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Lay sniffles, hiding her tears in my shirt. "You can't fix it," she mumbles, her tears coming harder. "It's all such a mess."
"What's a mess, Lay?" Adam prompts, watching from the couch still.
Lay shakes her head, not wanting to speak. Whatever this is about has her extremely shaken up, and it's causing all of us to be on red alert. If it was the asshole stalking her, we need to know immediately so we can get the police on it. Lay backs away from me and grabs her purse off the ground. Her shoulders are shaking with silent tears as she pulls out the last thing any of us expected. A positive fucking pregnancy test.
The room is so silent you could hear a pin drop. Adam lunges for the test, his erratic breathing almost deafening in the quiet. He looks at it then back up at her before passing it to me. His face is confused and excited at all once. It’s almost like he can’t understand how it happened, but he’s always wanted kids, so he’s also thrilled.
Grabbing the test from his hand, I look at, my heart beating a mile a minute. We used a condom, at least when it was just the two of us. Although I don’t think any of us have had the birth control conversation in general. I glance at it again, unsure how to feel. A huge part of me is absolutely ecstatic, but another part of me is scared because of Lay's reaction. She doesn't look at all like she wants this. If that's the case, we need to respect that and support her. Rhys would do it, though I think he would be disappointed. Adam on the other hand, he won't take it too well.
Handing it off to Rhys, I watch for his reaction, but he keeps it neutral for Lay. Rhys looks at the test, then places it on the living room table and moving to Lay slowly. "You're pregnant?"
Lay nods, holding her stomach and frantically looking between all of us for our reactions. Adam is the only one that looks visibly excited, his wish for biological children right in front of him. Rhys and I are reading the room a little better, pausing and waiting for Lay to give us her thoughts on this.
"I'm so sorry," Lay starts, wincing and cringing away from all of us. "I don't know if I can do this. I'm not meant to be a mother. I'm so fucking scared, and I don't think I can do this."
Adam stares at her, his face unreadable. "What do you mean? This is our baby. You are doing this, right now. You are growing our baby."
"Adam," I warn him, stepping into his path to Lay. "Back off. Lay is clearly terrified right now."
"Terrified of what, Lay? Being a mother? Don't you know what a fucking incredible mother you would be?" Adam throws his arms in the air, his anger already getting the best of him.
"Are you fucking kidding me? I would be the worst mother," Lay screams back. "I'm barely surviving by taking care of myself! I don't know how to take care of anyone else on top of that!"
Adam rolls his eyes, his signature asshole smirk coming out. "You're an idiot! You take care of all of us all the time! How can you suddenly not know how to do it?"
Rhys steps in, rubbing a hand down Alayna's back. "Adam, I think you need to cool off. Lay still needs to process this. In the end, it's her decision to make, and we need to support whatever that may be. I get that this is something you've always wanted, but if you love Lay like you say you do, you need to put her first."
Turning to Adam, I put my two cents in as well. "This isn't about you, Adam. This isn't about any of us. We don't get to decide what Lay can and can't handle. If she wants to keep this baby, then that's great and we will all raise it together. If she doesn't, that's okay too. It's her body, and just because we came in her, does not mean we get to pressure her to keep it. If you really want any chance at this, stop screaming at her for one. Second, try reminding Lay how fucking amazing she is."
Lay cries at that, burying her face in Rhys' shirt. "I'm nothing. I'm worthless. That's why I can never be a mother because I don't even know what that really looks like. You three are the first people I've ever fully let into my heart. I'm so fucking broken, there's nothing left for me to give a child."
Adam curses, throwing himself back onto the couch and placing his head in his hands. He mutters under his breath before standing back up and looking at all of us.
"As much as I know this is your decision Lay," Adam says, tears in his eyes. "Please, just take the time to think about it before you do anything. You seem to be forgetting so much about who you are. Your fear is telling you that you're going to be awful and uncaring. Your actions say otherwise. We're all a little broken, baby. That doesn't mean we can't love and care for other people. You've come so far in finding who you are, Lay. Just please, don't let your fear convince you to do something you'll regret. Please."
Lay stares at him, shaking from head to toe. "Of course I'll think about it. I just… I need time without any of you pressuring me. While you all have faith in me, I have zero faith in myself. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to be alone for a while."
"Take my room," Rhys says, tucking her hair behind her ears. "I'll sleep on the couch tonight. I have some stuff to get done anyways."
Lay nods and blows Adam and I a kiss before walking out of the room. Adam glares at Rhys and I, his anger palpable. Without a word, he storms off to his room, flipping us both off on the way out. It's how he deals with his stress, lashing out at us because we don't take it personally. I think after all of that, we're all a little on edge. It's not exactly how I thought this night would go, but there's no changing the things that happened. Lay is pregnant, and sooner or later, we'll have to deal with the decision she makes about it. If I'm being honest with myself, I sincerely hope she chooses to keep it. It would be a huge light in all of our lives, and whether Lay sees it or not, she would be a wonderful mother.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Rhys
This night has gone from boring to what the fuck just happened really quick. Adam has always been very vocal about his love of children and how one day he wanted them. With Lay being pregnant, he saw his dreams coming true. Then Lay dropped the bombshell on him about not being sure she even wanted to keep the baby, and he lost it. Riggs stepped slightly between them, but I was ready to kick Adam right the fuck out of our living room. Lay and Adam are the same side of the coin. The two of them are so strong-willed and fiery-tempered, it’s a lethal combination when they start fighting.
The thing is, this time I’m with Adam when it comes to the baby. Having a family has never been high on my priority list, but having a family with Lay? That’s a whole different ball game. If I didn't know how much I loved her before she told us she was pregnant, I sure as fuck do now. This woman is my whole life, and I would burn the fucking world to the ground if it made her happy. This baby could very well make her happy, but if she decides it won't, I'll support that as well. It doesn't stop me from hoping she chooses a certain way.
“That was—” Riggs blows out a breath, running a hand through his hair. “Something.”
Falling back on the couch, I let out a similar sigh while rubbing my eyes. “Definitely something. I wish Adam could have kept his shit together for a little while at least. Fuck, Lay was already freaking out, and he just made it worse."
"That's Adam for you. When he wants or believes in something strongly enough, he's blinded by it." Riggs leans against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. "He can normally see her discomfort a mile away, but this time he was so stuck on the two pink lines and the fact that Lay wasn't happy about it. He saw his future and saw it being taken away without acknowledging that Lay was upset and comforting her."
"Yep, that's Adam." Looking over at him, I break the question both of us are thinking. "How are you feeling about everything? Do you have any preference for how you wish this would go?"
Riggs takes his time, thinking over his answer before he speaks. While Adam's anger was just like him, thinking things through thoroughly is a typical Riggs response. I'm somewhere in the middle, my reactions tend to come from my gut and be quicker than Riggs' but less explosive than Adam most of the time.
