Two's Company - part 4
Sequel to 'A Very Odd Couple'
Cast of Characters - Dave Malucci, Luka Kovac, Chris Malucci, Real Kerry.
Previously on ER.
Dave moved in with Luka and they became good friends.
After Dave was attacked, his sister Chris met Luka and they became even better friends
;-)
Chris came to visit Luka after being attacked by a patient at work. Dave - at Chris's request - made the excuse that he had to return some journals to Kerry and left them alone together. Chris told Luka that she was pregnant. Luka was delighted, but his happiness faded when Chris told him that she didn't think she wanted to have the baby. Meanwhile, Dave was looking for something to do to keep him occupied until it was safe to return home, and ended up going grocery shopping with Kerry. He was a little unnerved by the darkness of the parking lot that Kerry finally parked in.
Chris initially told Luka that she couldn't be a resident and a mother, that she didn't want to have to struggle like that. Luka tried to persuade her that she wouldn't be alone, but was unable to convince her.
Notes - I had called Luka's wife 'Maria' in the previous series before we found out her real name. I'm not changing it *now*
---------------------------
"I've already told you," said Chris, her voice raised. "I can't do this...I *won't* have my life turned upside down. I have plans...goals...that do *not* include children." She tried futilely to free herself from Luka's grip.
"I don't believe you," replied Luka, angrily, his hands squeezing Chris's arms tightly. "I know you love your work...but it cannot be that important to you that you would simply throw away this *gift* for it. Why do not want this baby? WHY?"
"Because of what happened last time," Chris screamed at him.
----------------
Luka looked at Chris with confusion on his face. "Last time? What are you talking about?" He stared at her for a few seconds before the realization dawned. "You...you were pregnant before? You had a child?"
Chris's eyes filled with tears and she looked away from him. "I...I don't want to talk about it...I shouldn't have said anything. Just leave it...it doesn't matter...it's done and gone."
"But if it is affecting your decision about this child...*our* child...then we have to talk about it."
Chris pulled away from Luka's grip. "Please...I don't...I *can't* talk about it." There was an edge of hysteria in her voice. She turned away, only to have Luka pull her back towards him.
"Please Chris...I only want to help...talk to me...tell me what happened...*please*...do not shut me out."
Gently but firmly, Luka guided Chris back to the couch. This time he didn't let her push away from him, but held her close against his chest. "When did it happen?" he asked softly. "Was it while you were in College?"
Chris sighed heavily. "No...it was when I was in High School...when I was sixteen..."
= = = = = = = = = = = =
Seventeen-year-old Dave Malucci ambled towards the bathroom, a towel slung over his shoulder. Man, that had been a good run, he thought as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He could feel the aching muscles in his legs, but a hot shower would ease those, and then he would head downtown to catch up with his buds.
Just as he was about to push the door open, Chris ducked past him, almost slamming into the door in her hurry.
"Hey," yelled Dave, indignantly, as she shoved the door shut in his face. "Aw come on Chris," he called as he heard her slide the bolt home. "I'm in a hurry." He thumped the door in annoyance before yelling through it, "If you're not out in five minutes, I'm breaking the door down." He paced away down the corridor, muttering under his breath about sisters who spent half their lives in the bathroom. Still, at least there was only one of them to contend with now. Growing up with four older teenage sisters had been hell, and he remembered many occasions when he'd been stuck outside the door crossing his legs while waiting for one or the other of them to get done.
Chris ignored him...she was too busy clinging to the side of the toilet as she threw up into the bowl. After a few minutes of heaving, she pushed herself away and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Tears pricked at her eyes and she wiped them away hurriedly. She had shed her tears earlier...as she had watched the blue line slowly appear and confirm what she had already suspected. She had tried to convince herself that she'd been feeling ill because of 'a bug she'd picked up'. She had tried to pretend that her period wasn't *that* late...after all, she was only sixteen...it wasn't unusual to miss one. But the rational part of her had insisted that she take the test anyway...just to prove herself right...but all she had proved was that her worst fears had been realized. She was pregnant...and when her parents found out, they were going to kill her.
Reaching blindly to flush the toilet, Chris finally managed to struggle to her feet. She could hear Dave banging on the door, and in spite of her predicament, she managed to smile. Her brother was always impatient...or so their mother always said. "He couldn't even wait the full nine months," she often said, usually ruffling his hair affectionately as she said it. "Five weeks early he was."
"The first and the last time he's been early for anything," was her father's usual rejoinder.
They may have joked about it, but Chris was well aware that it had been a serious matter.
After their sister Betty had been born, their mother had had problems with her health and it had been several years before she had finally become pregnant with Dave. It had been a difficult pregnancy and birth, and the doctors had advised them that they should consider their family completed. Happy to have finally had a son after four daughters, they had agreed...except things obviously hadn't gone according to plan and Chris had been born just over a year later.
Of course, her parents had never *told* her that she had been an 'accident', but it was surprising how many people hadn't the good sense to avoid commenting to her that they had thought Marie Malucci would *never* have another child after all the trouble she'd had with Dave. Well, she was no longer in a position to criticize their lack of expertise in family planning.
Chris rinsed her mouth out with water and then splashed some on her face. She looked quickly in the mirror. Okay, at least she didn't look *too* bad...at least there were no obvious signs that she'd spent the last few minutes puking her guts up. With a sigh, she moved towards the door.
"About time," said Dave, when the door finally opened.
"Yeah yeah," mumbled Chris, not looking him in the eye. She was about to push past him when she felt another wave of nausea.
"Oh God," she thought. There wasn't enough time for her to shut the door again...in fact, there was barely enough time for her to resume her earlier position by the toilet, before she started heaving.
Dave stood there open mouthed for a few seconds before hurrying to her side. "Jesus Chris, what's wrong?"
Chris was too busy puking to reply but she could feel Dave rubbing her back. When she had finished, she was handed a glass of water, and rinsed her mouth for a second time.
"I'd better call a doctor," said Dave, "You look terrible."
"I'm fine," growled Chris. "It...it's probably just something I ate, okay?"
Dave shook his head. "We all ate the same stuff for dinner last night, and you're the only one sick. Are you feverish? Maybe it's the flu." He reached out to touch her forehead, but she pulled away.
"Save the diagnoses for when you get to Med School," snapped Chris. God, she wished he'd just leave her alone. She wanted so much to tell him what was really wrong with her...but this was *her* mistake...and she had no right to drag him into it. But the more concern he was showing, the harder it was for her to lie to him.
Allowing Dave to pull her to her feet, she said, "Look, it's probably just a bug going round...I'll drink plenty of liquids, take it easy for today and I'll be fine. So stop worrying about me already." Not waiting for a response, she started to head for the door, only to collapse into his arms as a wave of dizziness swept over her.
"Chris!" yelled Dave, catching her quickly as she swayed.
Knocking the toilet lid down, he carefully lowered Chris onto it. "Okay now, just put your head between your knees," he ordered, keeping careful hold of her to make sure she wouldn't fall.
"That's it, I'm calling a doctor," said Dave.
"No," protested Chris. "Please...you can't." She lifted her head, and looked at him.
"Dammit, you've puked your guts up...you nearly fainted...either I call a doctor or I'm putting you over my shoulder and carrying you to the nearest ER. I mean it Chris. Something's wrong with you and you gotta find out what."
Chris closed her eyes and swallowed hard before saying quietly, "I already know what's 'wrong' with me..." She hesitated for a few moments before saying in a voice so low that Dave could barely hear her. "I...I'm pregnant..."
Dave's jaw dropped open and he stared at his sister in shock for a few seconds. Then a grin broke out on his face and he said, "Good one Chris, you nearly had me going there."
Chris looked at Dave, "I'm serious, Dave...I...I really *am* pregnant..."
The grin faded from Dave's face as he realized that she was serious. "But you can't be pregnant. I mean you'd have had to...no...you've just got a bug or food poisoning or something, right?" He looked at her hopefully. She had to be mistaken, he thought. This was his baby sister...no way in hell could she be pregnant.
"The little blue line on the pregnancy test says that I am," replied Chris, unable to meet his gaze.
Dave stepped back, the shock evident on his face. How could this have happened to *his* sister...shit, she didn't even have a boyfriend. A horrible thought crossed his mind. "Who did this to you? God, I'll kill whoever it was."
Chris flinched at the anger in Dave's voice even though she knew that it wasn't directed at her. "Nobody 'did' anything to me that I didn't want them to," she sighed wearily, pushing her hair back from her face. "Nobody spiked my drink, nobody took advantage of me and nobody forced me. It was all consensual, okay?"
"No it is *not* okay," groaned Dave as he started pacing the floor. "How could you be so careless?"
"I never meant for this to happen," said Chris, a note of hysteria in her voice. "I had condoms...I thought they'd be enough...I never meant for this to happen...I just wanted...I thought I'd be okay." She wrapped her arms around herself and started to cry quietly. "I thought I was being 'safe'..."
Dave put his arm around his sister. "It'll be okay sis," he said, helplessly. "Don't cry...we...we'll talk to Mom...she'll sort everything out." He felt Chris tense.
"No," she said, flatly. "I...I'm not telling her...I...I can't."
"Uh, you're going to have to sooner or later," said Dave. "I mean, it's gonna be sort of obvious pretty soon."
"Not necessarily," said Chris. "Not if I make it go away first."
Dave frowned at her for a few seconds before he realized what she meant. "Aw no, Chris...you can't...I mean..."
"I'm sixteen...I'm not even done with high school...I've got a shot at going to college. I can't do that as a single parent."
"But what about the father?" asked Dave. "I dunno, maybe he could help out...support you and the kid."
"No," said Chris firmly. "That's not an option."
"Why not?" Dave spoke without thinking. "You know who he is, right?"
The slap in the face came as a surprise to him. "You bastard," spat Chris standing as she pushed him away from her, sending him sprawling on the floor. "Is that what you think of me? That I'm some whoring slut that doesn't even know who's knocked her up?"
"No," protested Dave. "I didn't mean it like that...I just didn't think...shit, I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset you like that." He rubbed his cheek tenderly.
"I...I'm sorry Dave," sighed Chris.
"Man, remind me never to piss you off again...at least not when I'm sitting within range."
Chris managed a watery smile. "Make any cracks about hormones and you're dead meat." The smile faded from her face. "I'm serious about this Dave. I'm not having this baby...I *can't*...and I can't let Mom or Dad know. They...they wouldn't understand. Please Dave, promise me you won't tell them." She looked at him with anguish written in her face.
Dave pushed himself up off the floor and hugged her. "I won't tell them if you don't want me to...but are you sure you're doing the right thing?"
Chris nodded. "I hate myself for having to do this...but it's the only way out. Please don't try to stop me."
"I won't...and I'll do anything I can to help."
Chris shook her head, "All I want is for you to not say anything. I don't want to get you involved. You could get into a lot of trouble with Mom and Dad."
"You think I care about that, Chris?" he said, looking into her eyes. "You're my baby sister and I love you. I'm gonna be there for you and help you through this. I promise."
Chris sighed. It was sort of a relief to her, knowing that Dave knew. The worst part of this whole horrible situation had been having to lie about it...and there was going to be more lying before it was over.
"So when are you going to do it?" asked Dave, carefully.
There was no need for him to explain what he was referring to. "Next month...when Mom and Dad are on vacation," replied Chris. "I...I figured that since they'll be gone for almost three weeks that I'd have time to...to recover before they got back. Plus the doc at the clinic said I'd need to come back for a follow up after a few weeks, and I should be able to fit that in while they're gone as well."
"And what were you going to tell *me*?"
Chris hung her head. "I hadn't really figured that out," she admitted. "The clinic said that I could be kept in overnight. I guess I'd have told you it was an 'all night party'...and hoped you wouldn't want to come as well."
"You'd have lied to me?" Dave tried not to let his voice show how upset he was. Okay, so he and Chris had always been honest with each other...that didn't mean that they'd *never* have reason to lie...and he could see that this was a pretty big reason.
Chris heard the note in his voice. "I didn't want to *have* to lie...I just...I just didn't want you to have to get involved...this is *my* mess and I just...I just..."
"Hey, it's okay, it's okay," said Dave, soothingly. "I understand."
He was silent for a few seconds before asking, "What about cash? I mean, you can't exactly claim this on Dad's health insurance. I've got some stashed away that I was gonna put towards a new bike, but if you need it, it's yours."
Chris felt herself start to tear up at her brother's offer. Dave had been wanting a new bike for ages now, but their parents had said that he'd have to fund it himself since there was nothing wrong with his old one...except that it was 'old'. "It...it's okay," she said. "It's a free clinic...they...they just ask you to pay what you can afford."
"Well if you need anything...all you have to do is say the word. I mean it Chris, I'm here for you," said Dave, quietly. "You're not alone."
Chris smiled weakly at him, "I know...and I'm glad..."
= = = = = = = = = = = = =
"I don't think I'd have gotten through it all if it hadn't been for Dave," said Chris, quietly.
"You mean the...termination?" Luka found it difficult to even say the word. Oh sure he had always believed himself to be pro-choice...but it was one thing to blithely say that it was each woman's right to choose...but it was another thing to know that someone so close to him had made this most serious of decisions. And he could understand her reasoning. God knew he had seen enough teenage mothers in the ER to know that having a baby at that age was a serious undertaking...but still, to know that Chris had made that decision, no matter what the circumstances, was something that would take time for him to accept.
Chris leaned in closer to Luka, "Not exactly...you see things didn't work out exactly the way I'd planned."
------------------------
To be continued.
Sequel to 'A Very Odd Couple'
Cast of Characters - Dave Malucci, Luka Kovac, Chris Malucci, Real Kerry.
Previously on ER.
Dave moved in with Luka and they became good friends.
After Dave was attacked, his sister Chris met Luka and they became even better friends
;-)
Chris came to visit Luka after being attacked by a patient at work. Dave - at Chris's request - made the excuse that he had to return some journals to Kerry and left them alone together. Chris told Luka that she was pregnant. Luka was delighted, but his happiness faded when Chris told him that she didn't think she wanted to have the baby. Meanwhile, Dave was looking for something to do to keep him occupied until it was safe to return home, and ended up going grocery shopping with Kerry. He was a little unnerved by the darkness of the parking lot that Kerry finally parked in.
Chris initially told Luka that she couldn't be a resident and a mother, that she didn't want to have to struggle like that. Luka tried to persuade her that she wouldn't be alone, but was unable to convince her.
Notes - I had called Luka's wife 'Maria' in the previous series before we found out her real name. I'm not changing it *now*
---------------------------
"I've already told you," said Chris, her voice raised. "I can't do this...I *won't* have my life turned upside down. I have plans...goals...that do *not* include children." She tried futilely to free herself from Luka's grip.
"I don't believe you," replied Luka, angrily, his hands squeezing Chris's arms tightly. "I know you love your work...but it cannot be that important to you that you would simply throw away this *gift* for it. Why do not want this baby? WHY?"
"Because of what happened last time," Chris screamed at him.
----------------
Luka looked at Chris with confusion on his face. "Last time? What are you talking about?" He stared at her for a few seconds before the realization dawned. "You...you were pregnant before? You had a child?"
Chris's eyes filled with tears and she looked away from him. "I...I don't want to talk about it...I shouldn't have said anything. Just leave it...it doesn't matter...it's done and gone."
"But if it is affecting your decision about this child...*our* child...then we have to talk about it."
Chris pulled away from Luka's grip. "Please...I don't...I *can't* talk about it." There was an edge of hysteria in her voice. She turned away, only to have Luka pull her back towards him.
"Please Chris...I only want to help...talk to me...tell me what happened...*please*...do not shut me out."
Gently but firmly, Luka guided Chris back to the couch. This time he didn't let her push away from him, but held her close against his chest. "When did it happen?" he asked softly. "Was it while you were in College?"
Chris sighed heavily. "No...it was when I was in High School...when I was sixteen..."
= = = = = = = = = = = =
Seventeen-year-old Dave Malucci ambled towards the bathroom, a towel slung over his shoulder. Man, that had been a good run, he thought as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He could feel the aching muscles in his legs, but a hot shower would ease those, and then he would head downtown to catch up with his buds.
Just as he was about to push the door open, Chris ducked past him, almost slamming into the door in her hurry.
"Hey," yelled Dave, indignantly, as she shoved the door shut in his face. "Aw come on Chris," he called as he heard her slide the bolt home. "I'm in a hurry." He thumped the door in annoyance before yelling through it, "If you're not out in five minutes, I'm breaking the door down." He paced away down the corridor, muttering under his breath about sisters who spent half their lives in the bathroom. Still, at least there was only one of them to contend with now. Growing up with four older teenage sisters had been hell, and he remembered many occasions when he'd been stuck outside the door crossing his legs while waiting for one or the other of them to get done.
Chris ignored him...she was too busy clinging to the side of the toilet as she threw up into the bowl. After a few minutes of heaving, she pushed herself away and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Tears pricked at her eyes and she wiped them away hurriedly. She had shed her tears earlier...as she had watched the blue line slowly appear and confirm what she had already suspected. She had tried to convince herself that she'd been feeling ill because of 'a bug she'd picked up'. She had tried to pretend that her period wasn't *that* late...after all, she was only sixteen...it wasn't unusual to miss one. But the rational part of her had insisted that she take the test anyway...just to prove herself right...but all she had proved was that her worst fears had been realized. She was pregnant...and when her parents found out, they were going to kill her.
Reaching blindly to flush the toilet, Chris finally managed to struggle to her feet. She could hear Dave banging on the door, and in spite of her predicament, she managed to smile. Her brother was always impatient...or so their mother always said. "He couldn't even wait the full nine months," she often said, usually ruffling his hair affectionately as she said it. "Five weeks early he was."
"The first and the last time he's been early for anything," was her father's usual rejoinder.
They may have joked about it, but Chris was well aware that it had been a serious matter.
After their sister Betty had been born, their mother had had problems with her health and it had been several years before she had finally become pregnant with Dave. It had been a difficult pregnancy and birth, and the doctors had advised them that they should consider their family completed. Happy to have finally had a son after four daughters, they had agreed...except things obviously hadn't gone according to plan and Chris had been born just over a year later.
Of course, her parents had never *told* her that she had been an 'accident', but it was surprising how many people hadn't the good sense to avoid commenting to her that they had thought Marie Malucci would *never* have another child after all the trouble she'd had with Dave. Well, she was no longer in a position to criticize their lack of expertise in family planning.
Chris rinsed her mouth out with water and then splashed some on her face. She looked quickly in the mirror. Okay, at least she didn't look *too* bad...at least there were no obvious signs that she'd spent the last few minutes puking her guts up. With a sigh, she moved towards the door.
"About time," said Dave, when the door finally opened.
"Yeah yeah," mumbled Chris, not looking him in the eye. She was about to push past him when she felt another wave of nausea.
"Oh God," she thought. There wasn't enough time for her to shut the door again...in fact, there was barely enough time for her to resume her earlier position by the toilet, before she started heaving.
Dave stood there open mouthed for a few seconds before hurrying to her side. "Jesus Chris, what's wrong?"
Chris was too busy puking to reply but she could feel Dave rubbing her back. When she had finished, she was handed a glass of water, and rinsed her mouth for a second time.
"I'd better call a doctor," said Dave, "You look terrible."
"I'm fine," growled Chris. "It...it's probably just something I ate, okay?"
Dave shook his head. "We all ate the same stuff for dinner last night, and you're the only one sick. Are you feverish? Maybe it's the flu." He reached out to touch her forehead, but she pulled away.
"Save the diagnoses for when you get to Med School," snapped Chris. God, she wished he'd just leave her alone. She wanted so much to tell him what was really wrong with her...but this was *her* mistake...and she had no right to drag him into it. But the more concern he was showing, the harder it was for her to lie to him.
Allowing Dave to pull her to her feet, she said, "Look, it's probably just a bug going round...I'll drink plenty of liquids, take it easy for today and I'll be fine. So stop worrying about me already." Not waiting for a response, she started to head for the door, only to collapse into his arms as a wave of dizziness swept over her.
"Chris!" yelled Dave, catching her quickly as she swayed.
Knocking the toilet lid down, he carefully lowered Chris onto it. "Okay now, just put your head between your knees," he ordered, keeping careful hold of her to make sure she wouldn't fall.
"That's it, I'm calling a doctor," said Dave.
"No," protested Chris. "Please...you can't." She lifted her head, and looked at him.
"Dammit, you've puked your guts up...you nearly fainted...either I call a doctor or I'm putting you over my shoulder and carrying you to the nearest ER. I mean it Chris. Something's wrong with you and you gotta find out what."
Chris closed her eyes and swallowed hard before saying quietly, "I already know what's 'wrong' with me..." She hesitated for a few moments before saying in a voice so low that Dave could barely hear her. "I...I'm pregnant..."
Dave's jaw dropped open and he stared at his sister in shock for a few seconds. Then a grin broke out on his face and he said, "Good one Chris, you nearly had me going there."
Chris looked at Dave, "I'm serious, Dave...I...I really *am* pregnant..."
The grin faded from Dave's face as he realized that she was serious. "But you can't be pregnant. I mean you'd have had to...no...you've just got a bug or food poisoning or something, right?" He looked at her hopefully. She had to be mistaken, he thought. This was his baby sister...no way in hell could she be pregnant.
"The little blue line on the pregnancy test says that I am," replied Chris, unable to meet his gaze.
Dave stepped back, the shock evident on his face. How could this have happened to *his* sister...shit, she didn't even have a boyfriend. A horrible thought crossed his mind. "Who did this to you? God, I'll kill whoever it was."
Chris flinched at the anger in Dave's voice even though she knew that it wasn't directed at her. "Nobody 'did' anything to me that I didn't want them to," she sighed wearily, pushing her hair back from her face. "Nobody spiked my drink, nobody took advantage of me and nobody forced me. It was all consensual, okay?"
"No it is *not* okay," groaned Dave as he started pacing the floor. "How could you be so careless?"
"I never meant for this to happen," said Chris, a note of hysteria in her voice. "I had condoms...I thought they'd be enough...I never meant for this to happen...I just wanted...I thought I'd be okay." She wrapped her arms around herself and started to cry quietly. "I thought I was being 'safe'..."
Dave put his arm around his sister. "It'll be okay sis," he said, helplessly. "Don't cry...we...we'll talk to Mom...she'll sort everything out." He felt Chris tense.
"No," she said, flatly. "I...I'm not telling her...I...I can't."
"Uh, you're going to have to sooner or later," said Dave. "I mean, it's gonna be sort of obvious pretty soon."
"Not necessarily," said Chris. "Not if I make it go away first."
Dave frowned at her for a few seconds before he realized what she meant. "Aw no, Chris...you can't...I mean..."
"I'm sixteen...I'm not even done with high school...I've got a shot at going to college. I can't do that as a single parent."
"But what about the father?" asked Dave. "I dunno, maybe he could help out...support you and the kid."
"No," said Chris firmly. "That's not an option."
"Why not?" Dave spoke without thinking. "You know who he is, right?"
The slap in the face came as a surprise to him. "You bastard," spat Chris standing as she pushed him away from her, sending him sprawling on the floor. "Is that what you think of me? That I'm some whoring slut that doesn't even know who's knocked her up?"
"No," protested Dave. "I didn't mean it like that...I just didn't think...shit, I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset you like that." He rubbed his cheek tenderly.
"I...I'm sorry Dave," sighed Chris.
"Man, remind me never to piss you off again...at least not when I'm sitting within range."
Chris managed a watery smile. "Make any cracks about hormones and you're dead meat." The smile faded from her face. "I'm serious about this Dave. I'm not having this baby...I *can't*...and I can't let Mom or Dad know. They...they wouldn't understand. Please Dave, promise me you won't tell them." She looked at him with anguish written in her face.
Dave pushed himself up off the floor and hugged her. "I won't tell them if you don't want me to...but are you sure you're doing the right thing?"
Chris nodded. "I hate myself for having to do this...but it's the only way out. Please don't try to stop me."
"I won't...and I'll do anything I can to help."
Chris shook her head, "All I want is for you to not say anything. I don't want to get you involved. You could get into a lot of trouble with Mom and Dad."
"You think I care about that, Chris?" he said, looking into her eyes. "You're my baby sister and I love you. I'm gonna be there for you and help you through this. I promise."
Chris sighed. It was sort of a relief to her, knowing that Dave knew. The worst part of this whole horrible situation had been having to lie about it...and there was going to be more lying before it was over.
"So when are you going to do it?" asked Dave, carefully.
There was no need for him to explain what he was referring to. "Next month...when Mom and Dad are on vacation," replied Chris. "I...I figured that since they'll be gone for almost three weeks that I'd have time to...to recover before they got back. Plus the doc at the clinic said I'd need to come back for a follow up after a few weeks, and I should be able to fit that in while they're gone as well."
"And what were you going to tell *me*?"
Chris hung her head. "I hadn't really figured that out," she admitted. "The clinic said that I could be kept in overnight. I guess I'd have told you it was an 'all night party'...and hoped you wouldn't want to come as well."
"You'd have lied to me?" Dave tried not to let his voice show how upset he was. Okay, so he and Chris had always been honest with each other...that didn't mean that they'd *never* have reason to lie...and he could see that this was a pretty big reason.
Chris heard the note in his voice. "I didn't want to *have* to lie...I just...I just didn't want you to have to get involved...this is *my* mess and I just...I just..."
"Hey, it's okay, it's okay," said Dave, soothingly. "I understand."
He was silent for a few seconds before asking, "What about cash? I mean, you can't exactly claim this on Dad's health insurance. I've got some stashed away that I was gonna put towards a new bike, but if you need it, it's yours."
Chris felt herself start to tear up at her brother's offer. Dave had been wanting a new bike for ages now, but their parents had said that he'd have to fund it himself since there was nothing wrong with his old one...except that it was 'old'. "It...it's okay," she said. "It's a free clinic...they...they just ask you to pay what you can afford."
"Well if you need anything...all you have to do is say the word. I mean it Chris, I'm here for you," said Dave, quietly. "You're not alone."
Chris smiled weakly at him, "I know...and I'm glad..."
= = = = = = = = = = = = =
"I don't think I'd have gotten through it all if it hadn't been for Dave," said Chris, quietly.
"You mean the...termination?" Luka found it difficult to even say the word. Oh sure he had always believed himself to be pro-choice...but it was one thing to blithely say that it was each woman's right to choose...but it was another thing to know that someone so close to him had made this most serious of decisions. And he could understand her reasoning. God knew he had seen enough teenage mothers in the ER to know that having a baby at that age was a serious undertaking...but still, to know that Chris had made that decision, no matter what the circumstances, was something that would take time for him to accept.
Chris leaned in closer to Luka, "Not exactly...you see things didn't work out exactly the way I'd planned."
------------------------
To be continued.