Page 14 of Wrong Number. Right Don.
She holds up a hand, cutting me off.
“Nic, we need answers.”
I press my fingers to my temple. This is too much. It’s impossible. It has to be impossible. I mean, I don’t even know Sergei’s last name. I don’t know where he lives, what he does, if I’ll ever even see him again. I’ve been very good these lastfew weeks about not spiraling, not staring at the phone and wondering if I should just text him again.
I feel lightheaded again.
Mia steadies me. “Whatever happens, we’ll figure it out. Okay?”
I exhale slowly and nod weakly. “Okay.”
She studies me for another second and nods. Then she’s gone, slipping out of the bathroom to find a pregnancy test, leaving me alone with the looming reality. Alone with the fact that in just a few minutes, everything could change.
A few minutes later she slips back in, a small brown paper bag clutched in one hand, and checks that the restroom is still empty. She hands me the bag and shoos me into a stall, where I have to actually take the damn test. My hands shake as I pull it from the box and hold it underneath me.
I pace while I wait for the results. My sneakers squeak against the linoleum floor with every step, my arms wrapped around my middle like I’m physically holding myself together. Mia sits on the sink edge, elbows braced on her knees, chin resting on her palm. She’s not pacing. She’s not freaking out. She’s just watching the pregnancy test with the patience of a Buddhist monk, waiting for the results to become clear.
I swallow hard, blood rushing in my ears, drowning out everything else. I should be thinking about what I’m going to do. I should be preparing myself for either answer. But all I can think about is Sergei. The way he touched me. The way he left. The way I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him since.
Mia’s phone vibrates against the sink.
The timer is up.
I freeze mid-step. My breath catches in my throat. For a second, neither of us move. Then Mia straightens, inhaling slowly.
“You want me to look first?”
I nod so fast it makes me dizzy. “Please.”
Mia reaches for the test. I squeeze my eyes shut.
This is it.
This is the moment my life changes forever.
I hear Mia’s breath hitch. She flips the stick around. And I force my eyes open.
Two lines.
The air punches out of my lungs in a sharp, shattering exhale.
“Fuck.”
The word hangs in the air, heavy and suffocating. Mia doesn’t say anything.
I stare at the test, my vision tunneling, my entire body going numb.
Fuck.
How could I be so stupid?
Mia clears her throat.
“So…” she starts.
I blink, dragging my gaze away from the test to look at her. She’s watching me carefully. Measuring my reaction. Waiting for me to process what just happened. But I can’t. Because I have no idea what to do next.
Mia softens.
