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He lies back and groans. “An apology won’t cut it, man. You’ll have to make it up to me somehow.”
Wiping away my tears, I smile. “What do you want? A drink when you’re better?”
“A boys night out with the other guys. Bill’s on you,” he says playfully. “After I almost died, I realized I’d pretty much wasted my life. I want to find a pretty girl, get married, and have a kid or two. You should too.”
“I already have a daughter.”
“Yeah, you do. But your daughter needs a mom, and you need someone by your side.”
Right, I haven’t told him about Anya and Kira. He’ll be surprised when I do. I wonder what he’ll think.
I scratch the back of my head. “Well, speaking of a woman, I might already have one.”
His mouth falls open and his eyes widen. “This better not be a joke, man.”
“It’s not.” I shove my hands in my pockets, readying myself to break the news to him. I’ve found out I have a child and fallen in love over the couple of months that Nathan was bedridden and fighting for his life. I want to share my happiness with him. “Remember the girl from the club the night before our deployment?”
“The drunk, heartbroken one? Yeah, I remember her. She was pretty as hell.”
“We met again. Turned out she got pregnant the night we hooked up. We have a daughter together, and she’s going to be my wife someday.”
Nathan's eyes widen even further, his mouth opens and closes like a fish’s out of water, searching for the right thing to say. I can see the shock and disbelief written all over his face, mixed with a hint of amusement.
“Wait, let me get this straight,” he finally manages to sputter. “You hooked up with her before the deployment, she got pregnant and had the baby while you were away? You guys met again, and now you’re telling me you two are together? And you have a daughter?”
I nod sheepishly, feeling a flush of embarrassment creeping up my neck. It does sound like something out of a bad soap opera when laid out like that. It feels unreal, yet it’s healed me in more ways than I can count.
The weight that had been pressing on my shoulders lifts as I see genuine happiness in Nathan's expression. I had been so consumed by guilt and self-blame that I hadn't allowed myself to fully embrace the blessings that had come into my life amidst the chaos.
But now I’ve learned to be grateful. To allow myself some happiness. “Isn’t it crazy?”
“It’s amazing news, dude. Brandon, man, you never cease to amaze me,” Nathan chuckles, shaking his head in disbelief. “I mean, I’m happy for you but, wow, everything worked out amazingly. You must’ve been a hero in your past life or something.”
A smile plays on my lips. I keep telling myself that too. I must’ve done something good to have Anya, Alessa and Kira in my life.
Nathan and I spend the rest of the afternoon catching up on our private lives. It’s almost nine p.m. when I return to Meadowvale.
My headlights flash on Spencer just as I enter our driveway and park next to our dad’s truck. Spencer’s sitting on one of the tire swings we used to play on when we were younger, sipping from a bottle of beer.
I get out of the car and stride over. “Hey, man,” I say as I sit on the swing next to him. There’s another bottle of beer in front of him. “Can I have that?”
“Sure. Whatever.”
I ignore the bite in his tone and reach for the bottle. I bite off the cap and take a long swig. I grunt and wince as the coldness trickles down my throat.
Spencer leans back, staring at me intently before he speaks. “I heard about Nathan. How is he now?”
“Good,” I reply, taking another swig of beer. “Nathan is recovering well. He still can’t walk all on his own, but he’s doing physical therapy and is going to be okay.”
“That’s good to hear,” Spencer murmurs, his gaze distant. “He’s a tough guy. He’ll be as good as new in no time.”
I nod. There's an unspoken tension between Spencer and me, and I know Spencer has been struggling with his own demons since finding out about me and Anya. It’s not logical, but I understand why he feels that way. The distance between us feels greater than ever.
“Spencer,” I start tentatively, “we need to talk.”
He scoffs bitterly, taking another long gulp of his drink before meeting my eyes. “Let me guess, you want to talk about Anya and why you decided to knock up my ex-girlfriend and start a relationship with her?”
“You’re making me out to be an asshole if you put it that way, man. I didn’t know she was your ex.”
