You Drain The Life From Me.

"Leigh, I have a surprise for you!" Stephen said over the phone that night. To be honest, I could barely hear him. I was so tired.

"Yeah?" I mumbled.

"Yeah. I'll come over tomorrow."

"Um, you might not wanna do that," I warned him.

"Why?"

"My, uh, my parents know."

Silence. I silently thanked him for being quiet. Now I could sleep.

Just as my eyelids drooped down, he spoke again. I was tempted to throw my phone against the wall in order for him to be quiet once more. Mood swings sucked.

"How about you come over?"

"Sounds good..."

I was slurring my words due to how tired I was. It was either Stephen just didn't hear or he was ignoring it.

"Alright, see you tomorrow. Bye, Leigh."

"Bye, St--" I couldn't even finish my sentence as my eyes shut tight and the phone dropped out of my hand and onto the bed.



"Hey, are you al--"

I cut John off with the sound of my vomiting. It was absolutely disgusting. I had woken up this morning and ran straight to the bathroom, my head over the toilet, all the contents of last night's dinner making their way out of my body.

He sighed and leaned down, pulling my hair back. His hand rubbed my back. He knew that even before I had gotten pregnant, I hated vomiting. It repulsed me, just like it repulsed everyone, but I hated doing it. I avoided roller coasters and anything else that would cause me to get nauseous. Now that I was doing it every day, I was miserable.

Once I thought I was finished, I sat up straight and flushed. My forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat. All of a sudden, I fell back on my ass and started to cry. John took a wet paper towel and cleaned up my mouth.

"Leigh, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"I hate being pregnant. I don't even want this baby. I don't want to have to choose between Stephen and Garrett. I don't want to barf every day. I hate bursting into tears randomly. I hate craving stupid food. I hate getting really happy then really mad. I hate being so tired."

John sighed. "Baby sister, I really don't know what to say. All I can say is, just stay positive. Maybe it's a good thing you're pregnant. Because that baby inside of you is going to have the best mom in the world. No matter which dad he or she is going to have, I know it's going to be the right one. I know you'll pick the right person, Leigh. And they're going to have the most wonderful uncle, because who wouldn't wanna have John Cornelius O'Callaghan the fifth as an uncle?"

I laughed. "You're right, John Ohh. Thank you."

We stood and before he left, I wrapped my arms around his middle. "Seriously, thank you for being here for me. I love you, big brother."

He hugged back and I could feel his smile as he kissed me on the forehead.

"I love you, potato chip."



"So what's your surprise?" I asked Stephen excitedly. We were in his room. I had driven over to his house after John made sure I was okay.

"Well, my parents thought it was time for me to move out."

I raised my eyebrow. "And?"

"Well, they're helping me out and getting me an apartment, and they're paying for the rent for the first month."

"And?" I asked once more.

He took a deep breath. "Do you want to move in with me?"

My eyes widened and I sat on his bed silently, thinking about what he had just asked.

"Me? You want me to move in with you?"

"Yeah, I mean, I know it's a huge decision, but why not? You and I can find jobs..well, I can find a job and once you have the baby, you can find a job too. I told my parents, and they liked the idea."

"You told your parents? That I was pregnant? Without me?" I started to get angry.

He nodded. "I knew you were telling your parents yesterday and I didn't want to give you too much to do."

My anger disappeared. I smiled softly. He was such a thoughtful boy.

"And you don't have to make any decisions right now. I'm not moving out until next month."

I nodded. "But my parents want to meet you," he said. "They want you to stay for dinner tomorrow."

"Yeah! I'll come. I'm excited."

"Good," he replied with a huge smile. "Now, what do you want to do?"

"Actually, Stephen, I have somewhere that I have to go."

He was unhappy, I could tell, even though he thought he had hidden it well.

"I-I have somewhere to be with my m-mom," I explained quickly. He nodded, but with no smile. "I'll see you tomorrow, sweetheart," I whispered, kissing him on the lips.

One more lie and I was sure I was going to hell. Before getting in my car, I whipped my phone out, dialing the number I knew by heart.

"Can you meet me at the dugout, please? It's kind of important."