CHAPTER 9

ONE MONTH LATER

I was laying in Billy's bed as I rested my head against the pillow. The past few days had been terrible with me. I was nauseated, throwing up, didn't feeling like I could eat anything, and just felt entirely drained. I was hoping the sickness would pass, but it didn't seem like it was going anywhere.

Billy came into the room to grab his jacket when he saw me still laying in bed.

"Aren't ya gonna get up today?" He asked as he pulled his jacket on.

"I still don't feel good," I mumbled as I continued to rest my head against the pillow.

"Maybe ya got what Tommy had last week," he said as came over to my side of the bed. "Ya gonna be alright?"

"Yeah, just go," I said as I waved him away and he placed a kiss on my forehead before he walked out of the room.

My phone started to go off from the stand and I picked it up to see that Chelsea was calling me.

"Hello," I said as I put the phone to my ear and put my head back down.

"Hey, girl. I was about to head out and go shopping. Want to come with?" She asked as I turned onto my back.

"I don't know. I haven't been feeling the best this morning," I said as I looked up at the ceiling.

"And you weren't feeling good the other day. What's up with you?"

"I don't know. Billy thinks that I might have what Tommy had last week."

"Well, just get dressed and come with me. Please?" She begged and a small smile formed on my lips.

"Give me 15 minutes," I said as I slowly sat up on the bed and brought my legs over the side.

"Yes, alright," she said and we both ended the called.

I slowly stood up from the bed and made my way out of the bedroom. I went into the bathroom and closed the door behind me as I started to get ready to go out with Chelsea. I brushed my teeth before I headed back into the bedroom to get dressed. I decided to wear a pair of black lounge pants, a pink AERO top, and a jean jacket. I pulled my hair up into a messy bun on top of my head and got my purse together before I headed out of the bedroom.

Just as I went to slip my shoes on, I heard a knock at the door. I looked through the peephole and saw Chelsea standing there. I grabbed my purse from the floor and opened the door as I stepped out into the hallway.

"Hey, ready to shop?" She asked and I nodded my head as we walked down the hallway together. "You feeling okay now that you got up?"

"A little. Not sure if I will eat anything while we're out," I said as we started to walk down the steps together.

We headed outside and walked over to her car. We both got into the car and she pulled out of the parking lot as we headed out to go shopping.

"So, have you two set a date yet?" She asked as she glanced over at me.

"We haven't really talked much about setting a date, but it probably won't be a big wedding. Just close friends," I said as I looked out the window.

"I can't believe he proposed to you. I never expected Billy to be that type of guy," she said with a smile. "You changed him, though," she said as she glanced over at me and I smiled a little.

"That's what Joe said," I said as I looked over at her. "But you know you are going to be my maid of honor," I said and she got excited as she continued to drive.

We arrived at the shopping center and I walked with Chelsea as she looked around at things.

"This is so cute," she said as she looked at a baby outfit that was hanging there and I nodded my head as I smiled a little. "I wish that I had a baby I could buy this for. This is so adorable," she said as she continued to look through the clothes. "Guess I'll have to wait until you and Billy have one," she said as she glanced over at me.

"I don't know if Billy really wants to have kids," I said as I shook my head.

"Don't you want them?" She asked and I nodded my head.

"Yeah, of course I want kids," I said as I looked around for the nearest bathroom. "I'll be right back," I said as I started to walk over towards the bathroom.

I felt nauseated again and I didn't want to release my contents onto the floor in the middle of the baby section. I walked into the bathroom and went into the one stall. I closed the door behind me and let whatever contents were in my stomach to go into the toilet. Once I felt like I was done, I flushed and stepped out of the stall to see Chelsea standing there.

"What is up with you?" She asked as I walked over to the sink to rinse my mouth out.

"I don't know," I said after I rinsed my mouth out and grabbed a paper towel to dry my mouth.

"Maybe you should go see a doctor," she said as we headed out of the bathroom together.

"Maybe," I said as we started to walk around again.

After a couple hours of shopping, we headed back to Stokley Hall. I went to hang out with Chelsea in her apartment, since Billy wasn't back. I was sitting on the couch watching TV when I felt something fall onto my lap. I picked up what was there and saw that it was a pregnancy test. I looked up to see Chelsea coming around to the front of me.

"What's this?" I asked as I held the test up.

"Go take it," she said as she sat down on the arm of the other chair in the room.

"Why?" I asked as I glanced at the test.

"Just go take it," she said with a small smile and I stood up from the couch.

I went into her bathroom, read the instructions, and proceeded to take the test.

"I don't know why you are making me do this," I said loud enough that she would be able to hear me.

I set the test down on the counter as I pulled my pants up and washed my hands.

"You can't seriously think that I'm pregnant," I said as I opened the door and she came over.

"We'll see what the test says," she said as she came into the bathroom and hovered over the test.

I rested my head back against the wall and closed my eyes, hoping that it wasn't positive. I didn't know how Billy would react if he found out that I was pregnant. He didn't really want kids.

"Oh...my...god," she said and started to squeal with excitement.

"What?" I asked as I felt my head start to pound in my chest and I came over to look at the test.

"You're pregnant!" She said in an excited voice as she started to jump up and down.

"What?" I quietly said as I looked at the test and saw two pink lines.

"This is so exciting!" She squealed as she gave me a hug.

"I'm pregnant," I quietly said as I set the test back down on the counter and hugged her back.

"Why am I the only one excited about this?" She asked as she pulled back to look at me.

"I don't know how Billy is going to react," I said as I shook my head and looked at her.

"Well, I will be there for you," she said with a smile as she looked at me and I nodded my head.

Later that evening, I was sitting on the couch watching TV with Chelsea when Billy and Joe came walking into the apartment.

"She's finally up," Joe said as soon as he saw me sitting there.

"How was your day?" I asked as I watched Billy grab a beer from the fridge.

"Good. What did you guys do today?" Billy asked before a took a swig from his bottle.

"We went shopping," I answered and glanced over at Chelsea.

She motioned for me to tell him about me being pregnant, but I shook my head.

"What are you two up to?" Joe asked as he saw the two of us interacting.

"Nothing," I said as I shook my head and looked between Joe and Billy.

"Girls are crazy," Joe said as he lit up a cigarette.

"So, Billy, you popped the question. When are you guys going to get married?" Chelsea asked as Billy sat down on the chair.

"What's it to ya?" Billy asked before he took another sip of his beer.

"Just wondering," Chelsea said with a small smile and he shook his head. "What about kids?" She asked and I looked over at her as I shook my head.

"What about 'em?" He asked as he continued to look at the TV.

"Do you want kids with Mia?" She asked and I continued to shake my head as she looked at me and shrugged her shoulders.

"No," he answered as he stood up from the chair.

"Why not?" Chelsea asked.

"What's up with all the questions tonight, Chelsea?" Billy asked in a rude tone as he stopped walking to look at her.

"I'm just curious," she said as she held her hands up, defending herself.

"Chelsea," I quietly said as I shook my head and tilted my head back against the couch.

I couldn't believe that she was bringing that up in front of Billy. I didn't know how he was going to react when he found out, but I was hoping that he wouldn't take it too far.

"Well, I need to get ready for work. Are you guys coming out tonight?" Chelsea asked as she stood up from the couch.

"Maybe," I said as I looked over at her.

"Alright, I'll see you guys later," she said as she headed out of the apartment.

"What was that about?" Billy asked as he came over and sat down on the couch beside me.

"I don't know," I lied as I shook my head and continued to look at the TV.

Later that night, we decided to head to Four Roses. I was sitting in the booth with the guys as Chelsea brought the drinks over to the table. Chelsea and I looked at each other and she started to set them down on the table. Billy moved one over in front of me and I shook my head.

"What's up with ya?" Billy asked as he noticed that I wasn't drinking.

"I don't want any," I said as I looked up at Chelsea again.

"Ya always drink with us," he said as he moved the glass back over in front of me.

"Billy, no," I said as I moved the glass away from me again.

"Billy, she can't..." Chelsea started to say, but I shook my head.

"What do ya mean by that?" He asked as he looked up at Chelsea and then over at me.

"I can't," I said as I shook my head and looked over at him.

"Why da fuck not?" He asked as he started to wonder what was going on.

"I...um," I started to say as I looked down.

"She's pregnant," Chelsea said and everyone at the table stopped talking.

"Are ya serious?" Billy quietly asked as he looked over at me and I could feel everyone's eyes on me.

"Yeah," I quietly said as I nodded my head.

He stood up and roughly grabbed my arm as pulled me up out of the booth.

"Billy, calm down," Chelsea said as he started to make me walk with him.

"Shut the fuck up, Chelsea," he said in an angry voice as he continued to push me towards the back of the bar where no one was.

I yanked my arm out of his grasp and held the spot that he was holding my arm.

"Ow," I said as I looked at him with a hurtful look on my face.

"What da fuck do ya mean you're pregnant?" He asked in an angry tone as he got in my face.

"I...I took a test today," I stuttered as I went to look down and he roughly grabbed my jaw to make me look at him. "It was positive," I quietly said as I looked at him and tears formed in my eyes.

"You can't be fuckin' pregnant. No," he said he let go of my jaw and turned away from me as he continued to stand there.

"I go to the doctor on Thursday to double check," I said as I stared at the back of his head.

"If ya are, ya get rid of it, ya hear me?" He asked as he turned around to look at me.

"Billy, I'm not..." I started to say.

"NO!" He shouted as he got into my face. "Ya not gonna fuckin' keep it, ya hear me?!" He shouted and I could see his nostrils were flaring as he had an angry look on his face.

I swallowed hard as I felt tears come out of my eyes and I looked down at the floor. I had a feeling that he was going to react like that, but there was no way that I was going to get rid of the baby, if I was pregnant. If Billy didn't want to be involved, then I was going to have to do it on my own.