Month Six: January 18

We were visiting again, just like we do every other weekend. I'd already stowed our bags away in my old room. We'd said our hellos. Now it was time for dinner, and Cammie wouldn't let me forget it. "I'm eating for two!" She'd always say, smiling all motherly-like and poking at her belly. I loved it.

She was on her second portion of chef's butter-poached lobster tail. I was just watching her. And laughing. She could eat like a grown man nowadays. Somehow, she managed to look refined while shoving dead crustacean meat down her throat. She caught me staring and smiled.

"Zach, you're wasting away!" She pointed at my plate, half empty.

I snorted. "We can't all be pregnant ya know."

She shrugged and took a swig of apple juice.

The Gallagher staff began clearing away leftovers and setting the dessert course. Baked Alaska. A three-layer chocolate cake. Crème brulee. Apple tarts and gelato. How did they find time for all of this?

Cammie licked her fingers and wiped them with a napkin, her official sign for 'I'm done'. I stood and swiped away her plate.

"Hey!" She pouted at me. "I can take care of my dishes! I'm not disabled."

"Hey!" I mimicked her. "I can take care of my girl! I'm not disabled." I placed a hand on my hip for effect. She pushed her lips together in a desperate attempt to hold back obnoxiously loud laughs. She resembled a mentally-challenged seal.

I took our dishes to the kitchen and dumped them into the sink. When I came back out, Cammie wasn't at our table. No, she was lined up by the buffet, tapping her lips in question and surveying the newest portions. I rolled my eyes.

"Cam," I walked up behind her and slipped the tiny plate from her fingers. "C'mon, this stuff is full of sugar and calories. I don't want you eating junk. Have some fruit instead."

She turned around in my arms. Her face looked different. She wasn't smiling. Her forehead was all scrunched together, but not in the cute confused way. It was in the angry, offended way. Her eyebrows were raised up high at the edges and bent down menacingly at the center.

I backed away. "What?"

Cammie blew air out of her nose like a bull. Then she said it, real slow, sharp like a needle. "You jerk." She stormed out awkwardly, leaving me stranded. And clueless.

"So, uh…"I drew a breath. "…I'm sorry?"

No response.

I continued. "I didn't mean it." Didn't mean what? I didn't even know what I was apologizing for. My only hope was that I could lure her out of the bathroom. Maybe then she could explain what just happened.

There was some whimpering on the other end of the door. My chest tightened painfully.

"Oh Cam… Cam, tell me you're not crying." I am a horrible person. How could I make her cry? "Cammie, please."

I heard the lock turn. I twisted the doorknob and stepped in. She was sitting cross-legged on the tile floor, her head leaned against the wall. And she was, in fact, crying.

"Cam!" I whisper-yelled, dropping down on my knees. "What in the world is wrong?"

She sniffled and hugged her chest tightly, shaking her head.

"Hey, c'mon. I can fix it." I touched the ends of her hair and lightly twisted my fingers through them.

She peeked at me. Her eyes were puffy now and her face was pinkish. I raised my hand to her cheek and ran my thumb under her eye, catching the leftover tears.

"Now what's up?"

She took all these short weighted breaths, and then she said "You think I'm fat"

I closed my eyes, running my free hand over my face. Then I shook my head at her. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds Cam? How could I think you're fat?"

Cammie continued to sniffle. "Look at me!" She wailed. "I'm like a flipping whale! I eat twice as much as you!"

I pressed my hands to her stomach. She tried to brush them away, but it kept them there. "This," I dipped my head, motioning to her tummy, "is not fat. It's a baby."

She scoffed.

"Cammie," I said it in a low, serious voice. "You're perfectly normal. You've gained what, seventeen pounds?"

She gave a sparse nod.

"And if you read all the books like I did, you'd know that a healthy weight gain is twenty-five to thirty-five pounds."

Her lips quirked up a bit. I guessed she was remembering all the nights she'd catch me staying up with What to Expect When You're Expecting.

"So," I rubbed my thumbs over her bump. "Our little James is practically starving in there."

She groaned. "Where do you suppose all that lobster goes Zach?"

I smiled at her. "Well maybe if you didn't insist on training three hours a day, it'd stay in there."

I could tell she was running out of arguments, so I took my chance. "Now let's go." I stood and offered her my hand. She took it. "You might get some disease, lying around on bathroom floors. Wouldn't be good."

She grinned. "I was sitting."

I pulled her close and wrapped my arms around her protectively. "Germs are evil little things. They'll get ya one way or another." She rolled her eyes.

Then we went back to the dining hall. And shared a bowl of ice cream.

Well. I really don't have much to say about that other than YES! School has been awfully busy and I've been in the gym all week. So… HALLELUJAH! I did something! This is a miracle! Thank you all for being so patient with me. I know I don't update nearly as much as I should. However, I hope you enjoy. Don't forget to review! God Bless!

~SpaceNut