"Baze didn't want to come?" Cate asked once they were in the car on the way home.
She didn't know why she was surprised. Baze had made it pretty clear that he didn't want to have anything to do with Lux.
"Of course not," John muttered, his tone disparaging. "I don't know what you ever saw in my son. You seem so responsible and mature. Baze couldn't be any more immature if he tried."
Cate looked down, embarrassed.
"No offense," John said quickly, realizing he'd made Cate uncomfortable. "I just…I want you to know I'm impressed with how you've handled…everything."
John wasn't used to giving compliments or praise. He'd rarely had a reason to dole them out to his own son. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
Cate smiled. "Thanks. You're so nice. I can't believe Baze is your son. He's nothing like you."
John shook his head. "I know," he muttered.
John pulled up in front of Cate's house.
"Thanks again," Cate said, as she got out of the car.
"Baze!" John bellowed when he got home.
"He's sleeping," John's wife, Ellen, said.
"It's almost noon," John said, glancing at his Rolex.
He stormed upstairs and threw the door to Baze's bedroom open. John flipped the light switch.
Baze groaned. "I'm sleeping," he whined.
"Not anymore," John said firmly. "Get up. You're coming with me."
Baze yawned. "Where are we going?"
"To the hospital," John said. His tone left no room for argument. "Get dressed."
Baze threw sweats on. He went downstairs and found his parents in the kitchen.
"Good morning," Ellen said, cheerful as always. "What do you want for breakfast?"
"French toast," Baze said, smiling at his mother.
Ellen prepared Baze's breakfast and served it to him. Baze didn't bother to say thank you. He devoured the French toast hungrily. He set the dirty plate on the kitchen counter, knowing Cindy would wash it.
John noticed and frowned. "Let's go."
"I want to go, too," Ellen said, surprising both John and Baze.
Baze grinned, glad his mother would be there. John wouldn't give Baze too hard a time in front of Ellen. Ellen would stick up for Baze.
John's frown deepened. "Lux isn't well."
"Lux?" Ellen said.
John smiled slightly. "That's her name. Our granddaughter."
Baze smirked. "How'd Cate come up with that weird name?"
John glared at his son. "Maybe if you'd taken responsibility for your daughter, you could have helped come up with a name."
"John," Ellen said reproachfully. "It is a bit odd."
"It means light. She has blonde hair like you. Her mother and Baze both have dark hair," John explained.
Ellen smiled.
John returned the smile and reached for Ellen's hand. "And she has Nate's eyes. She's beautiful."
"I can't wait to see her," Ellen said.
John frowned and squeezed his wife's hand. "She's not well. You need to be prepared. She's on a ventilator."
Ellen looked unconcerned.
They piled into the car. Baze immediately put headphones on, listening to his portable disc player instead of his parents.
"Ellen, we can't hold her," John warned.
Ellen frowned for the first time. "Why not?"
"She's too susceptible to infection," John said.
"I don't understand. What's wrong with her?" Ellen said, pouting slightly.
"She has a hole in her heart," John explained.
"Is she going to be OK?" Ellen asked.
"Yes. I'll call the top cardiac surgeon first thing Monday morning," John said.
"Surgeon?" Ellen frowned.
"Yes, she needs surgery to repair the defect," John said patiently.
They pulled into a parking spot in front of the hospital. John led the way to the nursery.
"This is Lux," John said softly, peering into Lux's basinet.
"Oh," Ellen said. "She's hooked up to machines and a ventilator. She's so little. She looks like she's going to break."
John put his arm around Ellen. "I tried to tell you. She's not well."
Ellen bit her lip.
Lox opened her eyes and looked around curiously. There were a lot of new faces.
"Oh, she has Nate's eyes," Ellen murmured, smiling at the baby blues.
Baze had been hovering a few feet away. He approached the basinet interestedly. "She does?"
Ellen nodded proudly.
Baze stared at the baby. "She does." He smiled slightly.
Baze studied his daughter. "She kinda looks like me."
"Because she's your child. Even though you've done absolutely nothing for her," John muttered.
Lux started crying, her wails getting louder and louder.
Baze looked as though he'd been shocked. He backed away from the basinet.
He stumbled into another basinet and the baby that had been sleeping peacefully in it woke up and cried, too.
"Look what you did," John said, his tone accusatory.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to," Baze mumbled.
"Just get out of here," John said angrily.
Baze obeyed. He didn't really know what to do anyway. He'd only been around his kid for a few minutes and he'd made her cry.
Baze didn't know anything about kids. He didn't have any siblings. He'd never babysat. Lux was the first baby he'd seen, Baze realized.
Baze buried his head in his hands. How had this happened to him? One minute he'd been a perfectly happy teenager. The next he was a father, Baze thought bitterly.
Cate and his father acted like he was horrible for not wanting a kid. Who wants a kid at seventeen? No one, Baze thought.
He wasn't such a bad guy. Most people would do the same thing, Baze reassured himself.
He wanted to be a normal teenager. He wanted to finish high school. Play football. Go to college. Just like everyone else.
So what if he didn't want to change diapers and wake up at the crack of dawn because Lux was crying? Who would?
Why wasn't Cate on the pill? Most girls were, Baze knew.
He'd slept with his fair share of girls and none of them had gotten pregnant. Hell, he'd slept with the entire cheerleading squad, Baze thought with a grin.
And he'd worn a condom. He'd done his part. This was all Cate's fault. She'd ruined his life, Baze thought miserably.
She should've had an abortion. Or given the kid up for adoption. What was wrong with her? Who chooses to have a kid at seventeen?
As if having the kid weren't enough, Cate had humiliated him at the football game. Now everyone knew he'd slept with the biggest dork in school and lied about it. Cate had seen to that, Baze thought resentfully.
His cheeks burned remembering the scene Cate had made at the game.
Cate had single-handedly ruined his reputation and his relationship with his father. His dad had been so proud of him just hours earlier.
Baze remembered the look of pride on John's face when he handed over the keys to Baze's new car.
"The starting quarterback needs a new car," John had said, grinning.
Now John only looked disappointed when he made eye contact with Baze, Baze thought miserably. He didn't know if his dad would ever be proud of him again.
"Are you OK?"
Baze looked up.
A pretty young nurse was smiling at him.
Baze grinned, turning on the charm. "Yeah. Hi. I'm Baze."
"I'm Alex." Alex smiled.
John and Ellen emerged from the nursery.
"Typical. You're flirting with a nurse while I take care of your daughter," John muttered, glaring at Baze.
Alex frowned. "You have a kid?"
When Alex saw John, her frown deepened. "Oh my gosh. You're Lux's father?"
Baze looked up, surprised.
"It's about time you made an appearance," Alex scolded, hands on her hips. "Cate has been here every day. You've yet to darken the doorway."
"Cate actually acts her age. My son still acts like a little kid," John retorted.
Baze stared at the tile floor, embarrassed.
"Come on. Let's go," John said.
Baze trailed after his parents.