K. Robinson: Twisted Ties

“I saw her stomach. She’s pregnant. She also let me know that if I took Jesse away from her, I’d be destroying their family since it’s his baby.”

Andy dropped down to the couch beside me with his mouth hanging open. He was at a loss for words. I knew the feeling well. I waited as he processed the news. It didn’t take long before his look of shock changed to one of anger.

“So, let me get this straight. She ran away from home and came here to find him. Then, she goes and gets pregnant with his kid.”

“That pretty much sums it up.”

“I want to fucking kill both of them!” He stood up and started pacing the room. “How could she do this? How could he do this? She’s my fucking sister!”

“Maybe they love each other, Andy. It’s been a long time since either of us saw Jesse, and Ally barely spoke to you after Jesse left. You know nothing about either one of them now, and neither do I.”

“This is bullshit! Jesse never showed a bit of interest in her when we were all together. There’s no way that she came out here, and he got her pregnant in three months. If she’s already showing, then it would have had to happen right after she came out here!”

“I didn’t think to ask for the exact date, Andy,” I said sarcastically.

He looked guilty as he dropped down to his knees in front of me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. I’m just so fucking confused by all of this. I can’t even imagine how much you’re hurting right now.”

“I feel like someone ripped my heart out of my chest and stepped on it. I never expected this when I decided to try to find him.”

“Neither did I. What are you going to do now? Do you want to stay or go back home?”

“I have no home. I’m going to stay and finish this semester at least. After that, I don’t know. I was an idiot for focusing on finding Jesse and not planning for the worst.”

“You’re not an idiot. You thought that you’d find him, and everything would be okay.”

“Well, I’ve found him.” I couldn’t keep the bitterness out of my tone.

“Do you plan on confronting him?”

“I don’t see the point. He has a family now, and I’d do nothing but screw that up for him.”

“I’m sorry that my sister put you through all of this. You’re a good person, Emma, and you don’t deserve this kind of hurt.”

“It was a long shot, and we both knew it. You tried to prepare me for the worst, but I didn’t listen. I’m just going to pretend like I never came here to look for him, so I can move on with my life. That’s all I can do. I need to forget him once and for all.”

He nodded. “If that’s what you want, then that’s what we’ll do. I found a decent job, so I’ll stay here for as long as you need me to.”

“That means a lot. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“You’re my friend, Emma. I’d do anything I could to help you.”

“I guess one good thing came from Jesse and me.” I smiled down at him. “I never would have met you if I hadn’t been with him.”

He grinned. “I am pretty awesome.”

We both stood and walked to the door.

“You can stay here tonight if you need to.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’m going to go home and sleep all day tomorrow. You still have time to call your girlfriend back if you want to. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“Nah, I’ll have babies on my mind now. That takes all the fun out of it.”

“You always know just what to say.”

“I try, Emma. I try.”

I stuck to my word and spent the next day in bed. It was Saturday, so I had no classes to get up for. I knew I was moping, but I couldn’t help it. I’d had this whole plan to make things right with Jesse, and it had completely blown up in my face.

I couldn’t believe that Jesse was going to be a dad. Hell, I couldn’t believe that Ally was going to be a mom. She’d never struck me as the maternal type, and I hoped that Jesse would make up for her lack of parenting. There was no way someone as mean as her could be a good parent. It just wasn’t in her genes.

While it shocked me that Jesse was going to be a dad, I didn’t think that he’d be bad at it. I knew how much it’d hurt him that his dad had abandoned him when he was little. There was no doubt in my mind that Jesse would spend his entire life making sure that his kid never felt unwanted. I still believed that Jesse was a good person despite the situation he was in. Besides the time when I thought he’d cheated on me, I couldn’t think of a thing that I didn’t like about him. He was a genuinely good person.

The next morning, I forced myself to crawl out of bed. I hadn’t showered for two days, and I was starving. After showering, I pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top, so I could go find some food. The school cafeteria was closed on Sundays, but there were plenty of places to eat at in Morgantown.

I drove around town until I found someplace that didn’t make my stomach turn. Instead of going through the drive-through like I’d originally planned, I decided to go inside.

My hopes of being with Jesse were gone, and it was time that I started to move on. I didn’t care if it made me pathetic to start looking at a fast-food restaurant on a Sunday morning. I ordered my food and sat down at a table facing the entrance. That way, I could see everyone who came in as soon as they walked through the doors.

I quickly realized that I wasn’t going to find anyone unless I was hoping to get a date with an eighty-year-old man who liked to drink the tar they called coffee here. I sighed as I finished my food, and then I threw away my garbage. I didn’t even bother to look up as I walked to my car. I need a life .

I knew where Andy worked, so I decided to stop by and surprise him. He said that his boss was pretty easygoing, so I didn’t think Andy would complain if I stopped by for a few minutes to chat. I knew he was worried about me, and it would help put him at ease if he saw me freshly showered and out in the real world.

I drove downtown and parked in front of the building. A bell dinged above the door as I opened it and stepped inside. Andy was sitting on a couch with another guy, and they were watching an old football game that had happened earlier in the week.

“I see you’re working hard,” I teased when he looked up.

“Emma! What are you doing here?” Andy asked as he walked over to me.

“I thought I’d surprise you.”

“Well, you did. I’m glad to see that you crawled out of bed.”

“Is this your girlfriend?” the guy on the couch asked.

“Nah, this is Emma. Emma, this is Sam. He’s my boss’s younger brother.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Sam,” I said politely.

“Likewise.” He looked at Andy. “Where have you been hiding her?”

I blushed as Andy rolled his eyes.

“Back off, jackhole. She’s like my sister.”

“Too bad,” Sam said as he stared at me.

I started to look away, but then I stopped myself. Wasn’t I just looking for a way to move on while I ate a hash brown?

Besides, Sam was kind of cute. He looked to be around the same age as me, too. His dirty-blond hair was styled messily, and his eyes were a pretty pale blue. He wasn’t as built as Andy, but Sam’s body suited him.

“Quit staring at her like you want to lick her. It’s nasty. I’ll say it again—she’s like my sister,” Andy groaned.

“Shut it, Andy,” I scolded.

“So, are you from around here?” Sam asked.

“Nope, Andy and I moved here from California together.”

“I should have known that you’re a California girl. You just have the look. Why the hell did you move from California to West Virginia?”