10
Janet (Epilogue)
Two Years Later
Sitting at my desk, I silently watched as the students in front of me played with small cubes to work on their math skills. I had picked out something that would take them a minute to work on. With papers in front of them, they needed to count the blocks to get their answers. It was pretty simple and effective.
I also needed an excuse to relax. Ever since this morning, I hadn’t been feeling the best. While Mason was confident with his cooking skills, I had blamed it on simply a bad batch of waffles. Even now, I felt sluggish and my stomach was fighting against me. I had no willpower to throw myself at today’s lesson. after throwing up once today, my day was ruined the moment I left our house.
Just thinking about earlier left my hand brushing against my mouth. I’d never thrown up in class before but I wasn’t sure I would be able to stop myself if my body went against my wishes.
Sighing softly, I had to eventually force myself onto my feet as only minutes later, someone needed help. As if it were some sort of domino effect, more students needed my assistance. Knowing that I still had a job to do, I continued to work with a smile plastered to my face.
Once it was time for their lunch and they all scattered to eat their meals in the lunchroom, I was given the perfect opportunity to throw up in the nearest bathroom. Too bad it only relieved me slightly. It made it possible to get through the rest of the day.
Just like Olivia, Mason insisted on picking us both up once school let out. Despite her being ‘too cool’ to ride with her parents, she never put up a fight. Neither did I. Today, I had to put in a request to make a pit stop. I needed to run into the nearest store to grab a thing or two.
Without telling Mason, I had a slight idea why I was feeling this way. Even after finding myself staring at multiple different brands of pregnancy tests, I still struggled to believe the possibility. After being with him for this long, I figured it would never happen. What was the chance? It could have been me just freaking out, but I decided to buy multiple different ones.
After checking out and heading back to the car, Mason welcomed me with that warm smile of his. He didn’t even pester me about what I needed, he could probably see it on my face. Somehow, he managed to read my mind sometimes. Maybe I was just easy to read. If that were the case, he showed no sign of knowing.
Once we got back home, I immediately slipped away into the bathroom. Tearing into boxes and reading different instructions, I remained in that room for nearly thirty minutes as I forced myself to pee.
Even after Olivia had encouraged me to join them outside to cook up some burgers, I still struggled to leave.
When the time came around to testing myself, time felt torturously slow. Each second felt like a minute. Finding myself sitting on the toilet, I tried not to let my feelings overwhelm me.
If I actually was pregnant, what would Mason do? Would he be happy? Or would he feel pressured? What if he didn’t want another child? Stupid thoughts overwhelmed me as time continued to drag. As quickly as I thought of the troublesome thoughts, they immediately made me anxious.
There was a ringing, it was my phone’s timer. It was time. I felt too scared to look, I didn’t know what to expect. I was overthinking it, just like I did anything else that stressed me out. Deciding to just rip this off like a band aid, I stood from the toilet. Walking over to the sink, I sucked in a deep breath that failed to relax me.
The moment I looked down, I finally understood. It made sense–the throwing up, feeling like crap, the missed period… I really was pregnant.
Trying to act as calm as I possibly could, I collected the tests and finally left the bathroom. Knowing the house was empty, I headed towards the backyard in search of Mason. It wasn’t hard to find him, he was too busy messing with the grill to notice me approach him.
Once he had, his smile immediately melted away. “What’s wrong?”
Just like always, Mason knew me like the back of his hand. Opening my mouth, I could hardly even get a word out. Not even a moment later, my façade melted away and I choked back a sob. “Don’t be upset,” I managed to get out, already facing my biggest fear with this new knowledge.
The grill seemed to be the last thing he cared about in that moment as he rushed towards me, panic clear on his face. He immediately asked a thousand questions starting with ‘what happened?’ and ‘are you hurt?’. It felt overwhelming as he surrounded me with his welcoming warmth. He squeezed me in a bear hug, forcing me to remember to breathe.
After apologizing, I managed to pull away from him. Lifting my hand, I showed him the tests. Blinking away the tears that covered my eyes, I watched as he stared blankly down at them.
“You’re pregnant?” He asked, his voice matching his expression.
Nodding my head, I bit my lip. “I thought there was a possibility and figured testing wouldn’t hurt. I just didn’t–” before I could even finish my sentence, I was pulled towards him once more.
“You’re pregnant,” he repeated once more, this time much more softer. “I’m not upset Janet, not in the slightest.” Then came the reassurance, just like always.
I had always wanted kids, I loved them. That’s why I chose my profession. Mason was the man I knew I’d spend my years with, I knew he was already a great father.
Then came Olivia, sprinting from across the yard to see what the commotion was all about. It was her excitement that dried my tears, bringing a smile to my lips.
Standing with the two of them, I knew I would be alright. Receiving a kiss from Mason, I got the chance to see the excitement from his end. I wasn’t even sure ‘excitement’ was strong enough of a word. Resting next to him, I ditched the tests and managed to relax. Leaning against him, I knew that this was the way it would always be. Through thick and thin, both of them would always be there. In nine months, another would join our family.
“Thank you,” I smiled softly as I pressed against him. “I love you.”
Even after hearing me say it a thousand times, he always reacted like it was the first time. He never would let me go before telling me himself. After that, he would show it through kisses and light touches. How in the world did I end up with a perfect man?
I stopped caring to ask myself that years ago.