Sam was anxious. In the 5 minutes it took for Lauryn to arrive, he'd checked his hair in the bathroom twice, scribbled on three empty notebook pages until they were full with doodles and accidentally knocked over his water cup. Smooth, right. She entered the small shop, looking around for a familiar face. After searching the small crowd, he got her attention with a small wave and motioned her over. She was scared as hell but knew it was the right thing. Sam stood up, engulfing her in an awkward hug and then they sat across from each other.

"How are you?" Sam asked, a nervous smile on his face.

"I'm... I'm fine, how about yourself?"

"I'm well. What've you been up to?"

"Just work and classes. Kind of the routine." She shrugged as a waitress walked over. Sam ordered a black coffee and she ordered water. Caffeine isn't good for pregnancies. Lauryn noted Sam's nervous appearance, hoping he hadn't caught on already. He was smart, one of the reasons she was attracted to him and this whole thing happened. But in all honesty, Sam was just nervous that he'd contracted some disease or infection from their fun night a few weeks ago. After a few minutes of small talk, Sam cut to the chase.

"So, uhm, why did you want to talk to me?" He asked this very sheepishly, curious for an answer but scared for the response. Lauryn took a moment to think how she would tell him, not losing the staring contest she had with her shoes.

"I'm- I'm pregnant." She bit her lip and finally looked up. Sam's face flushed and he wobbled in his chair for a second. "Look, I don't expect anything out of you, I just thought you deserved to know."

"You're... pregnant." He said, more than slightly dazed, trying to grasp the concept. Lauryn nodded. "Are you sure it's mine?" He asked, lowering his voice.

She looked taken aback by his question but she just nodded. Sam breathed in slightly, dragging a hand over his face before speaking again.

"Look, let's go back to my place and talk about this."

"Last time we went back to one of our places, it created this." She tried making a joke to lighten the mood but, alas, it failed and Sam just gave a confused stare in her direction. Lauryn sighed and spoke again. "You said that you had a brother that traveled with you or something? Will he be there?" She felt embarrassed. In the future, would people judge her if they knew? She looked far too young for a child and probably was. And chances were that Sam was going to leave.

Sam shook his head. "No, he's out searching for Lill-... lilacs. He likes flowers and lilacs are his favorite." Sam stumbled on his words a bit, his eyes darting around the room.


Once back to the motel room, Sam took of his coat and set in on the back of the chair in the kitchen. Lauryn stood timidly near the doorway, taking off her shoes and stepping closer. Sam sat at the table, inviting Lauryn to sit as well.

"So... do you know the gender?" He asked quietly.

"I'm a week into my pregnancy. I don't think it has a gender." She smiled softly, sympathetic to Sam and his new knowledge.

"Well, what do you want it to be?"

"Healthy. I don't care if it has a dinosaur for a dick, as long as he or she is healthy." Giggling, unconsciously setting a hand on her own stomach.

"How did you find out you were pregnant?"

"I kept getting sick in the mornings and eventually... I m-missed my period." She blushed and her voice became quieter. Sam nodded, his lips a thin line as he thought in silence. Lauryn was obviously not one of the women who spoke about her menstrual cycle, something that Sam would probably appreciate.

"So, do you want to be involved or...?" She hoped that Sam would say child support or half-custody. She was not expecting the next things he would say.