Page 52 of Blackout: Book Two

“Blackie, did you hear that?”

“Yeah, baby, I heard.” There is no mistaking the emotion in his tone of voice. He pushes through it, though, and continues, “I told you we were having a daughter.”

“Thank fuck,” my father mutters. “I was starting to worry it was a boy, and we were giving it a complex.”

“Jack! Language! We’re going to have to start a swear jar for when this baby is born,” my mother says.

“Fuck a swear jar,” my father admonishes. “We’ll all be piss poor.”

“Guys,” I call. “Can we not do this right now?”

“Fine but blame your father when your daughter’s first word is fuck,” my mother says.

“Our daughter’s first word is going to be Daddy,” Blackie calls.

“You say that now,” my mother argues. “But Lacey’s first word was shit.”

“I thought my first word was Mama.”

“Oh, honey, that’s just what we wrote in your baby book. Mama looks a lot better on paper than shit.”

“Actually, it was fucking shit,” my father corrects. “I remember.”

“You would.”

“Alright folks, why don’t we give Lacey a minute to wrap up her call and get dressed.”

“See what you did,” my mother snaps. “He’s kicking us out.”

“What I did? You’re the one who thought our granddaughter’s leg was a dick.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake would you watch your mouth. You’re embarrassing our daughter.”

“Get out!”

At the sound of me shouting, the two of them stop bickering and look at me. Dr. Heltzer takes his cue and opens the door, quickly ushering them out of the room. Alone, I bang the back of my head against the exam table. Taking the phone off speaker, I lift the phone to my ear.

“Did you hang up?”

“No,” he says with a chuckle. “I forgot how entertaining those two could be.”

“Imagine Christmas with them and a baby.”

“It’s going to be great.”

“Blackie?”

“Yeah?”

“We’re having a little girl,” I whisper.

A precious little girl.

His.

Mine.

Ours.

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