It’s at this moment I realize that maybe not sharing some things with them was wrong. They are still my friends after all, and at the end of the day, they want me to be happy too.
“And with that, um, we are going to have a little get together to reveal the gender this weekend. Just some cake and pizza. Would you all be up for coming?”
I know it won’t be all roses and sunshine right out of the gate, but I’m hoping that eventually we can all be friends and spend time together.
So why not create an impromptu party and invite them over? Syd would love it, right?
“Yes,” Lennox answers first, and Winston and Tripp both follow up with confirmations.
“Great. I’ll text you all more details later.”
As I head out to meet Syd at my car, I smile.
After that first morning in the library with them, I learned they do that every single day, so I’ve started to come earlier more often to see them.
“Look at you,” Syd says as I approach my car. Her car is parked next to mine. We could have met at the doctor’s office, but the parking there sucks and we can barely find one spot as is.
“What about me?” I ask as I open her door.
“You’re smiling, and it’s not even 9:00 a.m. yet.”
“Well, it’s a good day.”
“Because you were with your friends again?” she asks.
“Because we get to hear this little baby’s heartbeat today and find out what we are having.”
She laughs as I close her door. I walk around the hood and quickly start the car, ready for this moment together.
“So, um, were you with your friends this morning?”
She fidgets with her purse, and it dawns on me that, aside from her friend June, Syd doesn’t really hang out with anyone but me.
“I was. Do you want to come with me tomorrow morning? I’m sorry I’ve never asked.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay. Those are your friends, and if they didn’t like me when I was hanging out with Tripp, they really,reallywon’t like me now.”
“I think the last year has changed all of us. You’d be surprised by them and they by you.”
She shrugs and shakes her head. “I just don’t know. It sounds like a mess waiting to happen.”
“Would it help if I asked them how they felt?”
“No! Don’t do that. Then it will be weird.”
“It’s not weird. I’d actually really love for all of us to hang out, and speaking of that, I invited them to come over this weekend.”
“Why?”
“Well, I sort of told them that we were doing a pizza and cake gender reveal party.”
Syd laughs and reaches over to shove my arm. The simple movement raises her shirt, and the sight of her unbuttoned pants catches my eye.
“Why aren’t your pants buttoned?”
“Oh!” She sits up tall and lifts her shirt. “My bump won’t let me.”
“Well, would you look at that,” I say, matching her proud smile.
