**The Revelation**
“Alex.” Kate stepped into the room, hands clasped behind her back, a mysterious smile lighting up her face.
Alex smiled back, expecting good news or maybe even a small gift.
“What have you got there?” He sat forward on the sofa, eager. “Don’t keep me waiting.”
“Here.” She held out her palm, something small resting on it. At first, he didn’t recognise what it was, but his smile faltered anyway.
“What is it?” he asked, leaning back against the cushions as if recoiling from an unpleasant surprise.
“Look!” Kate stepped closer, still holding the object. “I’m pregnant,” she blurted, her voice trembling with barely contained excitement.
“Pregnant,” Alex echoed silently. His smile vanished. He stared at Kate as if she were a stranger.
Her smile dimmed like theatre lights before the curtain rises. She closed her fingers around the pregnancy test and slowly lowered her hand.
“You’re not happy?” Her voice wavered—not from joy now, but from unshed tears.
“Kate, we agreed we’d wait,” he snapped, recovering. “Did you stop taking the pill?” His voice sharpened, resentment ringing in the quiet room.
“I missed one dose, and then…” She sank onto the sofa beside him. He shifted away as if repelled.
“What were you thinking? Why didn’t you tell me? Do you really want nappies and sleepless nights? You’re still a kid yourself.” He stood, pacing restlessly.
“Kate, let’s talk about this properly—”
“I’m not having an abortion. He’s already here. I know—I feel it’s a boy. He’ll look like you,” she said, tears gleaming.
Her words pinned him to the spot. She watched him with fierce determination, tears now spilling. She sniffed.
“Kate, listen.” Alex sat beside her again, pulling her close.
*Shouting won’t help. I have to be gentle, persuade her carefully…*
She shoved his arm away and stood, as if she’d heard his thoughts.
“I. Am. Not. Having. An. Abortion,” she said, each word deliberate.
“Kate, I didn’t say that. I was just shocked. I didn’t expect this. I’m sorry.” He caught her wrist, tugged her onto his lap. “You silly thing. God, I love you,” he murmured, stroking her shoulder. “Don’t cry, it’s not good for the baby.”
“Really? You’re happy?” She wiped her cheeks.
“Of course,” he said lightly, though his mind raced. *Nine months—nearly a year. Anything could happen…*
Soon, everything seemed normal. Alex noticed no changes in Kate. Maybe the test was wrong? They could be faulty. But a month later, morning sickness hit. She grew pale, lost weight, barely ate.
They used to go out—cinema, dinners, pubs. Now she barely left the sofa. Meat was off the menu; the smell made her ill. Alex grew restless. Staying home bored him.
“Kate, it’s Ben’s birthday Saturday,” he said hesitantly.
“Go alone. I can’t sit at a table for five minutes,” she muttered, facing the wall.
He hid his relief.
At the party, he revelled in freedom—joking, drinking. He came home late. Kate lay exactly as he’d left her.
Then her belly swelled. She fidgeted in bed, sighing, disrupting his sleep. Moody, weepy, she rejected intimacy. His irritation grew with her waistline.
“When are you two marrying?” his mum asked when he visited. “Just sign the papers. I warned you—”
“Enough!” he snapped.
Drinking in a pub later, he barely slept before Kate shook him awake.
“Alex. *Alex!* Wake up!”
“What?” he groaned.
“I feel awful. My back, my stomach—”
“An ambulance?” He fumbled for his dead phone, grabbed hers. “Call a taxi. Get dressed.”
In the cab, Kate clutched her belly, panting. Alex hid his fear.
At the hospital, a nurse ushered Kate inside. “Wait at home, Dad. Call later.” The door shut in his face.
Four hours later, Kate had a son. Stunned, Alex went to his mum.
“Congratulations. Let’s buy what the lad needs.”
They stuffed a taxi with baby gear. That evening, Alex celebrated noisily with mates.
“What’re we drinking to?” a familiar voice purred behind him. Soft hands touched his shoulders. “Hey, handsome.”
“Natalie?” He turned, surprised.
“Careful, love—he’s a dad now!” a friend laughed, handing her champagne.
Alex remembered nothing after. He woke in a strange room, head pounding.
“Rise and shine, Daddy,” Natalie said.
“Your place? How?”
“I drove. Didn’t fancy dropping you *home*.”
“Why am I naked?”
“Relax. You stayed faithful.” She smirked. “People sleep naked. I *missed* you.” She leaned in, but he flinched.
“Breakfast? Or just leave?”
Dressing clumsily, he fled.
Three days later, Alex collected Kate with flowers, his mum, and her mum. A nurse handed him a bundle. Instead of a cherubic face, he saw a red, wrinkled scrap. He felt nothing but distaste.
At home, the baby wailed like a broken toy. The women fussed. Alex hovered, useless.
Night after night, the screams continued. Exhausted, Kate rocked the baby while Alex groaned about work.
Autumn came. Golden leaves crunched underfoot. Leaving work, Alex inhaled the crisp air. He dreaded going home. A car honked—Natalie.
“Hop in. You look awful. Parenthood rough?”
“No sleep,” he admitted.
“Come to mine. I *promise* to behave.” She laughed.
Next morning, refreshed, he accidentally called her *Kate* over breakfast.
“Cheers, but I’m *Natalie*,” she corrected.
Days later, he returned.
“Knew you would,” she said, pulling him inside.
He woke to rare silence. Natalie breathed evenly beside him. He slept again.
“Can I stay?” he asked next morning.
“Stay,” she said, smiling.
At work, he rehearsed telling Kate he wasn’t coming back. He didn’t want this. *She* wanted the baby. He sent a voice note: *I can’t do this anymore.*
One day, stuck in traffic, he watched a man toss a laughing toddler while a woman—reminding him of Kate—smiled.
He remembered her joy at the pregnancy. His son—walking now? Had another man lifted him like this?
“Natalie, why don’t you want kids?” he asked suddenly.
Silence.
“Who says I don’t?” she finally said. “A botched abortion in school. Guys prefer hearing *no kids*. You did. Then I saw Kate—*pregnant*. It hurt.” She slammed the wheel. “I wanted to kill you. Not your fault, but… *Why her?*”
Tears spilled. “Want me to tell her about us? Take my car? Go. *Now.*”
“Nat—”
“Go!”
He left.
Running home, he bought a teddy from a florist. Upstairs, he hesitated before ringing—*don’t wake the baby*.
The door opened. Kate—*glowing*, hair piled up—said nothing.
His coat was the only one on the rack. No men’s slippers.
Inside, she played with their son on the floor. The toddler reached for the teddy.
“For you.” Alex knelt, handing it over.
Watching Kate, he ached. *How could I leave?*
He tossed Andy high. The boy giggled, two tiny teeth like sugar cubes.
“Careful!” Kate gasped.
“It’s fine. My dad did this—one of few things I remember.” He kissed Andy’s head. “Marry me? I’ll never leave you. Never.”
Kate’s eyes shone, flickering between them.
