state of grace // n.h a.u

part four

"I'm late."

The realisation hits Haley like a tonne of bricks.

Between pulling long shifts at the coffee shop to both keep her preoccupied and pockets full, putting pen to paper before her inspiration runs dry, and spending as much time cooped up with Niall as she could, Haley has completely forgotten all about her period. She's on birth control, of course, but once the week of placebo pills came and went, she didn't even realise she ran dry in another way. After such a whirlwind few months, it hasn't even crossed her mind once.

In a total surprise of events, especially considering her best friend just told her she may very well be pregnant, Haley is very offended by the way Madi bursts into laughter.

"Excuse me?!" Haley asks, brows creased together, mortified at her behaviour. Here she is, her stomach in her throat and heart beating a million miles an hour in total fear, and her best friend thinks it's the funniest thing in the world.

"I'm sorry, it's just—" Madi pauses, covering her mouth to chuckle a little more as she's unable to keep it in. "Given what you're keeping secret from Niall, it's pretty fucking ironic."

Haley sucks in a deep breath and grits her teeth. "Yes, Mads. The irony is not lost on me that I don't want kids, yet somehow the God's above have decided to grace me with one!"

"Okay." Madi shifts the heat bag onto the couch beside her to give Haley her full attention, sensing she's probably made a mistake by laughing. "Look," she continues, standing up and taking Haley by the hands, "you've been incredibly busy and stressed lately. It's probably just late because of that."

This calms Haley a little. "Busy and stressed. Right," she says, though she still feels like she is about to go into hyperventilation. "That's all it probably is, yeah? Like, there's no way I'm actually...you know."

"It's the most probable option." Madi forces a smile, hoping her warmer approach will help settle Haley—well, as settled as one can be in a time like this. "Look, false alarm or not—which it most definitely is a false alarm—" Madi quickly adds when she notices the way Haley's eyes widen at the thought "—there's only one way to find out the truth."

Haley knows Madi is right—she always is, it seems—but the idea of having to face the truth scares her terribly. It's likely there will be nothing to come of it and it'll be a time they laugh about in the future, but, deep down, Haley has a fear instilled inside her that it might be so much more than a scare; she might actually be pregnant.

After a few beats of silence between the two, Haley's phone beeps from the kitchen counter and shakes all thoughts out of her head for a split second; she really liked that split second, to be honest. Madi makes a move to check it herself as a bid to help out her friend in a crisis, but Haley stops her before she can and makes her way over to the counter instead.

Just grabbing some food darling, will be around soon, the message from Niall reads.

Shit, Haley thinks. Shit, shit, shit.

Amongst her Am-I-Or-Aren't-I-Pregnant breakdown, Haley has completely forgotten all about Niall. A little ironic, of course, considering he would be the—and she gulps as this thought—father.

"What is it?" Madi asks, raising a curious brow.

"Niall." Haley nearly can't get his name out, the anxiety of it all and the fear of the unknown almost getting the better of her. "He's, uh—he's supposed to be coming over soon. I forgot."

"Jesus, you're just full of irony tonight, aren't you?"

Haley stares blankly at her best friend.