Fragile

I was lucky to be fairly tall, reaching about five foot nine, because my weight was distributed pretty well throughout my body. I’ve never felt so thankful about having a large chest and behind, if I do say so myself.

“Who was that actor that played that guy in the movie with that girl whose got—,”

“That really good voice and she was only like sixteen in it?”

“Yeah,” John looked at me, knowing I knew exactly who he was talking about, “who is that?”

“Well, I figure you’re talking about The Phantom of the Opera, so I’m guessing you’re thinking of Gerard Butler. Am I right?”

“It’s like we have the same brain,” he said in a serious tone.

“You are seriously the weirdest guy I’ve ever known.”

“But you love it,” he smiled and I rolled my eyes while I continued putting together a sandwich for myself and John. “And do you mind cutting the edges off please?”

“You don’t eat the edges of the sandwich? What’s wrong with you?” I laughed.

“What? My mom always cuts the sides off my sandwiches for me. She knows I don’t like them.”

“Fine. And, by the way, I need to get some new pants,” I picked at the jeans I was wearing. “These ones are starting to get a little tight.”

“But you just bought those pants like two weeks ago. They don’t fit already?”

“Did you forget that I have a human being growing inside of my belly? When you start growing little people inside of you, that’s when you can complain about my pants. So, just eat your sandwich and we’ll make a quick trip to the mall. I might even buy you a snack.”

“Ooo, really?” His eyes got wide with excitement. “Deal.”

After cutting the edges off John’s peanut butter and jelly sandwich, he quickly ate it while I took my time chewing each bite.

“Hurry up,” he whined. “I really want ice cream now.”

I looked at him, rolling my eyes once again, and wrapped my sandwich in a napkin. “Okay, fine. I’ll bring it with me.”

A big smile appeared across his face again and we left my house to drive to the mall. John drove us, being that I was a little too big to be behind the wheel. Since we had the opportunity to hang out for the day while my mother and father were at work, I decided to bring up my thoughts about the baby.

“So,” I started and I saw John’s head drop for a second while we were walking from the parking lot to the mall.

“By the sound of that, I have a feeling this is gonna either be about you not being able to buy me the ice cream or it’s something about the baby. Did you decide if you wanted to give it up or not?”

“No, I’m definitely keeping it. I just wanted to get your opinion on some names. I was thinking if it’s a girl, I want to name here Tristan Riley. And, if it’s a boy, I want to name him Ethan Tyler. What do you think?”

“You don’t wanna name him after me? I am technically his father, right?”

“Yeah, but if his name was John Kent, doesn’t that sound like the father from Superman?”

John took a moment to think about it and finally nodded his head. “Yeah, that’s a good point. But, I like both of those. I’m hoping it’s a boy.”

“Of course you are. And if it’s a girl, will you still be this excited?”

“Well, of course I will. I love little girls.”

“Um, you have no idea how creepy that sounded, do you?” I chuckled.

“Ah, shut up,” he said, laughing with me. “But, honestly, I know I’ll be happy if it’s a girl or boy. And, while we’re here, we should pick up some baby stuff. How about it?”

“John, I’m not made of money. I only have about a hundred dollars on my debit card.”

“I never said you had to pay for it, I just said that we should pick up some baby stuff. Don’t worry about money.”

He then grabbed my hand and I followed him through the stores, searching for pants and baby things. I didn’t realize he would ever feel so happy about this child. When he first found out, I could remember how stand-offish he was being towards me. And now, it was as if this was his baby.

Before long, I had three new pairs of jeans and a large supply of baby toys in two large shopping bags.

“I think the baby won’t have any clue what to do with this when it sees it all,” I said.

“And your point is?” John asked while he dragged the bags back out to the car. “He or she should have whatever their little hearts desires.”

I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face; it practically melted my heart. Having John on my side proves that I will be able to take care of this baby and it’ll have a loving family, even though my father hasn’t really warmed up to the idea of his own baby having a baby. It’ll have to grow on him. But, for now, I was happy.