Chapter 13
Jennie
I hate being the center of attention. Why did I agree to this? I can feel everyone's eyes on me, and my heart gets a little fluttery knowing at least four cameras are trained on us right now.
"Ready?" Lisa asks, looking into my eyes. Her are glimmering, and I think mine are too. I nod, and she puts her hand over mine. I'm supposed to be looking at the camera, smiling and making a point to have a nice photo taken. But I can't look away from Lisa. She guides my hand, going to the pull tab at the top of the box. It rips open, and the cardboard flaps at the top of the box slowly push up and the first balloon pops out.
It's pink.
We're having a girl.
Lisa wraps her arms around me, pulling me into a tight embrace. We kiss, and I forget everyone is watching and taking pictures. Standing here with her makes me feel like we're a family, and for a moment, I forget we're going home in opposite directions.
"My only daughter is having a daughter," Mom says, coming in for a hug. "Now I can start shopping."
"Don't go crazy, Mom. We still—" I cut off before I let myself finish the sentence. I don't want to think about it yet because it scares me, though it's not the unknown that's making me nervous this time around.
I know what I want, and that scares me.
Jamie acts as our unofficial photographer, and I hold the pink balloons to one side while Lisa stands on my other, with her hand resting on my stomach. We spend a few minutes taking photos and then go into the kitchen for dessert. I stand by the counter, admiring the food but thinking I won't be able to eat any of it.
Lisa comes up behind me, arms going around my waist. She slides her hands over my stomach and kisses my neck.
"You were right," Lisa says, lips against my flesh. "We can start calling the baby Ella."
"Ella." Tears fill my eyes and I turn around in Lisa's arms, lip quivering. "You like the name?"
"I do. I've been mentally calling her that for a while to see if I'd like it. Now it fits."
"Oh," I croak out, and tears roll down my cheeks.
"Are you crying?" Donghyuk asks, eyes wide. He's across the counter from me, filling his plate with cookies and brownies. "You never cry."
"I've been crying a lot lately," I admit with a laugh.
Lisa tightens her hold on me. "Whatever you do, don't bring up endangered species."
"I'm having déjà vu."
Lisa pushes off the ground, sending the glider back. The heat of the day hasn't worn off yet, despite it being after dark. The sounds of a country night surround us, and the dogs run and sniff around the yard.
"We sat here and talked," I say, resting my head on Lisa's shoulder. "That night I spilled the drinks on myself at Getaway and you took me home."
"Oh yeah. We did sit here."
I tip my head up. "It was the first time we had a real conversation. Want to know something silly?"
"Always."
"I thought you were going to kiss me that night."
"I wanted to kiss you."
"What?" I heard her correctly but need to hear her say it again.
"I wanted to kiss you that night."
"Why'd you pussy out?"
Lisa laughs and kisses me now for good measure. "I wasn't sure you'd want me to. And I knew if I kissed you once I'd want to do it again." She runs her hand through her hair. "You said you thought I was going to kiss you, but did you want me to?"
"I did."
"Then why did you pussy out and not kiss me?" she says with a laugh.
"You gave off some very mixed signals. Up until the night this little girl was conceived. And then after."
"Yeah, I'm still sorry—"
"It's okay, Lis," I say quickly. We've moved past our issues with that. There's no need to bring them up now.
"Actually, Jennie," she says slowly. "There's a story behind that, and I want to tell it to you."
"I do like stories. Does it have a happy ending?"
She smiles. "I'm going to ask you a question at the end, and what you say will determine that."
I cock an eyebrow. "You're confusing me just a bit, Dr. Manoban."
"Sorry," she says with a laugh. "I'm not a good storyteller, but I want you to hear this."
"Okay. Can I pee first? I'm ruining the mood, but I'm pregnant. I pee a lot."
"It's only going to get worse."
"Yay." I roll my eyes, kiss her, and hurry into the house to use the bathroom. When I go back outside, Lisa is sitting by the pool. Her shoes are off, and she's rolling up her pants.
"We can go in," I say. "The water is warm and it's humid out. It'd feel nice. You brought your suit, right?"
"I did. You only reminded me a dozen times."
"I haven't been swimming in a while. I'm looking forward to it." I sit next to her and stick my feet in the water. "Unless you want to skinny dip later."
"I like that idea."
"You know, I've never had sex in a pool before." I wiggle my eyebrows.
"And you shouldn't, especially when pregnant. You're likely to get a UTI if you have sex in a pool, hot tub, or lake."
"You're back to Dr. Fuddy-Duddy again."
"Hey, health and safety are important to me."
I laugh and loop my arm through hers and look up at the star-studded sky. Everything feels perfect right now, and I know without a doubt that I'm in love with Lisa.
And for the first time, I think she's in love with me too.
"You said we never really talked before," she starts. "There's a reason for that."
"Is it a good reason?"
"In retrospect, no." She kisses me, and the moment her lips are against mine, I melt. When her tongue slips into my mouth, I'm a goner.
"Maybe we can tell stories later and have sex now."
"You couldn't get more perfect if you tried," Lisa mumbles, kissing me harder. Desire swirls inside of me. It would be really obvious if Lisa and I both went upstairs together. Part of me doesn't care.
Fuck, this long-distance thing sucks. We're finally together after over a week apart and we're at my parents' house. I could always pretend to be sick and Lisa is coming up to take care of me.
"Is your car unlocked?" I ask between kisses.
"I think so. Why?"
"Want to have sex in the back?"
"Yes," she says with no hesitation. We begin to untangle when the sliding glass door opens.
"Aunt Jennie!" Jackson calls. "Daddy said I can tell you goodnight."
"I'll be right there," I tell him and pull my feet from the water.
"Are you swimming? I want to swim!" Jackson's eyes light up and he comes running.
"No, Jackson!" I scramble up, but there's no way I can get to him in time. Jin sprints out of the house as well, seeing Jackson head right for the water.
"Jackson!" Jin yells. "No!"
Jackson can't swim, but that doesn't stop him from jumping right into the pool.
