Communicating Vessels [COMPLETED]

Chapter 33

Four years earlier

"James?"

"Could you be less original?" I asked sarcastically.

"Kyle?"

"Sure, why not Chad while you're at it?"

He laughed. "Hugo?"

"Nope."

"What's wrong with Hugo?"

"I don't like it."

"What do you like?"

"Edward."

"I'm not naming my kid after a Twilight vampire!"

"Oh, come on! It has nothing to do with Twilight, I just like the name."

"Sure. And the fact that you have just finished rereading the books is just a coincidence?"

"Yes!"

He sighed, amused at my outrageous lie.

"What if it's a girl?" Josh asked.

"Hermione."

He glared at me. I burst out laughing.

"It's a joke, corazón! You should see your face, it's hilarious."

We were on our way to my eighteenth-week ultrasound. The one where they would tell us the sex of our baby. It was late April, just a month before graduation, and a couple weeks before our finals. We hadn't told anyone about the pregnancy yet, not even our parents. My bump was small enough to be easily hidden, and the incoming exams were the perfect excuse for me to miss parties.

I was driving Josh's car. He wasn't too happy about it, but I had managed to convince him using the 'soon, I won't be able to do it anymore so please let me enjoy it while I can' argument. I used that one a lot. Pregnancy perk.

As I turned right at a traffic light, the ring on my left hand caught the light and cast a glare on my face. It reminded me that I was engaged. I still had trouble realizing that, sometimes. In my mind, I was still Abril, twenty-two, Caltech senior, on her way to becoming a researcher for NASA. In reality, I was a barely adult girl, soon to be married to her high school sweetheart, and expecting a baby.

The ring Josh had chosen for me was gorgeous. I hadn't taken time to appreciate it when he'd offered it to me, moved as I was by his proposal and his reaction to my pregnancy. It wasn't your typical engagement ring. The bottom part was a simple white gold band, but the top part split into three loosely braided strands on the top. Each pavé strand had a different color of gemstone: one with aquamarine, one with prasiolite, one with tourmaline. Blue, green, and pink. Not that I would know the name of the gemstones, but Josh had made it a point to remember them and pass down the knowledge to me.

"You love all colors, so I chose the most colorful ring I could find," he'd said. "The green and the pink reminded me of your hair."

I wore my hair pastel pink with two light green strands framing my face, then.

"And the blue matches your eyes," I had noticed when I'd held my hand close to his face. That detail had made the ring go from gorgeous to outstandingly perfect. I had started crying when I had read the inscription inside. Te amaré por siempre. 'I'll love you forever'.

"It's perfect, Josh, I love it."

"And I love you."

I smiled thinking of that moment. My life had taken an unexpected turn but I was happy. We were yet to announce our engagement either, having decided that we would tell everything at our graduation. Everybody would be there so it was convenient, and we had too much going on to worry about our parents' reactions.

"What about Aaron, for a boy?" Josh started with the names again, oblivious of my short introspection.

To my surprise, I enjoyed the name. Not too original, not too simple, not too douchey, and nobody I didn't like had this name.

"You know what? I actually like it."

"Hurray, finally a name we agree on. I should write it down in case we forget about it," he joked.

"Any equally brilliant idea for a girl's name?"

"Yes, actually. I've been thinking about this a lot, if it's a girl, I would love to call her Jo—"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

A/N: I think you'll all have guessed what happens in the next chapter of this timeline. That'll be a tough ride, not gonna lie.

Next chapter on Monday, please vote and comment.

Love,
Charlie.