Page 136 of The Only Seconds that Matter
Johnny shrugged and tilted his head back to drink the last of his lemonade, which came in a bottle shaped like beer so it made for an acceptable replacement.“Jus’ sayin’.”
“We have a couple horses buried on the property.”
“You ever see any ghosts roamin’ around?”
Victor snorted.“Horse ghosts?”
“You never know.”Johnny held out the bag of potato chips he was currently destroying.“Chips?”
“Not hungry,” Victor said with a roll of his stomach.He wasn’t digesting the pizza very well.
“You alright?”
“Yeah, just a little nauseous.”
Johnny stared at Victor’s profile a moment before saying, “You tell your mama yet?”
“No.”
“When you plannin’ on doin’ that?”
“Two minutes before we leave, probably.”
“You think she ain’t gonna take it well?”
“She probably will.”Victor sighed.“I just don’t want to have the conversation.”
“Hmm.”A horse snorted in the distance, but Victor wasn’t sure what paddock.Johnny reached for Victor’s hand and squeezed it.“It’s up to you.”
Victor sandwiched Johnny’s hand for a moment, running his thumb along the soft blonde hairs on the back of Johnny’s thumb.This year was going to be completely fucked no matter how Victor structured it, but he was willing to suffer through it if it meant satisfying one of his only lifetime dreams.
Johnny gently pulled his hand from Victor’s grip and placed it on the back of Victor’s neck, drawing him in so he could plant a kiss on his forehead.“I think I’m gonna head to bed, ‘less you want me to stick around longer.”
“No, it’s fine.I think I’m going to sit out here a few more minutes.”
“Don’t think too hard.”Johnny tweaked his nose with a wink, then peeled off his leather National Finals Rodeo jacket to drape over Victor’s shoulders before he stood and vanished into the house with a clap of the old wooden screen door.Victor pulled the jacket tighter around him, reveling in the heat and smell of it as he faced the endless night.
* * *
Victor slept four hours.He woke around 2 am with the strong urge to retch, so he leapt out of bed and barely got to the toilet before he threw up.He’d hoped he was quiet enough about it that no one in the house would notice, but he’d forgotten that his mother had the ears of a bat, because after he’d gargled a few mouthfuls of water in the sink, his mother suddenly appeared in the threshold.
“You okay?”she asked, brow furrowed.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Victor said to his reflection, wiping a hand over his mouth.
“I have some Alka-Seltzer if you think that would help.”
“I’m fine,” Victor repeated.
“I hope it wasn’t that pizza you ate.”
“It’s nothing, Mom,” Victor replied with a heavy sigh.
Her expression remained unchanged, one hand stashed on her hip.Fuck him for trying to get anything past her.She knew him too well.So he sank onto the toilet and ran a hand through his hair, drawing up all his courage to just say it.
“I’m pregnant.”
His mother’s mouth fell open, but she said nothing for a good five seconds.It didn’t bode well for the upcoming conversation.
