Match in the Gas Tank || Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz

39 Anxiety

Eli drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited outside of Evie's house. It was their last day of suspension and he had no idea what they were doing. As far as he had been concerned, it was supposed to be a day of relaxation before they had to go to school, which was going to suck considering they'd been away for two weeks. He had no idea what to expect when they walked into the building, but it was honestly the last thing on his mind.

He'd gotten a text from Evie saying she needed him to pick her up. Texts like that weren't unusual, he drove her nearly everywhere she needed to go. However, when it comes through late at night, telling him that she needs him, and then another coming in to say it can wait until the morning made him worry. Thus, he had no idea what they were doing and why he hadn't even done his mohawk before coming to get her.

He could see her aunt's car in the driveway, the dead giveaway that they couldn't do whatever it is they were going to do at her place. Ronnie was cool, but she could still be stern when the situation demanded her to be. He remembered one time when she had been left in charge of Evie, himself, and Demetri at the park and Evie "went missing." She went from the fun, cool aunt to a stoic army major in a matter of seconds. Evie had just been in the bushes looking at ladybugs, but that moment had left no doubt in Hawk's mind that Veronica Doyle was a devoted, loving aunt and should not be presented with serious issues if the situation could be helped.

He sighed when he saw Evie coming out of the house. She had her backpack thrown over her shoulder, wearing a pair of shorts and an old tee shirt that was too big for her now. Her hair was messier than usual and thrown into a ponytail. His relief was short lived as he recognized that this was not his usually calm girlfriend entering his car.

"What's up?" he asked her, trying to mask his worry with his everyday casual attitude. He smiled at her, because no matter what she was always beautiful and he was happy to see her.

Evie looked up, but she didn't smile back. She kept a straight face, trying to show calm. However, the raging fire that was her heart was doused in worry and panic, and it clearly showed in her eyes. They were anxious and fearful, which was a lot harder to hide.

"Just drive and then we can talk," she said softly, pulling the seat belt on.

He nodded and put the car in drive. Once they were a good distance from her house, he glanced at her and asked, "So, where are we going?"

"You said your parents aren't home, right?"

He nodded again and mentally put them on the path to his house. As they came to a stop at an intersection, he turned to her. "You wanna tell me what we're doing?"

Evie looked at him, her throat tight and trapping her words. So she went into her bag and dug through it for a moment until she found what she needed. She pulled out a small box and showed it to him.

Hawk's heart nearly stopped as he read the words on the box, then cut his eyes up to her. "Are you sure?"

She shrugged. "I'm late."

He swallowed hard. "By how much?"

"Three days."

A horn honked behind them and he looked ahead, seeing the light had changed to green. He started driving again and the car grew quiet. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her drop the box back into her backpack and zip it up, and after that the silence became insufferable.

His heart started hammering away in his chest, his mind repeating the same thing over and over again, Shit! Shit! Shit! This can't be happening! Shit! Fucking hell! This can't be happening! She can't be pregnant!

They arrived at his house before he even realized it. He wanted the smack himself for all the times they didn't use a condom. In the heat of the moment, it hadn't mattered because they just wanted each other so much, but now it was a major problem. He wanted to scream, but he bit his tongue because he knew that wouldn't help whatsoever.