers crossed that you like this first chapter, and I would like to thank my faithful, loyal readers for always being around. You're wonderful!
Her back simmered beneath the early afternoon sun, warming like a batch of soft-baked cookies in an oven, and while the added splash of color might be nice, she couldn't imagine any doctor in America applauding her for making health-conscious choices. The Jet Ski's low hum droned nearer, and she could almost hear Chris showboating as he sped over the surface of the lake, kicking a set of healthy waves up on either side of his watercraft as he zipped on by, all of which fizzled out nearly as soon as he passed. That Jet Ski was his baby, although not for long, if he and Jessica had their way. Stephanie's eyes snapped open at the thought, and she smirked when she found Jessica already watching her, lips pressed together and pupils dancing, like they were holding onto a giant secret.
Each of their stomachs remained pressed to their lounge chairs, but Stephanie pushed up on her palms and slid onto her bottom, stealing the tube of sunscreen straight off of Jessica's chair. A fly buzzed near Stephanie's ear and she shooed it away with her hand, tugging the cap open and squeezing some lotion into her hand. Her gaze wandered to Jessica again, and she smiled softly, as if reading Jessica's mind. Behind the sincerity of their friendship, Stephanie detected a strong sense of urgency, sometimes even felt it, as if two tiny clocks were ticking behind Jessica's eyes, counting down what little time they had left. Tick tock. Tick tock.
Friendships were often, if not always, tested by life's events. Thank goodness Stephanie had studied and finished her homework, because she was most certainly prepared for the final exam. 'There is no wrong answer', they had told her, and she believed them because they had no reason to lie, but she had prepared for it all the same. They were Chris & Jessica, Jessica & Chris — her best friends — and they wouldn't lie to her, not ever. Their words may have brought her comfort had it not been for knowing that their livelihoods, their very futures, depended upon her decision. The pressure was all-consuming, as if Stephanie had been slammed on her back and had all the wind knocked out of her, but this day was the day they had waited for.
On this day, she would give them an answer, once and for all.
Stephanie rubbed her hands together and smeared the creamy potion over her body, her skin drinking the moisure up like it were ice-cold water. Jessica peered up at her with a hitch in her forehead, between her brows. "We're about to go inside, Steph. Do you really need more sunscreen for a couple more minutes in the sun?"
"Gee, you couldn't have told me that before I started rubbing it all over myself?" she asked, rolling her eyes. Jessica cut her own eyes at Stephanie, sending her a playful warning look, and they fell into a sea of giggles. It wasn't until their laughter died down that Stephanie became aware she could no longer hear the Jet Ski slicing across the water, and when she turned back, Chris was in the process of docking it, hunched over while he worked diligently. "Here he comes."
"Yup," Jessica said, rolling from her stomach onto her back. Her maroon-painted toenails shined beneath the sun, and she flex and pointed her toes, getting her circulation moving. She yawned and swatted at the same fly Stephanie suspected had been pestering her earlier, then she checked her wristwatch, noting the time and mouthing it to herself. "The day is just getting away from us. I didn't realize it was this late."
"How late?" Stephanie wondered.
"1:27."
She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "That's not late, Jess."
"It is to me," Jessica clarified, then, as if Stephanie needed any reminding, she added, "Today's our big day. I mean, not to put any extra pressure on you, but it is."
"Yeah, thanks. Now I'm not nervous at all," Stephanie said, her words slathered in a triple dose of sarcasm. For a second, she thought that sarcasm had materialized in the form of cold water droplets as they splashed down and pelted her thigh, rolling right off her body to the grass below. Then, she realized it was simply the water from Chris's swimming trunks, as they found their new home on her leg. "You're dripping on me."
"Oh, am I? I didn't realize," he fibbed, grinning in that boyish way that made her want to just gather his cheeks between her thumbs and forefingers and pinch the hell out of them. A swat to the leg sufficed in scaring him away, but Chris dodged her hand at the last second, running to Jessica's chair and kneeling down as he pretended to hide behind her for cover.
"I don't think now is such a good time to joke, honey," Jessica said, sending a pointed glance his way. Some of her platinum blond hair slid onto her forehead, then promptly onto her cheek and she blew it away, frowning at the offending strands, as if they had purposely fallen down to annoy her. "We have to go inside with Steph and talk about...some things."
"Can't we just do it out here?" Stephanie cut in. Chris and Jessica froze like ice sculptures, except Chris was still on his knees and peeking at her from behind Jessica's shoulder, which did nothing except amuse Stephanie. She burst out laughing, but she quieted when her eyes met Jessica's and she saw a look she could only decipher as hurt. Jessica thought she wasn't taking the situation seriously. Sucking in a deep breath to steady herself, Stephanie proceeded cautiously, as if inching across a busy intersection. "I don't mean to make you think I'm not grasping how huge this is, Jess. I know how important having a baby is to you and Chris."
"I don't doubt that," she said, and now she was almost apologetic. She bit the corner of her lip and smiled at the same time. "I'm really on edge, but it's not fair for me to take that out on everybody around me." Chris took a proper seat beside Jessica, and she latched onto his hand, stroking his knuckles with her thumb. "I'm eager to find out what you decided, and no matter what, we still love you."
"Yeah, we adore you either way, and we're always going to be friends," Chris added.
Stephanie nodded, then began wringing her hands. After several seconds of being stared at while she thought over her answer, she dropped her hands into her lap and sighed. Regardless of her decision, the amount of sacrifice involved would be massive, whether from her efforts or theirs. In some ways, Stephanie felt she couldn't please anybody no matter what she chose, but she was an adult, and the decision was hers alone. Not even her parents, Shane, or Marissa knew what had been asked of her, and she liked it that way.
Rather than being lectured and encouraged to fall one way or the other in her stance, she could make an informed decision free of judgment — a decision all her own. Despite her nervous jitters, Stephanie had settled on a choice the day before last, and she was unwavering. After listening to her heart and gut alone, she followed the path that seemed right. And this felt more right than anything. The energy abuzz in Chris's and Jessica's eyes was enough to melt her heart, because they were full of hope, and she would be the deciding factor in whether or not that hope would spring eternal.
"Okay, so, I'm just going to say it out here, because I don't want you guys worried anymore. I want everything in the open so you can stop having to anticipate my answer and lie awake at night, wondering what's going to come of this." She took a lengthy, dramatic pause, at which point Chris and Jessica looked like they were fully prepared to pounce, maybe even maul her. Except they couldn't, because if she were hurt, she couldn't give them the answer they so desperately needed to hear. "I have decided that...yes. My answer is yes. I'll do it, because I love you guys, and I want this for you, so, yeah, I'll do it. Just tell me when and where to sign the papers and I'll be there."
Stephanie's body hummed with anticipation, and her eyes darted between her two friends as she bit down hard on her lip, awaiting their reactions. Chris was grinning from one ear clear across to the other, and Jessica was staring at the grass with a trembling bottom lip. Chris slipped his arm around her shoulders and that was all it took to release the well of tears that had built up behind her eyes. She sobbed her relief into both hands and Stephanie shot up from her chair, crossing the space between them and lowering beside Jessica. She and Chris wrapped their arms around Jessica and let her cry herself dry.
The three of them hugged it out for several more minutes, united as one.
The next morning, a slight dip in Stephanie's bed woke her, or perhaps a noise, but either way, she was up earlier than she would have liked to be. The Tampa sun was only just beginning to peek over the horizon, and if she lifted her head a foot or so off the pillow, she could see a palm tree swaying in the breeze, near the second story window. When she felt soft, fleshy warmth on her exposed left leg, Stephanie turned her head and was surprised to see Jessica bright-eyed and alert, sitting cross-legged on the edge of the bed. Having nearly forgotten where she had fallen asleep the night before, seeing a familiar face snapped her back into reality.
"Hey," Stephanie said, voice raw and rugged from sleep. She glanced at the bedside clock, finding it was only half past seven.
"Can we talk?" Jessica asked. She tucked some hair behind her ear and pleaded with her eyes. She was quite the persuasive woman when she so desired. "I'm sorry for waking you up so early, but I just couldn't sleep."
"It's okay. You're excited, which is perfectly understandable in this situation," she shrugged. Jessica nodded heartily at her words, and Stephanie rose to a seated position, pushing the pillow up behind her back for comfort as she settled against the headboard. With a quick run of fingers through her hair, she settled in to hear her friend out. "So what's up?"
"Well, I know Chris and I already thanked you last night, but — "
"No thanks necessary. I want you guys to be happy, and this is the key to that."
"This is a huge deal, though."
"But it'll be more than worth it."
"Are you sure of that?"
"Would you relax?" Stephanie said, blotting her temples with the palms of her hands. Jessica's line of questioning was both literally and figuratively making her break a sweat. A decision she had been completely confident in only a few hours earlier was now becoming questionable. But then she remembered the looks on their faces when she'd said yes, and all of her doubts scurried right away. She grasped Jessica's hand. "It's not a huge deal. I mean, it kind of is, but I'm not going to hold this over your heads. Just repay me by having a happy life and enjoying parenthood. That will be reward enough."
"I keep feeling like we're asking too much of you. Yesterday, I was so thrilled you said yes, but now, there's this part of me that feels guilty, almost like we're taking advantage of your kindness," Jessica said. Her bottom lip developed the same tremor from the day before and she turned away, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with her fingertips. "I'm feeling a lot of different things right now. I'm basically a mess."
"That's only normal, I would imagine."
"I know, but I want to be able to smile about this without having to feel so guilty. This is a good thing, but I'm really conflicted inside," she said, turning back to face Stephanie. Then, her shoulders drooped and she hunched forward. "And now I can add being selfish to that list. You're the one who would be going through all the hard stuff, and I haven't even asked how you feel yet. I'm being a terrible friend right now."
"No, you're not." Stephanie gave Jessica's hand another reassuring squeeze. "Jess, we're best friends. I know you care about me, and I'm not going to stop believing that just because you're a little stuck in your own head right now. This is a big thing that's happening, and being a little self-centered about it is perfectly warranted. You have to take care of yourself and Chris first so you guys can operate at 100%, and I don't blame you for only focusing on that. It's okay. Just relax, will ya?"
"Okay, sorry," Jessica apologized, displaying a smile. It was the first hint of humor Stephanie had seen from her all day, and the sight was more than welcome. In a time when their lives were shifting so greatly, smiles were an essential part of retaining their sanity. "I want to be okay, but I also want Chris to be okay, you to be okay, and the baby to be okay. I'm not even officially a parent yet and I'm already freaking out."
"Well stop it, then; everything's perfect. When is our group consultation thing?"
"Chris and I scheduled it for today with the hope you would say yes. If you had said no, we probably would have just canceled, or found another woman willing to carry for us," Jessica said, smoothing her hair down as she spoke, in that self-conscious way people often did when giving a presentation in front of a large group. Stephanie had never seen her in such an anxious state and, if anything, it was become hard to watch. "Anyway, it's today at 1:00, so we have the entire morning to relax, then we'll go there and they'll explain the entire procedure to us in detail and give a general time frame. If you have questions, and I'm sure you do, today would be the time to get them answered."
"Good. I read up about the process online, but there are still some things I want to know," Stephanie answered. Jessica nodded, tipping her head as she smiled, as if seeing Stephanie through a new set of eyes. Their friendship would be changed forever after the endeavor they had prepared to conquer, but it would only morph in the best ways possible. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous at all, but this is the right thing to do. I can feel in my heart that it's right, so I'll go for it, and as long as I have the support of you and Chris, that's all that really matters to me."
"You're the best," Jessica said, finally releasing Stephanie's hand. She climbed off the bed and went to the door, tugging it open. "Hey, want coffee? I can put a fresh pot on now."
"Yep, I'll be there in a few."
"Got it," Jessica said, closing the door behind her.
Stephanie ran the tip of her tongue over her teeth, knowing she needed to head into the bathroom to brush and floss them, but a flash of paper caught her eye. She turned toward the small desk near the bed and reached for the forgotten pamphlet she had tossed there the night before. Jessica had given it to her shortly after they had returned indoors from the lake. The pages were filled with useful information related to the steps they would take over the course of the following nine months, and as she skimmed the pages, Stephanie gulped in a long, deep breath and steeled herself for what would come next.
When she had gotten her fill of knowledge, she closed the pamphlet and allowed her eyes to glide over the cover title:
Your Guide to Becoming a Gestational Carrier