The Home Team

Chapter 5

Noon -New Year's Day

Becca

I woke up with a splitting headache and a small piece of sunlight hitting me right in the face from the crack in the cutins. The sound of the shower in the bathroom going and steam spilling out from under the door drew my attention and I jumped up. That was a big mistake, as the throbbing in my head grew with the sudden movement.

What happened? Where am I? The questions popped into my mind as I surveyed the room I was in. This definitely was not Grace and Emma’s guest room, that’s for sure. The room was clean and tidy with minimal decorations around the room. Manly, is the best way to describe it. The entire room screams man. And that is the only thing screaming as I go to swing my legs off the bed to get up.

I winced from the pain in between my legs and as the warm cover fell away from my body, I discovered I was completely naked. Flashes began to bombard me as the memory of just what had happened last night resurfaces, and with whom. My God, had I really done it? Had I really gone and had s*x with some random stranger from the nightclub? By the way my body ached at this particular moment, I would say so. And he did a damn fine job too.

What am I supposed to do now? Am I supposed to go in there and thank him or something for taking my virginity and f*cking my brains out? No, Becca, that would be stupid and he would probably look at us as if we were a nut case. It was just a one-night stand, stop reading so much into it.

I had frantically looked for my dress from the night before, finding it on the floor a few feet away from the bed. Snatching it up, I slip into it and do up the zipper the best I can right now.

“Now where are my shoes and my bag?” I whispered under my breath, but I didn’t see them anywhere in the room.

I rack my brain for anything that might tell me where they are, so I don’t have to go in there and ask Mr. Sexy. I just want to get out of here with some of my dignity still intact. Images of when we first arrived at his apartment flash through my mind. The kitchen. I rushed as quietly as possible out of the bedroom, pulling the door close behind me, praying that he wouldn't hear the sound of the click as the door closed over the water.

As more and more memories began to resurface, my body starts to heat up from both mortification and the desire to do it all again. I can’t do that though. I needed to leave before he had finished showering. I didn’t give him my name, so he had no way of tracking me down. Hell, he will probably be happy I left without an issue so he can get on with his life.

I spied my things and rushed to snatch my bag and my heels from the floor and couch. I could still hear the shower going in the room as I ran to the front door. I opened it slowly, praying that it didn’t squeak. Luck must be on my side today.

But just as I was about to turn and walk away, I ran straight into a brick wall of a man. In fact, upon looking up, I realized that it was Mr. Sexy's friend from the club. The one that had been dancing with Mandy.

He doesn’t say anything to me, just sneers at me as he looks down at my disheveled appearance and moves to go around me and enters the apartment. Do they live together? I didn't wait around to find out and quickly made my way over to the elevator. What I wasn't expecting when the doors opened was for the same couple from the evening before to step out onto the floor. I could feel my entire body blush as I made eye contact with the two of them and quickly averted my eyes back down to the floor. I let out a deep breath the moment the doors had closed and leaned back against the wall to brace myself.

I know I should have waited and called an Uber but I didn't want to wait around any longer than I had to. I have never done the walk of shame before, so I wasn't exactly sure about how to handle the situation. Instead, I hailed the first taxi I saw that just so happened to be sitting right outside the apartment building and jumped into the back seat. That was a big mistake, as the hair on my arms stood up because the cabby was a creep that kept eyeing my disheveled appearance with a look of malice.

I wanted to just jump straight out of the cab but I could not make my body move. I took a ragged breath and gave him an address that was a couple of blocks away from Emma’s apartment where I could hopefully lose this creep. He didn't say anything, but I did catch him glaring at me through the rearview mirror.

"Thank you." I said meekly as I handed him the cab fair and practically jumped out of the car finally as it came to a stop.

I took a breath and tried to calm my suddenly rapid breath as I weaved my way through the crowd of people. I managed to lose the cab driver in the early morning pedestrian traffic that surrounded the park. "That was really weird," I said as I peaked over my shoulder and checked my surroundings to make sure I was not being followed.

My relief quickly vanished as I walked through the door of Emma and Grace’s apartment only to find Mandy sitting on the couch facing the doorway with a smile on her face that said she knew exactly where I had been all night and what had happened. And she was never going to let me just walk away without giving her all the details about our night together.

“You little hussy. You gave it up last night didn’t you?” She asked as I closed the door behind me and I dropped my head. "I knew it". Her squeal of excitement was so loud it made my already pounding head hurt even more.

“Not so loud, please my head is killing me.” I said, wincing.

“Sorry.” She says as she tosses a bottle of ibuprofen at me when I turned to face her finally. “That will help.” She says as she pats the side of the couch next to her. “Tell me everything.”

I don't know how I thought I would be able to sneak into the apartment without at least one of the girls realizing that I had returned. Memories of last night flash in my mind once again and my body tingles, wanting more. I swallowed the pills without water and groaned as I leaned my head onto the back of the couch.

“That bad? Really? The guy looked like he knew what he was doing.” She says as she leans her head on my shoulder supportively.

Goosebumps cover my arms as one particular memory jumped out at me and I smiled. “It was far from awful,” I said, and she leaned back and looked at me with a growing smile. “It was magical,” I said, and she squealed loudly again.

“Sorry” She said when she noticed me wincing again. “What now? Are you going to see him again?”

I had not even thought about it. Hell, I don’t even know his name and he didn’t know mine either. We both had been at The Inferno to forget, and had used each other for that reason. The epitome of a one-night stand, so it was probably for the best that I didn’t try and find him. Who knows what I would find if I did. I shook my head no, “I think it would be better if we didn’t,” I said, and Mandy nodded in understanding.

“So back to regular life back home.” She asks, laying her head back on my shoulder.

I nodded before turning to look at Mandy. "What about you and his friend? The two of you seemed a bit cozy when we left," I asked.

She shook her head, "Travis surprised me by getting out of his family thing early. Your guy's friend wasn't happy when he found out he wasn't coming home with me either way." She said with a small smile.

Three weeks later

“Thanks for shopping with us and come again soon.” I said in the most forced customer service voice I could muster. I was beyond ready to close for the night and eight couldn't get here fast enough for me. I found myself just staring at the clock on the wall, just wishing for the time to speed up already so that I could go home.

It has been a long week and the fact that I feel like sh*t today doesn’t help. I am nauseated so badly today that I am surprised I even made it to work today, but since I have only been working for the past two weeks since we got back from Riverview, I didn’t want to call in sick so soon.

“Christ Becca you look like sh*t.” Mandy says as she walks around the counter. She works here too and is the one that talked her boss into hiring me at the drug store.

Before she even sits the bag down, the smell hits me and my stomach rolls violently. Oh no, not again. This is the third time today that I have gotten sick. First was when I was making breakfast this morning, the smell of the eggs cooking had sent me running to the bathroom. Then it was this older lady's perfume once I got to work. I literally had to hold my breath as I rang up her items. It was just too strong. Now whatever Mandy had in that brown bag had me ready to vomit all over again. What is wrong with me? I seriously need to see a doctor, I thought as I emptied my stomach into the nearby trash can. Mandy pulled my hair back and rubbed my back soothingly until I was sure that there was nothing left in my stomach.

“Thanks.” I said as I took a tissue she handed me to wipe my mouth. She had a look of concern on her face but I brushed it off and headed to the bathroom to brush the vomit taste out of my mouth again.

“Are you sure you are okay?” Mandy asked when I returned and shoved the toothbrush and toothpaste back into my purse.

“I don’t know. Haven’t felt the greatest all week." I said as I stuffed my purse back under the countor. "I guess I need to make an appointment to figure out what is wrong with me,” I said.

“All week? You have been like this all week?” She asked and I nodded.

“Well, without the vomiting that just started the other day. Why?” I asked, confused, as she pulled out her phone and looked at something before she looked back up at me with a look of shock.

“What?” I asked but she didn’t answer me, she simply rushed to one of the aisles and when she returned with a small pink box with the words First Response on the side, my heart stopped.

Mandy punches in her codes to the register and rings up the pregnancy test and pays for it. All the while, I just stare at it, unable to move.

No, there is no way I’m pregnant. No way.

Mandy grabs the keys from the drawer and goes to lock the doors to the store and flips the lights off as well. Then she grabs my hand and drags me back to the bathroom, pulling me back inside the tiny room with her.

I couldn’t speak as I watched her rip the plastic film from the box and open it, removing the pregnancy test wrapped in a foil pouch.

The small bathroom was completely silent as she handed the test to me. “What am I supposed to do with this?” I asked, my voice trembling. I mean, I knew what you did with these, but my mind could not seem to process the reason she was giving it to me in the first place.

“Pee on it.” Mandy says as she opens the paper insert and begins to read over the instructions.

“I don’t need this, it is just a stomach bug or something.” I told her, trying to hand her the test back. There is no way I could be pregnant.

“I just watched you vomit from the smell of food. You are taking the test.” Mandy says, pushing the test back towards me.

“That doesn’t mean I’m pregnant. Anything could make me sick like this.” I said. “There isn’t anyway I could be pregnant.” I said, my voice low as I looked down at the test in my hands.

“Really? Did the two of you use protection that night?” She asked skeptically.

Her question startled me because I had no idea if we did or not. I had just assumed that he had used a condom, but looking back through all the memories from that night, I don’t think we did or, at least, I don't remember him ever stopping to put one on.

“Take the test.” Mandy instructs me and I forced my body to move.

My hands are shaking now as we wait the two minutes for the results to develop.

“It will be negative, right? I mean it was just one time. You can’t get pregnant just from having s*x one time?” I said aloud more to myself as I paced the small bathroom trying to work through my rapidly changing emotions. I mean, I knew you could, but my mind just did not want to even think that way right now.

“It wasn’t just once, Becca. If I remember right, you said he rocked your world multiple times that night and if you two didn’t use a condom then..” She stops as the timer on her phone goes off loudly.

She shuts it off and turns to look at me. “Are you ready?” She asks.

“Well no. What if it’s positive?” I said, my anxiety mounting even more. If I am pregnant, what in the hell am I going to do?

“Then we will figure it out. Together Becca. If you are pregnant you aren’t alone, you have all of us to help you figure out what you want to do.” She says.

“Okay.” I said, nodding, trying to convince myself that it would be okay. Her words of support helped a little to calm me down.

She is standing next to me as I pick up the test from the sink with shaky hands. My heart stops beating and I can’t breathe as I look at the results.

There are two pink lines staring back at me.

Positive.

I am pregnant.