“Irritating,” I answered.
She ignored my comment. “You might start thinking about getting a bag ready for the hospital.”
“I still have time, don’t you think?”
“Toward the end, it’s impossible to predict. Some women go into labor early; some take a little longer than expected.”
“How many babies have you delivered? I don’t think I’ve ever asked.”
“I can’t remember exactly. Maybe a hundred?”
My eyes widened. “You’ve delivered a hundred babies?”
“Something like that. There are two other pregnant women on the island right now. I’ll probably do their deliveries.”
“Are you upset that I wanted to go to the hospital instead?”
“Not in the slightest.”
“I also want to thank you. For staying here on Sundays and checking on me, I mean.”
“It wouldn’t be right to leave you alone. You’re still young.”
I nodded, though part of me wondered if I would ever feel young again.
* * *
Bryce showed up soon after, wearing khakis and a polo along with loafers, looking older and more serious than usual.
“Why are you dressed up?” I asked.
“There’s something I want to show you. The thing I mentioned the other day.”
“The not-another-cemetery thing?”
“That’s the one,” he said. “But no worries. I swung by right before coming here, and there’s no one around.” Reaching out, he took my hand and kissed the back of it. “You ready?”
All at once, I knew he’d planned something big, and I took a small step backward. “Let me brush my hair first.”
I’d already brushed my hair, but I retreated to my bedroom, wishing there were a way to rewind the last couple of minutes and just start over. While Recent Bryce had occasionally seemed off, today’s version was entirely new, and all I could think was that I wished Old Bryce had shown up instead. I wanted to see him in jeans and his olive jacket, with a file box of photos beneath his arm. I wanted him at the table, helping me learn equations or quizzing me on Spanish vocabulary; I wanted Bryce to hold me like he had on the beach that night with the kite, when all felt right with the world.
But New Bryce—all dressed up and who’d kissed my hand—was waiting for me, and as we started down the steps, I had another Braxton Hicks contraction. I had to grip the rail while Bryce looked on in concern.
“It’s getting close, isn’t it?”
“Eleven days, give or take,” I answered, wincing. When the feeling finally passed and I knew I could safely move again, I waddled the rest of the way down. From the bed of the truck, Bryce grabbed a small step stool so I could climb in, just like he’d done before we’d gone to the beach.
The drive took only a few minutes and it wasn’t until he’d turned off the engine at the end of a dirt road that I even realized we were there. Beyond the windshield, I stared at a small cottage. Unlike at my aunt’s place, the nearest neighbors were barely visible through the trees and there was no water in sight. As for the dwelling itself, it was smaller than my aunt’s, set lower to the ground, and even more dilapidated. The wooden planking was faded and peeling, the railings on the front porch appeared to be rotting away, and I noted clumps of moss on the shingles. It wasn’t until I spotted the FOR RENT sign that I felt a sudden sense of dread, my breath catching in my throat as the pieces came together.
Lost in my daze, I hadn’t heard Bryce get out of the truck, and by then he had reached my side. The door swung open, the step stool already in place. He reached for my arm and helped me down and my brain started repeating the word no…
“I know that what I’m about to say might sound crazy at first, but I’ve given it a lot of thought over the last few weeks. Trust me when I tell you it’s the only solution that makes any sense.”
I closed my eyes. “Please,” I whispered. “Don’t.”
He went on, as though he hadn’t heard me. Or maybe, I thought, I hadn’t said the words aloud, only thought them, because none of this felt real. It had to be a dream…
“From the first moment we met, I’ve known how special you are,” Bryce began. His voice sounded close and distant at the same time. “And the more time we spent together, the more I realized that I’d never meet anyone like you again. You’re beautiful and smart and kind, you have a great sense of humor, and all of that makes me love you in a way that I know I’m never going to be able to love anyone else.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Bryce kept going, his words coming even faster.
“I know you’re going to have the baby and that you’re supposed to leave right afterwards, but even you admit that going home will be a challenge. You don’t have a great relationship with your parents, you don’t know what will happen with your friends, and you deserve more than that. We both deserve more, and that’s why I brought you here. That’s why I went fishing with my grandfather.”
No, no, no, no…
“We can stay here,” he said. “You and me. I don’t have to go to West Point, and you don’t have to go back to Seattle. You can homeschool like I did, and I’m sure we could get everything done so you can graduate next year, even if you decide to keep the baby. And after that, maybe I go to college, or maybe we both go. We’ll figure it out like my parents did.”
“Keep the baby? I’m only sixteen…” I finally croaked out.
“In North Carolina, if there’s a birth of a child, we can petition the courts and they’d allow you to stay. If we live here together, you could be emancipated. It’s a little complicated, but I know I can find a way to make it work.”
“Please stop,” I whispered, knowing I’d somehow been expecting this since the moment he’d kissed my hand.
He suddenly seemed to recognize how overwhelmed I felt. “I know it’s a lot to take in right now, but I don’t want to lose you.” He drew in a deep breath. “The point is, I’ve found a way that we can be together. I have enough money in the bank to afford to rent this house for almost a year, and I know I can earn enough working with my grandfather to pay the rest of the bills without you having to work at all. I’m willing to tutor you in school, and I want nothing more than to be the father of your baby. I promise to love and adore her and treat her like my own daughter, even adopt her, if you’re willing to let me do that.” He reached for my hand, taking it, before lowering himself to one knee. “I love you, Maggie. Do you love me?”
Even though I knew where all of this was going, I couldn’t lie to him. “Yes, I love you.”
He looked up at me, eyes beseeching. “Will you marry me?”
* * *
Hours later, I sat on the couch, waiting for my aunt to return in what can only be likened to shell shock. Even my bladder seemed stunned into submission. As soon as Aunt Linda got home, she must have noted my expression and she immediately sat beside me. When she asked what had happened, I told her everything, but it wasn’t until I finished that she finally asked the obvious.