CHAPTER EIGHT

December 31st

17 weeks

"What's that supposed to mean!" Cat snapped.

"Nothing!" Robbie said. "Just, you're growing really fast, I didn't think you'd be so big so fast."

"So I'm fat?"

"I didn't say that."

"You might as well have!" Cat said, getting up from the couch and storming out of the living room.

Robbie sighed and April stared at him for a few seconds.

"You should just like... not comment on how big she's getting," April said. "She's really moody lately."

"I noticed, thanks."

"C'mon, Rob - you know she's sensitive. She'll probably be like this through the rest of her pregnancy."

"Lucky me."

"So... she's always saying she's 'ridiculously horny' these days. Have y'all done the dirty yet?"

"No? She's pregnant."

April snorted. "So? Do you know how many people have sex when they're pregnant? It's totally normal. Plus, you know, I heard when it gets closer to delivery, you can actually start labor with sex. It'd be a good idea, cause there's no way she's not gonna have problems."

"What kind of problems?"

"She's tiny stature-wise. It's gonna hurt her a lot when she has the baby. It'd just be a good idea to give her a little pleasure before she has to go through the pain that's partly your fault."

Robbie rolled his eyes. "We're seventeen, we don't need to have sex."

April's brows raised. "...Where the fuck was that logic before you got my sister knocked up?"

"Apparently not where it should have been."

"Are you staying the night tonight?"

"Yeah. She asked me to. She says the roads will be dangerous, and I don't feel like driving and getting killed."

April stayed silent for a few seconds before sighing and resting her head on his shoulder. "Yeah..."

"Sorry..." he said, resting his cheek on her head. "I forget sometimes."

"It's fine. We can't expect you to remember. It didn't happen to you."

"Happy New Year, Valentines!" Trina's voice called from the foyer.

"Living room!"

The Vega sisters walked into the living room, Trina sitting next to April and Tori sitting on the arm of the couch.

"Where's Cat?" Tori asked.

"In her room. Her boyfriend made her cry," April said.

"Now she's gonna be a Debbie Downer, thanks a lot Robbie," Trina said.

"I'll go talk to her," Tori said before leaving the room.

April giggled, playing with the necklace around her neck.

"What?" Robbie asked.

"I'm the middle of a best friend sandwich," April said.

"I'm not his friend," Trina said.

"No, but you're both my best friends. I'm the jelly."

"Have you been taking Cat's special vitamins?"

"No. It just popped in my head."

"We're losing her," Robbie said.

"The day she starts telling us what her purple giraffe did will be a sad day," Trina agreed.

"Cat?" Tori asked, walking into the redhead's room.

Cat sniffled and turned over in her bed to face her friend. "Hi..."

"Hi," she said, closing the door behind her. "How you feeling?"

"Like I wanna stab Robbie in the penis for doing this to me," she said, running her hand over her belly.

"Hey now, you helped him do that to you," Tori said, walking to the bed and laying next to her.

"Yeah but, he's the one that didn't pull out in time so I'm blaming him."

"That's a good argument, but you both participated. So, how was your first two weeks of work? Mom says you're doing really great."

"It was good. It gets a little boring during the slow hours, but it's not horrible."

"I heard you kinda got into it with one of the other workers' kid."

"That little bitch called me a slut. All I did was tell her to mind her own business and that what goes on with my vagina isn't her concern."

"Mom told me. She thought it was hilarious."

"I just know one of these days she's gonna fire me."

"No she won't. What makes you say that?"

"I'm getting really mouthy. These hormones are the worst! I yelled at Chris this morning for touching my hair. I've never done that before. I always let him play with my hair, and I yelled at him."

"Well, you're emotional. You don't like to be touched sometimes."

"Chris doesn't understand that, though. He doesn't realize that it's the baby that's doing it, he just knows that his sister was mean to him."

"Did you try to explain it to him?"

"No... his brain doesn't work like that."

"How does it work then?"

"It depends. Some days, I don't even know. He's really excited for the baby. He's really mad at me though because he thinks I ate it."

Tori snorted. "Come on, that's cute."

"Yeah, it is," Cat giggled. She looked down to her growing belly, sighing as she ran her finger over it. "I can't wait to meet her..."

"Me, either. I wanna hold her."

"I get first dibs."

"Of course."

The girls were silent for minutes before they heard a strange thump from down the hall.

"What the hell was that?" Tori asked.

"Chris. He probably knocked over his bookshelf again," Cat said as she got up from the bed.

Tori followed her friend down the hall in case Chris needed help, but the second the door to his room was opened, her eyes fell on the most disturbing and terrifying thing she'd ever seen in her life; Chris was hanging from the ceiling fan with a rope around his neck. Cat's ear-piercing scream brought her out of her daze.

"Mrs. Valentine!" Tori shouted as she ran downstairs. "Mrs. Valentine! It's an emergency!"

Tara ran out of the kitchen and placed her hands on the crying teen's shoulders. "What happened, are you okay?" she asked.

"Chris hung himself!"

The second the words left her mouth, Tara was darting up the stairs with Robbie following close behind before Tori, April and Trina made their way upstairs.

"Oh my god," April's voice cracked as she saw her brother.

"Get him down!" Cat shouted. "Please get him down, he can't breathe!"

"I need a knife," Robbie said as he lifted Chris's body up a little so the rope had some slack in it.

"I'll get one," Trina said before making her way back downstairs.

"One of you girls go call 9-1-1, the other get Cat out of here," Tara said.

"I'll call the ambulance," Tori said as she got her phone out of her pocket, hoping it wasn't too late to save her friend's brother.

"Mom!"

Tara turned around from speaking to a nurse when she heard Jade's voice. The teen ran to her and she wrapped her arms around her, rubbing her back.

"What happened? Is he okay?" Jade asked.

"He hung himself," Tara said. "He's alive. That's all that matters."

"God, what could... what would make him do such a thing?"

"It's Chris, honey. You know how he gets."

Unfortunately, Jade knew exactly how Chris could get. She'd known him her entire life and she's seen many suicide attempts. Even though they were all used to this type of behavior, that didn't make it any easier to deal with.

Her blue eyes scanned the waiting room for Cat and April. Once she spotted them she looked at Tara. "I'm gonna go sit with the girls. How's Cat?"

"She's shaken. She and Tori found him."

Jade walked over to the twins, sitting next to Cat and tucking a piece of red hair behind her ear. "Cat..."

Cat sniffled. "...he could have died," she whispered.

"He's fine, though. He's alive."

"It's my fault..."

"No it's not. Why would you think that?"

Cat didn't respond, she just let out a sob and leaned into her best friend, who wrapped her arms around her.

"She lost her shit on him this morning," April said. "She was in a mood and he touched her hair and she went off on him. She thinks that's why he did it."

"Cat... he didn't do this because of you. He did this because of his head. He's not there. He's handicapped, this is not your fault. You can't think like that."

"If I hadn't yelled at him..." Cat's voice cracked.

"It's Chris, Catey..." April said. "He would have done it either way. You know how he is."

"I want Robbie..."

"Where is he?" Jade asked.

"Our house with Tori and Trina," April said. "Tori was with Cat when she found him. She was still talking to the police when we came up here, and Robbie stayed behind to be there with them and to watch the house."

"Maybe we should call him to come up. Tori and Trina can house sit."

"He doesn't have his car. His mom dropped him off, and Tori and Trina walked."

"I'll go pick him up then. Call him and let him know. I'll be back soon. Keep an eye on her, make sure she's not showing any major signs of distress. We don't want the baby to get the brunt of this."

January 5th

18 weeks

"But... Mom, we... we're sixteen, you can't leave us here by ourselves," April said.

When Chris was released from the hospital, he was immediately transferred to a mental institution in Idaho. Tara had informed the girls that she'd be moving to Idaho until Chris was stable enough to come home - whenever that would ever be.

"You'll be living with Nonna," Tara said. "I know this isn't light news, but your brother needs me right now."

"What about me?" Cat asked with tears in her eyes. "I need you right now too, I'm having a baby and I have no idea what to do, Mom... I can't do this by myself."

"I'll still help you, I'll just have to send money orders."

"I'm not talking about money! I'm talking about support! I don't know how to take care of a baby, I'll need you when she's born!"

"Cat, please calm down."

"Calm down!" Cat snapped, standing up from the couch. "My mother just told me she's leaving - willingly - and I have to live with my grandmother, and there's a baby due in five months and you want me to calm down!"

April pulled Cat back down to the couch. "Seriously calm down, we don't need that kid popping out any sooner than it has to."

"I know that this isn't ideal," Tara said. "If I could take you guys with me, I would."

"Why can't you? Can't we just... transfer schools? And go with you? I mean, we're old enough to stay at home on our own, but we can't... live on our own, Mom."

"You're not going to live on your own, you're going to live with Nonna."

"I don't wanna live with Nonna," Cat said. "I wanna live in the house I grew up in and bring my baby home to her nursery, not to a one bedroom apartment! There's no room in that house for me and April when we spend the night, how the hell are we gonna fit a baby into it too?"

"Honey, it'll be figured out. I promise."

"But what about when I'm having the baby? You can come back to be with me can't you?"

"I can't answer that right now, honey."

"That's great," Cat said, standing up again. "My brother's fucked up in the head so he takes priority over your grandchild. That's great."

"Catey," April said as Cat walked out of the room.

"I'm taking a walk."

"I'll go with her," she said to her mother before grabbing hers and Cat's coats and catching up with her. "Catey, you can't hold this over her head."

"Why can't I? She's leaving us. How are you not pissed off about this?"

"I am, but I'm more worried about you than myself."

"I can't have this baby alone, April."

"You're not going to be alone. Robbie will be there, Jade will be there, and I'll be there."

"You don't even wanna be there when she's born."

"I find it a little... gross... but, I'm your sister. And - and when Mom isn't around, it's my job to make sure you're okay, and if Mom can't be there, then I will be. I'll be with you the whole way. Through the pregnancy, through labor, through delivery, through her life... I'll be there."

Cat sniffled as her eyes filled with tears. "I'm terrified, April. I can babysit, no problem. I've never taken care of a baby overnight, let alone for eighteen years."

"You won't be taking care of a baby for eighteen years. They stop being babies at like... three."

"But I'll be responsible for her for the rest of my life."

"Yeah, you will - but so will the rest of us. We're going to help you. Robbie's going to be a big help, and I'll be living with you, so I'll be there day and night whenever you need me."

"She isn't your responsibility, April..."

"Hey," April said as she stopped walking and turned Cat to face her. "We came into this world together. We're a packaged deal. We stick together, no matter what. No matter how pissed off we get at each other, we always hug it out. No matter what our opinions are, we always support each other. No matter what our struggles are, we're there for each other. I'm not going to live in the same house as you and this baby and not help. I'm going to be there for you and for her, no matter what. You and the baby are my number one priority. You always will be."

Cat's eyes filled with tears, causing her cheeks to dampen. "I love you so much..." she said, hugging her sister.

"I love you too. Even if I don't show it or say it often, I do. More than anything. You're my big sister, I'll always be behind you, no matter what."

"But, you came out first."

"Baby B came out first."

"Yeah. You."

"You."

"My entire life is a lie."

"That's what I said."