Author's Note: Someone so graciously pointed out to meet that I made a small mistake in my story! Bay is eighteen considering where my story began, not sixteen as originally stated. If I can figure out how to fix it, I will go back and do so. If not, I will simply leave this note here so everyone will know. Please enjoy the story. I love reading your reviews as much as I love writing!
Bay's jaw dropped ever so slightly and she leaned forward, placing her head in her hands. "It's positive?" She squeaked. Emmett waved his hand in front of Bay's face, bringing her out of her trance. "Bay? Say something." His signing was still very shaky. But Bay didn't know what to say. She had nothing to say except "I think I'm gonna-" and that was it. Emmett quickly grabbed the trashcan from beside the toilet and placed it in front of Bay just in time for her to, again, profusely vomit into it. Emmett gathered Bay's dark hair away from her face and gently rubbed his hand on her back, trying to comfort her. But how could she possibly be comforted in this situation?
And then Bay slumped into Emmett and began to sob. Emmett politely ignored the smell of vomit on her breath as he held her, her tears rolling off his leather jacket. He quickly ran through everything that had just happened. Bay had simply told him that she thought she was late. But Bay came and told him everything, regardless of if it involved him or not. Was she trying to tell him that…that he might be a father? She had been seeing Tank for quite some time, so surely they had been together already. Was Tank the father? And was it even appropriate for him to ask Bay these questions when she was like this?
Emmett handed Bay a tissue and kneeled in front of her. "What do you need to me do?" He asked. Regardless of whose baby was growing inside of her, he loved her and he wanted nothing more than to make this okay. Bay shook her head. "You could wake me up from this bad dream." She said sadly. Emmett shook his head. "No. Don't talk like that. You'll be miserable. I don't want that for you. I sort of meant more along the lines of…do you need me to take you to see Tank?" Emmett had decided that this was a subtle enough way to find out whose baby this was without directly asking.
Bay looked confused. "Why would I need to go see Tank?" She asked. Emmett shrugged. "Shouldn't he be involved with this?" He signed. Bay suddenly realized that although she had told Emmett that she might be pregnant, she had failed to mention that he was the father. Although this still offended her slightly. Why would she tell him first if she thought the baby belonged to Tank? "Emmett, I never slept with Tank. The baby…the baby is yours." She said shyly. She had not even considered the fact that Emmett might leave.
Emmett pursed his lips together. Even though he knew there was a possibility, it was an entirely new reality for him to have Bay tell him that she was pregnant with his child. Emmett placed his fingers against Bay's flat stomach and looked at her. "I'm going to be a father?" Emmett signed, shaking more now than ever. Bay shrugged. "I mean…yes and no, I guess? Look, I don't know exactly what I'm going to do here. I haven't had much time to think this through." Emmett moved his hand and furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean? What's there to think through?" He asked. "Um…I mean what I'm going to do about this situation. What I'm going to do with this…thing in me." Emmett didn't want to be angry, but he was starting to become just that. What was Bay planning on doing with his baby? With THEIR baby? "That thing is my baby. Our baby! What exactly are you thinking about doing?" His signing was becoming harsher, more frantic.
Bay scoffed. "You can't seriously think that we're ready for this right now. We're in high school, Emmett. We have our whole lives ahead of us." Emmett was becoming much more frustrated than he wanted to be. "We can still have lives with our baby. We may not be ready but that doesn't matter. We didn't use anything. That's not the baby's fault." Bay shook her head. "Okay, first of all, please stop calling it a baby. And second of all, I just said I'm not sure what I'm doing yet. There are plenty of options out there for me."
Emmett stood up and turned his back to Bay, trying to calm himself a bit before he said something he would regret. "Bay, I am not okay with this. I plan to be a father to my child. I want you to give me the chance to do that!" Bay was taken aback by how strongly Emmett felt about this situation. She was pleased that he wanted so badly to take responsibility for what they had done, but she just couldn't wrap her mind around the thought of being a mother.
"Emmett, I am eighteen years old and I have no clue what I'm doing with my life right now. How am I supposed to be responsible for another human life? My parents are going to freak as it is! How do you think they'd react if I told them that I wanted to have a baby and keep it?" Emmett held his hands up and shook his head. "That's not the point, Bay. This may not be what you planned for but it's happening. I didn't plan to become a father at eighteen but here I am. And now I think it's time for you to accept that this is our reality now. We're going to become parents. And we both have to be responsible."
Bay shook her head. "I don't have to do anything that I'm not entirely comfortable with. And like I said, I haven't had any time to think this through. I don't even know how I feel about it yet. All I know is that I'm eighteen and pregnant and scared and…and I don't know exactly what I want to do yet. But I'd like your support here." Emmett opened the bathroom door and began to walk away. He turned around suddenly. "I have already told you that I am ready to be a father to my baby. I will support you AND my baby. But that's it. If you think I'm going to support you getting rid of our baby…think again." And with that…Emmett slammed the door and left.