Page 66 of Finding Fate

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“Your baby’s doing great,” Annie whispered into her sandy blonde friend’s ear from behind him later that night.

Tucker jumped. “Shit, Annie. I didn’t know you were there.”

She crawled over the bench and sat down next to him. “Just got here.”

“So I take it Izzy called you after she ditched me.”

Annie didn’t miss that his tone was a little bitter. She could understand why. It was his baby, and Izzy had refused to let him go with her.

“Yeah, but she waited ‘til right before Mom got home so I couldn’t back out on her when I found out why she needed me so badly.” She turned to him in an annoyance that wasn’t really directed at him. “Next time you and Izzy fight like that, give me a heads up, okay?”

He looked her over before he responded. He hadn’t missed the inflection in her voice. “You’re usually excited about doing things with Izzy.”

“Yeah, well, she kinda interrupted something important. Seriously, Tucker. Some warning that she’s overreacting about something would be great in the future. Her texts really freaked me out. I never would have left if I had known what it was about.”

He thought about what she said for a minute before it dawned on him. “That’s right…you and Jet were spending time together today.”

Annie humphed a little under her breath. “Yeah, not every couple gets to spend several afternoons a week together.”

“Do I detect a little jealously, Annie?” he said with a grin, playfully knocking his arm against her shoulder.

She scowled, and he laughed. “Okay, I’ll text you or something next time. I can’t always guarantee much warning, though. She went from happy and excited to pissed off in less than a minute today.”

“Well, something’s better than nothing.”

It stayed quiet between them for a few minutes as they watched the players approach the field. Annie searched for Jet. She loved the way he looked in his uniform…

“So everything went okay then?” Tucker asked inconspicuously before the game could get underway, both curious and somewhat anxious about how Izzy’s visit with the OB had gone.

Annie smiled understandingly. “Everything’s fine.”

He nodded. “Good.”

“I’m sorry that she wouldn’t let you go.”

“It’s okay. There’ll be other times. I’d rather you went to this one than a big one later on.”

In truth, he was a little relieved. What if they had done the heartbeat thing again? Izzy might not miss his lack of excitement a second time. It was good that Annie had gone. Let them have their twin moment. It gave him another month to figure out why he wasn’t reacting right to the baby.

“Thanks, Tucker. I did enjoy being in there with her, even though there was something else I was enjoying a lot more before…”

He grinned. “I’ll try to not upset her on your Jet days, then. No promises, though. She’s unpredictable lately.”

She grinned back. “No kidding. At least, you don’t share a room with her.”

“Do you think she’s calmed down enough to talk to me yet?”

“Probably by the time the game’s over. Oh, look, the dance team’s lining up now. It should be starting soon,” she added before he could say anything else.

Tucker ran for food at the concession stand while the pre-game introductions took place, and with the long line, he didn’t make it back to join Annie until several minutes into the game. He passed her a soda and chips and settled in to watch, yelling with enthusiasm when their team scored or made a good play, but his eyes kept wandering over to the section of the stands where the dance team sat. Izzy was just as wrapped up in the game as Annie seemed to be, and he was glad to see her having fun.

He considered the ruffled skirt of her costume, realizing it actually could help hide things for the next few weeks if she started to show. He wasn’t sure if she would still be able to perform at games once the impending baby bump was visible, or even if she’d want to.

He was beginning to realize that there were a lot of things left for them to figure out. Hardly any plans had been made, other than that they were going to keep the baby. Since his parents hadn’t said otherwise, he figured they’d be living at home, at least until high school was done. But would Izzy even graduate on time? Would she have to do some kind of summer program to finish?

The impact this was going to have on their lives was terrifying. But she was barely starting her second trimester. They still had plenty of time to make decisions. He still had plenty of time to grow attached to the baby…didn’t he? He pushed the worrisome thoughts out of his mind and worked to focus on the game. He could worry about it later.

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