Atticus Finch

There was not much I could do for Maudie. I mean, nobody had any idea what was going on or how to treat it. All I could do was stay at her side, and that's what I did because no matter how much I tried to convince myself otherwise, I always loved her as more than a friend. I could never tell her, although I was pretty sure she felt the same way. As a lawyer, I could tell what people think by looking at their faces, and there was love among the pain in hers. I liked being here with Maudie, but I worried about what was going to happen tonight, seeing as she could not be alone for so long. There was also the crazy sexual tension while awkward topics appeared in our conversation, especially one involving a certain newspaper with one pretty graphic article about Stephanie Crawford's version of events. Earlier today, Cal came over and Maudie passed out in my arms. That was really awkward. Then, Cal told me that I had to stay with Maudie all of the time. She said that even a few hours apart could be deadly for Maudie if she goes unconscious again or stops breathing like she did at Stephanie's house. Well, it was finally time to make sleeping arrangements.

"Well, you sleep in your bed, and I'll….I'll sleep…in the chair at your desk." I said, looking around the room for a decent place to get some sleep.

"Atticus, that's nonsense." She said, moving over to make room. "You will never get any sleep in that rickety old wooden chair over there. Just come on." I looked at her. I was just thinking about the sexual tension earlier. Well, this was really one of those awkward moments. She must be joking. She really can't be serious. No.

"Are you really sure? I mean, won't it be really awkward?"

"Atticus, come on. We're both mature adults. Nothing will happen." I could clearly see in her eyes that she really didn't believe that; she was a smart woman. Both of us knew that if anything happened, we would both be in a lot of trouble. I remembered what Scout and Dill had said about us and a baby. Oh gosh, if that came true…No. It couldn't. It wouldn't. Would it? For once, I was at a loss for words. Maudie got up and tried to walk over to me, but she had never picked up Stephanie's dress after she had changed into one of her own dresses. She tripped and crashed into me. She stared at me for a minute, then kissed me and it caught me off guard. I had no idea what to do, but then I realized that I should kiss her back. I did, with as much passion as she was. We fell back onto her bed, and our worst fears from earlier that night unraveled. We fell asleep together.

When I woke up, I was in Maudie's bed pressed against her with my fingers tangled in her auburn hair. Oh, what was I going to do? How did I let myself get caught up in this? I was dreading the moment she woke up, but that moment came within ten minutes. Her blue eyes blinked open and she looked confused for a few seconds before looking up and smiling at me. I smiled back, wondering what she would do.

"Well, uh, are you alright?" I asked her.

"I guess. You?" She flashed another smile at me.

"I'm not the one with two broken ribs." I reminded her.

"Do you know what the symptoms are of my disease?" I was really concerned. Why was she asking? Was something wrong? If it's my fault…I don't know what would happen.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." She was so stubborn sometimes.

"Maudie?" I said sternly. I really had to know what was wrong if I was going to help.

"Is nausea a symptom?" Oh no. I think Cal had said nausea was a symptom, but it was also one of something else that was now a possibility. If that was true…No. It can't be. She turned an ashen shade and I ran to get her a glass of water. When I came back, she was kneeling in her bathroom crying.

"I hate this disease. So I guess it is a symptom?" She looked really pathetic, I almost cried for her. If it weren't for the current circumstance, I would have kissed her. Right now, I had to make a phone call. I gave Maudie a quick hug and ran downstairs to her telephone. This was a very important call.

"Eula May? Yes, this is Atticus Finch. I need you to connect me to my house. It's a long story. Thanks."

"Hello, this is Calpurnia, you've reached the Finches! Who is this?"

"Cal? It's Atticus. I need you to come over now."

"Is Maudie alright?"

"I don't know. Is nausea one of her symptoms?"

"No, it's not. Atticus, sir, what's wrong?"

"I think I know, but I'm not sure. You have to come over now!"

"What about the children, sir?" Oh, gosh. I had forgotten about them!

"Oh yeah. Run them over to Rachel's. We really need you."

"Alright. Just calm down, sir. It will be okay."

"Eh, I don't know about that."

"I'll be right over." She hung up her phone. My suspicions had to be false. They just had to be. This had to be the time that I'm wrong. It has to be. Because if I'm right…I can't be. That would be bad. I ran back upstairs and helped Maudie back to bed.

"Maudie, I have to tell you something. Nausea is not a symptom of your disease. "

"Then I must have caught a cold, or stomach flu, or something like that." She drank her water, brushed her teeth, and kissed my cheek. I told her that Cal was coming over, and she asked me if we had to tell her what happened. I said that that would probably not have to happen, but if she asked we had to tell the truth. "If Stephanie hears about this, we move to Lansdale, Pennsylvania. Deal?"

"No, I don't think we can run away to Pennsylvania."

"Why not? I mean, we can take Scout and Jem with us. I'm sure Rachel would let us have Dill. Come on!"

"Cal will be here soon. We are not running away. This may be cliché, but I will not allow it to go that far."

"I'll go get ready." She left, and I went to go get changed into some better clothes. I didn't want to be the one that gave away the secret that we shared. I heard a knock at the door, and let Cal in. I told her what happened, well, not all of it, only what happened after we woke up. She eyed me suspiciously, not believing I was telling the whole story, and I ran upstairs to get Maudie. She was sick again. She stood up when she heard me coming, but it was too fast and she nearly passed out again. For the third time that week, she fell into my arms. I helped her up, looking her over.

"Your skirt's on backwards."

"Oh, thanks. I'll go fix it." She said sarcastically.

"Are you alright?" She looked crestfallen.

"No. Is Cal here yet ? I really want to know what's going on."

"Yeah. She's down in the kitchen. Let's go."

"Wait!" She yelled. I looked at her, somewhat ready to catch her again. "I have to fix my skirt." I smirked and told her to hurry up or Cal would leave or die of boredom before we got down there. She did, and we went downstairs. Cal was sitting at the table and knitting.

"Sorry we took so long. My skirt was on backwards." Maudie told her, glaring at me. I smiled. Cal turned to Maudie, examining her thoroughly. She seemed satisfied after a period of awkward silence. Cal put her arm around Maudie's back, causing her to wince from her broken ribs, and led her into the dining room. They closed the door so I couldn't hear or see. After what seemed like hours of sitting and reading the cursed newspaper, I heard Maudie scream and Cal laugh. I was really curious and worried, so I asked what happened. Cal said that it was okay, so I sat back down. After more laughter from Cal and the sound of Maudie sobbing made me get up and walk over to the dining room door. I knocked a few times, got no answer, tried again, and still got no answer. I got really scared then. If something happened to Maudie...I heard more sobs, Maudie getting sick, Cal laughing, Maudie crying again, and more laughter. I knocked one more time, and got no answer, so I did the only thing I could think of. I barged in, waiting to see the worst. Instead, Cal was sitting in one of the chairs around the table laughing like crazy and Maudie was curled up on the floor crying.

"Maudie, what happened? What's wrong?"

"Atticus…" She broke into tears again and collapsed. I bent down next to her, whispering comforting words to her, and she laid her head in my lap.

"Cal, what's wrong? What happened to her?" Cal laughed and Maudie kept crying.

"She will have to tell you this one, sir." Was it me, or did the look she gave Maudie seem like jealousy? Well, I'll deal with that later. That could wait. Right now, I needed to know what was going on with Maudie and why she was crying like that. She's a really strong woman. Nothing could make Maudie Atkinson cry. Nothing.

"Cal, please…She can't tell me right now. Just tell me." Cal didn't tell me. Instead, she left the house.

"Maudie, tell me. I need to know what's wrong if I'm going to be able to help. I pulled her into a hug, but she pulled away, with a really guilty look on her face. I smiled at her, but she didn't smile back. "Maudie."

"Atticus, I'm pregnant. I'm having a baby." She buried her face in her hands and I turned pale. A baby. No, it can't be. I grabbed her dress and pulled her into me. She hit my chest with a thud, and she shrank back in pain. Everything would be okay for now, but what will we do later, when she can't hide it? This will be difficult.