Out Of The Friend Zone

by Stephanie Nicole

  Chandler smiled and raised his eyebrows. "Wow, that's a pretty sudden change. You were skeptical at first."

  "I know, but now I can't wait. It really is a good idea, but I was worried about it being too soon. Now I feel like it's not soon enough," Brynn admitted.

  "Well, I don't know what caused you to change your mind, but I'm sure not complaining!" he laughed. "Linda should have gotten her letter from my lawyer yesterday, so it's only a matter of time before we either hear from her, or she drops the whole thing."

  A nurse appeared at the door and called Brynn's name. Chandler looked over at her, and asked if she wanted him to go back there with her.

  "I don't know. Do you want to?" Brynn asked, slightly embarrassed but touched that he even considered going with her.

  "If you want me to go in and hold your hand, I will. We're in this together," Chandler said.

  They both followed the nurse back to an examining room, where she took Brynn's vitals, and told her the doctor would be with her shortly.

  Brynn glanced over at Chandler. He was uncomfortable looking at the posters covering the walls. The posters were typical OB-GYN posters...one that showed the female reproductive system in detail, one that listed infertility problems and actions to correct them, and one showing detailed pictures of STDs.

  Brynn grinned. "Are you regretting the offer to come in with me?"

  "No. I just forgot all the stuff they put in these rooms. I haven't been in one since Brooklyn was pregnant," Chandler told her, and when he saw Brynn's face pale at the mention of Brooklyn, he instantly regretted it. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring her up, it's just the only experience I've had at one of these doctors."

  "It's okay, I understand. It's just not easy to hear her name..."

  A soft knock came at the door, and a second later the doctor walked in. "Good morning, Brynn. It's been a while since I've seen you. How have you been?"

  "I've been great, thanks." Brynn said. She introduced Chandler to the doctor, and the two shook hands.

  "Now, I see that the last time you were here was for an overall STD scan, and everything came out negative. Is today just a normal checkup?

  "Yes, thank goodness!"

  "All is well with the birth control? Normal periods? Anything strange?"

  Brynn thought about it. "I'm a little late. But I've been really stressed, so that's normal for me."

  "Okay." The doctor checked a box on the folder in her hand. "We need to get a pregnancy test on you, just in case, and then we will get started, okay?"

  She handed Brynn a cup and pointed her in the direction of the bathroom. The doctor and Brynn both left the room, leaving Chandler alone, staring at the grotesque pictures of STDs.

  Brynn came back in the room a few minutes later. They looked at the walls, and Brynn teased him about the way he eyed the pictures. "This is the last thing we have to worry about," she said.

  "I know...but it bothers me that you had to worry about this with Nico." He stood up and looked closer at one of the posters. "I can't imagine what life would have been like if he had given you one of these."

  Brynn reached out and touched his hand. "Now I never have to worry about it."

  Chandler smiled. "Nope. Never."

  The doctor whisked into the room and sat down on the spinning stool. She eyed both of them for a moment. "Well, Brynn...guess what?"

  Brynn grinned. "What?"

  "You're pregnant."

  Brynn laughed. Chandler looked at her with raised eyebrows. "Huh?"

  "Brynn, I'm serious. Your pregnancy test came out positive."

  Brynn abruptly stopped laughing.

  "Is there any chance of mistake?" Chandler asked, as he swallowed the lump in his throat.

  "It's not likely. The tests are almost always accurate. We'll set you up with an appointment next week, and have you take a blood test to see how far along you are," the doctor smiled. "Congratulations!"

  The doctor whipped out a prescription for prenatal vitamins, smiled at them one more time, and vanished out the door with a swing of her white coat.

  Brynn and Chandler both sat there in shock, neither one making the move to get up and leave the room. Chandler took deep breaths to stay calm. Brynn was already beyond that. Tears were streaming down her face.

  They looked at each other.

  "Now what?" she asked.

  Chapter 23

  Brynn and Chandler woke late the next morning, after getting some much needed sleep. As she rolled to Chandler to put her head on his chest, a wave of nausea shot through her body.

  "What the hell?" she murmured, and Chandler opened his eyes.

  "What?"

  She lay very still, hoping the feeling would go away. "How ironic," she whispered.

  "What, Brynn?"

  She looked up at him. "I didn't have a single moment of feeling sick until right now. Not a bit. It's only after we get the news that morning sickness hits."

  Chandler blinked sleepy eyes at her. "Is morning sickness psychological?"

  Brynn groaned and ran to the bathroom. While she was heaving over the toilet, Brynn felt a large pair of hands sweeping her hair from her face. Holding her hair back with one hand, Chandler used his other hand to rub Brynn's back.

  After Brynn was empty, Chandler got a wet facecloth to lay across her forehead.

  "It might be psychological but it's damn sure physical too. . Welcome to the wonderful world of pregnancy," Brynn said sarcastically as she sat on the floor next to the toilet.

  "You're still looking a little green. Can I get you anything?"

  "No, it'll pass in a few minutes. Hopefully it won't be as bad as I had it with Barrett." She chuckled. "That was a nightmare. I couldn't eat anything for two months straight without getting sick."

  "I'm so sorry that you have to go through this, Brynn. If there was anything I could do to change it, I would," Chandler said, brushing her hair from her forehead.

  "I know. We'll get through this." As if his face told the story of what he was feeling, she added, "Chandler, this isn't anyone's fault. No one is to blame...we're in this together!"

  Chandler placed a light kiss on her palm, then they sat there waiting for the nausea to pass. When he saw the color start to return to normal in Brynn's face, Chandler got up and turned the shower on for her. He helped her up from the floor, and watched her as she walked over to the sink to brush her teeth.

  After cleaning her mouth, Brynn undressed and got into the shower, silently beckoning Chandler to follow her. He grinned from ear to ear as he shed his boxers and stepped into the shower stall with the woman he loved.

  After lunch, Brynn and Chandler went to pick the kids up from his mother's house. They had agreed to tell his mother about the baby, to make up for the way it came out about them being together. Even though they had agreed to wait to tell most people, there were a few people they felt they owed the truth to, Madilyn being one of them.

  When they arrived at Madilyn's house, the kids were in the backyard playing, giving Chandler and Brynn the perfect opportunity to talk to his mother. Madilyn looked worried when they arrived, thinking back to the phone call yesterday asking her to keep the kids longer.

  Chandler knew there was no room for small talk. He decided to get right to the point, to help alleviate some of his mother's worries. "Mom, thanks for keeping the kids overnight. Yesterday Brynn had a doctor's appointment, and while we were there, we found something out, and we needed to discuss some things without having to worry about the kids too."

  "What is it?" Madilyn asked, her voice tight with worry. "Is everything okay?"

  "Well, I guess it's all in how you look at it," Brynn told her with a nervous laugh.

  "Mom, Brynn's pregnant. We're going to have a baby," Chandler told her, as a smile broke out over his face.

  "A baby...what? Really?"

  "Yes...it's a shock to us too," Brynn said.

  A beautiful, radiant smile broke over Madilyn's face as she looked at her son. But th
en she sobered and the smile disappeared. She looked to Chandler with eyes that were suddenly very serious.

  "So are you going to do the honorable thing and get married?"

  There was a moment of silence that went on a little too long. Finally Brynn responded. "No, we're not. But Chandler and Willow will be moving in with Barrett and me, and we will go from there."

  "Oh, so you're shacking up and having an illegitimate child. How special!"

  Brynn was taken aback. Her mouth fell open. She didn't know what in the world to say.

  "Mother!" Chandler yelled, standing up from the couch he was sitting on next to Brynn. He stood over his mother and pointed his finger at her. "What's wrong with you?"

  "Well, forgive me for wanting something better for my son and granddaughter. You better hope that Linda doesn't catch word of this. She'll have a field day with her lawyers!" Madilyn crossed her arms and looked up at him with a haughty air.

  "She won't find out because you aren't going to say anything! No one is going to know that Brynn is pregnant for a while. We're keeping this quiet for now, for everyone's sake. So, keep your mouth shut," Chandler raged.

  Brynn reached up and touched his hand. After a few deep breaths, he continued. "Mom, we didn't plan on having this happen, quite honestly, but we are dealing with it and accepting it. This baby is your grandchild, just as much as Willow is, and we hope you will accept and love him or her, just as you do Willow. Please don't make this harder for us than it already is."

  Madilyn glared at her son and didn't say a word.

  "We aren't saying that we're never getting married, but we aren't going to get married just because of a baby," Chandler said. "I stayed married to Brooklyn only because of the baby, and I know that my life wasn't as happy or as full as it could have been. We'll marry when we're ready to, not just because of this pregnancy."

  "Madilyn, it would mean a lot to us if you would accept my pregnancy and your future grandchild," Brynn added.

  There were long seconds of silence. "This isn't the right way to do things," she said softly. "Son, you know this. You were raised better than this."

  Chandler had the grace to blush. "You taught me better, yes. But you also taught me to take responsibility for my actions, and that's what I'm doing now."

  Madilyn nodded and let out a deep breath. "Well, you two sure have a way of surprising this old lady!"

  "It was quite the surprise to us too," Brynn said.

  "Of course, I'll love and accept my grandchild, but you have to promise to stop surprising me like this. My heart can't take much more!"

  "Believe me, neither of us wanted this surprise," Brynn said.

  Madilyn suddenly looked up at her. "You are going to have it, aren't you?"

  "Yes!" Brynn nodded vehemently. "I would never consider an alternative."

  Madilyn nodded, took a deep breath of relief, and then turned to her son. "I'm sorry, Chandler. Thank you for putting me in my place. I just want what's best for you."

  "I know Mom. Brynn and I want what's best for me too," he said smiling, as the two women both hugged him at the same time.

  Madilyn smiled. It had been so long since she had seen her son joking around like that, not since before Brooklyn died. She knew she had Brynn to thank for that, and she had just acted unkind towards her. Trying to make up for it, Madilyn turned back to Brynn. She wanted to take an interest in this pregnancy and show both of them that she would be there for them.

  "How far along are you?" Madilyn asked.

  "I'm not sure. I have an appointment to go back this week to find out. My guess would be that I'm only a few weeks along."

  "Well, if you need anything, be sure to let me know."

  Brynn's heart swelled. "Thank you. That means a lot to me, especially since I lost my parents a while ago."

  "Well, Mom, we better get going. We're anxious to show Willow her new room. We were up late last night working on it. If you need me, here's our new number," he said, as he wrote Brynn's phone number down on a piece of paper for his mother. "And, remember, the baby is a secret for now!"

  "Got it! Congratulations, both of you, and I sincerely apologize!" Madilyn said, and the look of shame in her eyes told how sorry she was for her outburst.

  "We understand," Brynn said.

  Madilyn looked out the window at Willow. "I'm going to be a grandmother again," she murmured, a smile growing on her face. "Fancy that..."

  Chandler gathered the kids out of the back yard and packed everyone into the SUV. During the short drive home, Chandler told Willow and Barrett that he and Brynn had a surprise for them when they got home. The kids chatted about it excitedly the rest of the way, wondering what it was going to be.

  Chandler and Brynn sat them down in the living room when they reached the house, and told them that he and Willow would be moving in and living with Brynn and Barrett. Both of the kids cheered, enjoying the fact that they would be having sleepovers every night.

  "But that's not all. Willow, you have a brand new bedroom. Brynn worked really hard to make sure it was something you would like," Chandler told her. "Are you ready to see it?"

  "Yeah!" Willow shouted.

  They stopped outside of the closed door to the former guest bedroom. Chandler told Willow to close her eyes before he opened the door. Seeing her eyes closed, he turned the handle of the door and slowly exposed the room behind it. Barrett's shout of how cool it was got Willow so excited she opened her eyes so she could see it.

  Willow walked into her room slowly, looking around silently. The walls were painted an ocean blue, with bright colored fish and seahorses all over, as if they were swimming on the walls. Hanging in the corners were fisherman nets with big seashells and stuffed animals from the 'Finding Nemo' collection. Her toy chest had been painted to look like an underwater treasure chest, and there was an aquarium next to it with real, live fish.

  Brynn began to worry as Willow walked around her new room. She touched all of her furniture, her new bedding, and the painted walls. Panic started to set in when Brynn saw Willow's face, so serious and contemplative.

  Brynn bent down to Willow, and took her in her arms. "Do you like it?"

  "I love it. This is my most favorite room ever!" Willow had big tears in her eyes threatening to fall. She hugged Brynn hard, then whispered, "Thanks, Mommy."

  Brynn eyes filled with tears too. Luckily, Barrett broke the tender moment before the waterworks started.

  "Can we have chicken for dinner?" he asked, laughing as he ran over and jumped on his mother and Willow.

  Willow somehow got him into a headlock and began giving him a noogy, thoroughly frustrating Barrett. When he finally escaped, he started fixing his hair with his hands.

  Brynn and Chandler watched as the two kids sparred. Finally deciding she'd heard enough, Brynn pulled Barrett out of the room to give Chandler some time alone with Willow, to show her where all her stuff was, and to make sure she was okay with living there. Brynn took Barrett to his room to have a similar talk with him, to see how he felt about Chandler and her moving in. Willow was so overjoyed that Chandler knew they were doing the right thing by moving in. He just hoped the kids would be as accepting of the new baby as they were of the new living arrangements.

  Chapter 24

  After a peaceful night, Brynn and Chandler woke up when their alarm went off. Almost as if it was on an alarm of its own, Brynn's nausea woke up too. Chandler followed her into the bathroom, trying to soothe her as her body revolted. When Brooklyn was pregnant, she rarely got sick, so the constant morning sickness that Brynn was experiencing was new to him.

  The only thing he knew to do was rub Brynn's back and make sure her hair was out of her face. He got a cool cloth for her face, and poured her a glass of water for when she was finished.

  "God, how can you stand to be in the same room with me when I'm getting sick? I'd understand if you didn't want to be here. I'd probably be pretty grossed out if I were you," Brynn groaned after getting sick for
what felt like the millionth time.

  It was just another example of how Chandler was so different than Nico. When she was with Nico, he tried to stay as far away from her as possible when she had her morning sickness. Most mornings, he would call to her from their bedroom, and ask her to quiet down a little so he didn't have to hear her.

  "Honey, you're having our baby. I'm here to support you, good or bad. Besides, what's a little morning sickness in a relationship?" He grinned at her, trying to lighten her mood. "I'm here because I want to be. I promise you that you won't have to go through any of this alone."

  Chandler gave her a kiss on her forehead, and started the shower for her, seeing that the nausea appeared to have passed.

  "So that means you'll go to my appointment with me this afternoon? I know they're going to do blood work, and I'm not a big fan of needles," Brynn asked.

  "I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'll be right there with you, holding your hand. I'll be at every appointment that is physically possible for me to make," Chandler promised. "How about we take Rylee to lunch today too? Will you be able to, since you're taking time off from work for your doctor's appointment?"

  "Yeah, that's a good idea. I'll talk to my boss this morning, and see if there's something I can work out. We have actually been talking about a way for me to only work in the office part-time, and work from home the rest of the time. It might be a good time to finalize the details," Brynn said. "Are we going to tell Rylee about the baby?"

  "Not yet, unless you want to. I thought we were going to keep this quiet."

  "I know, but you're going to have to explain all your absences to Rylee when you go to my appointments." Brynn pointed out. "But, she's your assistant, so you decide either way."

  Chandler looked at Brynn as she prepared to get into the shower. He slowly shook his head. "Fine, we'll tell her today at lunch. How is it that you always get your way?"

  Brynn laughed. "I'm glad you're seeing it my way now. Don't try to fight it, and we'll get along just fine."