I haven't talked to Colby since that night, and I found out by Sam asking if I was fine being home alone for a week, that Sam and Colby were flying somewhere for a while.

I couldn't help but wonder for the rest of the night about what he had meant, but I figured it was nothing too serious since he's had some female friends around the house a lot lately.

When I woke up that morning for my interview, I had undressed to take a quick shower, only to be disappointed to see my apparent bump was gone.

So naturally, I took to google to ask when does your bump start to show, and it said between 12 and 16 weeks. Which means it should pop any day now.

I was both excited, and terrified.

I was nervous to get my hopes up. I was scared that every time I'd see a "bump" it would just be bloating, and I'd be disappointed later.

I ended up getting a text back from Casey, telling me that everything was lined up, and just to have them call in for setting a date and time. I thanked her and figured I'd tell them once they had gotten back.

After my interview, I headed over to my ex's apartment, anxiety racing through my veins.

I was now 11 weeks pregnant, almost 12, and I haven't heard from Aaliyah. The only reason I knew she was still alive was because River was texting me, telling me to give her some time.

I wanted to do nothing more than apologize for what I had said to her, but she wouldn't even view my text, let alone respond to it, so I've thrown myself into job hunting and visiting my family, as well as getting used to being home alone in the new house for the first time.

Jake has been spending a lot of time at Tara's, and Sam and Colby left to go to Iowa, meeting up with one of her childhood friends, which meant I walked into an eerily quiet house for the past week.

I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Jake just moved out one day, because I've been here for like 2 weeks, and I see Colby emerge from his bedroom to grab snacks more than I ever have seen Jake.

Kat ended up going somewhere to film a video with a few of her friends, so to say I was beyond bored, was the understatement of the year.

Do you know what happens when you're bored?

You overthink.

Which meant, I over thought about my pregnancy, and about what the baby would look like, or what the gender would be, if I even wanted to know the gender, if my bump was ever going to show, if I'd ever stop crying, or throwing up, if Sam and Colby would hate me for not telling them. If I'd be moved out by the time I wanted to. If I'd ever stop crying at 2am over my stupid ex boyfriend / baby daddy that I now have to see all the fucking time. What if. . What if.

It's all I could think about. I truly felt trapped inside my own head as my mind was being swirled with worrying thoughts.

It's all I could think about.

Everything had changed so drastically since February, that I honestly was having a hard time keeping up.

It did however make it easier to hide the pregnancy, and the symptoms that came along with it from my roommates, but every time I'd vomit or I'd fall asleep in my room, I would feel bad.

I felt so guilty for hiding it from them, but I knew most women did anyway, up until their second trimester due to miscarriage concerns, but it still felt wrong.

I was always really good about being bluntly honest about how I was feeling, or the things racing through my head, but I was scared shitless of getting kicked out.

I couldn't afford to live on my own, I had made Aaliyah really mad at me for accusing her of using her dad's money, I didn't exactly want to move in with my parents or my ex, so I was stuck here. In this somewhat of a hell hole with Sam and Colby, where I'm pretty sure Colby hated me.

My family always said that honesty was the best policy, even if it hurt someone, because you could at least know they were trustworthy, and you have nothing if you don't have trust.

But does that still apply if you're homeless and pregnant?

I don't think the lie would hurt me... especially since I was planning on moving out soon anyway.

I found myself knocking on Gabe's apartment door, catching myself shaking the jittery feeling out of my hands as I waited.

I could hear the TV on, and what I thought was water running, so I knew someone was home.

I knocked again, and heard the water shut off, feet shuffling towards the wooden door.

"Leigh?" He asked, surprised.

"Can we talk?" I asked, rocking back and forth on my feet.

Gabe let me in, and I noticed he was in the middle of picking up his apartment.

I glanced down towards the linoleum floors, debating if I wanted to take off my shoes or not.

I had no idea how long I'd stay for; this place had mixed memories now.

It was the first place I moved into, out of my home with my family, it was me and my boyfriend's first huge step into a more serious relationship. We said countless of I Love You's, shared many kisses and even made a baby, all between these four walls... and now it was tainted with hurt and grief. The loss of a relationship, a family, love.

I mentally sighed and slipped off my shoes, my eyes traveling around the scene in front of me.

Mail on the counter.

Wonder if any of it was mine

Wine glasses next to the sink.

"Leighton, just try it! You don't have to like it, but at least try it!" Gabe handed me a glass of strawberry Barefoot wine and I stared at him.

"You know I don't want to drink"

"Leigh, just because your family has an addiction problem, doesn't mean you'll get it too"

A candle in the middle of the table.

He only did that for date nights...

A throw blanket on the couch

Perfect for cuddling

"Leigh? Are you okay?" He snapped me out of my thoughts, and I turned away, wiping the tear off my face before putting on a fake smile and nodded.

"Yeah, sorry. We need to talk about this baby" I let out a deep exhale, walking towards his couch. "And our breakup. How are we going to do this?"

"I think we need to take it step by step. I obviously want nothing more than to be in the baby's life. I want to be a good father. I don't want you to have to do it alone, but I honestly don't know how to do those components when we don't live together"

"I don't want to live together, Gabe. We both agreed it wasn't working, and it feels dumb to backtrack just because we are having a baby"

"I agree, but that doesn't change that we still eventually need to figure out how we are going to do this. I have work, which I need to attend to, to help pay for this baby. It kills me to know I missed the first ultrasound, but I can't do anything about it. It's a lot easier to get time off of work when you're the one carrying the baby. I can't just walk up to my boss and say "Hey, I need next Tuesday off to attend an ultrasound with my ex girlfriend" it doesn't work like that for me" Gabriel explained and I nodded, understanding what he meant.

"Okay, well then I need to know your work schedule so I can try and book appointments at times you can go"

"You shouldn't have to work around me though Leighton"

"I know, but part of this relationship is compromising. I don't want you missing out on it either, so the only option we got is to book appointments on days that it fits both of our schedules."

"Well how are we supposed to do that when we both have different scenarios? You're looking for a job, and I work weird hours as it is. It sounds impossible"

"Nothing is impossible Gabe. It probably isn't realistic that you'll make it to them all, but we can at least try and make sure you attend the important ones?"

I pulled out my calendar and showed Gabe what my next appointment was to see if he could make it, and he couldn't.

We then put his work schedule into my phone so the next time I needed to book an appointment, I had a reference of good and bad days.

We truly were trying to figure this out, and make it work. I didn't want him to feel excluded all because we didn't live together, and he has to work.

I know if the tables were turned, I'd feel horrible about it, and I didn't want that for him. I didn't want either one of us to have any regrets, or miss out on something crucial in our child's life.

He was the father, and he deserved to be there for the father moments.

We eventually got on the topic of baby names, and we sat across from each other, reading off lists from our phones.

"What about Mitchell?" Gabe asked, and I tested the name on my tongue.

"Mitchell Fox, Mitchell Bennett? No. I don't like the way that sounds"

"But what if you add a middle name in there? Like, if he had my middle name"

"One, we don't know if it's a bout, and Mitchell Roan Bennett still doesn't sound good. What about Faith?" I asked and Gabe shook his head.

"Too basic" He scrolled through his phone.

"How about we name our sweet baby girl Agatha?" Gabe asked, trying not to laugh.

"And if it's a boy?"

"Archer"

"Archer Bennett? Why don't I hate it?"

"We can't seriously name our child Archer Bennett, can we?" Gabe asked, chuckling.

"Okay but it's lowkey kinda cute. It works better with your name than mine. Like Archer Fox"

"I don't think it sounds bad with your last name. What about Leona?" Gabe asked and my heart swelled.

"LEONA IS SO PRETTY! My mother would love it if we stuck to the L theme" I giggled, retyping in my passcode.

"Do you want to stick with your mom's L theme?" He asked and I shrugged.

"I want to find a name that feels right. It having an L in it, is not a requirement"

"How about Magness?"

"No, that's ugly. Juliet is pretty don't you think?" I asked, looking up from my phone.

"It doesn't go with our last names" He chuckled, but he did agree it was a pretty name.

"Maxwell?" I asked and Gabe shook his head.

"Maxwell Bennett isn't it"

"What about Maxwell Fox?"

"Is the baby having your last name or mine? Gabe asked and I shrugged, setting my phone down to look up at him.

"We could always hyphen it?"

"Wouldn't that be a mouthful?"

"Well don't pick a name like Alexander Roswell and we should be fine. Like if it's a shorter sounding first and middle name, the two last names should be fine?"

"Don't they normally not give a middle name if they use both last names?"

"Babe, it's our baby. We can do whatever the hell we want. If I want to name it Chrysanthemum Joellen Fox Bennett I can"

"Wait, why is that actually kind of pretty? Like drop your name, Chrysanthemum Joellen Bennett?"

"It is kinda cute" I admitted. "But just because it's cute doesn't mean we should use it. I feel like I need to know how to spell my kid's name, and I have no clue how to spell Chrysanthemum. I'd probs fuck up the birth certificate. Our daughter would hate us in school" I laughed, and Gabe nodded, agreeing.

"What if we used a family name? What are some boy and girl family names?"

I shrugged, trying to think of ones I'd want to maybe use.

"We got months to figure this out, why don't we meet up later and bounce more ideas off?" I suggested and Gabe agreed.

"Speaking of gender. Do we want to find out?" Gabe asked and I shrugged.

"I kind of don't want to"

"Why? Aren't gender reveals supposed to be something you girls love?"

"I mean, yeah I love them.. but the idea of not knowing and having the doctor tell you just sounds so cool. Like we don't get many good surprises in life.."

"Okay but how do we plan for a baby if we don't know it's gender"

"You know Gabe, people in the olden days gave birth in their attics, and they didn't know the gender and seemed to be just fine"

"Baby's back then died so frequently that the gender didn't even matter" Gabe scoffed and I gasped.

"GABRIEL!"

"What? It's true"

"You shut your mouth right now! No talk of dead babies in front of your unborn child!"

Gabe and I hung out for a little while before I headed back home and whilst I was sitting on my bed, looking over my tattoos, my phone rang, and I saw it was Kat.

I quickly answered her facetime, and she was all smiles which lifted my mood immensely.

"Hey Leighton! How are things at the house doing?"

"Boring. It's weird having no one be here. It felt good to leave the lonely house" I gave a small smile, glancing over towards my baby journal.

"Oh? Where did you go?"

"My ex's"

"Oh, how did that go?" Curiosity rose in her tone as my stomach sunk.

"I was good, how's the trip?"

I sat on the phone with Katrina for about an hour before she said she had to go, leaving me alone yet again.

I ended up at my parents' house that evening, not wanting to be alone any longer than I had to be.

I was currently sitting in my father's art studio, a sketch book laid out on the table and a soft led pencil laid gently against my fingertips.

I had so many amazing memories laced throughout these four walls, it was truly one of my favorite places to pass time.

Ever since I was little, I would sit in the studio and watch my dad paint, or sketch. He bought me children's finger paints and would sit down on the floor with me, a canvas laid out in front of us, showing me strokes and color mixtures. I couldn't help but smile thinking back to 3-year-old me trying so hard to understand color theory, just to make him proud.

My siblings couldn't give a shit about art, so it was something I always found special.

Something just my dad and I had, that we could forever share together.

I never wanted to let him down, and I was afraid I would when he would find out that I was pregnant.

I sharpened my pencil before softly laying it against the paper, letting line after line take me wherever it had wanted.

I was so in the zone, that I hadn't heard the wooden door click open, so the voice that had filled the room made me jump.

"Leigh, are you staying for dinner?" Lexi had asked, now stood in front of me.

"I mean, it's a free meal so sure" I smirked to myself, and Lexi nodded. "Your drawing is looking really good Leigh" She praised, eyeing it over.

"Thank you, Lexi" I gave her a small smile, glancing back down at my unfinished artwork.

"It's cool that you do this with dad. I think art is cool, I just don't have the patience. You're really good at it, Leighton" Lexi showed a genuine smile and I blushed.

I very rarely got compliments on my art.

Then again, only my dad saw them, and he used to playfully argue with me that his was better, even if it was true.

I never picked up a pencil and sketch pad unless I was home, partly because my dad always supplied them for me, or he always had extras laying around, and also because art supplies are insanely expensive, and I still needed to pay for rent.

"So, Landon told me that you're living with roommates now?" Lexi eyed me, skepticism written all over her stance.

"Yeah"

"Why?"

"Because I can't afford a place on my own, and Aaliyah doesn't have room for me" I shrugged, setting the pencil down to give her my full attention.

Also, because I got a baby on the way, and don't want to mooch off mom and dad.

"Who do you live with?" She asked, sitting down on a stool across from the current workspace I was occupying.

"Um, 3 guys"

"And their names are?"

"Their names are Sam, Colby, and Jake. But Jake's never home so" I did a small shrug yet again, reaching back for my pencil

"Oh my god! Don't tell Macy you live with them! She'll freak!" Lexi's eyes widened, and I narrowed my eyes.

Macy has been Lexi's best friend since preschool. She was honestly basically another one of the siblings. It was almost unheard of, to not see the two attached at the hip.

I think I've shared more dinners with Macy than I have without.

"One, why would it ever come up? and two, why?"

"She's obsessed with them!"

"Why?" I chuckled, working on shading the top left corner of the page.

"Well for starters, they're hot" She pursed her lips, grinning.

I mentally rolled my eyes.

Sure, they were attractive, but two of the three have girlfriends and Colby seemed more like the fuck and dump kinda guy.

"He's too old for you, Roo" I playfully scolded, and she glared at me.

I was assuming the glare was mainly due to me using her childhood nickname, but one could never be so sure.

"He's not my type" She giggled, forcing me to look up at her.

"Oh? What is your type?" I raised an eyebrow, wanting to know the tea my sister had brewing.

"Dark skin, dreamy eyes and perfect muscles" She practically moaned, making me cackle.

"Runs in the family huh? I don't blame you. Dark skin is stunning. I'm constantly jealous of Cynthia. Being white as snow is a pain in the ass. Not only do you look washed out in every photo, but buying clothes is a bitch" I chuckled, thinking back to when Cynthia and I went shopping.

"Well we're white as hell because we are Irish and Italian. It's our genes that have taken the beautiful warmth of skin tones from us" Lexi groused and I laughed.

"I can get a pretty yellowy tan if I wanted to! Anyway, is there someone dreamy you like at school, or?"

I saw her blush and I grinned, pointing my finger at her.

"I knew it! Tell me!"

"Only if you tell me some dirt on Sam and Colby!" She negotiated.

"I haven't really hung out with them. I've kept to myself" I shrugged.

I felt sad that I was really only hanging out with Kat, but I had to remind myself that this was what I wanted.

A place where I could sleep and eat and stay out of their way.

Ideally, it was perfect. But annoyingly, my pregnancy hormones made me feel extra lonely.

I was slightly blaming it on the pure fact that I hadn't had sex in forever, and let me tell you, that feeling amps times 100 when you're with child, and it sucks when you're single.

"You're such a loner" Lexi scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I like my space, what's wrong with that?"

"How are you going to find someone, if you're constantly ignoring everyone?"

"Hey! It's not like they put in much effort either. Colby basically acts like I don't exist, and Sam is usually with Kat. Kat is really the only one who's made an effort plus, I just got out of a relationship. I have enough on my plate as it is. I don't need a new lover"

"YOU'RE FRIENDS WITH KATRINA!?" She shouted, making me wince.

"Yeah, why?"

"HER MUSIC IS SO GOOD OH MY GOD!" She screamed and I held my hands over my ears, glaring at her. "Shut up, would you? And I didn't know she did music? She's really helped me get through a lot lately, especially since Aaliyah and I aren't really friends right now" I shrugged.

"What happened?" She questioned and I rolled my eyes.

"Weren't you supposed to go tell dad I'm staying for dinner?"

"Oh crap! Yeah!" She quickly got up and scurried downstairs, myself letting out a deep sigh seeing she had left the door open.

Typical

I had gotten up to shut the door, when my phone started obnoxiously ringing.