Ok, Chapter four is now up! It's the end of the flashbacks. That should be all for tonight because if I keep doing this I'm gonna have a bad neck. Really, has anyone else had that problem? Anyway, this chapter mentions a lot of three's for some reason. But why not, it's classic. You hear it on movies all the time: three days to do something, three strikes and you're out, etc. Ok, I will stop yakking now and let you get to the reading.
Six Months Later
"And that's the last of it." Chad sighed with relief as he dumped the last box into the house.
Taylor walked downstairs and rolled her eyes. "We need to unpack all of this stuff Chad. Don't you think you should have dropped that box in its designated room?"
"Keep saying big words like designated and I'll have to designate you to your own location." Chad teased with a smile. He walked over to Taylor and wrapped his arms around her, then pecked her on the forehead.
It had taken a while, but the pair finally found a house they both agreed on. They had casual jobs, but nothing too extraordinary. Chad was waiting for a response from someplace about basketball or baseball but so far nothing. And there was no way Taylor was rushing into a permanent career just yet. As much as she wanted to be president, there was no way she could get involved in anything political if her wedding was coming up. And they already had enough to worry about; turns out that Gabriella recently found out she was pregnant. It had taken her three months to realize it to, courtesy of a lack of mourning sickness.
"Ok, enough cuddling." Taylor teased as she pushed Chad off of her. "We have to get everything in order around here. And you know I want to visit Gabriella later."
"Relax Tay. She's gonna be fine." Chad said. "Besides, you don't need to check on her everyday. That's Troy's job."
"Right, I can already imagine his reaction when it's time." Taylor giggled.
"Ditto." Chad agreed. He altered his voice to sound as close to Troy's as he could, then ran around the crowded living room panicking. "The baby's coming, the baby's coming! Oh no, what do I do? Fake right? Run left? Slam dunk? GAH!" Then he held his heart and collapsed onto the floor.
Taylor couldn't help but burst out laughing. Chad had once again made such a serious situation sound humorous and like it was no big deal. "Just promise that you won't act that dramatic when our time comes."
Chad's head shot up. "You said what now?" he gasped. "Tay, are you…?"
"Got you." Taylor winked. "But it got you up didn't it?"
"Oh, right. Good one Tay." Chad said. He secretly sighed with relief. It was going to be hard enough to help Troy and Gabriella with their baby if they needed it. No way could Chad handle one of his own either. He was hoping to wait a couple of years for that, at a minimum.
Taylor could still see some uneasiness in Chad. She smiled to herself, knowing exactly what could make it better. She walked over to him and stood behind him, gently rubbing his shoulders. "Hey, if it makes you feel any better I started unpacking things in the bedroom."
Chad quirked an eyebrow and grinned. "Have you now?"
"Mm-hm." She nodded. "So if you wanted to, oh I don't know, do something tonight…"
Chad didn't even let her finish. He dashed upstairs in the blink of an eye, determined to clean almost every single box off the floor. Blinking, Taylor walked upstairs and tried to catch up with him. "Chad what are you-?" She froze when she saw the entire room was nearly clean. And in less than five minutes. By Chad. She crossed her arms and shook her head, though quite impressed. "If this is a dream, then don't pinch me. And if it isn't, who are you and what have you done with the real Chad Danforth?"
Chad only smiled slyly. "If it's a dream would I be threatening to pull you on this bed and never let you get off?"
Taylor cocked her head and didn't lose her smile, knowing he was just trying to act cool. She could see right through his little act. "Well then why don't I just change into something more comfortable?" She walked over to the closet, where she had hung most of her clothes in advance, and began looking through it.
Chad smiled and walked behind her, chaining his arms around her waist. "You sure you don't need any help with that? I see a zipper on your shirt just waiting to be pulled down."
Taylor smirked as her eyes met his, even if for her it was just through the corner "Try me."
Three Months Later
"Just three months to go…" Gabriella told herself as she tried reaching for a glass in her kitchen.
"Here, let me give you a hand." Taylor offered. She reached the glass in the cupboard much easier than Gabriella.
"You're a guest in my house. You shouldn't get a glass for yourself." Gabriella said as she poured some water into it.
"You're due in three months Gabriella. You should really be taking it easy." Taylor replied.
"And don't you have something big coming up soon? Even if it is in more than three months?" Gabriella inquired.
"What are you talking about?" Taylor asked, almost as though she was trying to hide something.
"Uh, you and Chad?" Gabriella raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, right. Yeah of course." Taylor nodded.
"Maybe I should be asking you if everything's ok." Gabriella suggested as she carefully sat down at the kitchen table. "You seem a bit…off."
"Off?" she repeated. "How so?"
"You just sound like you're trying to hide something." Gabriella shrugged. She gasped. "Taylor are you having an affair?"
"What?" her eyes widened. "No, of course not! I would never do that to Chad."
"So then what are you hiding?" Gabriella asked. "If it's nerves then I completely understand. I had them long before Troy and I started planning everything. I mean I had all these nightmares about what could go wrong…"
"Believe me, it's not exactly like that." Taylor shook her head.
"So then what is it?" her friend asked.
"Well…" Taylor started. She looked around the house to make sure no one else was around. Of course no one else was around. The boys were at the batting cages and then going bowling or something else sports-related. She turned back to Gabriella. "Just…something doesn't feel right. But it's not a fever, I haven't been sick, there's been no nausea…"
"Is it…you know, that time?" Gabriella wondered. Hey, even though they were girls and this was technically girl talk they had to be sensitive about it.
"That's just it." Taylor replied. "It hasn't been. I mean, I thought it was one of those times when it switched. Because of the weather and all. But it's been like that for a while."
"How long is a while?" she raised an eyebrow carefully.
Taylor bit her bottom lip. "Give or take…three months."
"Tay, maybe we should go see the doctor." She suggested.
"No!" she gasped. "Gabriella, I can't be. Not now, not before I'm married. Even if it's what, less than a year from now."
"But we really should make sure. I mean, not going to the doctor when there's that high chance that you are, could be health threatening to you and the baby."
"Gabriella, there is not one inside me. There's nothing wrong with me. I'm not having any until Chad and I are ready. And after we're married."
"Even if it's before you two are married what difference would it make by now? Last I checked you and Chad were crazy about each other. Even Jason can't miss it, and you know how easily he misses a banana peel in the middle of his driveway."
"Can't we just be sure before we talk to anyone about this?"
Gabriella sighed. Someone was in denial. But what would it hurt to trace back, right? "Alright." She gave in. "So think back then. Did you and Chad…?"
Taylor didn't even need Gabriella to finish the question. "Yes."
"When?" Gabriella asked.
"Well the first time was after we were all on that double date and you went home with Troy instead of me like we planned…" Taylor started.
"Wait a minute." She cut her off. "As in, after college? When we were at the restaurant? As in just the four of us? For the first time after college?"
Taylor nodded.
"You never told me about that!"
"Well Chad offered me a ride home and when we got to my apartment I didn't exactly want him to leave, and we eventually ended up kissing and I asked him to stay the night…"
"And that explains it. Did you use protection?"
"If we didn't then I would have been worrying then. Either that or have gotten an abortion."
"Ok so what about after that?"
"Every time after that. Protected. We were just fine."
"So how about recently?"
Taylor froze. The last time she and Chad did it…was when she was tempting him to get the bedroom clean so they could…. "Oh snap."
"Taylor…" Gabriella sighed.
Taylor hit her head. "Gabriella how could I be so stupid?"
"You're not stupid." She comforted her. "So, we know that's probably the reason. So let's go to my doctor. My next appointment is a week from tomorrow. You can come with me and I'll ask them to look at you. I won't even let Troy come. It'll just be a girl's day."
"Alright." Taylor gave in. "Just to make sure."
Two Months Later
It came much earlier than expected, even if it was by a month. But Gabriella had given birth to a healthy baby boy. Much smaller than the average baby, but healthy overall. Troy and Gabriella were overjoyed, but the thought of it only made Taylor more nervous.
A few weeks later Chad got off the phone with Troy. "Ok, everything is perfect in the Bolton household." Chad told Taylor, who was sitting on the couch in the living room. It looked much nicer than it did five or so months prior. The furniture was much nicer and everything was perfectly organized. It had especially helped that Chad was getting a deal in to become an athlete. A couple of calls and a final reply from a basketball manager and Chad had a chance. Even as he would practice with some of the team members to see if he had enough game, he was being closely watched by other managers. Hey, his track with sports had been excellent after all. "Jamie's settling in and Gabriella and Troy are finally getting some rest." He added.
"That's great." Taylor nodded. Ok, so everything had gone well for Gabriella. Troy was there supporting her and the whole delivery was pretty easy for her. Maybe because the baby was so small that made it less painless for Gabriella, but it still wasn't helping Taylor's nerves. For her, she was almost on the five month mark and she and Chad were still planning for the wedding. And, as one might have guessed, she still hasn't told Chad.
"And there' more good news." Chad added with a smile. "Got a call the other day, and it turns out a lot of managers are looking for me. I'm getting offers from teams like the Celtics, the Nicks, Yankees, Cubs…"
"That's really great Chad." Taylor smiled weakly. Ok, so things were going great for him. Why should she ruin it by breaking the news to him? Why didn't she even get an abortion when it was early enough? Oh yeah, because by three months it was most likely already too late and she happened to be pro-life. It wasn't her fault, but Taylor couldn't think about going against her own morals, and as far as she was concerned, she deserved it for not being protected the last time.
Chad raised an eyebrow. "Hey is everything ok?" he asked. He sat down next to Taylor.
Taylor moved away just a little. "Yeah, of course."
"You just don't seem like yourself lately." Chad said.
"How so?" she asked.
"Well," he started counting off each reason with a finger, "you're not eating as much as you used to, you always seem edgy somehow, you bite your nails more than usual, and you don't wanna do anything when we're in bed except sleep. Not even talk."
"Maybe I just wanted a break from my…love making life." Taylor said. Oh yeah, now that's a dead give away. She barely ever used the polite term for it, but thanks to her big mouth she proved her nervousness.
"Tay if something's wrong then you can tell me." Chad promised, managing to slip his arm around her. "We don't have to keep secrets from each other. The big day isn't too much further away now."
"It's coming closer than you know." Taylor confessed.
Chad titled his head. "What, you want us to get married sooner?" he asked.
"No." she shook her head. "I mean, that's not it. It's something else."
"So what is it Tay? Talk to me." Chad said calmly.
Taylor sighed. She forced herself to turn to Chad and look at him. "A few months ago I was talking to Gabriella. We were talking about preparing for her baby and I was telling her what was going on with me. I mean, I was fine, but something just didn't feel right. So she took me to her appointment to check on her baby…and her doctor took a look at me." She looked down and squeezed her hands and took a deep breath before looking back at Chad. "I'm pregnant, Chad."
He stared at her doubtfully. "What?" he asked, almost speechless. "For how long?"
"About five months." she confessed.
"And you didn't tell me about this?" he gasped.
"Chad I'm sorry, I really am." Taylor apologized. "But you said that you wanted to wait at least a couple of years before we even thought about kids, and then the last time we did it..."
"But why didn't you tell me sooner? I didn't wanna learn now. Not like this."
"I couldn't end a new life before it started. That wouldn't be fair. And I was afraid of how you'd take it if I told you."
"Well you're pretty much seeing now. I'm freaking out, that's how I'm reacting." His arm was already off of Taylor and he was pacing around the room like crazy.
"I know I should have told you sooner. And that was my fault." Taylor apologized again. "But I didn't want to end everything between us before it could even start. Will you please stop pacing around?"
I'm sorry." Chad stopped and stood in front of Taylor, who was now standing. He looked at her long and hard for a minute, then shook his head. "I need some air." He made his way towards the door.
No, she couldn't let him do that. If Chad walked out those doors he might not come back. "Chad wait..." she started. Taylor reached out and grabbed his wrist.
Unable to take it anymore, Chad spun around and slapped Taylor. She nearly lost her balance and fell. Chad froze, realizing what he did. That was an accident. He really didn't mean to...it was just his nerves taking over. But what could he do? If he tried to apologize she'd tune him out. If he didn't say anything she'd think he was walking out on her. Just because he was nervous doesn't mean he'd do that. He gulped and took a single step towards her. "Tay I-"
Taylor shook her head and jerked back from him. "Don't 'Tay' me." she reprimanded. Sure, it was just a slap on the face. But if it had gone lower and if it was hard enough then it could have hurt the baby. So she really did have something - someone - nside of her. Which meant she shouldn't be putting it at risk. She shook her head once more. "Go get your air." That was the last thing she said to him before running upstairs and Chad reluctantly walked out the door.
By the time Chad walked back into the house it was pretty late. He didn't mean to be, he was just trying to clear his mind and figure out how to apologize. What to say, what to do...anything. But when he walked into the house there was no sign of Taylor. "Tay?" he asked as he stepped in. He first checked the living room, then the kitchen. "Taylor?" He rushed upstairs. No, she couldn't have left...not now. He didn't have a chance to fix everything. "Taylor?" he called frantically. Chad ended up in the bedroom. He searched everywhere but there was nothing. No one. All of her stuff was gone. Chad shook his head in doubt. "No..." He scanned the room rapidly again. He just kept telling himself that she had to be in there somewhere...hiding. Yeah, that's it. Taylor was just hiding and ready to surprise him. "Very funny Tay. You can come out now." he laughed nervously. But there was no answer. When Chad finally reached the bed, there was only hit set of pillows on there, and on the sheets the ring that he had given to Taylor. There was nothing else left.
Four Months Later
Troy hung up his home phone and walked over to Chad, who was still sulking in the kitchen. Yes, Chad Danforth sulking. He had given up. He sold the house and was able to crash with Troy and Gabriella. He found out that when Taylor left she went to her mother's. Hey, where else do women go when they're angry with their men? Right, bad time for a pun.
"So I just got off the phone with Gabriella." Troy told Chad. "She's with Taylor right now. They're both at Taylor's mother's house." There was no response from a disappointed - or heartbroken - Chad. "Taylor's doing alright. Last time she was checked everything was going smoothly. She and the baby aren't in any danger." Still no answer. Troy thought for a minute. "Well...Jamie's with Gabriella's mom right now. She always takes a day off working to see her grandson."
Wrong thing to say. "Well gee, that's just dandy." Chad said sarcastically, even though it was easy to hear the hurt in his voice. "My mom's never gonna be able to see her grandchild. I'm never gonna be able to see my child. I'll be amazed if Taylor's parents want anything to do with it."
More like a sore spot. Chad's mother had died years ago, and Troy knew how close they were. And Chad's father only wanted to talk to him when sports were involved nowadays. And now Chad was thinking that he wouldn't be able to have anything to do with his kid. "Chad calm down. Everything's gonna be fine." Troy promised.
"How can you be sure of that?" Chad asked.
"I don't know." Troy admitted. "But I do know that you're gonna need to be there when the day comes. And it's gonna be soon."
Chad flashed the ring. "Dude, Taylor left her engagement ring for a reason. t means she wants me out of her life." he said. "Why would she want me there when she gives birth?"
"The baby's still gonna be your's isn't it?" Troy replied. He patted Chad on the back. "Ok so it seems rough now. But all you need to do is give it some time. Remember how I was freaking out when Jamie was born? Look on the bright side, at least you won't be running around like I did."
"More like a maniac." Chad managed to let out a slight chuckle. At least Troy could make fun of his own actions when it mattered most.
"See? All you'll have to do is rush there. No maniac acting involved. And no one looks at you like you're from the planet Boingo."
Chad raised an eyebrow. "Planet what?"
"Exactly!" Troy laughed. He hit a high five with Chad, and Chad felt a little more content than he did in months. He was still hurting inside, but at least he hadn't lost his best friend. "Thanks dude." he said.
"Hey, what are fake brothers for right?" Troy shrugged. "You had my back so now I got yours. No worries."
"Hakuna Matata." Chad laughed.
"Which means we'll be doing Lion King karaoke later." Troy agreed. "We'll do our crazy duet with that song. And then, we'll bring it home with our Elvis impressions."
"We stink at those." Chad said.
"That's why we're gonna do them." Troy replied.
Chad nodded. "I like the way you think, Elvis Bolton." he joked.
"That's my bro." Troy nodded. He picked up his cell phone when he heard it ring. "You got Troy." he answered. His eyes widened when he heard Gabriella on the other line. "What?" he gasped. "When?" Chad looked at Troy with a quirked eyebrow. What was going on. "Now?" Troy gasped. He paused and waited for Gabriella to finish. "Alright, we'll be there as soon as we can." He hung up and turned to Chad. "It's time."
"For Lion King karaoke?" Chad asked.
Troy hit Chad on the head. "Not that time. The other time." He rushed to grab his car keys and head to the front.
Chad stayed where he was, actually using his hands as motions to try and figure out what Troy meant. "Time, time, time..." he kept saying to himself. "Time?" he nearly yelled. "Wait for me!" He chased right after Troy.
By the time they were at the hospital Gabriella was already waiting. She saw Troy and Chad rush in. "Taylor's mom is with her."
"How's everything going?" Chad asked right away.
"I don't know. They won't let me in." she admitted.
Chad wasn't going to let that stop him. He rushed into the room without any warning. Despite the evil eye from Taylor's mother, Chad wasn't leaving. He looked down at Taylor, and obviously Taylor was too busy to look away. She was trying to act like Chad wasn't even there. Refusing to give up, Chad grabbed one of Taylor's hands. "You're doing good." he told her. "Just keep going."
As much as Taylor tried tuning him out, she realized that she couldn't. She didn't know how, but he was actually helping her through it. And with Chad standing right there and talking her through it everything went much quicker than expected. Out of breath once it was all over, Taylor fell back on the bed breathing heavily. Chad just looked at her and rubbed her hand. "You did great Tay." he told her softly. "You really did."
"Yeah but you didn't." she managed to say in between breaths.
"Tay, I can explain." Chad tried.
Taylor shook her head and looked away."I don't want to hear it from you. I don't need anything from you." She was tired and couldn't raise her voice. Taylor was trying to hide any emotions she was feeling right now, and she wasn't going to let Chad know that she was hurting inside even as she spoke to him. She waited a minute before continuing. "Just take it and leave."
Chad blinked, confused. "What?"
"Take the baby and leave." she repeated. "I don't want anything to do with either of you."
"Tay, no..." Chad started.
"Don't 'Tay' me." she told him. She closed her eyes, assuring herself that she couldn't look at Chad now. "Don't ever call me that. Not again. Just leave with it. Do whatever you want. Keep it yourself, give it to an adoption agency, I don't care."
"Tay you can't mean that." Chad shook his head.
"Yes I can." Taylor insisted. She turned away so her back was facing him and she pulled her hand out of his. Taylor pulled the covers over her so Chad wouldn't be able to see any possible tears fall. "Just. Go. Away." Quiet words, but the last words she said to him.
Chad's face fell. He couldn't feel more guilty. He tried to make things better, he really did. He tried talking to her. He spent all that time trying to make it up to her...and nothing. Noe she wouldn't even look at him. Chad moved a few bangs out of his face, then walked out of the room. He saw Gabriella holding the baby.
"What happened?" Gabriella wondered. "Does Taylor...?"
Chad shook his head and cut her off. "She doesn't want anything to do with me. Or the baby."
"But I can't hold onto it forever. I told the nurse I'd take it into Taylor." Gabriella replied.
"You're not gonna have any luck." Chad shook his head. "She told me to do with it what I want. And now I don't know what to do." He took a pause in between his last two sentences. He wasn't about to show emotion in this. Not now. He had to be strong. Somehow. "I don't even know what to do. I mean, if I keep the baby then I'm all alone with it. I'm gonna have to raise it on my own, it's not gonna have a mother figure...I'm the only family it's gonna have. But if I give it up for a adoption then what? I'll never see it again. I won't know if it's in good hands. And I could regret it for the rest of my life."
Gabriella sighed. She wished she knew what to tell Chad. She really did. "Just hold her." she said quietly, resolving that the newborn was a girl. "Just hold her and see for yourself. Take one look at her. Then you'll know what you want to do. You'll know what's best for her."
Chad had no choice but to nod. He reached out and slowly took the baby from Gabriella. He stared at the newborn and for a minute it felt like they were the only ones around. Should he really give her up? Or should she know what at least one of her parents was like? He was still like that for at least five minutes. Even Gabriella could tell that Chad was in a debate for himself. A debate for what he wanted, or what was best for the baby. Chad took one last look at Gabriella and thanked her, then walked away.
By the time Troy and Gabriella returned home later that night, everything of Chad's was gone. No one heard nothing from him. He didn't return any calls made to him. No one knew where he went. And the managers interested in putting him on the team made a brief newscast. They said he was a promising young athlete who could go far, but only if he came back. Even made one phone call. But no matter who tried to get in touch with Chad there was no answer.
He had disappeared.
Well that was a fairly long chapter. Didn't expect these flashbacks to be that long. But why mush up happy and sad flashbacks alltogether? You're happy when half of it's over and you're sad fifteen minutes later. It's just depressing. Well, this is probably depressing too. But it's gonna get better. Anyway, just a quick thanks to the first review that I found from the story. Thanks Rose of Hope. If there's any others I'll add em on next chapter. ^^ It'll be up ASAP!
