Spencer's Face (Buckeye Hawks)

by Autumn Brown

  “Damn that was close.” I told Gordon.

  “Sure was. If he thought I was your boyfriend, he’d probably kick my ass with you looking like that.”

  I slapped him on the arm playfully. When I looked up, Spencer was walking toward our table. “Oh shit! He’s coming over here.” I warned Gordon.

  “Should I leave or stay?” he asked me.

  “I don’t know.” I told him.

  “Taylor.” Spencer said. It wasn’t much of a greeting. I could feel the anger emanating from his stance and his piercing gaze.

  “Spencer.” I answered him.

  “So, you like Mexicans?” he asked, full of hatred. Hatred for me, the girl he loved just seven weeks ago.

  I nodded. Apparently he thought Gordon was a friend, or a boyfriend.

  “Guess I should have let Jose rape you then.” He said with more hatefulness than I’d heard come out of him, ever.

  That hurt so badly that I almost started crying right there in the restaurant. I wanted to get up and run to the bathroom, but I was stuck to my seat until he left. I took a deep breath and held it, trying to regain control.

  “Don’t talk to Taylor that way.” Gordon defended me immediately, in a very Mexican accent. He stood up ready to fight. He was always ready to fight, thus the school expulsions.

  Gordon started speaking Spanish to me after that so that Spencer wouldn’t understand him. “Should I kick this guy’s ass? I thought you used to date him. I’m not feeling the love right now.”

  “He’s mad at me, and if he sees me, he will be even more mad. Please don’t do anything.” I answered him in Spanish.

  Spencer gave me a funny look. “Since when do you speak Spanish?”

  “Since I was little.” I reported.

  “You owe me an explanation. Why did you really break up with me? Sally is a lesbian, and you knew it.” he said.

  “You were smothering me. I had to get away. And, you’re doing it again.” I said meanly to him. I wanted him to leave. I hated being mean to him, but it was imperative that he didn’t see my huge stomach.

  “I’ll quit smothering you then.” He said meanly, throwing his hands up in the air, making a show of it. He turned and walked out. I wanted to run after him so badly. I wanted to throw my arms around him and hold him there. It was everything I could do to not get up out of that chair and chase him down and tackle him. I couldn’t ruin his life though. He said a baby would ruin his life. If I could let him walk away this last time, I would go ahead and move to California before the baby was born. I didn’t want to chance this ever again.

  His face was different. It didn’t have nearly the birthmark that it had the last time that I saw him. It almost looked like he had plastic surgery. Maybe he was dating someone new. Sandy told me that he and Grace were getting kind of close. I hoped so. I wanted him to be happy. He needed to find a nice girl and get on with his life.

  After he left, Gordon gave me a look. “He’s the baby’s daddy. Isn’t he?”

  I nodded. I was about to cry.

  “Your daughter’s going to be pretty. He’s not a bad looking white boy.”

  I started to laugh. Gordon always pretended to be gay to make me laugh. “Shut up, you little half breed.” I always teased him about his biracial ethnicity. He knew I loved him. I could get away with that.

  Spencer POV.

  Damn, of all the places to finally run into Taylor. I’d been trying to find her for the last seven weeks since she’d dumped me. Now that I’d found her, all I wanted to do was leave. Damn. I thought I was in pain before. Now seeing her with another guy, I realized what real pain was. She was probably having that great sex with him. I stepped into the back seat of Aunt Janel’s car. “Thanks for waiting. I’m ready now.” I told her.

  “How did it go?” Todd asked.

  “Terrible. I’m smothering her. That’s why she dumped me.” I told him. I was so upset. How could she say that? She came over to my house more than I went to hers. Hell I’d only seen her room once, and that was the day she moved out. “And, oh…she speaks Spanish better than the Spanish teacher.”

  I don’t know why I said that. I was still in shock that she spoke Spanish. Aunt Janel was taking her sweet time about pulling out of here and getting me the hell away from Taylor.

  “Can we go home now?” I asked her to hurry her up. I was mad, and I knew I didn’t sound very respectful right now.

  “Give me a minute. Did she stand up?” Janel asked.

  “What? No. She just sat there at the table.” I answered. Was she losing it?

  “I’m going to drive around the parking lot. She won’t recognize this car. I’ve got a hunch about something.”

  “What are you thinking?” Todd asked her.

  Janel backed out and started cruising around the parking lot. “I’m wondering why she broke up with him for a ridiculous reason, then left school suddenly, and now she gives him another lame excuse. She stuck to him like glue when they were at the house. I thought she was smothering him. Not the other way around.”

  “So?” Todd asked. He was asking her to connect the dots for him.

  “So?” I asked. I needed the dots connected too.

  “We’ll see in a minute, when she comes out. Then I’ll tell you.” Janel said.

  I tried really hard to follow what Janel was trying to piece together. Damn. She was thinking Taylor was pregnant. Could that be possible? We used birth control every single time, except that last time. But she said she was on the pill, and I pulled out. Maybe it still could have happened. But surely she would have said something. Wouldn’t she?

  We cruised around the parking lot. I didn’t mind seeing her again to tell the truth. I could duck if she spotted us. I looked around the parking lot for her Mustang. I didn’t see it. Being yellow it was usually easy to spot. I did see a yellow Hummer. Damn. Dale was right. She did drive a Hummer. If she traded cars, she would probably pick another yellow one. She loved that color for some reason. Why the hell was she driving a Hummer?

  As Janel pulled into a parking spot where we could see the people exiting the restaurant, I saw the Mexican guy walk out. Taylor was behind him. “That’s them.”

  I looked at her. Stared at her. I could only see her back. She was walking backwards as she spoke to the Mexican guy. Then she stopped in front of him and did a ballet move. I laughed. She was always doing stuff like that. Taking dares, just joking around. She put one foot in the air high over her head and held it there with her hand, then released it and did a bow.

  “Damn. She’s flexible.” Todd said.

  Janel gave him a look that could kill. It was one of those looks she gave him when she caught him staring at a pretty girl when we all went shopping or out to eat. Taylor was definitely a pretty girl.

  “What? She is.” Todd defended himself.

  They often got into these little fights when we went out. They never went further than that though.

  “She can bend over backwards and kiss her feet.” I told them. I wanted to brag on her for some reason. I don’t know why. I embarrassed myself then looked down at the floorboard.

  “Whoa! Bet she can’t now.” Todd said quickly with a half laugh.

  “I was right!” Janel yelled out.

  “What?” I asked, looking up at her. What were they excited about? What was she right about? I looked closer at Taylor. She was huge. Pregnant huge. “Holy shit!”

  I had to fix this. I hoped I wasn’t too late. I jumped out of the car as fast as I could, and walked quickly toward her Hummer, beating her there. When she spotted me, she quickly put her hands over her stomach and ducked behind the Mexican guy.

  “I’ve already seen you, Taylor.” I called out to her.

  I thought for a second that she was going to run. That would be stupid. She turned around to face me. She had a scared look on her face. She walked around to the side of her Hummer, and handed her keys to the Mexican guy. He got into the car using the keys. She spoke Spanish to him again
. Apparently she told him that we needed to talk. Boy did we need to talk. I was so mad at her that I could yell right now.

  I walked up to her. I was close to her, but I couldn’t reach out and touch her. “I’m pregnant.” She said weakly.

  “You don’t say.” I said snidely to her. “You were going to have our baby and not even tell me?”

  “Yes. I didn’t want to ruin your life. And, this is entirely my fault.”

  “Why would you say that? I was there too.” I argued with her. What was going on?

  “I think it happened that first night, under the cottonwood tree, when I jumped on top of you. So it was entirely my fault. It’s not fair that you have to pay for this too.”

  “There’s no way for you to know that. It could have been one of the many other times. It doesn’t matter whose fault it is. It’s our baby.”

  “I’m giving you an out. You don’t have to even acknowledge this baby. I will take care of her by myself, completely. I’ll turn eighteen and get my money, then I’ll move to California to raise her.”

  “I don’t want an out. I want in. I want you, and I want her. I don’t want my daughter raised without me.” I told her firmly, then I grabbed her face and pulled it to me. I kissed her. I had to kiss her. I needed her so badly. Not sexually. I just needed her, needed to feel her, feel her lips. I felt her melt into me and kiss me back. Just like that, all my pain was gone. “Now you need to get rid of your boyfriend so we can get back together.”

  She looked confused for a quick second. “Oh. That’s my cousin.”

  I was elated to hear that news. I laughed at her. I pulled away from her and rubbed her arms all the way down. When I went to grab her hands, I felt her bracelet. She was wearing the bracelet that I’d given her months ago. “You’re wearing it. Why?”

  “I love it.” she said flatly. “And, I love you. Just because I couldn’t be with you, didn’t mean I wasn’t still your girl.”

  I hugged her close again. “I love you.”

  “Can I give you a ride home? Or can we stay in a hotel tonight?” she asked me.

  I nodded. “Let me go tell Janel and Todd. I’ll be right back.” I walked over and stepped into the backseat of Janel’s car. “I’m going to stay the night with her somewhere tonight, and we’re going to talk.”

  “So, you’re getting back together?” Janel asked.

  “Definitely.” I told her.

  She smiled at me.

  “You’re sure it’s yours?” Todd asked me.

  “Absolutely sure.” I told him firmly.

  “I had to ask.” He apologized.

  “I’ll call you tomorrow.” I told Janel and Todd, then stepped out of their car.

  When I came back to the Hummer, her cousin was in the back seat. I stepped into the passenger seat. “Hi, I’m Spencer.” I turned around to shake his hand.

  “Gordon.” He said. “So you’re Taylor’s baby’s daddy?”

  I laughed at him. “Yes I am. It might take me a while to get used to hearing that though.”

  He seemed like a nice enough guy. He was Taylor’s family, and she lived with him and his family at the moment. I was hoping to remedy that soon. We pulled into a house outside of Avondale. It was small. We went inside. Her aunt was there. Taylor introduced me. She hugged me immediately.

  Taylor showed me the video of her ultrasound which was kind of scary. It made it seem more real to me. I was going to be a father, to a little baby girl.

  “Are you having second thoughts?” she asked. “You can still take that out.”

  “I want in.” I told her. “She’s my daughter too, not just yours.”

  We left shortly after that. We rented a hotel room in Buckeye to stay the night. I was ecstatic to be making love to her again. I’d missed her so much.

  “So, tell me the truth. Did I smother you too much?” I asked her as we sat on the bed.

  “No. I smothered you!” She said as she put her arms around my neck. “Can I smother you some more?”

  I pushed her down backwards on the bed. “Any time you want. Let me see your stomach.” I raised her top to see her stomach.

  Oh man, it was huge. Well, not huge, but way bigger than it used to be. I rubbed it. It was really hard to believe that there was a baby in there. Then the baby kicked me, actually moved my hand. I laughed. “That’s the coolest thing.” I told her.

  She laughed. “Are you going to be embarrassed if I go to school with you tomorrow?”

  “No. Not at all.” I assured her. I’d be proud to be by her side. It was my baby too.

  “I love you.” She said, kissing me. “Have you dated since I left?”

  “No way.” I looked at her shocked, then wondered why she asked. “Did you?”

  “No.” she laughed. “Your daughter is not a big guy magnet.”

  She pointed at her big stomach.

  I kissed it. “I’m glad to hear that.”

  “Why didn’t you date? Sandy said you and Grace were kind of seeing each other. And, I know there were several girls interested in you before I left.” she asked.

  “Grace and I never went out. I wasn’t interested in anyone except you. You are a very hard girl to get over. Plus, I didn’t want to date anyone that wasn’t interested in me before my face was fixed.”

  She rubbed my face. “I’ve missed you so much. I want you.”

  “I guess we don’t need condoms this time.” I joked with her.

  We made love. It was incredible. I’d been waiting so long to have sex with her again. I thought I’d never get my chance again. She felt so fantastic. It was a little tricky working around her stomach, but we managed just fine. We’d definitely have to get creative when her stomach grew.

  The next day, I drove a big yellow Hummer to school with my pregnant girlfriend in tow. I opened the door when we arrived to let her out. All eyes were on us. I knew it. She knew it. I was so happy to be with Taylor again that I didn’t mind. Taylor was extremely embarrassed to be pregnant and returning to school.

  “I need to go to the office to check back in.” she told me.

  I went to Senior Pole to hang out while she checked herself in. I talked to Sally, Grace, Ryan, and Shelly. We’d been chatting a lot lately for some reason. Zane came up while we were talking. “I found her.” I told him.

  “Taylor?” he asked, excitedly. “You found Taylor?”

  “You found Taylor?” Ryan asked, suddenly more interested than he was a minute ago. Hell, he turned around and gave me his full attention.

  “Where? When?” Zane asked anxiously.

  “I did. She’s checking back into school right now. She’s going to finish the year here.”

  “No shit!” Zane exclaimed excitedly. He was really happy to hear the news that she was back. “I’m going to kick her ass when I see her.”

  “You can’t do that.” I warned him.

  “Oh yes I can. She blocked my calls. She deserves it.”

  “You still can’t do that.” I told him.

  He gave me a look.

  “You’ll see why in a minute.” I told him.

  Grace and Shelly gave me a look, too. Sandy and Dwayne came up while we were talking.

  “Spencer said he found Taylor.” Zane said to Sandy. “Is that true?”

  Sandy gave a confused look to us all. “She hasn’t said anything to me about that.”

  “She’s checking in now.” I told her.

  “What? No way. She wouldn’t do that. She’s too…” she stopped suddenly. She looked up to see Taylor walking our way. “Okay, maybe she would.”

  Sandy walked up to her and put her arm around her. She was showing support for her best friend. She knew Taylor would be embarrassed about returning to school. Zane’s mouth fell open wide. He looked at me, but didn’t close his mouth.

  “Holy shit!” He exclaimed. “Congratulations?” he said unsure of what he should say exactly.

  I laughed at him. “Thanks.”

  Taylor made it to us
finally, after Sandy finished rubbing her belly thoroughly. She hugged Zane first. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t want you to tell anyone.” She said.

  Zane didn’t say anything. His mouth was still hanging open. Taylor reached up and shut it for him. Sally was in shock, but she hugged her, too. Grace and Shelly rubbed her stomach.