Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months. None of the three friends heard from the fourth. Although they left messages daily, it was all slient on the other end. As Dan's lack of presence lengthened, a certain bitterness grew in Phil; a deep betrayal of his love had been commited and he only felt an empty numb, feeling when he thought about Dan, which was daily. Jennifer also felt an anger and hurt towards Dan that no one fully understood, not even herself. Maybe it came from her broken home life or something much deeper.
Either way, this hate expanded as her body did in the beauty and torture of pregenancy.
Until one fateful day...
I was crying, again, watching a favorite childhood show of mine. It never ceased to amaze me how much nostalgia pregenancy brought. I enjoyed the simplicity and the seer joy the show brought back to me through rewatching it. Then, something snapped inside me as they sang just one more song and told me that I was really smart.
After eight months and two weeks of brooding emotions and trails, I had had enough. I stumbled off the couch and waddled into the bedroom where I had kept my whole life. It was a little dusty since I only used the room for storage. PJ had insisted that I have the better bed then I had insisted he slept, and only slept, next to me. I couldn't stand to be alone anymore, even though I was never quite alone, what with towing around two fetuses under my shirt.
I packed a quick bag and headed out the door. I flagged down a taxi just as PJ turned the corner and began walking up our lane.
"Jennifer?" He called as the cab pulled up to the curb. I turned out of habit.
"I'm sorry." I said as a cold breeze blew past me and into him. He took off at a run as the taxi driver loaded my bag into the trunk.
"Jennifer! What are you doing?" He yelled at me. "Wait!" He cried as I slammed the door shut and told the driver my destination: London City Airport. "Where are you going?" He screamed as the tires screeched down the quite street. I received text after text from him demanding an explaintion. My simple reply back was: 'I'm going home. I'm sick of Britain and I want to see my own messed up family instead of helping to start another one.' Then he told me I'd never be allowed on an airplane with so little time left in my pregenancy, how I was kiddnapping Phil's unborn children, and things of that nature. He texted the one thing that would grab my attention: 'I'm telling Phil.'
I hit call and upon pick up I growled "You better not!"
"Nice to hear your voice." He snapped back. "Jennifer, they aren't going to let you on a plane; you're too far along and travel would be bad for not only yourself, but the babies as well." I looked down at my enormous globe of a stomach and patted it gentltey. The babies replied by kicking back, one softly and the other, rather hard.
"PJ, I can't stand to see these two going into what I grew up around. I can't let them be in a family that's broken. I want to give them what I never had!" By now I was crying again which caused the driver to ask me
"You all right, Miss?" I nodded and motioned for him to drive on.
"But what does that have to do with you kiddnapping them?" PJ asked frustratedly.
"If I take them home, then my family will help us and we'll live life as Americans, just like I did growing up." I stated matter of factly.
"Jennifer, you have pregenancy brain! You're not thinking straight, there's no way you'll get to America and even if you did, what makes you think your family will take you in again?" PJ reasoned. I was about to hang up when he said "Don't hang up, I'm sorry. But I have other reasons for not wanting to let you go."
"Really, what are they?" I asked as I began to see airplanes flying overhead.
"Well, one is I love you and I never want to be away from you. Another is I love you and you getting kicked out of your apartment was the best thing that could ever happen in the history of the world. My favorite reason though is I love you and you are my best friend and I don't want to lose you." PJ's voice cracked on the word 'lose' and I heard him sniffling which broken my heart.
"You love me?" I questioned. "Why?" This got a throaty, watery chuckle out of him.
"Because you are the most amazing and kindest person I have and will have ever known and I don't want to lose that." PJ confessed.
"PJ, what are you saying?" I questioned, thinking I knew where this was going but not completely sure.
"Jennifer, please say you'll-..." The line went dead the second we entered that tunnel.
"No!" I yelled and let my head fall back into the leather seat in frustration.
"Sorry Miss." The driver apologzied softly. "But after this tunnel it's a hop, skip and a jump to the airport. Do you still want to go?" He asked a little louder. I looked out the window and saw my reflection. I looked how I felt: tired, fat and miserable all at the same time. It would be nice to have others care for me and the babies like a family does in times of births.
"Drive on." I said loud enough to be heard. Just because PJ loves me, doesn't mean I should stay... Right?