"Great," Jake mumbled. "Don't forget to take your insulin before you go out with Cindy and Claudia."
Kira giggled. "Stop it," she said playfully, her laughter showing she didn't really mind.
Jake and Cindy didn't get along, not since they had both liked the same person a few years ago. To make things worse, the guy had chosen Cindy even though Jake was still convinced,
despite all evidence to the contrary—that the person was also interested in men.
Kira's laughter faded as she continued to look at her longtime friend. She needed to tell him about her decision to move in with Lexington and Becky; he would need time to make other plans.
"Jake?" she whispered, hating that she had to do this but not seeing any other option. He lowered his book to his chest and smiled at her sadly.
"I know, Kira." Her eyes filled with tears at the understanding in his face, and she sat hunched at the table, quiet sobs shaking her shoulders.
"I'm so sorry. I don't know what else to do."
"You have to do what's best for you, Kira. And right now, you can't afford to live here supporting my lazy self and dealing with a pregnancy too.
But on the bright side, having to move out might motivate my lazy self to find work again. I've been getting a little too comfortable here, you know? Living a life of ease, like someone who's being kept."
They both looked around the small apartment and laughed at the idea of living any kind of "life of ease" in that place.
"How much longer do we have before we leave this lovely place?" He stood up and stretched lazily before walking over to give her a casual hug and hand her a small piece of paper towel, the last one on the roll.
"We're out of paper towels," he pointed out, and she giggled tearfully as she blew her nose.
"Well, we're not buying more. Our time of spending a lot of money has ended, my friend. We can no longer afford things like paper towels."
He laughed and sat down at the table across from her.
"Jeez, Kira, I'm tired of seeing you cry. Cheer up, okay?" She bravely gave him her best smile. "Better. But not much. Now when do we move out?"
"I'll be talking to the landlord tomorrow. So probably thirty more days before we have to leave."
"A lot can happen in thirty days," he observed.
"Not that much." She traced a line on the plastic tablecloth with her finger. "Do you want to come with me to my ultrasound appointment tomorrow?"
"I'd love to."
"Well, well, well, two's company but three is definitely a party," Jake said the next morning as they got out of her car. Kira was happy with the great parking spot they had found right outside Dr. Klein's office and was smiling widely when she looked up to see what Jake was talking about. The smile immediately disappeared from her face when she saw who he meant.
"What the hell?" she whispered to herself. "Why is he here? How did he get here?"
"Take a deep breath, Kira," Jake advised softly. "You're never at your best when you're angry."
"What the hell are you doing here?" She walked up to Tesah and stood very close to him. "How did you know where to find me?"
"You sent your doctor's information to my lawyer, and with that information, it was easy to find out when your appointment was," he revealed casually. Her jaw dropped at that obvious invasion of her privacy. That information should never have been used to spy on her! "I thought I'd come along and see what I'm paying for."
"I didn't ask you to pay for it," she reminded him.
"Look, I know I was an arrogant jerk before," he said calmly.
"Was?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. He simply gave her one of those long, steady looks that made her feel completely scolded. She hated that. "Tesah, I don't see what else we need to talk about. We had an agreement. Two, in fact. Remember? I signed yours and you signed mine. That makes us even."
"I've recently realized that our previous agreement might not be exactly what I want."
No, he was not doing this to her right now. Kira tried not to panic as she kept her voice steady and her words brief.
"Well, it's what I want," she said shortly. "That's the end of it."
"Do you have to be so damn stubborn and difficult all the time?" he said angrily.
"Yes. Look where being easy got me. Pregnant and alone!"
"You don't have to be alone. I have decided that I would like to share this experience with you."
"Too bad! We don't get convenient second chances in life, Tesah. This was settled before, and just because you suddenly developed a fatherly feeling doesn't mean I have to accept that.
You have absolutely no right to step in here like you have some kind of claim to all of this. Stop following me and get out of my life."
"You know what?" he growled, grabbing her arm firmly. "No."
"What?"
"You heard me. I said no. You've been in control from the beginning. You suddenly told me about this, and I barely had time to think about what it all meant before there were papers being pushed at me to sign. Sure, it all sounded great at the time—just sign here, and for a small fee, you and the kid disappear as if neither of you had e
ver existed. No trouble, no mess."
"Legal documents being pushed at you without warning? That sounds very familiar," Kira said pointedly. "It's not fun when you're the one experiencing it, is it?"
"So is this some kind of twisted revenge? Punishment because I dared to treat you like any other woman in my life? Because you think you're so special, right? Not like all the other—"
She raised her hand to stop him, and he immediately closed his mouth.
"Let me stop you right there, Tesah. I don't need to hear any more of this. Stop trying to make yourself sound like some kind of victim. I offered you the perfect solution to a problem I knew you didn't want." She stepped back and crossed her arms stubbornly. Her eyes dared him to disagree with her.
"No, you presented me with a done deal. And why would I argue? I could have continued to live my life as if none of this ever happened. But I can't. This baby exists, and I can't ignore that."
His words were so strangely similar to the thoughts that had made her decide to have the baby that they made her pause and then feel panicked. Her stomach dropped and then rose into her throat until she had to fight the urge to throw up on his expensive shoes.
"You can't have him," she whispered. "He's mine."
"He's mine too."
"No, you signed those papers. He's not yours; he'll never be yours." Her hand went to her stomach protectively, and his eyes darkened at the movement.
"I don't want to take him from you, I just . . . I want to be there. I want to see him. I want to know him, and I want him to know me."
"What changed? How could everything just change overnight?" Her voice rose almost hysterically, and she felt Jake's arm wrap around her shoulder protectively.
"Maybe you should leave, buddy," Jake warned.
"This has nothing to do with you, Mr. Jake. It's between Kira and me."
"I want to know what changed!" she yelled, wanting to be heard and not caring about the people who stopped on the street to look at what was happening.