No Easy Way to Say It (Carter)

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Taiga Memories. Tak had been in the quaint little shop before, and she quite liked all the neat little knick-knacks and random things one could find inside. She almost never had any money to afford anything, but that didn't stop her from looking.

Today, however, she had come here for a different reason. She needed to talk to Carter about... Recent events, and she felt safer doing it off of campus, where people were less likely to overhear their conversation. She had texted the twin to meet her here at this time, and so she found a seat near a window, closing her eyes and settling back against the back of the chair, resting her hands on her stomach. She tried to imagine something growing inside, and quickly dismissed it - the image made her a little sick.

Tak wasn't quite sure how she was going to tell Carter. It had been surprisingly easy (or at least as easy as it could be) with Cam - Carter she didn't know quite as well, and she had no idea how he would react. But nevertheless, she had to tell him at some point, and she figured it would be best to do it sooner rather than later. She let out a deep breath, pressing her lips together as she fought to control the unusual emotions boiling inside her.

[Carter Chevalier]

Lucky for Tak, the twin wasn't busy at the time she messaged him. Why she wanted to meet him downtown wasn't exactly something he understood. Unless she had some kind of public-fetish she wanted him to help her out with. Then he supposed he could handle that. It did take him a little while to find the place. Because honestly, he never thought he'd set foot in a place like it. When he got there he grimaced at the door before opening it.

"What are you doing?" Carter asked curiously, standing nearby when he saw her resting back with her eyes closed.

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Hah. Had she not been in the position she currently was, Tak would have totally been up for something like that. But as it was, she was stuck between a mixture of anger for all the people she had slept with, but also a strange, almost overwhelming feeling to keep doing it - what was wrong with her? She supposed since it was all already done, it wouldn't make a difference, but she didn't realize she had that little control over her desires.

She blinked her eyes open when she heard Carter's voice, glancing over at him. Yep, still gorgeous, and still turning her on almost immediately just from looking at him. "I guess I'm just tired," she replied quietly, motioning to a seat across the table from her. "Thanks for, you know, coming. This, um.... Shouldn't take much time." All she had to do was tell him - how he reacted was his own choice.

[Carter Chevalier]

"I wonder why." Carter replied sarcastically. No, he hadn't seen her in that way over the last day or so but he assumed she was just getting it from somewhere else. Not that he cared all that much, really. Nothing exclusive between them and all that.

He looked to the seat that she motioned towards, and after a few moments Carter sat down. "I'm not really doing anything anyway." He replied, unsure of why she was being so polite. It was really out of character. At least, that's what he thought. If she wanted to hang out then she would have been a lot more nonchalant about this meeting. It flagged a warning sign or two in his head. He took the time to look out the window, and then turned in his seat slightly to look around.

"Where the hell are we." Carter said flatly. Because he knew nothing about this place.

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Tak rose her eyebrows at the sarcasm in his voice, giving him a tiny smirk. Yeah, she knew what he was suggesting. And, strangely, he was actually wrong - she hadn't done anything last night other than watch a movie and gone to sleep earlier than usual. After tossing and turning for several hours, that was. She seriously needed to start having someone to actually sleep with, in the literal sense - she felt so distraught and alone by herself. Still, she wasn't going to tell Carter that, so she chose to remain silent.

Her eyes followed him as he sat, and Tak sat up slightly, resting her elbows on the table. "Good," she replied, unable to get the usual snarky tone in her voice. "I wouldn't want to keep you from anything." She really did appreciate him coming - she hadn't been sure if he would or not. He probably did know, though, that something was up. Why else would she have told him to meet her off-campus in the middle of the day?

His question made her glance around the room. "Taiga Memories. It's quaint, but I like it." From the tone of his voice, she assumed he didn't, which was too bad. Still, she didn't say anything. She took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you to come here. And I'm just going to get straight to the point, because I hate beating around the bush."

She looked back at him, making sure their eyes were locked. "I'm pregnant." As before, saying it out loud sent a sick feeling through her, but she didn't show it - she had to see his reaction first.

[Carter Chevalier]

Now Carter was getting really confused. He didn't know what he was supposed to think, but her attitude was significantly different than usual. Was she trying to make some kind of connection with him? Did they have a connection beyond sexual attraction? Sure, to an extent they were probably friends too. But their friendship always involved sarcastic quips and stupid things like that. Seriousness? It was normally avoided. And she seemed to understand that, so he was a little confused.

"I thought you liked beating around the bush." Carter quipped, a smirk crossing his face during the silence. But she locked eyes with him, and his smirk faltered.

The words seemed to just wash over him. Wash in a way that it didn't cross his face with surprise or anger. Not even annoyance or frustration. She looked sickened by the words, but Carter remained regal. He reached into his pocket and checked his phone; looking at the time? Or checking for messages. "Are we Roleplaying?" he asked curiously, "Because I don't understand the appeal."

[Takchawee Ominotago]

His comment made Tak snort a little, but it was weak. It was that attitude that had got her in this position in the first place. And she couldn't help but still feel that way, still want to take Carter right then and there - something was seriously wrong with her.

Tak tilted her head slightly at his lack of reaction, her hands dropping to the table as she watched. He... Didn't react at all. At first she was confused - had he already known somehow? - before he asked the question. Oh. He thought she was playing or something. She let out a rough sigh, her fingers curling inward into fists.

"I'm not playing around, Carter," she told him firmly, but not unkindly. "I took a test. It was positive. I'm fucking pregnant." A bitter note crept into her voice then, and her calm exterior cracked slightly; she couldn't handle the seriousness of the situation without showing some sort of emotion. "I don't know how it happened. But it did." She looked up again, watching him with a sort of hesitancy. Would he take her word for it?

[Carter Chevalier]

Ooh, a rough sigh. He'd heard that before. The way her fingers furled together into fists. Hmm, yeah. And speaking firmly too. Carter could get used to this kind of anger. Dom said she could get a bit like that. Again, Carter turned his head slightly. He was now both curious and a little confused.

"Babies are made when people don't use pills or condoms." Carter pointed out. He looked back to his phone again, this time taking a second or so to send out a text message. A few quick taps on the screen and he was back again. "Do I... Should I say that..." He paused, confusion knitting his eyebrows closer together. "I'm still confused about this situation. What am I supposed to do? Do I have a wife or something? Or are you..." He went to say being serious, but he let it fade out.

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Tak let out a groan, dropping her face into her hands as her elbows rested on the table. She didn't want to admit that she had somehow missed a few days of her pill. But how else would she get him to know? She peered through her fingers at him as he sent out a message to someone, her mouth tugging into a firm frown. His continued questions made her realize even more that she had to be honest with him.

"I... Look, I think I missed a few days about a month or so ago," she told him, lowering her hands to the table again. "With my pill. And just because of that small slip-up, this happened." She leaned closer to him, willing him to understand. "Carter. I'm not. fucking. playing. I was going to tell Dom too, but I thought it would be better to come to you first. I..." Tak crumpled slightly again, pressing her hand against her mouth as she blinked a few times and looked away.

After she recomposed herself, she looked back. "I don't know who the father is," she stated as neutrally as possible. "But both of you could potentially..." She trailed off.

[Carter Chevalier]

Okay, so she was being serious. Carter supposed he should have realised sooner, but why would he? She didn't seem to take anything seriously, so when she finally did he had to assume she was roleplaying. It was a lot better when the partner didn't announce the session anyway. Spontaneity. But he shouldn't have been thinking about that now, should he? All he could do was ask himself why she dragged him here to tell him. It was infuriating, but he supposed she wanted it to be a secret.

Maybe she should have just had less meaningless random sex.

"You could have told us both at the same time." Carter pointed out. After all, they did live together. And she did know that, given how she met the Terrakinetic's twin.

Dom was going to be furious. More furious than he normally was about things like this. Being kept out of the loop was unacceptable, and of course Carter wasn't going to keep this secret from his brother. If she thought she was, she was either insane or a straight up idiot. "I used my end of the protection, and so did Dom." The Chevalier twins were taught well from their father, after all. He'd known what they would turn out to behave like.

"Who did you fuck without a condom?" Carter asked to the point, because there was no reason to beat around the bush.

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Being serious definitely was not part of Tak's usual attitude, and trying to act so just felt... Wrong. Still, she had to get her message across somehow, and it was all she could think of to do. Yes, she knew this was all her fault, and yes, she was beginning to regret her actions, but what was done was done, and she couldn't really do anything to change her situation now. And saying she was sorry was pointless. Because she wasn't, and it wouldn't do either of them any good.

"Yeah, I could have," she agreed, frowning. "I just thought you would um... Be a little easier to talk to about it than Dom. I don't really... Know him as well." Sure, they probably hooked up just as often, but she spent a bit more time with Carter outside of the bedroom. "I know you'll tell him, and all I ask is that you... Try to keep it as secret as possible." She knew the rumors would start circulating eventually. It was unavoidable. She just wanted to keep this to herself as long as she could.

She ran her fingers along a line on the table, her frown deepening. "I know. But condoms aren't always enough. I'm sure you know that." While the chance was definitely small, it was still a chance. "They break. Or just don't work."

Tak let out a breath. "I would say it was Chester. We didn't exactly... Have a very healthy relationship. But." He looked up again, still struggling to keep her voice even. "We stopped fucking a couple months ago. I don't think it could have been him. So it's either you, Dom, or Cameron." A hand trailed down to her stomach again, surprised she was able to stay this calm. She was still in shock over the entire ordeal. "I'd like to find out as soon as possible."

[Carter Chevalier]

There were so many things wrong with that statement that Carter didn't know where to begin. His calm demeanour faltered slightly and his lips pressed into a hard line to repress another frustrated sigh. Was she serious? Did she even know what she just said? "You couldn't talk to him about being pregnant but you willingly fucked him. You don't think that grants him the face to face courtesy?" Because if that were true, than there were a lot of things wrong with her.

"Of course I'll tell him, he's my brother. You not telling him yourself is inexcusable. And you need to realise that." He replied, not bothering to address the rumour situation. That would circulate without his doing. She did leave Dom in the dark, after all.

He let out a short spiteful laugh. She was lecturing him? She made the mistake, not him. And if he wanted to be angry at her she should accept that. She fucked it all up, he didn't. "If you know that much then I would assume you knew what a morning after pill was. Or that you'd have the sense not to miss days of your pill." Carter replied. The more he thought, the angrier he felt inside.

Chester, hah. Carter wanted to laugh at the irony, but he decided not to. He would get a kick out of this story, because apparently Tak also didn't understand basic math. What the hell did he get himself into by hooking up with this girl? "Are you asking Dom and I to foot the bill for your paternity test?"

[Takchawee Ominotago]

The change Tak saw that came over Carter's face made her stiffen automatically, and her brows furrowed. She had been lucky that Cam had been so kind to her - this obviously wasn't going to go the same way. "Do you ever talk about that when you're fucking someone?" she asked, hardly able to contain her rising emotions. "It was never an issue in the past. It's not like I know what to do in these sorts of situations." That was the unfairness of this all - she knew guys that slept around as much as she, and never had a problem. Guys couldn't get pregnant. And just because she could, she should be expected to not allow herself that sort of lifestyle if she wanted? Yeah, right.

His response made her teeth clench, but she said nothing. Fine. If it was inexcusable, then let the rumors spread. She would just pretend to ignore them, as she always had.

"I know it's my fucking fault!" she burst out, her palms hitting the surface of the table. The shopkeeper glanced over in their direction, but she didn't care. "I was careless and stupid and made a big fucking mistake. We all make mistakes. I just made a more serious one than some people." Her outburst surprised her, and she immediately looked away, fuming. Not at Carter; at herself.

His question had her looking at him again, and she shook her head quickly, still glaring, and stood. "Hell no. I can take care of it myself, thanks. I have a job. I'll figure it out." She turned away from him, planning on leaving. She didn't care what happened now, she was too busy fighting the torrent of emotions raging inside her.

[Carter Chevalier]

Was she really stupid enough to say something like that? Had she not come into this meeting with a clear head? Carter was in no way being cruel to her. If she thought this was cruel, she knew nothing about the boy. He was intent on standing up for his brother, because she didn't extend any courtesy to him and that, in his mind, was cruel. "If I were a girl who forgot her pill and I was pregnant than yes, I'd talk about it. You dragged me down here to talk to me about it, didn't you? I'm sure you did the same thing to Cameron." She couldn't have forgotten that already, could she?

It wasn't that guys couldn't get pregnant. She should could herself lucky that she didn't voice that. Because protection went both ways, and she didn't use hers.

"We might all make mistakes, but yours has put lives on the brink." He wouldn't say more than that.

Carter scoffed at her statement. Just because she couldn't control her feelings, didn't mean he had to do the same thing. Yelling in public was as moronic as she was, so it suited her just fine. "Do you now how much an early stage paternity test will cost you? I doubt it. You clearly haven't put any thought into this at all, have you?" And that was infuriating.

"You can't take care of yourself. Are you going to keep this child?" He asked, watching as she moved to leave. Instantly he got up and circled his hand around her arm. No, she didn't get to drag him down here just to bail when she wasn't comfortable. If she wanted to do this in public, than Carter supposed they would have to.

[Takchawee Ominotago]

Tak bit her lip, hating that he could be so calm. Why couldn't she be, too? It wasn't like her to be so... So easily bothered by something. "I'll remember that next time," she growled under her breath. Yeah, right, like she'd allow there to be a next time. All of this was irrelevant at this point, she thought. If Carter wanted her to talk to Dom too, then she'd go do it. But she thought he was probably beyond that now. She'd already made the decision to talk to him first.

She simply fumed as he continued. She already knew that she was going to have to do something with the life she was bringing into the world.

The fact that she obviously didn't know as much as he did about these sorts of things just made her more infuriated with herself. "What do you want me to do, then? Beg you for money?" She shook her head, clenching her fists. "I'm not going to do that. I didn't fuck you for your wealth." Tak didn't know what she would do at this point, but she was intent on figuring it out on her own. She really should be looking to someone with authority for advice, but she hadn't been able to bring herself to do that just yet.

"Who says I can't take care of myself?" she hissed, even though she knew it was true. She couldn't. His question threw her, and she turned away from him, crossing her arms over herself. "I don't know. I don't think so. It's not like I'd be a good parent. He or she deserves better than me." That was something she was quite certain about. She jerked her arm away as he grabbed her, but stopped walking away. Instead, she turned back to him, arms still over her chest. Fine. She would deal with whatever was coming.