Until Us

by Cristin Cooper

  “Okay. Let me know when you’re done.”

  “Ugh!” She slapped the door with the palm of her hand one more time in defeat.

  Katie took her frustration out on the paper bag, pulling out the box and dropping it onto the bathroom counter. Quickly reading the directions, she huffed her annoyance and made sure Jason could hear her. Inside her heart was racing and her stomach was a twisted mess.

  She had noticed the changes. Her breasts ached, her nose was super sensitive, and every morning the first thing she did was run to the toilet. But as long as she didn’t know for sure, nothing would change and everything would be okay. At least that’s what she told herself.

  Four minutes later, her vision blurred and large tears streamed down her cheeks. “I’m never—” hiccup “—going to—” hiccup “—forgive you,” she cried.

  The door opened just enough for Jason to poke his head in. “Katie, it’s not my fault. I didn’t bump uglies with my boyfriend unprotected.” He said it in a soothing voice that was contradictory to the words spilling out of his mouth. He really needed to work on his people skills.

  “First of all, I’ve been on the pill for years to prevent this from happening. Second, ‘bump uglies’? Seriously?” She lifted her brow in annoyance.

  She was about to start her sophomore year of college and her boyfriend lived in a different state. This was the last thing she expected. Her mother drilled school first then marriage and then babies into her. Oh God! My Mom! She couldn’t even think about how disappointed her mother would be.

  Her mom, Bridget, had her when she was sixteen years old. Katie’s grandmother had died the year before her mother became pregnant and once her grandfather found out he kicked Bridget out of the house. Her mother told her more than once how lucky she was to have met Billy. He gave her a job and a place to stay, but Bridget made it crystal clear that she wouldn’t wish that life on anyone especially her daughter.

  Jason shrugged. “Isn’t that what all the kids call it these days?”

  “Jason, you’re barely older than me.”

  “Yeah, but I have a business and I’m a single dad to a two-year-old. I don’t get out much. So excuse me if I’m a little behind on the latest slang,” he huffed.

  She leaned her forehead against the mirror while Jason braved stepping inside. “I told you I didn’t want to know if I was pregnant and now I do.” She sounded ridiculous, but she didn’t care. It was her reasoning, and right now it was totally reasonable.

  “You were pregnant before you took the test,” he said dryly.

  “Don’t bring facts into this! If I hadn’t taken that stupid test, then I would be joyfully ignorant and not terrified to see Eric tonight and have to drop this bomb on him.” Her whole body shook as the panic started to build again.

  “Katie…”

  “Shut up! This is your fault.” She stabbed him with her finger as she said each word.

  He wisely didn’t laugh and, in fact, grew serious. “You're irrational.”

  “Well duh. I’m pregnant and hormonal.” She sighed heavily before lifting her head and facing him. “How did you figure it out anyway?”

  “I have a two-year-old…”

  “I know, but you and baby mama weren’t even together so…”

  He rolled his eyes and sighed. “Sandy and I might not have been together, but I went to every single one of her appointments with her and read all the baby books.”

  Jason leaned against the doorframe and folded his arms over his chest. “You’ve been complaining that the coffee smells funny and you threw up yesterday when you had to clean off the plate with the half-eaten sandwich.”

  Katie swallowed, trying to control her gag reflexes, as she attempted to clear her head of the memory. “What am I going to do?” She leaned up against him, making her glasses tilt at a funny angle. He pulled them off, gave her a half-hug and awkwardly patted her back.

  She stepped away from him when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket with an incoming call. When she saw her mother’s smiling face flash on the screen, she threw her phone at him.

  Jason fumbled with the phone but caught it before it dropped to the ground. He attempted to hand it back, but she lifted her hands up and refused to take it. “It’s my mom!” she whisper-yelled.

  He raised one brow and said, “I can see that.” Once again he tried to hand her the phone, but she shoved her hands into her pockets and stepped back.

  Rolling his eyes, he slid the bar across the face of the phone to answer.

  Katie clenched her teeth and drew a finger across her neck and mouthed, “You are dead to me!”

  “Hello, this is Katie’s phone,” he answered. “Oh hi, Bridget, it’s Jason.” He nodded his head as he listened intently. “Yes. She’s right here.” His smile turned sinister as he shoved the phone into the palm of Katie’s hand. She returned his smile with a glare. He just shook his head and chuckled, leaving her alone in the bathroom.

  Katie held the phone to her chest and took in a deep breath. “Stay calm,” she whispered then lifted the phone to her ear. “Hey, Mom!” she said sounding overly cheerful. Tone it down! She’s going to notice.

  “Hey, sweetie, everything okay?” Oh shit! She knows! How could she know?

  Katie swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to control her breathing. “Yeah, everything’s fine. Just been kind of busy.”

  Just then Katie heard her two-month-old baby brother Will in the background. She had never been so relieved to hear a baby cry in her life. He would keep her mother too distracted to notice how her voice shook.

  Her mother sighed. “Of course, he wakes up just as I get on the phone.” She sounded exhausted and Katie figured Will still wasn’t sleeping through the night.

  Katie swallowed another lump, realizing that this could be her in seven and a half months. Shit!

  Her mother tried to muffle the phone, but Katie heard her call for Billy. “Can you take him? I’m talking to Katie.”

  Katie smiled when she heard him say, “Tell Sweets I love her and she needs to call more often.”

  “Did you hear that?” her mother asked.

  “I did and I will. I promise.” Katie’s stomach twisted just thinking about telling her about the pregnancy. Their lives had been through so many changes this past year; she wasn’t sure how her mother would handle another one.

  The day after she moved to Portland, her mother called to tell her that she and Billy had finally admitted their love for one another. That wasn’t a surprise, neither was him moving her mother into his house that day. But the surprise came a few months later, on Thanksgiving, when they got married and announced they were having a baby. If that wasn’t a big enough change, Katie met her biological father and now they had a weekly lunch date.

  If she didn’t know better, she would swear her life was a storyline on a soap opera. And just when she thought her life was starting to settle down…

  “I love you, sweetie. I know you’re busy, but I go crazy if I don’t hear from you at least once a week.”

  “Tell her I’ll get on a plane the next time she goes a week without calling,” Billy threatened loud enough for her to hear.

  “That’s your first warning,” her mother said with a laugh.

  “That’s her only warning,” Billy said. He was one of those guys who expressed his love through actions, and that warning was no idle threat. He was dead serious. It was why he was her Billy. They loved each other as if she was his daughter and he was her dad.

  “I love you, Mom. Tell Billy I love him too and give Will a kiss for me.”

  “Of course. I’ll talk to you soon?” her mother asked.

  “Yeah. I’ll call you Sunday after I drop Eric off at the airport.”

  “Oh, I didn’t realize it was an Eric weekend. Tell him hi for us.”

  “I will. Love you.” Katie blew out a deep breath and leaned against the door as she disconnected the call. “Oh God, how am I going to tell my mom?” She pushed
away from the door and made it to the toilet just in time to empty the contents of her stomach.

  Katie lay on her bed as she flipped through her college textbooks. School didn’t start for another week, but one of her professors had already posted the reading assignments for the term and she wanted to get a head start, but it was pointless. She read but didn’t retain a word of it. She couldn’t stop thinking about the fact she was pregnant and she was going to have to tell Eric their lives were changing forever.

  Her stomach was queasy and she wasn’t sure if it was from her news or the actual pregnancy. She didn’t need to check dates; she knew exactly how far along she was. It had been exactly five weeks and one day since she last saw Eric. They had less than eight months to figure out what they were going to do. That thought brought another wave of nausea.

  They only physically saw each other two to four days out of the month. He flew his puddle jumper from Cold Bay to Anchorage, Alaska then took a commercial flight to Portland. After their initial twelve days together when they first met, they decided to make a go of it. It was difficult to have so much physical distance between them, but when they were together, they made the most of it.

  Maybe a little too much since there was a positive pregnancy test in her purse.

  At least once a month she wondered if it was worth it, but then the moment she was in his arms again, she knew they were meant to be.

  Katie checked her phone—again. Eric was late which wasn’t unusual, but he typically called to let her know if his flight was delayed.

  A few minutes later, she heard the front door open. Her excitement of seeing him squashed all her worry. They would figure this out together. She ran out of her bedroom expecting to see Eric but came up short when Eric’s mother Tracy and his father Jeff stood in the entrance with drawn faces. “Katie…” Tracy’s voice shook as Alexis walked in the front door behind them with red-rimmed eyes and splotchy skin. When their eyes met, Alexis burst into tears.

  Katie drew in a deep breath as her stomach knotted. “What’s wrong?” Her question came out in a strained voice. Tracy pinched her lips to keep from crying, but it didn’t stop the tears from spilling. Katie began to shake her head. “No,” she whispered.

  “Why don’t you sit down?” Jeff held out his hand, but she couldn’t move. “Katie. Please,” he cried. Jeff wiped tears from his eyes with his fist just as Alexis whimpered behind him.

  Katie felt a heavy weight on her chest. “Just tell me,” Katie choked out. Jeff dropped his hand and cleared his throat.

  “Eric…” Jeff’s voice broke, but he kept going. “Something happened to his plane minutes after takeoff. He didn’t make it.”

  Chapter Two

  September 2015

  Tyler

  Tyler Marshall lifted his four-year-old nephew Ethan over his head and made airplane noises as he flew him around the backyard with his seven other nephews trailing behind wanting their turn.

  He adored them, especially since he was the unfortunate victim of being the only boy in his family and, not only that, he was right smack in the middle. He felt vindicated when all four of his sisters had only boys.

  After his father died, being the only boy in a house of girls was difficult, but they taught him some great life lessons. He knew the difference between tampons and pads and was fearless when it came to buying them. He might not totally understand girls, but he knew how to handle them. He became that guy who had a lot of girls as friends. As in, just friends. At least until college. That was when he began to date and his wealth of information came in handy.

  His oldest sister Rebecca waved his ringing phone in the air.

  He nodded his head and told Ethan to put his landing gear down and plopped him in the middle of all the boys then jogged toward the deck where she handed him his phone.

  He glanced at the caller id and his brows lifted in concern. He put the phone to his ear. “Jeff?” Even though he and Eric, Jeff’s son, had been best friends since they were kids, Jeff rarely called. He immediately worried that something was wrong.

  Jeff cleared his throat then said, “I have some news.” Jeff took in a deep breath while Tyler gripped his phone tighter. His heart thumped heavily in his chest. Jeff’s voice was unusually soft and broken. He swore he heard crying in the background. “Eric’s plane crashed this morning on his way to Anchorage.” Before he could ask if he was all right, Jeff answered his question. “He didn’t make it, son.”

  As the words registered, he bent over on shaky legs, trying to draw in a breath. “How…what?” He wasn’t even sure what he was asking. The words repeated in his head until finally it hit him. “Not Eric,” he cried.

  “I know, son. I know.”

  Tyler numbly stood on the deck, absorbing the tragic news. “I don’t know what to say. Does everyone know?” He sucked in a large breath as worry filled him. “Does Katie know? Someone needs to be with her. She’ll be devastated,” he said while walking into his mother’s home to get away from the happy noise of his family who were distracted by his nephews.

  He had known of Katie since the morning after Eric met her.

  * * *

  He had just gotten off shift and was walking out of the hospital when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

  Eric: I just met my future wife.

  Tyler laughed and quickly replied.

  Tyler: How much have you had to drink?

  Eric occasionally dated when he was in Portland visiting his parents or in Anchorage for the weekend, but never anyone serious. In fact, he hadn’t had a girlfriend since college. He had admitted he got lonely at times, but on more than one occasion said, “It would take a girl totally blowing my mind to get me to try a long distance relationship or, heaven forbid, leave my job.”

  Eric: I haven’t had a drop of alcohol, and her name is Katie Larson.

  He had to read it twice to make sure he read it correctly.

  Tyler: Really?

  With the next text, a picture loaded on his phone, and it stopped him in his tracks. It was a photo of a scruffy faced Eric with the biggest smile Tyler had ever seen on his face, staring at a cute brunette with startling blue eyes and a smile he could feel through the phone. Cute wasn’t the right word, and yet it was. She wasn’t Eric’s usual type and maybe that was why he was surprised. Eric usually went for tall blondes.

  He hadn’t realized he was still staring at the picture until he was startled into awareness when an ambulance pulled in with its sirens blaring. He jogged to his car, climbed in, and quickly texted back.

  Tyler: How’d you meet?

  Eric: I’m visiting Alexis, and she’s her new roommate. She just arrived from Arizona a few hours ago. She’s sweet, beautiful, and easy to talk to. :-)

  Tyler was speechless. His friend hadn’t gushed over a girl since high school.

  Eric: I’m in deep like with this girl.

  Tyler: I’m happy for you, dude.

  Eric: Thanks! Talk to you later.

  * * *

  A few days later, Tyler had met the girl who had his friend turned inside out.

  She was everything Eric claimed and in the year since they met, she had wedged inside Tyler’s heart too, becoming one of his good friends.

  “She’s with us. She and Alexis are coming to the house to stay with us for a few days.”

  “Jeff, tell me how to help. Do you need anything? I can be there tonight.”

  “I’m sure the girls would appreciate you being here.” Silence hung between them. “I would too. Alexis hasn’t stopped crying, and Katie is just…she’s hasn’t said much. I’m worried about her. She called her mom and Billy, and they’re catching an early flight tomorrow. Her father just texted and said he’s at a hotel nearby and will meet us at the house.” Jeff drew in a large breath. “I can’t believe it, Tyler. I keep expecting him to call to tell us he’s okay.”

  Tyler choked up and pushed back the tears. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “Thank you.
Call or text before you leave. I’ll probably be up when you get here, but if not, we’re saving the guest room downstairs for you.”

  After hanging up, Tyler stood in the middle of the living room and ran his hands through his hair then down his face, wiping at the tears.

  He hadn’t felt this helpless since the day his dad died nearly fifteen years ago. He hated that feeling, which was why he had loved his job as an emergency room nurse and now a flight nurse. He needed to be useful.

  Tyler blew out a deep breath and clenched his fists to gain control over his emotions. He went into emergency mode and made a mental list of things he needed to do so he could leave as soon as possible.

  Two hours later he was saying goodbye to his mother and sisters, promising to call them later. He had called work to let them know he would be gone for at least a week for a family emergency. They didn’t question him especially since he rarely took time off, and he was always first to volunteer for extra shifts.

  During his ride from Bend to Portland, his thoughts fell back to the McHenry’s. They’d always been his second family. Jeff called him son, and since his father’s death, it meant so much more to know Jeff would always be a second dad to him. Then his thoughts turned to Katie. Sweet Katie. After everything she’d been through this past year… He felt a desperate need to be there for her.

  Chapter Three

  September 2015

  Katie

  Aching silence filled every single empty space of the car as the McHenry’s drove Katie and Alexis to their home. Alexis held her hand as she sniffed and wiped at her tears. Every few minutes Jeff would look in the rearview mirror to check on them.

  At her condo, he and Tracy had taken turns breaking down while the other held them. It was painful to watch and yet touching to witness. They had the kind of relationship she had hoped to have with Eric.