Book Three: Dream the Future - An Ashton Irwin Fanfiction

Chapter 19 - Day With Mum

November 23, 2015

"Hey mum!" I exclaimed, walking into my parents' house. She walked up to me and hugged me.

"Happy birthday," I smiled at her. She thanked me.

"So what are we going to be doing today?" I asked her, "I brought my purse. I knew we'd be going out."

"We will a little bit, yeah, but first.. I want your help with this.." She motioned me over into the kitchen.

"Can you help me bake this cake? I've never been.. very good at baking.. Chocolate and peanut butter has always been your dad's favorite, and our anniversary is tomorrow," she smiled.

"How many years will it be? Twenty-two?"

"Yeah," she nodded. I helped her bake the cake and we covered it, then put a note over it telling dad not to eat it, just in case he got home before mum and I did.

"Where do you want to go eat?" She asked, "it's almost lunch."

"Wherever you want, and it's my treat since its your birthday."

"Okay," we left and looked around at places before she picked her favorite local diner. We walked in and sat down at a booth.

We ordered food, and when we got it, the smell was not appealing to me. I told mum that, but I tried it. It was good , and I ate it, even though I didn't like the smell.

"So where do you want to go now?" I asked as we walked out of the diner. Mum shrugged, then suggested, "how about the outlets?"

"Sure," I nodded, agreeing that going there would be good. I always loved going to the outlets, especially with mum.

I suddenly got nauseous. Mum asked what had happened, and I apologized, "I'm sorry.. I just got really nauseous there.."

"Are you okay?" She asked, "I mean, do you have something to tell me?" She smiled.

"No, I-"

"Are you pregnant?"

"What? No.. I took a test a few weeks ago and it was negative."

"You haven't done anything since?"

"No.. Um," I sighed, "I'm just sort of.. I've just wanted to be left alone lately. I don't understand why I can't get pregnant."

"You know.. Sometimes tests come up with false negatives. But there's never a false positive."

"I don't know.. I- I'm probably not. Maybe the nausea will just go away after a little."

"No. Come with me," mum told me before she walked down the street. I followed her, doing what she told me to.

She walked into a nearby drugstore, and I entered behind her. She took me to the aisle with the pregnancy tests and handed me two.

"I buy them, you take them," she smiled.

"I'm telling you. I'm not," I told her, grabbing the tests from her and putting them back.

"If you are, you buy your father and me dinner tonight. If you aren't, I buy you, Ashton, and Kaely dinner tonight. Deal?"

I shrugged, "deal. Because I know I'm not."

"Sure," mum walked up to the counter and paid for them both. She motioned for me to come out of the store after her.

"Here," she handed me the bag and we walked back down the street to where my car was parked. We drove back to mum's house, and she let me take the tests.

"I'm not pregnant. Just watch. You'll have to buy dinner for Ashton, Kaely, and me then," I told her.

"Okay," she shrugged, watching me set the timer on my phone. I sighed. Mum put her hand in my shoulder.

"You don't know how many times I've done this and had so much disappointment," I bit my lip, trying to hold back a cry.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," mum hugged me and stroked my hair, "God has a path. And maybe he wants you and Ashton to adopt kids instead."

I nodded, "I know. I want kids of my own, though. Ashton keeps telling me I'm depressed. But how can I not be when I lost a baby about two years ago and haven't been able to get pregnant since? And Kaely has been asking so much for a sibling."

"I know, sweetheart, I know. You don't worry, though. God will help you through this."

I nodded, then clicked okay when the timer went off. I walked into the bathroom slowly. I had no idea what to expect when I walked into the bathroom. I didn't want to know the result, especially since I knew it would be negative.

I grabbed the tests off the counter and walked back into the living room where mum was. I smiled and said, "I'm pregnant."

"Oh my god! I knew it!" She jumped off the couch and hugged me. I couldn't stop smiling.

"How are you going to tell Ashton?"

"Christmas, maybe?"

"Don't wait that long to tell him. Plus, you'd probably be showing by then!"

"But I think it would be really special to tell him on Christmas. I want to tell Dad then, too. It'll be our secret until then. When I was pregnant with London, I wanted to tell Ashton a special way, but I told Kaely and she told him right away," I laughed a little.

"Well I think it would be nice if you told him in a special way. But you won't be able to hide it very well.."

"What do you mean?"

"You won't be able to 'try' since he'll want you to take a test later. When you do, it'll be positive. Plus, after you start showing, you won't want him to be able to see your stomach."

"That's true. But I really want to tell him at Christmas, so that's what I'm doing," I smiled.

"He's going to love his present this year," mum hugged me.