Knocked Up

Jake smiled as he handed his menu back to the waitress before thanking her as she walked away to get there drinks order and turning his attention back to his parents who had arrived Monday evening from Prague to spend a couple of nights with him before flying down to Florida a relaxing holiday he’d bought them as wedding anniversary gift and his pre emptied apology he hoped that by telling them today, there last day in Philly they’d have time to digest his news before they came back up to Philly to fly home in a week and they wouldn’t kill him and would give Kimmy a chance when she arrived that same weekend.

“You might as well just spit it out!” His mother declared rearranging her cutlery and napkin to make room for her pot of tea as the waitress walked back with their drinks. He just looked at her with confusion how did she know he had something to tell them he’d been so cool and normal around them since they’d arrived “Jakub we have been your parents for twenty five years now come on out with it.”

“Do you remember I mentioned meeting a girl in Ottawa?”

“The English girl… this wouldn’t have to do with Petra calling to ask if you were dating an English girl would it?” How the hell did his sister know about Kimmy?! “She mentioned you’d tweeted something about been a proud boyfriend but she had no idea who the girl in the picture was.” Of course how could he have forgotten about the tweet and why hadn’t Petra just called him, he knew there was a pretty big age gap between them but still he thought they were closer than that.

“Sort of, they are the same girl her name is Kimberly Krantzberg she is one of G’s closest friends and worked with G’s girlfriend at the summer camp. She was staying at Claude’s when I went to meet up with him in Ottawa so we could drive down in the RV to meet Wayne and go to that festival so I met her then and things got pretty heated pretty quick and one thing lead to another and she is pregnant.” There he said it that went better than with Chief but still he didn’t want to see their reaction so instead he busied himself adding milk and sugar to his coffee.

“I presume you’ve had a paternity test.” His mom sighed and he just stopped stiring his coffee and looked up at his mom, he should have been prepared for this question but he just wasn’t an attack on how stupid he had been on Kimmy yes but never questioning if this baby was his.

“The baby is mine.”

“So you’ve not had a paternity test done?” Why would she just not let it go and understand the baby was his.

“No.”

“Then how do you know it could be anyones?!” oh come on Jake wanted to scream he'd literally just told her the baby was his, Bean is his baby he just knew it even if Kimmy hadn't been sure he was he had been since he'd seen Bean on the screen in Buffalo.

“Because I trust Kimmy.”

“Wonderful you trust a girl you’ve known five seconds.”

“What reason does she have to lie?”

“What reason… are you truly that naïve? I thought we raised you better than to fall for some pretty girls smile.”

“She doesn’t care about who I am, what I do or how much money I make!”

“Now she doesn’t care about those things now but just you wait until she has you trapped!”

“Trapped she gave me an out from day one, when she came to see me to tell me she was pregnant she gave me a chance to walk away told me she wanted to keep the baby but understood if I wasn’t ready if it wasn’t what I wanted, she wouldn’t have told anyone just raised the baby by herself. She gave me that option, to just walk away to forget about her and walk away.”

“Oh she is good I can see how well she has you fooled.”

“Or maybe she’s not trying to fool me could it even cross your mind that yes I fucked up, we fucked up but that Kimberly is a good person and that we are trying to make the most of a messed up situation.”

“Respectable young women don’t just sleep with a guy they’ve known a few hours Jakub!”

“Wonderful, you’re not even going to give her a chance…” Jake paused as he saw the waitress walking over with their food, the family all feel silent just thanking the waitress as she handed them there plates and when she walked away before Jake turned his attention back to his parent, “She is having your grandchild and both she and our baby are going to be in my life for a long time.”

“So she will be moving to Philadelphia, moving in with you so you can raise the baby together?”

“We haven’t discussed that far yet, Kimmy lives and works in Buffalo.” His mom just rolled her eyes and Jake had just about had enough of her attitude, “Look I get it okay this situation is fucked up…”

“Jakub Language!”

“Are you serious right now?” His mom just gave him that I am your mother look what do you think, “Fine I know this situation is messed up, believe me I know and you can sit here and call Kimmy whatever and you can blame her or you can blame me because really it makes no difference in six months I am going to be a Dad Kimberly and I are going to have a baby and yes there is a lot to still work out but we will work it out together because in this we are a team. So yes Kimmy currently lives in Buffalo and yes that is less than ideal and in a perfect world she would quit her job and move to Philadelphia but she has worked so hard to get that job and she has literally had to tear down massive barriers blocking her because she is a woman because she comes from a certain area of England and she did it she made it and she loves her job and I am not going to ask her to give it up because not only has she worked so hard for it not only does she enjoy it but she is amazing at it.”

“I am not happy with this!”

“I am not asking you to be happy with it Mom I am asking you to understand it and I am asking you to give Kimberly a chance.”

“I suppose it’s only fair we don’t pass judgment on the girl until we have met her ourselves.” Silently Jake thanked his Dad the voice of reason at least he was willing to give Kimmy some kind of a chance. Turning his attention back to his mom Jake saw it the tiny nod she gave her despite her stern face it was all he needed them to just give her a chance and he knew they would see how amazing Kimmy was.

“Thank you.” He sighed picking up his coffee and taking a mouthful, “She will be in Philadelphia when you come back after Florida I was thinking that we could have a nice dinner at my house.” Properly best to keep that one very private he decided based on how this went he couldn’t trust his mom not to make a scene when she met Kimberly.

“You never mentioned what it is that Kimberly does in Buffalo?” His Dad asked as he finally started to eat his breakfast.

“She is an Engineer something to do with car crash safety data I think. The picture on twitter Petra called was from her graduation.”

“You should call your sister I know she would like to talk to you and the boys miss Uncle Jake.”

“I’ll give her a call sometime next week.” He nodded, knowing he would have to have a similar conversation with Petra though hopefully her reaction would be cooler more you stupid idiot little brother than an attack on Kimmy.
---
It was late evening by the time he got back home from dropping his parents off at the airport, his Mom still giving him the cold shoulder and refusing to talk to him whilst his Dad had tried all day to keep things light hearted between them. His Dad was his hero and it was days like today when his Dad didn’t take sides and didn’t scold him or jump to judging Kimmy that he was reminded why, he just hoped he’d be half the dad Miloslav Voracek was.

“Your parents gone?” Wayne asked as he walked into the kitchen where his housemate was cooking them dinner.

“Yeah, they’ll be back a week on Friday.”

“How did this morning go?” Wayne asked as he sat down at the breakfast bar quickly flicking through the post to see if there was anything important for him, other than the usual bills the answer was no not that he was expecting anything.

“My mom hates Kimmy already and my Dad is trying to remain neutral till he’s met her they were both pretty pissed at me though.”

“Jake you got a girl you barely know pregnant of course they are mad at you but give them time and they’ll come round and don’t worry about your mom and Kimmy. Hanna will love her once she gets to know her, she is exactly the type of girl she wants for you.” It was true, that in such an ironic world he’d somehow managed to end up getting his mom’s ideal girl for him pregnant.

“Apart from the English and Jewish bit.” His parents weren’t particularly religious they’d both been raised Catholic and church had been compulsory around Christmas but other than that it wasn’t a big thing for them.

“Oh come on if the Giroux’s where able to get past Claude dating a Jewish girl I am sure your parents will.” That was true Claude had grown up in a much stricter catholic home than he had even attending catholic school and yet his family had been able to get past Lianna been Jewish and welcome her to the family graciously but then Lianna hadn’t been pregnant and she was a born and raised Ottawa girl she had something in common with Claude.

“Yeah Claude was only throwing one thing at his parents Wayne it’s not like he was introducing his parents to the Jewish girl from the other side of the world that he got pregnant after knowing her barely a day.” He’d taken to tearing up a piece of junk mail as he waited for Wayne to finish cooking.

“Things will work out just give everyone time but maybe give your parents a breather before you start adding the Jewish part in there.”

“What do you want to watch tonight?” Jake asked changing the conversation completely as he reached over the breakfast bar and into the draws on the other side and pulled out two forks and knifes from them to eat with.

“Buffalo’s playing see if we can spot Kimmy, Eli and Lianna in the crowd?” Ah yes of course he totally forgotten that Lianna had gone up to spend a couple of weeks with Kimmy, Eli and Zac in Buffalo during which the four of them where going up to Ottawa for a camp reunion over the weekend and then Lianna would share the driving with Kimmy down from Buffalo to Philly. Though Jake highly doubted that Lianna would actually get to drive, hell it took enough for Kimmy to trust him with her car and he at least had a license from a country she half trusted.

“Sure.” He shrugged accepting the bowl of brown rice and veggies from Wayne before grabbing his fork and heading for the living room.

“Is Kimmy staying her when your parents are here?”

“No she’s going to stay at G’s and Reads felt it was safer especially since we’d have to share a room and that would be awkward enough…”

Wayne cut him off “With the crazy sexual tension between the two of you.” And Jake just dead panned at his house mate looking at him without the slightest hint of amusement on his face.

“I was going to say with my parents here.”

“But my answer is more accurate… she must have been something though for you still to be so caught up on her!” He’d never had better but Wayne didn’t need to know how good it was between them, how he literally hadn’t been able to get enough of her or take his hands off her.

“How about we are not having this conversation she is having my baby.”

“You’re not together no reason you can’t go and get laid.”

“I think G would kill me if I just went out and had sex with some girl I met in a bar.” It wasn’t even a think really he knew Claude would kill him if he went out and had sex with a random girl.

“So have sex with Kimmy, you know I heard that pregnant women get super horny!”

“Wayne!”

“Alright don’t have sex with Kimmy Jesus put the game on will you!” Not bothering with a comeback Jake just grabbed the remote that was next to him and flicked through the sports channels till he found the desired game.