The Ladies Man

“It’ll be okay Belle.” Juliet said.
“No it won’t. Ashley doesn’t do commitment. We’ve only been together for six months for fucks sake! He won’t want to be a father!” I continued to cry.
“Well, it’s not for sure yet right? We should take a test. Then you can panic.” Juliet tried.
“Okay, but I don’t want to be alone when I do this. I’m already scared shitless.” I tried to breathe normally and it wasn’t working.
“Okay, can I have Andy stay with you while I call the girls?” She asked.
“Yeah.” I whispered.
“Give me your phone, I’m calling Sammi and Madison.” She held out her hand.
I pulled it out and handed it to her. She walked to the entrance of the room.
“Andy! Get in here!” She shouted.
I winced slightly at the noise. Andy came running into the room.
“Where’s the fire?” He asked.
“You need to stay with Belle. I have to make some important calls. You can’t leave her alone, understand?” She gave him a stern look.
“Got it.” He sat next to me on the couch.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She said as she left.
“Can you tell me what’s wrong?” Andy asked.
I shook my head. I knew he was trying to help but I couldn’t tell him. He was Ashley’s best friend. He’d feel obligated to tell Ashley. I couldn’t let that happen.
“Can I hold you?” He tried.
I nodded and he pulled me against his chest as I cried. I was falling apart. This could end everything. All of my happiness would be gone.
“Okay, the girls are on their way.” Juliet came back into the room. “They should be here any minute. I think Madison said something about ignoring the speed limit.”
I smiled a little at that. She would to. I tried to wipe away the tears that were streaming down my face. I wasn’t successful.

Sammi arrived first and pulled me into a hug. “Oh, Belle. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“Andy, can you go make Belle some tea? We need some girl time.” Juliet said.
“Sure.” Andy got up and headed to the kitchen.
“Belle!” I heard from the hall. There was Madison. That was fast. I guess she really did ignore the speed limit.
“Hi.” I said quietly.
“I brought the test.” Sammi said. She held up a drug store bag.
I looked at it with trepidation. The test in that bag would decide my future. I took it from her and took the test out.
“We’ll be here for you Belle.” Sammi said.
“Yeah, no matter what happens.” Madison added.
I nodded and took the test to the bathroom. I pulled it out and read the instructions. I peed on it and then waited five minutes for the results. Those were the longest five minutes of my life. I took a deep breath and looked down at the test. It was positive. It was also one of the ones that told you how far along you were. Under the positive sign it said, ‘two weeks’. Oh my God! I sank down to the floor and curled up into a little ball. I couldn’t do this. I just couldn’t.
“Belle?” It was Sammi, there was a light knock on the door. “Belle? What did it say?”
I slowly stood up and opened the door. I walked out and handed Sammi the test. I was in a daze. I sat down on the couch and just stared into space.
“Well, what is it?” Madison asked.
“Positive.” Sammi showed the test to Madison and Juliet.
“Is this a good thing?” Madison asked.
Juliet shook her head. “She’s terrified.” She wrapped an arm around me.
“What do I do? I can’t tell him.”
“You’ll have to at some point. He’s going to notice Belle.” Madison said.
“He won’t want a kid! It’ll be over between us!” I started crying again.
“A what?” I looked up to see Andy standing in the doorway with tea and a shocked expression on his face.
“Andy you can’t tell him.” I said.
“What, that he’s going to be a father? No way, I can’t do that.” He put the tea down and crossed his arms.
“Andy, please!” I begged. “You can’t!”
“So what are you gonna tell him?” He asked.
“I don’t know.” I whispered.
“Andy you won’t tell him. This is between them and you have to leave it that way.” Juliet said.
“Fine, but if he asks, I won’t lie.”
“Okay.” I said.
“You can stay with me for a while if you want.” Madison offered. “Give you some time to think.”
“That sounds like a great idea.” Sammi said.
“How do I explain that to him? I visit on a regular basis. Why would I be staying with you?”
“Just tell him you need some space.” Juliet said.
“Okay. Well, I better go do it now. The longer I put it off, the worse it’ll be.” I said.
“I’ll drive you home and wait for you.” Madison said.
“Thanks, Madison.”

“You’re what?” Ashley asked. He looked hurt, like a kicked puppy. God this was hard. “What did I do?”
“You didn’t do anything, I just need some space. Some time to myself.” I explained again.
“Are you breaking up with me?”
I sighed at that question. I didn’t know if that was what I wanted. I needed to think about this whole thing for a while before I could make a decision like that. “No, I just need to think about some things on my own for a while.”
“Please Belle, don’t leave.” He begged.
“It’s not forever Ashley.” At least I hoped it wasn’t. “I have to go. Madison’s waiting for me.”
“Belle.” He said quietly. He had tears running down his cheeks.
I hated that I was hurting him so much, but I had to do this. I had to figure out what to do about the baby and him. I turned and walked out of the house. I quickly ran to Madison’s car and jumped in.
“Drive.” I said.
She simply nodded and pulled away from the house.

Notes

Please comment.