I just needed a little bit of time.
The cake and presents portion of the party came next, and Dad was over the moon that he got the same cake he got every year. It always amazed me that he seemed to think that Mom would just randomly change up on him one year and not bring him the cookies-and-cream ice cream cake. The delighted sound he made when he saw it in front of him was worth it, though, and I smiled as he cut into it and handed out slices.
“Is there anything you need?” I asked Tyler as I stood and put my napkin on the table. “I’m going to run to the ladies’ room and grab another water.”
“No, I’m fine,” Tyler said. “Thank you, though.”
“I could use another beer,” Nick said, grinning. I turned a sour look at him, and he laughed. “What? If you’re offering…”
“Uh-huh,” I said and left.
When I got back to the kitchen, Mom joined me and looked over her shoulder at the dining room before getting close.
“Hey, honey,” she said. “I have a question for you.”
“Sure, Mom, what is it?”
“How long have you known?” she asked.
My heart dropped. My vision narrowed, going blurry at the edges, and I clasped the counter with one hand and the glass with the other so hard I thought it would break. I felt my smile fall, and I rallied, plastering it back into place and shaking the panicking feeling coming up my spine away.
“Like about how much I love Tyler?” I asked. “I guess I’ve known for a long time, really, but it didn’t sink in until…”
I was babbling, and Mom waved me off. My words petered off and fell away lamely.
“I mean about the baby,” she said.
My jaw opened and shut a few times, and I moved the glass back to the counter so I wouldn’t drop it to the ground. I tried to force myself to breathe, but it wasn’t working terribly well. Mom, for her part, didn’t seem angry. Concerned maybe, but not angry. She took a big gulp of her wine and grabbed the bottle, filling her glass halfway again.
“How did you know?” I asked.
“Oh, honey,” she said. “It wasn’t that hard. You refused alcohol and potato salad. And you love potato salad.”
“I do,” I whined. “Usually I do. It’s always my favorite thing you make, but I just couldn’t eat it.”
“Because of the baby,” Mom said, leading me. I nodded. “Oh, honey,” she said, pulling me in for a hug. I felt like crying but tried to hold it back. The last thing I needed was to become a blubbering mess and alert everyone to my situation in the middle of Dad’s birthday celebration. Mom patted my back, and I wiped a tear from the corner of my eye as she let me go. “How long have you known?”
“A couple weeks,” I said, “I didn’t want to say anything about it yet because it’s so new with him, and I knew everyone might feel awkward, and…” I didn’t get the rest of it out before Mom was hugging me again. I let a few tears fall but rallied again and shook it off.
“It’s okay, honey,” Mom said. “I understand not telling everyone immediately. But you and Tyler are okay?”
“Yes,” I said, a smile stretching across my face. “He’s so excited. It’s killing him not to tell anyone.”
“Well,” Mom asked, “when do you plan on telling Nick?”
“Tell Nick what?” a voice came from behind me. I turned, feeling like everything was going in slow motion. Nick stood in the doorway; his eyebrow cocked.
“Oh, just tell him, Becca,” she said. “He’s going to find out sooner or later.”
“Nothing,” I said, but my voice came out as a whisper. I tried to force the words to come out again, stronger, but even less sound came.
“For heaven’s sake,” Mom said behind me. “She’s pregnant. Isn’t that wonderful?”
There was a lilt to her voice like she was trying to convince Nick to act like it was. I knew better than that. Nick wasn’t that easily manipulated. Instead, there were a few seconds of silence while his eyes burned into mine.
“Becca?” he asked, his voice gravelly and low. “Is this true?”
“Yes,” I said.
Nick took off, and I reached out to grab him but missed. He was already halfway to the dining room. The next few seconds were a blur of sound and motion and chaos. Nick walked right up to Tyler, who turned to him smiling. Then, Nick punched him directly in the face. Tyler fell backward a bit and jumped out of the chair. A bunch of yelling followed, and some of Dad’s friends got between Tyler and Nick, pushing Tyler back toward me and closer to the door.
“What the fuck, man?” Tyler yelled.
“That’s my baby sister,” Nick screamed. “You knocked up my baby sister!”