Dirty Little Secret

I climbed out of the back of a cab and onto Camp Lejeune soil. The late November air ripped around me, chilling my skin beneath my sweater. The driver sped off after I tipped him and headed into the welcoming center.

I was greeted by the warm air and a friendly smile from the girl at the front desk. "Welcome to Camp Lejeune. How can I help you?" She asked in a native North Carolina accent.

"I'm here to see Tate Daniels."

"Name and proof of identification?"

"Corinne Page," I tell her as I pull my driver’s licenses from my wallet inside my purse.

She typed out my information on the computer, the sound of a printer from somewhere in the room told me that she was done. She walked back to the printing room to receive the paper she just printed.

"Here is this," She handed me the paper, which turned out to be a sticker. "We need you to wear to for security purposes."

The lady then picked up the phone, dialed a number and waited for the person on the other end to pick up. "I need Private First Class Daniels at the welcome center. Corinne Page is here to see him."

She hung up the phone and smiled at me. "He'll only be a few minutes. How far along are you?" She asks eyeing my stomach which had expanded quite a bit. I now could no longer see my feet because the baby had nowhere to go but out.

"I'm thirty weeks," I tell her proudly.

"Do you know what you're having?"

I laugh a bit to myself; everyone I meet asks me that same question followed by asking if we had names picked out. "No, Tate only had the opportunity to go to one appointment and the baby wasn't cooperating with us so we decided to wait until it's born. We also don't have any names picked out so for now it's just Baby Daniels."

As I finish explaining the door to the welcoming center opens with Tate along with the cold wind entering. He smiles brilliantly at me in his woodland utility uniform. I smile up at him, unsure if I was able to show him any sort of affection. Tate however, pulled me into a quick hug before kissing my quickly on the top of my head. It wasn't much but I'd take anything.

"Thanks Annie," Tate told the receptionist before ushering me outside.

It was weird being on the base. There were so many rules for even the simplest things like walking. Tate had me walk on his left side. This way his right hand was free to salute at any given time. We weren't aloud holding hands though, so I kept them on my stomach to make sure my hands wouldn't stray.

Finally we were in the comforts of Tate's room that he shared with another marine. Only then did Tate pull me into a tight embrace before our lips locked together.

"How's my baby?" Tate sat on his bed pulling me in between his legs so my stomach was in his face. Tate placed a few kisses on my tummy before looking up at me and smiling again.

"Baby Daniels is good. Very healthy and fat. Normally babies weigh around three pounds at thirty weeks but this baby weighs four and is fifteen inches long."

"I was a big baby, were you?" Tate asks and I shake my head.

"I'm terrified of giving birth. Doctor Rodriguez is guessing that the baby will be around ten pounds when born. I don't want to push anything that weighs ten pounds out of my vagina!"

Tate laughs as me and shakes his head. "Baby, you're going to be drugged up. I don't think you'll be able to feel the baby coming out."

"It might not hurt but I'll definitely feel this baby exiting my body."

"I've missed you so much. I can't wait until we're married."

"I know, me too. Do you have any preferences on a date?"

"Sooner rather than later. Immediately, tomorrow or now would be ideal."

"We're not getting married right now. I want to have an actual wedding."

"I know, I know. So does my mother. Come on, I want to show you around."

Tate gave me the grand tour of most of the base before I couldn't walk any further. For dinner, Tate and I met up with some of his fellow marines at a bowling alley. Some of them had significant others with me.

"Daniels I can't believe you brought your pregnant girlfriend to a bowling alley for dinner this food is nothing but grease," said what looked to be the oldest guy here.

"Shut up Williams. Cori's favorite food group is grease and burgers so I think this is a perfect place. Isn't that right?"

"I'm a sucker for anything remotely unhealthy," I tell them.

"How are you so thin, even being pregnant you're still a twig," the only girl who was also a marine said.

"I have a really good metabolism but it'll catch up to me one and I'll end up being five hundred pounds and Tate will be stuck with me."

"Can't wait," Tate teased.

Once we had all eaten the boys started to bowl, while the girls ordered a pitcher of beer and cheered their spouse or friends on.

"So let me see that rock," a lady named Angie said. She was the oldest marines wife. They lived just off base with their three kids. I lifted my left hand from underneath the table and showed the group of girls that I was with. "He's got good taste. Are you nervous to have a baby and get married?"

"Just the normal first time giving birth jitters. Other than that everything seems natural."

"I was twenty five when I was getting married and I was a nervous wreck."

"I don't have anything to be nervous about. My dad is actually really involved in the wedding and hired a wedding planner so she does everything I want so really don't have anything to worry about."

"What about your mom?"

"She's a bitch and disowned me. I moved into Tate's parents’ house because she said that the only way I would live there again is if I got an abortion and that obviously didn't happen," I say as if it wasn't a big deal.

I wasn't staying on the base with Tate since we weren't married but I got a hotel close by. It sucked that we weren't going to spend the night together but I told myself it was only for a little while later. I kissed him goodbye, Tate promised that he would come and see me before I left for the airport.

The visit with Tate before leaving to the airport was bittersweet. The next time I would get to see him would be I deliver Baby Daniels. Ten more weeks, ten long more weeks.

**

Despite what my dad, Liz and Steve said I drove myself to the airport and I would be driving myself back. I didn't want to burden anyone's busy schedule and I liked doing things for myself. I was pregnant, not hopeless.

I pulled out of the airport parking lot and headed south, having to stop a stop light. I sent a quick text to Liz that I landed was on my way home while the light was still red. Once it turned green I set my phone on the passenger seat and put my foot on the gas.

What happened next, I wasn't sure but everything went black.