Page 3 of A Very Oceanport Christmas
"Let it go," I cut him off. "I don't want to talk about it, okay? I'm on my own." That was the way it was and that was what they had to accept. What I had to accept. What was I doing here getting berated by my parents when all I really wanted was to take my life in my own hands? I'd been so proud of myself when I moved out for college and now what was I doing? Running back to my parents at the first sign of trouble. Fine man I was.
How was I going to raise a child?
"I'm gonna go out and get some fresh air," I said, and then I stood without waiting for a response. I felt my parents' eyes on my back, but neither of them said anything. Rogue started barking, though, obviously not happy that I was leaving so soon.
"Don't worry," I heard Dad tell the dog. "He'll be back in a few minutes."
I wasn't at all sure that was true.
2
Sam
Ikind of wished I'd taken Rogue outside with me, because was there anything more comforting than petting a dog? But Rogue was inside with Dad and Paps and I was out here by myself, looking up at the gray sky and wondering if it was going to snow. Before me, Main Street bustled with people. Some waved, but nobody tried to strike up a conversation. I was glad for that. There would be stares and questions later, I was sure, but for now it seemed people wanted to cross the distance from their cars to the stores quickly rather than spending any more time in the cold than necessary.
My car would be warmer than the sidewalk too. I glanced at it, torn between climbing in and going back up to my parents' apartment above the bookstore.
But I wasn't ready for part two of this conversation yet. I also wasn't ready to sit in my car and pout like a petulant teenager with nowhere else to go, even if it was true that I had nowhere else to go.
And so I stood and waited for nothing.
Until, about five minutes into my inactivity, when I was just starting to feel uncomfortably cold, something happened.
"Sam?"
My head whipped around. I would have recognized that voiceanywhere.David Clark.
"I didn't know you were back in town," he said, approaching me, both hands stuck into the pockets of his winter coat. A gust of wind blew through his light brown hair and made it look even more disheveled than usual.
"I just got here," I made myself say instead of staring at my former best friend. Or maybe he was still my best friend? We hadn't exactly fought... But we'd sort of drifted apart when I’d left for college. No, not then. It had started earlier than that, when I’d first hooked up with Nigel Spencer. I felt a little bad about it, to be honest, but really, what was I supposed to do? If I hadn’t foundsomeoneto screw I would have tied David to a bed sooner or later, and fuck the consequences.
I closed my eyes for a moment, willing that particular image to go away.
Being infatuated with your best friend really, really sucked.
When I opened my eyes again, David was looking at my belly. My baby bump wasn't super pronounced under my winter coat, but it was visible. I kind of wanted to shrink in on myself or become one with the car at my back. Sadly, neither of those things happened.
"Yes, I'm pregnant," I said before David could ask. "It's no big deal, okay? Please don't ask about it."
David opened his mouth, then closed it again, obviously reconsidering what he wanted to say. I'd seen him do that many times, almost like a nervous habit. David wasn't one to speak without thinking his words through.
Right now, I was grateful for that.
David jerked his head toward the ice cream parlor a few houses down on the other side of the street. "You wanna get out of the cold for a bit?"
I hesitated. In this weather, I didn't exactly feel like ice cream.
"Hot chocolate on the house," David offered.
That made me chuckle. "Didn't your dad tell you to stop giving out free drinks to all your friends?"
David shrugged. "It's a special one-time offer, take it or leave it."
"All right, I'll take it," I said before I could think about it any longer. Itwouldbe good to get out of the cold and it was hard to turn down hot chocolate. Especially because I knew David would serve it to me with cream and cinnamon on top, exactly the way I liked it. "Are you off shift right now?"
"Actually, I'm on break."
It was a tragedy, really, that David had to spend all his time working at his family's ice cream parlor. When we were small, his parents' business had pretty much made him the most popular kid in town, but these days, the negatives outweighed the positives in my eyes. While I’d gone off to college, David had been stuck here. His mom had gotten sick, and his dad had needed his help with the business, and David had stepped up. Of course.
