Chapter Seven
The house was too quiet. The children were all in bed, the television wasn’t on and Pete didn’t call out to her as he always did when she came in after him. Felicity slipped off her coat, put her keys in the basket and removed her shoes. She took a breath. Walking to the kitchen, she realised she was shaking; she wasn’t sure if it was because she was angry with Sue, or crossat herself for not sorting the situation out before now. As she opened the door, she saw Pete standing at the kettle, and Sue with a smug look on her face sitting at the kitchen table. The bathroom bin was on the floor and the shampoo bottle and pregnancy test were on the table.
Sue manoeuvred herself to the back of her chair, to make herself taller, and folded her arms.
Pete turned, butdidn’t meet Felicity’s gaze as he placed her mug of tea next to his on the table.
Felicity sat down; her heart was thumping. The whole situation reminded her of the day she’d had to tell her mum she was pregnant with Megan. She had been so scared, not because she didn’t want her baby, she did. She knew that. But because she didn’t want to let her mum down or for her to think badly of her;she had never wanted her daughter to be a young mum, yet there she was, not long with Pete, barely beyond being a teenager and pregnant. Felicity was pretty sure this situation wasn’t going to turn out as positively as that had. She decided not to speak; if Sue and Pete had jumped to conclusions, she wanted to hear what they were.
Pete broke the silence. As he spoke Felicity heard the tremorin his voice. ‘Mum wanted to help. She said she would clean the bathroom. I know you hate doing it.’
Thanks for pointing that out in front of your mother, Pete.
‘So I let her. She was emptying the bin and thought we should rinse out and recycle the plastic bottles.’
Of course she did.
Sue continued to sit silently. Felicity wondered what would come out of her mouth if Pete lether speak. She was chewing hard on her lip, obviously with something on her mind.
‘She found that inside.’ Pete gestured to the pregnancy test.
Felicity looked at it directly for the first time.No line.She noticed that Sue had cleaned off the remnants of shampoo from the bottle. Felicity imagined her wiping it, polishing the precious nugget of evidence she’d found ready to present itin a court in which she intended to be judge and jury.
Pete looked at Felicity, his eyes questioning. ‘What does it mean?’
‘I can tell you what it means,’ Sue interjected.
Felicity gasped.
‘Don’t.’ Pete glared at Sue, a warning, before taking a breath and looking back at Felicity.
‘It means I thought … I mean … I think I might be pregnant.’ Felicity looked into Pete’s eyes,deciding to ignore Sue’s presence. ‘I didn’t tell you because I didn’t think it was possible.’
‘I know a way it’s possible.’
‘Mum, that’s enough.’ Pete thudded his hand down onto the table. ‘I told you you’re wrong!’
‘Really, Sue? Do you not know me at all? Do you really think I would cheat on Pete?’ Felicity looked Sue in the eyes and held her gaze. Even though she had expected theinsinuation, hearing the words still hurt.
Sue shrank at the question and coughed before speaking. ‘He’s had a vasectomy.’ Her voice was less caustic now.
‘Yes, he has. And vasectomies sometimes fail. Believe me, I’ve Googled it. A lot. In fact, one in two thousand vasectomies fail. There are lots of cases online, where it just didn’t work, where the body heals itself, or where the spermmakes it across the space between the vas … vas … I don’t know, the tubes or something.’
They all sat in silence for a moment.
Finally Pete spoke. ‘And are you pregnant? What did the test show?’
‘I don’t know. I thought I saw a line, but it was pale, too pale. The test is out of date, and since your mum’s been here, I haven’t had the chance to buy another one or do it again.’
Pete leaned across the table and took Felicity’s hand. She welcomed the gesture and the strength she always found from him.
‘OK.’ He smiled at Felicity, the tension having gone from his face, before turning to Sue. ‘Best you get to bed now then, Mum. You’ve heard what you needed to hear. Now this is between Flick and me.’
Sue looked horrified to have been dismissed from the conversation,and for a moment Felicity wondered if she was going to protest; instead she meekly stood and made a show of gathering her crutches before turning.
‘Aren’t you forgetting something?’ Pete asked.
Sue turned and looked questioningly.
