Trey: No, man. Just woke up from my Sunday afternoon nap. That guy would sleep all day if he could.
Chance: Come over, but bring beer. I’ll order pizza.
Twenty minutes later there is a knock on my door and then it opens. “This must be bad if we’re day drinking on a Sunday.”
“Shut the fuck up and hand me a beer. Pizza should be here in twenty.”
We sit on opposite ends of the couch. “Seriously, are you okay?” he asks me.
“Yes, or maybe no… I don’t know.” I tell him what went down and how Laken tried to call it quits over text.
“Wait a minute; she ended this and you didn’t even respond? You’re not going to try to change her mind? That’s crazy. I’ve never known you to ever give up this fast.”
I take a long pull of my beer. “I’ve never done the relationship thing before. I don’t know what I’m doing. All I know is I want to be with her right now and help with whatever she’s dealing with.”
“Then go fucking find her. Maybe she could use your help, or maybe she needs you to lean on.”
“I don’t know.” I take a swig of my beer. “I need to think about it.”
“What is there to think about? She’s sweet, smart, funny, and smokin’ hot.”
I give him a look I hope coveys that I don’t want him looking at her like that. Trey laughs and takes a drink of his beer.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. How about after we eat pizza, you go talk to Nicole and see what she thinks.”
The pizza arrives, and I run to pay for it and carry it inside. I set the box on my coffee table, and like a couple of pigs we dig right in, forgoing plates; my mom would throw a fit right now.
“By the way, your mom called my mom and gives her approval of Laken … like a lot.”
I shake my head. I am not surprised at all. Mom and Laken got along really well and chatted the whole time we had lunch. Both of my parents kept smiling at the two of us. It was pretty embarrassing, but she is the first girl/woman they’ve seen me around.
At least in a girlfriend sort of way, but is that what she is—my girlfriend?
After Trey leaves, I decide to run over to Laken and Nicole’s in hopes of finding out if her friend thinks I should go to Laken’s parents’ or not. Since I had a couple of beers I decide to walk to their apartment.
I ring the buzzer. “Hello?”
“Uh … Nicole?”
“Yes.”
I clear my throat. “Um … it’s Chance.”
“Laken isn’t here.”
“I know. I was hoping to talk to you for a few minutes. If you’re more comfortable, you can come out here.” I’m sure it’s probably weird that I just showed up at her place knowing Laken isn’t home.
The buzzer sounds, and I pull the door open. She’s standing in the doorway when I reach their floor. “Hey, sorry to just show up like this, but is Laken okay? She seemed pretty rattled when I dropped her off.”
“Yeah, she’s okay. She just wanted to make sure things were good at home.” I step inside the apartment, and she shuts the door behind her. “How much did she tell you?”
I ignore her question and wander over to the bookshelf and the photo on top of it. It’s a picture of Laken and a little girl who looks like her twin. My heart starts pounding, and I turn to Nicole. “Is th-that her sister?”
I turn back to the picture. The smile on Laken’s face is so bright it’s almost blinding. The little girl has a smile as wide as hers.
“No, that’s not her sister.” Nicole steps up next to me. “That’s Laken’s daughter, Ava; she’s three.”
I run my hand through my hair. “Why wouldn’t she tell me about her? Where is she; why doesn’t she live with you guys?” The questions run through my mind in rapid succession.
“This should really be coming from Laken, but the cat’s out of the bag now. Her parents wanted her to have the experience of going away to college. They have Ava right now while Laken finishes up her degree.” Nicole hands me a glass of water and then points at the sofa for me to sit.
“What happened to Ava? I’m assuming that’s why she rushed home.”
“I guess Laken’s mom was outside tending to the garden and the latch on the gate around their pool wasn’t completely latched. Ava fell in, and Laken’s mom didn’t find her until just as she was going under. She’s fine, just scared and of course Leigh, Laken's mom, feels horrible.”
I wish I had known. I never would’ve let her drive home by herself, but I do have one burning question. “Where is Ava’s dad? Is he involved?”
Nicole shakes her head, and I don’t like the look on her face. “It’s not my story to tell, but he’s never been in the picture and never will be.”
“Do you have any more pictures?”
She gets up and disappears down the hall and returns with a small stack of photos. “Ava calls me Coco because she can’t say Nicole. She’s very smart for her age and such a sweet girl who loves her momma something fierce.”
I take the pictures and smile as I look through each one. Most are of them making silly faces at the camera, but one causes me to pause. Laken is lying on her side with a sleeping Ava tucked to her front. I don’t know much about babies, but Ava couldn’t have been more than a few months old.
Every picture I look at tells me the little girl is well loved. Am I ready for a relationship? A relationship where there’s a child involved? That’s a big deal, and unless I’m in a hundred percent, I shouldn’t be in at all; it’s not fair to Laken or Ava.
I set the pictures down and stand. “I appreciate you talking to
