Lisa's doctor looked up at her. "Congratulations, Lisa, you're going to be a mama!" Lisa's heart dropped. Tears came to her eyes and she sobbed openly.
"What am I going to do?!" She managed to get out between sobs.
"Sweetie, we can help you. You have options, but for now, take a couple of days, let it sink in a bit, and then decide what to do, okay? You let me know what we can do, and I can get you any information that you need."
Lisa got dressed and left. She was blindsided. She walked slowly out to her truck through a haze of hot tears. She sat in the truck for a long time, crying, angry, disappointed, and sad. She picked up her phone, swiped the screen on, and looked at it. She put it back down. She picked it up again, swiped back on, and said, "Fuck it." She opened up her text messaging, and typed a quick one: "Can we talk this weekend? Give me a call. "
She waited, and waited, and waited. She went back to work, loaded up with anti-nauseant tablets. The guys were concerned, but she brushed them off brusquely. "It's just a flu, stay away from me, dudes." The next few days passed like absolute molasses. Every time she looked up at the clock, the hands seem to have moved backwards. Finally, Friday came. Lisa clocked out, changed out of her coveralls, locked her locker, and trudged outside. Her co-worker Mike asked if she wanted to go grab a beer and wings with the crew, and Lisa replied, "Naw, not this time. Thanks though!" She hopped in her truck and drove home.
She made a pot of spaghetti noodles and butter, sprinkled with shredded cheese. It was an old comfort food, and it did make her feel better. She had too much time to think. Too much time alone. She didn't even have a cat, which was the usual single-lady pet. Lisa settled into her couch with her bowl of pasta and the remote control. She started to watch Smackdown, but it just made her a little bit sad, so she turned the channel to the music channel and watched brainless videos for a while. She checked her phone way too often. Every few minutes, she picked it up, swiped on the screen, and checked her messages. She was excited once, but it was just one from her mother, telling her to call when she had a chance. She spent a lot of time sighing and restlessly changing position. She pulled out a novel she'd been meaning to read, about a female pilot during WWII, and got fairly engrossed in it. She read for a few hours, and then ended up falling asleep on the couch with the book on her chest.
Lisa woke up a few hours later when her cell phone chimed at her: "Hey love, what's happening? I have some time, want me to call you?" Lisa texted back: "Please, if it's not any trouble."
The phone rang.
"Hullo?" said Lisa.
"Hey love! Good teh hear yer voice! What's goin' on?"
"Not much, really. Um, I have something I need your advice on."
"What is it?" he asked, with a wariness starting to creep into his voice.
"Well, this is hard to say. I might as well just get it out. I'm pregnant?"
"Slainte, love, I'm so happy for yeh! Who's the lucky fella?"
Lisa shook her head. He just wasn't getting it. "It's you, Sheamus. You're the fella." The phone went silent. The connection was still there, but he wasn't saying anything at all. "Are you still there?"