Pulled(18)
Author: A.L. Jackson

I pushed the door open, and Melanie peeked in and froze.

I was so afraid she’d be disappointed, but Erin had assured me Mel would love it. I took a step closer and placed my hands on her shoulders.

There was pink everywhere. Pink walls, pink curtains, pink bedding; all the way down to the pink teddy bear nestled in the rocking chair that sat beside the crib.

There were little fairies painted in a mural scene against one wall and matching ones embroidered on pieces of the bedding. I thought I was going to hate it when Erin had started working on it, but once it was finished, I couldn’t imagine a better room for any little girl.

Melanie was silent as she went to the crib. She reached inside and picked up one of the soft blankets, holding it to her nose as she continued her tour around the room. The closet was overflowing with enough baby clothes for the next three years. A changing table sat in the far corner stocked with baby supplies, and there were even books on shelves and toys in baskets. Erin had thought of everything.

I leaned against the doorjamb and watched as Melanie picked up little one-piece outfits and held them to her belly. She opened the bottles on the changing table and smelled each one. She looked through the titles of the books and the toys, acquainting herself with everything.

She finally looked at me and said, “She’s going to love it.”

“Yeah, I think she will, too.”

Melanie took one last look before we shut the door.

“Are you ready to see our room?”

She nodded, and followed me in after I opened the door.

Mom had made it comfortable, not overdone, but a place where we could come to be alone at the end of the day. It was a place of peace and love and commitment.

“Do you like it?”

“How could I not? It’s ours.” Her face radiated joy.

The combination of those words and the look on her face sent my heart racing, savoring the thought of our lives joined. No more weekend trips, no more sneaking in backdoors, no more hiding.

“Ours.”

Finally.

The sun was shining, and we spent the afternoon out in the back yard, talking as we sat on the grass.

Melanie looked at where her garden would be. It was barren now, but I knew it would be incredible as soon as Melanie was here and tending to it. We picked out the perfect spot for a swing set, imagining a time a few years from now when we would catch our little girl as she came down the slide or push her on the swing as she giggled and begged us to push her higher.

Evening approached, and Melanie still wanted to make dinner, so we picked up a few things from the store.

Dinner was amazing. Melanie reveled in her new kitchen. I think she used every dish we owned. I’d never seen her freer. Only three more months, and we’d be able to do this every day. We ate at our little dining table. We chatted and enjoyed our food, the mood was light between us.

My phone rang in my pocket, and I pulled it out, glancing at the number before shutting it off and turning my attention back to Melanie.

“Who was that?” She smiled as she popped a piece of baked chicken into her mouth.

“Oh, just Stephanie. She’s probably calling to remind me of our study group on Monday.” She always called a couple of days ahead because one of the four of us in our group always forgot if she didn’t.

A frown crossed Melanie’s face, and she looked back down at her plate.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.” She tried to wave it off.

“No it’s not if something’s bothering you.” We had promised each other a long time ago that whenever anything upset us we’d get it out in the open.

“Honestly, it really is nothing. She just makes me uncomfortable.” She shrugged her shoulders and took another bite.

Melanie had only met Stephanie once in passing. We were leaving a restaurant over Christmas break when Steph was coming in with her boyfriend, so I didn’t understand where this was coming from. Melanie had never been the jealous type because she had no reason to be.

“You understand that I am only for you? I promise.” I squeezed her knee under the table, begging her to understand. “She’s just my study partner.”

“I know. She just gave me a weird feeling, but I trust you.” She smiled, effectively closing the subject, because we both knew we didn’t have to worry about that kind of thing. Nobody would ever come between us.

Later that night we watched a movie on the couch, but Melanie never made it to the end. Her soft breaths were lulling me to sleep as well, so I picked her up and carried her to our room. I pulled the covers down and tucked her in, her brown ringlets falling all over her pillow.

“So beautiful,” I whispered into her cheek as I kissed her good night. So unbelievably beautiful.

I don’t think I’d ever even seen another woman’s face since the moment I’d met her. It was as if my mind couldn’t register anyone else.

Crawling into bed next to her, I tugged her back close to my chest so I could hold her as she slept. I rested my hand on her belly, content in this moment.

I felt a little thump against my hand, my other girl demanding my attention. I smiled into the back of Melanie’s head as I continued to feel the little movements under my hand, wondering how it was even possible to feel this way.

We woke early Saturday morning, refreshed. We lounged around the house, and after she made us breakfast, we relaxed on the couch. It seemed we were always around somebody else, and we never had time to ourselves. It was great to be in our home just with each other.

Around noon, we decided to go into town to shop a little. We just browsed around, taking our time as we looked in store windows, holding hands as we strolled together.

Melanie held up a baby name book with a questioning look, and I grinned and nodded. It was definitely time to start thinking about naming our little girl.

I would’ve loved to just name her after her mom, but Melanie had shot that idea down a long time ago.

The afternoon came and went, and sadness began to creep in as I thought of having to take Melanie back to her dad’s tomorrow. I had thought about asking her to come up here to finish school, but I knew that would be selfish of me.

When Melanie’s feet started hurting, we went home to relax, but I felt anxious. We needed to talk about her parents. We couldn’t put it off any longer.

Melanie had her back propped against the headboard with her feet up on a pillow as she flipped through the name book. I crawled beside her, pulling her against me.

“Melanie, baby, I think we need to talk.” She frowned, set the book down, and