Cate's grief and despair quickly turned into anger.
Cate had gone through the pregnancy alone. At the age of sixteen, Cate thought bitterly.
She had nearly lost her best friend during the pregnancy. She hadn't been as close as she once was with Alice since the pregnancy. Cate doubted if their friendship would ever completely recover.
Cate had missed school and struggled to catch up after giving birth. Her goal of being Valedictorian and getting a scholarship to college was on the line as a result. After two years of working so hard to get straight A's, Cate though miserably. It was all for nothing.
Cate had been working her butt off since giving birth. Literally. She'd worked out every single day to regain her trim figure.
Cate had been dividing her time between school, work and visiting Lux in the hospital. It was overwhelming, to say the least. She'd never imagined she'd feel even more exhausted than she had at the pinnacle of her pregnancy, but she did. There simply weren't enough hours in the day to get everything done.
Cate had spent most of her miniscule paycheck on clothes for Lux. Clothes that wouldn't fit Lux for long, Cate knew.
What had Baze done, Cate thought angrily. He'd pretended that he'd never even slept with her, much less gotten her pregnant.
He hadn't had to tell his parents. He hadn't had to hide the truth from his friends. He hadn't had to miss school. He hadn't spent a dime on his daughter. He hadn't had to do anything, Cate thought resentfully.
Baze had gotten off scot-free while Cate was left to single-handedly deal with the fall-out of their hook-up.
No. Baze had gone on living a perfectly normal life as though nothing had changed when everything had changed. Cate's world had been turned upside down.
Baze would be at the football game right now, Cate knew. Everyone would be cheering for him. His biggest concern was winning a stupid football game. He didn't know or care that his daughter was fighting for her life.
That was about to change, Cate decided. She pulled a U-turn, heading toward the football stadium instead of her house.
The closer Cate got to the stadium, the angrier she got. By the time she pulled into the parking lot, she was fuming. She slammed the car door shut and stormed into the stadium, her face streaked with tears.
A few people asked her if she was OK. She ignored them. Most people just pointed and stared, snickering and wondering what she was doing. Cate Cassidy looked like she was on a mission.
Cate pushed her way through the crowd, making her way down to the bottom of the stands. She stood right behind the bench where the football team sat.
"Baze, I need to talk to you," Cate said.
Several of Baze's teammates stared at her, nudging each other and nodding toward Cate. Baze stared straight ahead at the football field.
"Nate Basille!" Cate said loudly, incensed that he was ignoring her again. "I know I'm not your usual type and you won't admit you slept with me, but I need to talk to you and I'm not taking no for an answer!"
Cate ignored the gasps and whispers from classmates who had heard her.
Baze finally turned to face Cate, his face bright red. He wanted to dye of embarrassment. All eyes were on them. "Yeah?" He muttered.
Cate smirked. She'd never seen the most popular guy at Westmonte look so ill at ease.
"Oh, so you can hear me?" Cate said, glaring at Baze. "You have a choice. We can do this here or in private."
Baze shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He didn't know what to do. He didn't want Cate to make a scene. Or, rather any more of a scene than she'd already made.
"Coach, can I be excused for a few minutes?" Baze asked.
The football coach frowned. "We're in the middle of a game!"
"I know. It's just…" Baze nodded awkwardly at Cate, who looked completely deranged.
"Make it quick," the coach said, nodding curtly.
Baze followed Cate. They weaved through the maze of people. Their classmates. Players' families. A few teachers and administrators. The stands were cluttered with football fans.
Baze's dad, John, was one of the parents watching from the stands. He saw his son leaving the football field and followed close behind.
Baze was trailing after some girl. John was not going to let his son throw his future away for one of his little girlfriends. Baze needed to get back in the game.
Baze's grades were crap. John knew his son would never get into a good college unless the school wanted Baze to play football.
Cate led the way to the parking lot. It was the only place where Baze would actually be able to hear her and they'd be away from prying eyes.
"Oh my gosh! You are the most selfish person on the planet!" Cate cried out once they were alone.
"That's ridiculous. Have you met everyone on the planet?" Baze shot back.
Cate rolled her eyes. "I know you have the emotional maturity of a two year old, but can you try to act like an adult for, like, ten seconds?"
"What do you want from me?" Baze said coolly.
"What do I want from you?" Cate repeated incredulously.
Baze stared at Cate expectantly.
"Are you kidding me? I don't know," Cate said sarcastically. "Let's see. I wanted you to not deny sleeping with me! I wanted you to actually call after you deflowered me in the back of a Minivan! I wanted you to acknowledge that I was pregnant with your child!"
Baze's expression changed from annoyed to horrified. His eyes were focused above Cate's head. Baze's inattention only served to make Cate even angrier.
"I want you to listen to me when I'm talking to you," Cate said emphatically, turning to see what Baze was looking at.
John stood behind them, his face ashen. He'd heard the tail end of Cate's rant.
"Excuse me. We're having a private conversation," Cate said abruptly.
John stared in shock. "Baze, is this true?"
Cate's expression was smug, as she silently dared Baze to deny it.
Baze stared at the pavement. "Yeah, it's true," he said quietly, not daring to meet his father's gaze.
"You…have a child?" John gasped.
Cate watched Baze. She had to admit she was enjoying watching Baze squirm. He deserved it.
"No," Baze mumbled.
Cate raised her eyebrows. "This should be good."
"You don't have a child?" John demanded, losing patience.
"I, uh, got her pregnant, but she took care of it," Baze said.
"No, I didn't," Cate retorted.
Both Baze and John stared at her.
"I didn't take care of it. I had our child. With absolutely no help from you," Cate said, her tone accusatory.
John turned to Baze. "Did you know she was pregnant?"
Baze nodded sheepishly.
"Why didn't you tell me?" John asked angrily.
Baze shrugged helplessly. "I was afraid you'd be disappointed in me."
John shook his head in disbelief. "I'm more disappointed in how you handled the situation than I would've been if you'd been honest."
"I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't know what to do. I was only sixteen," Baze said.
"So was I!" Cate interrupted. "I was only sixteen and I had to go through a pregnancy alone."
"I'm sorry," John apologized to Cate.
Cate's expression softened slightly. "It's not your fault." She glanced meaningfully at Baze.
"No, it's Baze's," John agreed. He turned to Baze. "You're almost eighteen. An adult. You'll be going to college in a year. When are you going to learn to take responsibility for your actions?"
"I'm sorry," Baze said again.
"Where is my grandchild?" John asked Cate gently.
Baze looked up curiously, wanting to know the answer.
"In the hospital," Cate muttered.
"Is he OK?" John said quickly, his voice laced with concern.
"She," Cate corrected. "Not really, no. She was born with a hole in her heart. She needs surgery to fix it. I can't afford to pay for her medical care."
Baze frowned. This was a lot to take in. He was only seventeen. He didn't want a kid. But, he couldn't help feel a little bad that his kid was in the hospital. He struggled with a mixture of unfamiliar emotions.
"I'll pay for it," John offered.
Cate breathed a sigh of relief. She felt new tears welling up in her eyes. This time Cate cried tears of relief and happiness. "Thank you so much."
"It's the least I can do," John replied, glaring at his son.