Sequel: Run the Show

Somebody Needs You

Chapter 28

Thankful that the weekend had finally arrived, meaning she didn’t have to go to work and put up a very fake façade once more, Katie had spent most of the Saturday sitting curled up in the living room couch, twirling the faithful plastic stick between her fingers and her mind all over the place. In a way it all made sense, perfect sense in fact, but that didn’t make her feel any better.

Sitting there, she was literally counting down the hours and then the minutes till Luke would be walking through the front door, arriving back after his weeklong away trip. It had ended much like it started, with a whooping 4-nil loss against the Blues and she was sure that wouldn’t soften the blow even the slightest.

Sighing heavily she ran her fingers through her hair and closed her eyes just as she heard a key in the lock and the door flew open. He really didn’t know how to do anything silently…

“Katie?” he called as he closed the door behind himself, dropping the bag on the floor and removing his jacket and his shoes in one go, before pulling off his hat.

“In here,” she replied softly, knowing that he’d heard her, the apartment was silent.

“Hey,” he smiled as he walked inside the room, happy to see her again. Talking to her over the phone or even Skype wasn't enough for him.

“Hi,” she tried a genuine smile and really hoped he’d buy it.

“I missed you,” he stated as he kneeled at the end of the couch and leaned towards her, brushing his lips against hers.

“I'm pregnant,” she blurted out in a reply so soft she was sure he hadn’t heard her.

“What?” he frowned as he backed away from her, his eyes searching her face for an answer.

“I'm pregnant,” she admitted, louder this time, a sad smile across her lips as she held out the plastic stick with ‘Pregnant’ clearly stated in the small box at the end of it. Tears prickling her eyes ahs wrapped her arms tightly around her knees and wished that she could just disappear as he didn’t say anything, just simply looked at her.

A heavy silence spreading between them, he sat down on the couch, no expression across his face as he processed the information, taking the stick from her and looking at it strangely. He’d never seen one before…

“You're pregnant?” he asked after what seemed like an eternity.

“Yeah,” she nodded slowly. “Its right there,” she nodded, not admitting that she’d taken three more tests the previous day, just to make sure…

“I'm going to be a dad,” he breathed, a smile spreading across his lips as he looked at the stick in his hands, the words finally registering and making sense. “I'm going to be a dad,” he repeated as he looked up at her, a wide smile present across his lips.

“Are you happy?” she asked surprised, she’d tried imagining his reaction all day and that was not one of the reactions she found most possible.

“Happy?” he asked, sounding equally as surprised. “Of course I am,” he smiled. “This is amazing,” he stated as he leaned over and pressed his lips against hers in a passionate kiss.

“No, wait,” she protested as she backed away from him. “You're actually excited about this?” she wondered, needing to know.

“We’re having a baby,” he pointed out. “That’s amazing,” he stated, frowning slightly as he saw the look across her features. “Right?”

“I just didn’t expect you to be so excited about it,” she admitted sheepishly, a few stray tears having made their way down her cheek.

“I love you,” he stated simply. “I asked you to marry me,” he reminded her. “A family is something that is included in that,” he pointed out. “A baby…it’s…” he tried to find words that could describe what he was feeling. “It’s amazing,” he stated frankly, a smile spreading across his features once again.

“Yeah,” she nodded slightly, smiling as he pulled her closer and kissed her. “It’s amazing,” she agreed as she was suddenly straddling his thighs, his hands resting on her hips.

“We’re going to have a baby,” he whispered as he looked up at her, an almost childish smile across his face.

She simply nodded as she leaned closer and closed the gap between then once again. Apparently she shouldn’t have been so worried about telling him.