Chapter Three
The phone rang five times before the dial tone ended abruptly, followed by the click of someone picking up the phone. For a few moments all was silent and then there was a questioning "Hello..?" followed by a pause. Megan's breath hitched in her throat at the sound of Drake's voice, one that she hadn't heard in such a long time. It brought an onslaught of memories of her childhood, of summer days carelessly passed by with the freedom of youth. And of the time when it was much simpler, when it was just Drake, Josh, and her in the house, when she never got her fill of playing mischief on them.
"Hello?" The tone was sharper this time with just a hint of exasperation, snapping Megan out of her thoughts. She opened her mouth, desperately fishing for something to say, but for some reason she couldn't get her voice to work properly. 'What should I say?'
She cleared her throat weakly.
There was an audible sigh on the other end of the line. "Josh, is this you? I've already told you dude, I'm not about to drive all the way down to Santa Monica just to listen to your little speech on how Oprah would change the world if she were president. I'm too busy-"
During Drake's little rant Megan's lips twitched as she fought off a smile, her first genuine smile of the day. Listening to him she could almost believe that things had never changed.
But of course reality broke the screen of illusion.
"It's not Josh." Finally finding her voice Megan curled her arms tighter around herself, preparing for what was to come.
"...It's not? You're not? Well, who are you then?"
Megan tilted her head, feeling a little disheartened. "Come on Drake, You really don't recognize my voice?"
There was another pause at the other end of the line and then, spoken with an air of warm surprise- "Megan! Don't get mad, but, since when do you call me?"
'That's actually a good question. What am I doing?' She was quiet for a few moments longer than she should have, eyes wandering over the spotless bathroom to settle on the colorful, empty box that once held the pregnancy tests. Apprehension tugged hard in her chest and she closed her eyes, sighing deeply.
"Is there a reason I shouldn't call? You're my brother, aren't you?"
"Yeah, but-" That seemed to knock Drake speechless. The line went silent for a total of three minutes. Maybe he was surprised to hear Megan call him brother. Although it was a fact, something shared between the two of them, it was a rarely verbally acknowledged one. Or maybe it was the unusually subdued tone that had crept into her voice. One that he had never heard before.
"What's wrong? Is Mom sick?" He sounded concerned, and Megan could have snorted at how far off his guess was. "No."
'But maybe she will be when she finds out. Maybe she'll be so sick with disappointment that she won't even be able to stand in the same room as me for weeks.'
"Is it Walter?"
"No."
Another pause. Megan was tired of waiting, tired of the nausea that curled-stronger by the minute- in her belly. "Drake, I really need to tell you something."
She might as well get it off her chest now.
Drake sounded curious, hesitant. "Okay… what do you-?"
"But please promise me you won't tell Mom and Walter. Or Josh, please. I'm in so much trouble…everything is wrong! You can't tell them, they'll never forgive me. Okay?"
She was practically pleading with him, her vision blurring with tears. For the first time her voice, trembling and borderline frantic, gave her away as she broke down.
"I promise." His own voice sounded shaky as if he was unsettled by her strong emotional outburst, but who could blame him? This was Megan Parker. The girl who was never weak, who did not cry.
"Megan, I promise not to tell. What's wrong, what trouble are you in…are you safe?-"
Megan winced; tears traced their way down her cheeks. She refused to brush them away.
"No it's- I…I'm pregnant."
Silence.