Joey was surprised to wake up the next morning and discover Craig was
already in the kitchen eating breakfast.
"Craig! What are you doing up?"
Craig had a slight smile on his face. "I felt better."
Joey chuckled as he poured himself some coffee. "About time. What brought this change around?"
"Manny's pregnant."
Joey spit out his coffee. It splattered all over his socks and he immediately began to hop around in pain. Quickly, he yanked them off then dried off his feet with a dish towel. Craig just sat there laughing. "Manny's what?"
"Pregnant. And I'm the father. But it's going to be okay." Craig seemed oddly chipper. "I'm going to have a little girl. Or boy. I'll get to raise it and be the best dad I can." He smiled dreamily.
"Uh, Craig?" Joey stared at him. "Aren't you forgetting a little something?"
"What?"
"Uh, the fact that you're fifteen, don't have a job, have yet to finish high school..."
Craig waved his hand. "Joey, it'll be fine. I mean sure it's going to be hard but I'm going to have a family. My own little family. With Manny and our baby." Craig looked so happy, Joey hated to burst his bubble.
"Craig, it isn't going to be all sunshine and roses. How are you going to afford things? How are you going to take care of the baby and still go to school? How could you be so irresponsible?"
Craig frowned. "Irresponsible? No that's the one thing I'm not going to be. Not anymore. Joey you shouldn't worry so much. It makes you miss out on a lot of things." He got up and put his plate in the sink. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go somewhere very important." He left, leaving Joey stunned, and holding wet socks in one hand, and the other hand up to his forehead.
"Oh boy."
By the time Manny awoke that morning, Emma had already left for school, claiming she had an early meeting. The two girls had been avoiding each other as much as possible since they had their fight the day before.
Manny was excited and dreading the day at the same time. It would be her first real picture of the baby. The situation was both terrifying and exhilarating.
Spike drove her to the clinic and dropped her off before heading to work. She wished her luck and promised to pick her up whenever she called.
It was only a few minutes before Dr. Perone called Manny into a room.
"Hello Manny," the doctor said warmly. She motioned for Manny to lie down on the bed. After running some other tests, she told her it was time for the sonogram. Manny took a deep breath as Dr. Perone pulled the machine next to the bed.
Just as she was lifting her shirt, the door opened. Craig entered the room, looking breathless but smiling.
"Craig?" Manny was stunned.
"Hey, Manny." Craig came to stand by the bed.
"I'll be back in a few minutes," Dr. Perone said with a smile. She left the room quickly, closing the door gently behind her.
"Craig...what are you doing here?" Manny propped herself up on her elbows.
Craig pulled a stool over and sat in it then took Manny's hand. "Because I was a fool and I want to make it up to you." He glanced at her stomach. "And to our baby."
Manny was dumbfounded. "You-you mean you want to be involved?"
Craig nodded. "More than anything. I'm so sorry for the way I've been acting. I had a couple of wake-up calls, thank God. See, the reason why I reacted the way I did and the reason why I broke up with you was because I was terrified of losing someone else I cared about like I lost my mom and dad and Angie."
"Of course and it's expected that you would be afraid of that," Manny said, rubbing his hand.
"Yeah, only I just now realized that living my life like that, I might as well be dead too." Craig's eyes were shining with unshed tears but his face was happy. "I'll still miss them all more than anything, but with Joey and you and this baby...you won't replace them but you can maybe be my new family."
Manny felt a tear slip out of her eye and down her cheek. She leaned forward and kissed Craig hard on the lips. As he kissed her back, for the first time in months, she didn't feel so alone.
Dr. Perone came back a few minutes later. "Are we all ready to go?"
Manny nodded, smiling broadly.
"Hi, I'm the lucky father, Craig," Craig said, sticking out his hand. Dr. Perone shook it firmly.
"Nice to meet you, Craig. I'm Dr. Perone. You're just in time." She smeared a clear gel onto Manny's stomach. "Here we go."
Craig gripped Manny's hand tightly. His heart was beating a mile per minute and he felt like he was going to throw up. In a good way.
Suddenly, a loud thumping noise filled the room and Craig jumped. "What's that?"
"That's your baby's heartbeat," Dr. Perone told him.
Manny looked at Craig, her brown eyes shining. "Oh God. It's so fast."
"Don't worry, that's normal." Dr. Perone moved the instrument along Manny's stomach. "Here look." She pointed to the screen. "That's your baby."
Craig squinted and managed to make out a squirming black and white figure on the monitor beside him. "Is it a boy or a girl?"
"It's a little too early to tell."
Manny squeezed Craig's hand. "Isn't it beautiful?"
"Yeah it's incredible." Craig reached out a trembling hand to touch the screen. It was really there, growing inside Manny's stomach.
"I'm going to print out a copy for you two to keep."
Craig kissed Manny on the forehead. "I can't wait until it's born."
"Me too." As Manny spoke the words, she realized how deeply she meant it. For a long time, she had been looking at this baby as a burden, as something that was going to ruin her life. Now she realized how much she really wanted to just hold it in her arms.
"Here you go." The doctor handed Manny the sheet. She smiled down at her baby.
"Thank you."
After talking for a few minutes more and setting up a later appointment, Craig and Manny left the office. Manny headed for the payphone but Craig grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door instead. "Come on, let's take a walk."
"Okay." Manny followed him down the street to the park. The sun was a lightbulb in the blue ceiling that was the sky. It was still a bit cold out and Manny shivered as they walked. Craig put his arm around her, pressing her close to him. They reached the park and seated themselves on the swings.
Manny spoke first. "So what was it that made you change your mind?"
Craig smiled. "Actually, I had a couple of visitors yesterday."
"Oh yeah? Who?"
"First JT." Craig chuckled. "He called me a jerk."
Manny laughed. "Really? I can't believe he did that."
"Yeah, he's a good guy." Craig started to swing slightly. "And then Ash came over."
Manny raised her eyebrows. "Ashley?"
"Yeah. She told me what she did. She's real sorry about it, Manny. And she did help me figure out a lot of the stuff I told you about before." Craig dragged his feet on the ground, slowing the swing. He wasn't ready to tell anyone about the dream yet. Maybe someday, in the future, but not yet.
Manny took all of this in. "Well I guess it doesn't matter. The point is, is that you came today."
"Yeah...hey, what do you think we should name the baby?" Craig asked suddenly.
"Um, I dunno," Manny replied, a bit thrown off by the question. "Why, do you have something in mind?"
Craig shrugged. "Oh, I don't know, Jordan for a boy, and Mandy for a girl."
Manny grinned. "Someone's been thinking about this."
Craig shrugged again. "When I was younger, I sometimes thought about this kind of stuff."
"So why those two names?"
"Well, Jordan was in this book that I used to read when I was a kid. I wanted to be just like him. When, um, my parents used to f-fight, I would just close my door and get lost in the story."
Manny smiled tenderly at him. "And what about Mandy?"
Craig half-smiled as he thought back. "Well, my mom was a huge Barry Manilow fan. That song was always playing when she was alive."
"What was your mother like? That is, if you want to talk about it," Manny added quickly.
Craig nodded. "Sure. Um, well let's see. We used to live in British Columbia. Big house. She was a kindergarten teacher so she was always home when I got home from school." He chuckled. "It always smelt like something when I got home."
"She baked a lot?" Manny asked.
Craig grinned. "Yeah she was always trying different recipes but none of them ever quite came out like they were supposed to. My dad was always complaining about it." The smile left his face and Manny saw a hint of the Craig that she had seen at the hospital after his sister died.
"So you said she listened to Barry Manilow a lot?" Manny said, quickly changing the subject.
"Yeah, she used to sing a lot. She had a good voice. Used to sing to me when I was little." Craig suddenly didn't want to talk about his mother anymore. "It's getting late," he said, looking at his watch. "You should call Spike before she starts to worry." He got up and led Manny to a nearby pay phone. She made the call and they began to walk back to the clinic.
Craig was silent as he thought about the future as well as his past. He vowed right then and there that he would never turn out like his father. He was going to do everything in his power to protect his child and never lose his temper.
Craig's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a horn blasting. He looked up to see a black car pull over to the curb right beside him. In the drivers seat was a guy he didn't know but leaning out the passenger side window was Jay, one of Sean's new friends.
"Hey, Manning!" he shouted.
Craig squinted in the sunlight at the car, trying to look as tough as he could.
Jay grinned, looking Manny up and down. "Nice job getting it on with Miss Santos. Too bad you knocked her up." He laughed loudly before the car sped off.
Craig balled his hands into fists, wishing he could chase after them and slam Jay's head against the wall. He looked over at Manny who was staring at the ground. "Hey, Manny, don't worry about what they said. They're idiots. Morons. Imbeciles."
"Yeah but you didn't see everyone in school yesterday. They were pretty much acting just like that." Manny started to walk again, slightly farther away from Craig.
Craig closed the gap between them and took Manny's hand. "Come on, Manny, you know that they have no idea what they're talking about. What we're going through is something that they'll never understand."
"I guess." Manny looked at Craig suddenly. "What do you think about abortion?"
"Craig! What are you doing up?"
Craig had a slight smile on his face. "I felt better."
Joey chuckled as he poured himself some coffee. "About time. What brought this change around?"
"Manny's pregnant."
Joey spit out his coffee. It splattered all over his socks and he immediately began to hop around in pain. Quickly, he yanked them off then dried off his feet with a dish towel. Craig just sat there laughing. "Manny's what?"
"Pregnant. And I'm the father. But it's going to be okay." Craig seemed oddly chipper. "I'm going to have a little girl. Or boy. I'll get to raise it and be the best dad I can." He smiled dreamily.
"Uh, Craig?" Joey stared at him. "Aren't you forgetting a little something?"
"What?"
"Uh, the fact that you're fifteen, don't have a job, have yet to finish high school..."
Craig waved his hand. "Joey, it'll be fine. I mean sure it's going to be hard but I'm going to have a family. My own little family. With Manny and our baby." Craig looked so happy, Joey hated to burst his bubble.
"Craig, it isn't going to be all sunshine and roses. How are you going to afford things? How are you going to take care of the baby and still go to school? How could you be so irresponsible?"
Craig frowned. "Irresponsible? No that's the one thing I'm not going to be. Not anymore. Joey you shouldn't worry so much. It makes you miss out on a lot of things." He got up and put his plate in the sink. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go somewhere very important." He left, leaving Joey stunned, and holding wet socks in one hand, and the other hand up to his forehead.
"Oh boy."
By the time Manny awoke that morning, Emma had already left for school, claiming she had an early meeting. The two girls had been avoiding each other as much as possible since they had their fight the day before.
Manny was excited and dreading the day at the same time. It would be her first real picture of the baby. The situation was both terrifying and exhilarating.
Spike drove her to the clinic and dropped her off before heading to work. She wished her luck and promised to pick her up whenever she called.
It was only a few minutes before Dr. Perone called Manny into a room.
"Hello Manny," the doctor said warmly. She motioned for Manny to lie down on the bed. After running some other tests, she told her it was time for the sonogram. Manny took a deep breath as Dr. Perone pulled the machine next to the bed.
Just as she was lifting her shirt, the door opened. Craig entered the room, looking breathless but smiling.
"Craig?" Manny was stunned.
"Hey, Manny." Craig came to stand by the bed.
"I'll be back in a few minutes," Dr. Perone said with a smile. She left the room quickly, closing the door gently behind her.
"Craig...what are you doing here?" Manny propped herself up on her elbows.
Craig pulled a stool over and sat in it then took Manny's hand. "Because I was a fool and I want to make it up to you." He glanced at her stomach. "And to our baby."
Manny was dumbfounded. "You-you mean you want to be involved?"
Craig nodded. "More than anything. I'm so sorry for the way I've been acting. I had a couple of wake-up calls, thank God. See, the reason why I reacted the way I did and the reason why I broke up with you was because I was terrified of losing someone else I cared about like I lost my mom and dad and Angie."
"Of course and it's expected that you would be afraid of that," Manny said, rubbing his hand.
"Yeah, only I just now realized that living my life like that, I might as well be dead too." Craig's eyes were shining with unshed tears but his face was happy. "I'll still miss them all more than anything, but with Joey and you and this baby...you won't replace them but you can maybe be my new family."
Manny felt a tear slip out of her eye and down her cheek. She leaned forward and kissed Craig hard on the lips. As he kissed her back, for the first time in months, she didn't feel so alone.
Dr. Perone came back a few minutes later. "Are we all ready to go?"
Manny nodded, smiling broadly.
"Hi, I'm the lucky father, Craig," Craig said, sticking out his hand. Dr. Perone shook it firmly.
"Nice to meet you, Craig. I'm Dr. Perone. You're just in time." She smeared a clear gel onto Manny's stomach. "Here we go."
Craig gripped Manny's hand tightly. His heart was beating a mile per minute and he felt like he was going to throw up. In a good way.
Suddenly, a loud thumping noise filled the room and Craig jumped. "What's that?"
"That's your baby's heartbeat," Dr. Perone told him.
Manny looked at Craig, her brown eyes shining. "Oh God. It's so fast."
"Don't worry, that's normal." Dr. Perone moved the instrument along Manny's stomach. "Here look." She pointed to the screen. "That's your baby."
Craig squinted and managed to make out a squirming black and white figure on the monitor beside him. "Is it a boy or a girl?"
"It's a little too early to tell."
Manny squeezed Craig's hand. "Isn't it beautiful?"
"Yeah it's incredible." Craig reached out a trembling hand to touch the screen. It was really there, growing inside Manny's stomach.
"I'm going to print out a copy for you two to keep."
Craig kissed Manny on the forehead. "I can't wait until it's born."
"Me too." As Manny spoke the words, she realized how deeply she meant it. For a long time, she had been looking at this baby as a burden, as something that was going to ruin her life. Now she realized how much she really wanted to just hold it in her arms.
"Here you go." The doctor handed Manny the sheet. She smiled down at her baby.
"Thank you."
After talking for a few minutes more and setting up a later appointment, Craig and Manny left the office. Manny headed for the payphone but Craig grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door instead. "Come on, let's take a walk."
"Okay." Manny followed him down the street to the park. The sun was a lightbulb in the blue ceiling that was the sky. It was still a bit cold out and Manny shivered as they walked. Craig put his arm around her, pressing her close to him. They reached the park and seated themselves on the swings.
Manny spoke first. "So what was it that made you change your mind?"
Craig smiled. "Actually, I had a couple of visitors yesterday."
"Oh yeah? Who?"
"First JT." Craig chuckled. "He called me a jerk."
Manny laughed. "Really? I can't believe he did that."
"Yeah, he's a good guy." Craig started to swing slightly. "And then Ash came over."
Manny raised her eyebrows. "Ashley?"
"Yeah. She told me what she did. She's real sorry about it, Manny. And she did help me figure out a lot of the stuff I told you about before." Craig dragged his feet on the ground, slowing the swing. He wasn't ready to tell anyone about the dream yet. Maybe someday, in the future, but not yet.
Manny took all of this in. "Well I guess it doesn't matter. The point is, is that you came today."
"Yeah...hey, what do you think we should name the baby?" Craig asked suddenly.
"Um, I dunno," Manny replied, a bit thrown off by the question. "Why, do you have something in mind?"
Craig shrugged. "Oh, I don't know, Jordan for a boy, and Mandy for a girl."
Manny grinned. "Someone's been thinking about this."
Craig shrugged again. "When I was younger, I sometimes thought about this kind of stuff."
"So why those two names?"
"Well, Jordan was in this book that I used to read when I was a kid. I wanted to be just like him. When, um, my parents used to f-fight, I would just close my door and get lost in the story."
Manny smiled tenderly at him. "And what about Mandy?"
Craig half-smiled as he thought back. "Well, my mom was a huge Barry Manilow fan. That song was always playing when she was alive."
"What was your mother like? That is, if you want to talk about it," Manny added quickly.
Craig nodded. "Sure. Um, well let's see. We used to live in British Columbia. Big house. She was a kindergarten teacher so she was always home when I got home from school." He chuckled. "It always smelt like something when I got home."
"She baked a lot?" Manny asked.
Craig grinned. "Yeah she was always trying different recipes but none of them ever quite came out like they were supposed to. My dad was always complaining about it." The smile left his face and Manny saw a hint of the Craig that she had seen at the hospital after his sister died.
"So you said she listened to Barry Manilow a lot?" Manny said, quickly changing the subject.
"Yeah, she used to sing a lot. She had a good voice. Used to sing to me when I was little." Craig suddenly didn't want to talk about his mother anymore. "It's getting late," he said, looking at his watch. "You should call Spike before she starts to worry." He got up and led Manny to a nearby pay phone. She made the call and they began to walk back to the clinic.
Craig was silent as he thought about the future as well as his past. He vowed right then and there that he would never turn out like his father. He was going to do everything in his power to protect his child and never lose his temper.
Craig's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a horn blasting. He looked up to see a black car pull over to the curb right beside him. In the drivers seat was a guy he didn't know but leaning out the passenger side window was Jay, one of Sean's new friends.
"Hey, Manning!" he shouted.
Craig squinted in the sunlight at the car, trying to look as tough as he could.
Jay grinned, looking Manny up and down. "Nice job getting it on with Miss Santos. Too bad you knocked her up." He laughed loudly before the car sped off.
Craig balled his hands into fists, wishing he could chase after them and slam Jay's head against the wall. He looked over at Manny who was staring at the ground. "Hey, Manny, don't worry about what they said. They're idiots. Morons. Imbeciles."
"Yeah but you didn't see everyone in school yesterday. They were pretty much acting just like that." Manny started to walk again, slightly farther away from Craig.
Craig closed the gap between them and took Manny's hand. "Come on, Manny, you know that they have no idea what they're talking about. What we're going through is something that they'll never understand."
"I guess." Manny looked at Craig suddenly. "What do you think about abortion?"
