Page 137 of Puck with Karma
With that he turns around and walks away from us, at a much slower pace than mom. My heart is beating out of my chest as I realize this momentous occasion left me with Bran as my only family related by blood. Along with his upcoming baby.
Xander
Mallory is sittingacross from me, in the lobby of the hotel where our respective significant others are meeting with their parents.
“It’s really weird to think that we’re going to be related soon.”
The way she says the words makes me think that she’s not all that excited to be related to me.
“Our kids will be cousins,” I inform her with what I’m sure is a condescending smirk on my face.
She takes a moment to process what I just told her before her face lights up.
“That means I will be related to Janie! I just need to figure out a way to skip you.”
For a second, I tense up when I think she’s serious. But then she sticks her tongue out at me, looking like a petulant child, and I relax in my seat.
“How did you even know about the baby?” she asks. “Bran promised we’d tell people together.”
I shake my head in confusion. “I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. What baby?”
Just as I finish my question, my eyes drop to her absolutely flat belly. Her hand is covering it protectively, and it finally dawns on me what she’s saying.
“Are you…” I point in question.
Mallory rolls her eyes, never cutting me any slack.
“I can’t believe you know about this before Janie. She’s going to be so mad.”
I don’t listen to the rest of what she says. Instead, I try to wrap my head around the fact that this girl who I’ve known since she was in kindergarten is about to become a mom. It’s weird…
It also makes me realize that I want this with Abby. We haven’t talked about having kids, and I have no idea where she stands on it. Hell, I didn’t know where I stood myself until this very second. And now, that’s all I can think about.
Hurried steps echo across the lobby of the hotel, stopping me from saying something stupid to Mallory. When I turn my head to look, I see an older woman walking with purpose toward the exit. I squint my eyes at her, wondering why she looks familiar.
Mallory grabs my arm in distress.
“That’s their mom,” she whispers. “She doesn’t look happy,” she continues. “This is not good, Xander.”
Unfortunately, I have to agree with her. We both stand up at the same time and walk toward the hallway where the conference room is located. This was as a neutral of a place as I could think of when they decided to meet with their parents.
Just as we approach the room, an older gentleman walks toward us. While not as wide or tall, the resemblance to Brandon Karlsberg is uncanny. This has to be the father.
Both me and Mallory stop in the middle of the hallway and so does he. A knowing smile lifts the corner of his mouth.
“Hello, I am…”
“We know who you are,” Mallory cuts in before he can finish introducing himself to us. “And we saw your wife running out of here. That can’t be good news.”
The man looks stricken by her words but recovers fast.
“I can see that both my son and daughter chose well.” He gives us a nod of approval, not that we needed it. “My wife needs some time. But we’ll be back.”
He takes a step closer to Mallory, almost looking like he wants to give her a hug, but he stops at the last minute. His eyes drop to her stomach, and I realize that he knows she’s pregnant.
“Mallory.” He nods at her before looking at me. “Xander.”
I don’t say a word.
