Chapter 38- Tendencies

When all of us were done with breakfast, Eli and I took up the dishes up as our turn while everybody else went to go get dressed. 'Where are you to really going?' he mumbled as he washed and I rinsed.
I avoided his gaze so he couldn't tell I was lying, 'We're going to the library.'
'You're lying,' he focused back onto washing the dishes.
'Eli,' I said slowly, in warning that he was getting jealous again.
'You know I can't help it,' he flung his hands in frustration.
'I know, I know. But I'm just saying..'
'I'm trying,' he growled. 'It's just gonna take some time.'
'You know Nick and I aren't like that. We're just friends.'
'Whatever,' he mumbled.
'What do you mean?' I took offense.
'Y'all sleep in the same bed for god sake. You can't have feeling for him whatsoever? I mean, come on.' He rolled his eyes.
'I didn't say I didn't have feelings for him, I said we were just friends. Nothing more. You don't have to worry, Eli. I promise. Nick and I will probably never be together anyways,' I said as I rinsed the last dish.
'Alice,' Nick said from the dining room. I hoped to god he didn't hear what I said. 'You done yet? We should get going.'
I sighed and dried my hands. 'I'll see you later,' I gave him a hug and kissed him on the cheek before leaving the room. I saw Nick leaning against the table, waiting for me. He seemed a little upset which means he had heard. 'I need to talk to you,' I said and motioned him into my room.
I shut the door behind us and went to my closet to pick something out. 'What did you mean 'Nick and I will probably never be together anyways'?'
'I said that,' I turned around to face the wall and took my shirt off to put my bra on. He was used to me dressing in front of him by now. 'Because he wouldn't get off my back about you. He thinks that since we sleep in the same room, that we sleep in the same bed and have sex. He didn't say it exactly like that but that's how I perceived it.'
'But I sleep on the floor, he knows that.' I finished getting dressed and faced him.
'Yeah, but he has it in his head that after he falls asleep, that's what we do. That, he told me last night.' I smiled cockily at him, 'Maybe we should do that to piss him off.'
'To piss him off? Are you- wait you mean like have sex or sleep in the same bed?'
'I was kidding!' I laughed and put my jacket on.
'Oh,' he blushed, opening the door for me.
We walked outside to the piece if s**t car and got in. 'Remind me to teach you how to drive,' I teased as I started the car.
'Not with the way you drive,' he put on his seatbeat.
I stuck my tongue out at him, turning around in my seat to back up. He grabbed onto the 'oh s**t' bar as we drove off. I punched him in the arm, 'My driving ain't that bad!'
'You're going 40 in a 25,' he pointed out.
'So? It's not even that much of a difference. Besides, no one cares.'
'Cops care,' he pointed to a police car half hidden behind some trees a little up the road. I slowed down and passed by him with no problem. 'Nobody cares my a*s,' he mumbled, smiling.
'Cops are unreasonable,' I defended. We talked about school and friends the rest of the way there. When I pulled into the hospital parking lot, I started shaking. 'Maybe we can go another time? This place looks busy anyways.'
'Alice, it'll be fine. Besides, we're already here and your appointment's next week anyways. So we might as well get it over with.'
I sighed and pulled into a parking space. When we went into the hospital, I signed in and sat down in the corner of the waiting room so no one would bother us. The way things ended with me at this hospital didn't sit well with me. The way the White Coats looked hungrily at me. What was worse was what they did. I remembered the WC standing above me, speaking into the recorder. Then his fingers pressing the buttons and turning the knobs. The most fucked up thing about it was that they had wheeled Nick right up beside me to make him watch. Poor Nick... the way he tried to defend me after I was shot with a tranquilizer. And then made to watch me die as if it was some way to punish him. I shuddered that the memory of being shocked with God knows how many volts. Just the way they treated us.. like animals. 'Nick.. I'm scared,' I admitted.
Nick grabbed my hand and squeezed it slightly for comfort, 'There's nothing to be scared of. Their just gonna check things. I will be there with you the entire time to make sure that's all they do.'
'But, what if-'
'Alice,' he soothed. 'That wing is completely shut down. All the staff on that part of the hospital are gone. Nothing bad will happen, I promise.'
I nodded and smiled. He could always make me feel better no matter what. We were quiet for half an hour, until I couldn't hold my question in any longer. 'Nick?'
He looked over at me, 'Yes?'
My eyes dropped to the ground, 'What if.... what if the reason why I get morning sickness is because I'm... pregnant?'
He was silent for a minute and his grip tightened on me for a split second before relaxing again. I was beginning to think he wouldn't answer at all until he sighed. 'I've been thinking about that to... but I wanna get you checked out in case it has something to do with the incident..'
It took me awhile to ask the next question that I've been thinking of. 'Would you rather me be pregnant or have a tumor or whatever it might be?'
Just as he was about to answer, my name was called. 'Ms. Autumns?' a nurse said from the door leading back.
'That's me,' I called and got up.
I looked at Nick and again he squeezed my hand in comfort, 'It's okay, I got you,' he whispered into my ear before kissing my hair.
With my newfound confidence, I walked towards the nurse. As she led us down the hall, I looked at the doctors that passed by. None of them looked like they wanted me as their guinea pig so that made me feel loads better. The nurse stopped at an examination room and told us that the doctor would be with us shortly.