At Peyton and Lucas Scotts House
I liked Peyton and Lucas, Sawyer's parents. And I also knew they liked me and had accepted their underage daughter was in a relationship with a man five years older than her. But I was sure already that they wouldn't be all that happy about the news we were about to tell them. But first we had dinner and I wanted to wait for everyone being finished to drop the proverbial bomb. Across the table, Sawyer kept throwing me unsure looks. By the situation on her plate you could tell she hadn't that much of an appetite.
"You enjoy the meal, Justin?" Sawyer's mom asked just in the moment I made another attempt to gulp down a piece of meat.
"Yeah, it's very good," Sawyer answered the question for me, forcing a smile.
"Why aren't you two eating anything then?" Lucas grumbled and took the bowl of potatoes.
"We're not all that hungry," Sawyer quickly said, lowering er head, caught. It was time to spill the truth.
"Sawyer and I decided to marry," I quickly gave before courage left me. I slightly jumped when Sawyer's dad put a hand on my shoulder.
"But we already know that, Justin," he said with a smile, and his wife added, "Is that the reason for this dinner then?"
I exchanged a look with Sawyer who shoved her food back and forth with her fork. "Not exactly," I said hesitantly. I had actually wanted to wait until after the meal, but now all eyes were on me. My mouth turned dry, my hands damp by nervousness. "Uhm… we actually wanted to tell you guys that…" I made a break to breathe that Sawyer used to finish the sentence.
"I'm pregnant!"
For a moment, there was a dead silence in the room. First I looked at Sawyer who had just burst out with the news, then at her mom who had turned white as chalk. Sawyer's dad pushed back his chair, rose, and then went over to the cabinet he opened and drew a bottle of whiskey and glasses from he then brought to the table.
"I need a drink on the shock first," he mumbled and poured the alcohol in his glass. "You, too?" he asked me then.
I nodded anxiously, waiting for him to pour me a glass, too, before I took a big sip. I was no friend of hard alcohol, even less pure, but this time it was just necessary.
"How long have you two known?" Peyton Scott asked quietly.
"I made a test yesterday," Sawyer replied with her voice even quieter.
"You haven't seen a doctor yet?"
Sawyer shook her head. "No."
"Then it's possible the test was incorrect and you aren't even pregnant," Sawyer's mom said, and I could hear a tint of hope in her voice that it was all a big mistake after all.
I looked at Sawyer who suddenly seemed pretty lost and took her hand. Was it actually possible a test like that could give you a false result?
"We should see a doctor first before we cry wolf," Peyton Scott said. "Maybe we're all worrying for nothing." She looked at her daughter. "I'll make an appointment for tomorrow right away. Is that okay?"
Sawyer nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, I'll have time tomorrow after school," she said quietly.
"We got that sorted out then," Sawyer's dad said and took another sip of his glass.
I shoved my plate away and rose. "Thanks a lot for dinner," I thanked them. "I believe it's better I go home now." I suddenly just wanted to leave to think about the changed situation — alone. But Sawyer ran after me.
"Justin, wait!" She caught up to me at the door and wrapped her arms around my neck. "I'm so sorry!" she mumbled, her face pressed against my shoulder. "I should've seen a doctor first to be absolutely sure I'm actually pregnant. But when I saw those two lines I had no doubts whatsoever."
"I didn't know it's even possible a test could show you a wrong result," I said quietly, pushing her a bit away from me to look at her.
"Yeah, it is. I read it on the internet. The surest way to know is a blood test."
"We'll know more tomorrow then, when you've seen a doctor?"
Sawyer nodded. "I'll call you as soon as I got a result."
I pulled her back into my arms and softly kissed her lips. "Would you rather I came with you?" I asked hesitantly.
She shook her head. "My mom's gonna come. Besides, you got training after school tomorrow."
I suppressed the wish to roll my eyes. Did she really believe training was more important to me than her? I lifted her chin a little so she could look into my eyes. "Nothing's as important as you are," I said quietly. "If you want me to go to the doctor with you, I'll be there."
"You're so sweet!" Tears welled up in her eyes as she leaned in to kiss me. "But it's okay. My mom's gonna come," she repeated again. And with that she had made her decision.
When I said goodbye to her and then went to my car, I knew that night would be the longest of my life. A roller coaster of emotions. Far too much time to think and pore over it. Even when I had already made my decision. Now everything was out in the open again and I had to wait until the next day until I would finally know if I would be a father or not. Sighing, I got into my car and drove home.
At the Gynecologist - the next day
I had hoped it was only false alarm, although deep inside I knew the test Sawyer had made wasn't wrongly positive. She was actually pregnant! My little girl would be a mother! The doctor had confirmed it. Sawyer's hand had wrapped around mine as we had heard the baby's heartbeat together for the very first time. Sawyer's baby — my grandchild! Oh my God! I would be a grandmother and Lucas a grandfather! The reality of it started to sink in.
"Mom?"
Sawyer's quiet, slightly trembling voice, pulled me back into the present. "Hm?"
"You mad?"
I turned to her and moved a lock of her hair from her forehead. "No," I said softly, "I'm not mad, just…"
"Shocked?" Sawyer asked.
I shook my head. I was neither mad nor shocked. But the news that my little girl would be a mother hadn't gone past me without trace. She had sensed that right. "It'll change a lot," I mumbled, although a comment like that was completely unnecessary.
"I know," Sawyer said quietly. "We gotta tell Daddy and…"
"Justin," I finished the sentence. "You wanna call him right away?"
Sawyer shook her head. "He's still at training," she mumbled. "I'll talk to him later."
I nodded in silence. Only yesterday, the two of them had been with us, telling us that she was probably pregnant. I had reacted to those news quite calm and reasonable. But now… I shook my head. I didn't understand my own feelings. What had changed during those few hours?
"A picture for the family album," Sawyer said, looking at the ultrasound picture in her hand.
Right, THAT had changed! We didn't only have a picture, we had even heard the heartbeat which had made it real. I stared at the tiny spot in my daughter's uterus. "What d'you wish for?" I asked almost mechanically. "A boy or a girl?"
Sawyer shrugged. "I don't know," she said quietly. "I haven't thought about that yet."
A sudden anger rose inside me. Sawyer was 17! She was still a child herself. She had absolutely no idea how life worked. And her words showed that she seemed to haven't even thought about many things. So why hadn't she been more cautious? You didn't need to get pregnant with 17 if you didn't want it! "Did you do it because of Lydia?" slipped out of me before I could stop myself.
"Excuse me?" Sawyer looked at me confusedly. "Do… what?"
"Get pregnant on purpose," I said shortly and waited for her answer. Her cheeks slightly blushed. So she had actually done it on purpose. I couldn't believe it! "Why?" I asked desperately. "You're 17, Sawyer!"
"I… I…" Her eyes teared up. "I wanted to…"
I groaned inwardly. It was my fault! I had seen the signs and hadn't recognized them. Ever since Ben's birth Sawyer kept talking about wanting her own baby. But I had assumed she was talking about the future; a future in five to ten years. I thought of Lydia and Davis and how quickly Brooke and Julian had accepted the fact that they would be grandparents. And the young parents really did well. Only that they shouldn't especially seen as a role model. But that was exactly what they were to Sawyer and by that she hadn't seen another way. And she had pulled Justin on her side as well.
"I'm almost 18, Mom!"
I could hear the sullenness and determination in her voice. "What about school, your plans for the future?" Why was I only asking these questions now? Why hadn't I done that yesterday already? Because it had only been a suspicion, not a fact, I answered my own question.
Sawyer shrugged. "There's many girls going to school pregnant," she said sheepishly.
"Name one!"
"Lydia," she said softly. "She got private schooling later then, but during the first weeks she still went to school."
Lydia, always Lydia! I couldn't blame the girl. She had gotten pregnant by accident because of a broken condom. At least that was the info Brooke had given me. But Sawyer had wanted to get pregnant! What was in the water of Tree Hill that all teenage girls got pregnant? Hailey, Brooke, Lydia, Sawyer…?
"Mom!"
I startled and looked up. "What?"
"You gonna drop me at school?"
"You wanna surprise Justin?" I asked cautiously.
Sawyer nodded. "We agreed I come to school after I got the result," she said, looking back at the ultrasound picture. "You think he's gonna be happy?"
I remembered yesterday evening and the way Justin had pressed ahead to tell us he and Sawyer were going to get married. He had assumed she was really pregnant. So it probably wouldn't make a difference for him that it was official now. "I think so." I forced a smile. I wouldn't only be a grandma, with Justin I would also get a son-in-law. Justin, my best friend's son. "I'll drop you at school," I said. "I'm going to Brooke then."
"Thanks, Mom!"
I looked at her in surprise. "For what?"
"For going to the doctor with me and supporting me with everything to do with the pregnancy," she said calmly.
It seemed she had forgotten about my little outburst and the doubts of earlier. Sawyer trusted me to be on her side. And I wouldn't disappoint her! I had my own good role models. I would talk about it with Haley and Brooke and find a solution. After all, a baby wasn't the end of the world but rather a new beginning!
"Get in the car!" I said and opened the passenger's door.
Sawyer slipped onto the seat and I started the engine. "Uhm… Mom…," she began tentatively.
"Is there anything else?" I dug deeper.
"Because of the wedding…," she drawled and quickly continued as I remained silent. "Justin and I would like to get married in Las Vegas — just like his parents."
I closed my eyes for a moment, forcing myself to stay calm. That, too, now! I badly needed to talk to Brooke! "We'll talk about that later, okay?" I said, sidestepping, and stepped on the gas.
