#things change 2

Tess

After dinner last night, Jermaine made me go back down just to be polite but I didn’t feel like talking to my mother so I just went in the movie room with my sister and we kicked it while the others were in the living room. They were only staying for three more days so I’d have to talk to her sooner or later. I wasn’t really thinking about that now. I looked over at Jermaine laying in the bed shirtless, deep in his sleep—he was the cutest sight this early in the morning.

“The fuck you doin starin at me,” he mumbled with his eyes closed so I moved over and let my head rest in his chest.

“I love you,” I told him and he wrapped his arms around me.

“I love you too but you gotta let me sleep babygirl,” he said rubbing my back. I laughed and closed my eyes not saying anything else. I couldn’t help but think back to two weeks ago when we found out about the baby. That honestly was the day our lives lowkey changed forever.

 ***

Two weeks prior

I was laying on the couch, watching TV. I’d been sick again. At first I just assumed it was food poisoning or something but that can’t last this long. Zoe had laughed and said ‘you’re probably pregnant’ which I thought was pretty far-fetched. Besides, Jermaine never wrapped up but I was on the pill so we should’ve been protected. I looked up from the couch and saw Jermaine walk in with a plastic bag from the pharmacy. He took out 3 tests and put them all on the table in front of me.

“Why you nervous?” I asked him laughing a little.

“I ain’t,” he shrugged, “whatever happens, happens baby.”

I sat up then frowned at him a little, “Wait—did anyone see you buying these? I don’t need to see ‘J.Cole buys pregnancy tests’ as a headline on TMZ or MediaTakeOut—“

“You think I’m stupid baby?” he rhetorically asked. “I sat in the car with Mike and Ib, and Camille went in to buy them.”

“…You told Mike and Ib?” I slowly asked him. I didn’t care about Camille knowing—she knew everything basically she ran all his shit.

“They my boys of course I told them,” he said shrugging.

“But we’re not even sure yet if I am… I haven’t told anyone yet—“ I wanted to be positive before I physically said anything or put anything out there. I didn’t want to tell my friends and give them false hope.

“Don’t worry they not gon run they mouth,” he said opening the first box and reading the instructions. “Let’s go piss on this stick then,”

I blinked. “I don’t need to pee though,”

“When you gon need to pee then?” He raised an eyebrow at me.

“When I need to pee.” I shrugged.

He sighed and got up and went to the kitchen before bringing me a huge glass of ice tea. I drank it all in one go and had to use the bathroom a half hour or so later. I went upstairs into our bathroom with the tests and Jermaine followed behind me and leaned on the counter.

“Get out,” I laughed as he watched me.

“What? I’m givin you mental support—“

“You can give me mental support from behind the door until I’m done doing my business—“

“I’on know why you actin’ like I ain’t seen you piss before,” he shook his head, but going to stand outside the door anyway. I didn’t need the pressure of him watching me pee on the stick—besides when he sees me pee it’s only because his rude ass barges into the bathroom like it’s nothing.

So I peed on the stick, washed my hands and opened the door and Jermaine was leaning on the door frame on his phone. Now we just had to wait. I sat on the counter by the sink as he stood between my legs, neither of us saying anything. My heart was pounding and I was getting nervous—I could tell Jermaine was too, but he just didn’t say anything.

After time was up I looked at Jermaine as he picked up the stick. He showed it to me and I saw two pink stripes—I wasn’t sure how to react. “I think you pregnant baby,” he said with a slow smile.

“Wait—check the other tests too,” I furrowed my eyebrows looking at the one he’d just handed me. They all said the same thing.

I was really pregnant.

I sat there for a minute and didn’t say anything.

“Baby can you say something—how you feelin?”

“I don’t know,” I slowly said, “there’s human life growing inside of me I don’t know how to feel…” Next thing, he hugged my torso tight and kissed my neck.

“You gon be a momma,” He smiled looking up at me then bringing his lips to mine. “We’re gonna be somebody’s parents.”

“Why you sound so excited?” I asked him. I was still in a state of shock to properly process everything.

“Cause we gon’ have our own lil family baby,” he gave me a light squeeze.

“But—how’s that gon work when you have to tour? Or when I have to get in the studio—I’m going to have to put everything on hold because—“

He shut me up by kissing me.

“Don’t worry bout all that right now, I gotchu okay? We’ll deal with all that other shit when the time comes aight? For now, we just gotta keep you and my lil boy happy and healthy—“ he said grinning.

“How you so sure it’s gonna be a boy?” I asked him rolling my eyes, smiling a little though despite myself.

“That’s my seed in there… it’s just a feeling,” he smiled.

“Mkay well we’ll see about that,” I rolled my eyes.

“Baby are you happy?” he then asked me, trying to read my expression.

“I’m just confused right now—but I’ll figure it out,” I told him.

“This is a miracle though—“ he said and I laughed, “no forreal Tess… think about it… how you get pregnant when you’re on the pill? This was meant to happen.”

I bit my lip, now realizing this was somehow my fault.

“Why you lookin like that?”

“Cause some days I miss it—which is probably why we in this predicament right now…” I softly said playing with my hands and he grabbed my face and kissed me.

“Either way this is happy news baby—I can’t want to tell Ib and Mike—“ He grinned, I swear his boys might as well have been his girlfriend the way he runs and tells them everything.

“Chillll,” I said, “we gotta make sure everythings okay first.”

“Aight, I’ll make you a doctors appointment for tomorrow okay?” his hands rested on my thighs and he looked up at me before pecking me.

***