Richard and Lainey - Final

After everyone gets their food, they sit outside in the cool evening. Miranda picks at her food, something Chris notices.

"Why aren't you eating, babe?"

"Yeah," Richard chimes in, his eyes mean. "Gotta eat for that baby, you know."

"I just--" All three are watching her: Chris with concern, Richard with scorn and Lainey with impatience. Maybe she shouldn't have carried this baby thing this far, but how can she stop it now? If she's not pregnant, will Chris still marry her? He's such a loyal person, he even broke up with that slut for her; yes, she'll still get a wedding. The thought cheers her somewhat.

"I'm fine," she says with a smile, and cuts into her steak.

"What did you find out at the doctor?" Lainey's question sounds innocent, but it's not. Miranda glares at her; Lainey knows exactly she's doing.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about that," Chris says, smiling at her. "So how far along are you? When can we find out if it's a boy or girl?"

When Miranda says nothing, the excited expression on Chris's face fades, replaced with puzzlement. "Miranda? What's going on?"

"I didn't want to tell you," she says softly, thinking fast. "I--I lost it."

"What?" Chris nearly leaps out of his chair and kneels next to her. "Babe, when did this happen?"

Good. He believes her. But a quick glance at Lainey reveals her skepticism. She could always tell when Miranda was lying. "The...day after we looked at houses--I'm sorry; I should have told you, but I..." She lets her voice trail off and even manages to summon up a tear or two.

"Oh, my god, Miranda," Chris says, touching her face. "Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?" He's practically wringing his hands with anxiety and for a minute Miranda wishes she hadn't lied but didn't find any other way to get out of this. He's really upset, though, more than she thought he would be. It bothers her a little.

*****

(Richard)

Miranda drops her bombshell on Chris's head, and he's stunned at his friend's reaction: he's nearly crying at the loss of a child he didn't even want. Overcompensating, maybe. He glances at Lainey, and she looks like she wants to leave very much.

"We're gonna take off, Chris," he says, rising and going over to his friend. He hugs him tight. "Sorry, man." He and Lainey quickly leave.

In the car Richard shakes his head. "Wow. That's all I have to say."

"She's lying," Lainey says flatly. "She was never pregnant, Richard. She never went to the doctor. She's been pretending."

Richard stares at her. "You're shitting me."

"I wish I was. When I met her the other day, she was trying to make me believe her."

"That fucking bitch." He hits the steering wheel, furious. "I could strangle her. If she expects him to stay with her now, she's in for a big surprise."

"What do you mean?"

"He was thinking of breaking up with her before this baby shit. He even broke it off with Veronica. But now--he hates liars."

"Are you going to tell him?"

Richard puts the car in gear. "I don't know."

***

(Miranda)

For the first day, things are fine--good, even. Chris takes the day off from work to take care of her. He brings her tea, rubs her feet, runs a bubble bath, and she drinks it in, relishing his undivided and tender attention.

It's not until that evening that things take a turn for the worse. They're watching television together on the couch, her legs draped across him, when his phone rings

"Can you hand that to me, babe?" She grabs the phone from the side table, suddenly afraid. It's Richard, of course it is. God. Why can't he just leave them the hell alone? She wants to throw it across the room but hands it to Chris instead.

"Yeah....let me ask--what?....all right. See you there." He thumbs off the phone and pushes her legs off him so he can stand up. "I'm meeting Richard down at Jazzy's; he's got something important to tell me."

Miranda starts to get off the couch, a touch of desperation in her voice. "Leaving? But Chris, I need you."

He grabs his keys, jingles them. "I won't be gone long," he says, already turning to leave. "Don't wait up if you're tired."

The door shuts behind him, and she sinks back down into the couch.

*****

(Richard)

"Hey." Chris pulls out a chair and sits down with a beer.

"How is she?" Richard's on his second whisky, needing some liquid courage before shattering his friend's world.

"Okay, I guess. I don't know." He gulps his beer. "I mean, we looked at houses like almost two weeks ago and she just now told me?"

"I was wondering that myself," Richard remarks, draining his glass. "Did you ever think that maybe she...was faking it?"

Chris goes still. "What?"

"Faking it to keep your attention. Lainey is convinced she was never pregnant."

Chris is silent, thinking it over. He drains his beer, bangs the glass down on the tabletop. "That is some evil shit," he says finally, shaking his head. "She wouldn't do that."

"Are you sure?" Richard's quiet question takes the air right out of his friend. "Why wouldn't she have told you about the miscarriage when it happened?"

"If she was truly having a baby, she would have," he says slowly, his face turning red as the full extent of his lover's betrayal dawns on him. As deceitful as Chris could be, he is loyal to a fault, which is what got him into this mess in the first place. That, and sex, of course. He shoves back his chair and gets up.

"Wait--let it go until morning," Richard urges, rising as well. "Let her stew and wonder where you are."

Chris huffs out his breath, nods. "You're right; I have a lot of thinking to do."

The two friends leave the bar and when Richard asks if he wants to stay at his place tonight, Chris declines.

"I have somewhere to go, I think," he says, and pulls out his phone.

******

(Miranda)

Chris doesn't come home. She texts him three times and calls him twice, all to no avail. She texts Lainey, but of course the bitch doesn't respond--some friend she turned out to be. Could he be with the slut? Surely not. Surely Chris would want to verify the story he's been told, wouldn't he?

The rattle of the door being opened brings her out of a troubled sleep in the morning. She sits up on the couch, rubs her eyes. "Chris? Is that you?"

He steps into view, and something in his expression makes her breath catch in her chest.

"Get out of my house," he says, his voice hard.

"Chris, let me explain," she begins, wringing her hands. "I didn't mean to lie to you, I just wanted it so badly to be true. You can understand that, can't you?" She looks closer at him, notes his messy hair, rumpled clothing, and most telling of all, the smear of lipstick near his mouth. "You've been with that slut, haven't you?" Miranda's accusation at least brings some emotion to his hard face, which had begun to frighten her. Chris is an emotional man, and to see him suppress it isn't good.

"Get your shit and get out of my house."

"What? No, we can work this out, Chris, I know we can. I know you're angry, but--" He cuts her off. "Don't say another fucking word! There's nothing to work out, you lying bitch. I don't believe you ever loved me; you just wanted what I could give you. You're just a fucking gold digger."

She cries now, huge sobs that wrack her body, but he remains immobile, a rock upon which she throws herself again and again. "No, please, I love you, Chris." She tries to touch him, if she can only make him understand.

He shakes her off and strides into their bedroom where he begins yanking out drawers and dumping her things onto the floor.

"Chris, stop it!" She wants him to stop, wants to touch him. He keeps going, pausing only to remove her hand. In the bathroom he throws all her things out the door to join the rest on the bedroom floor. "Get your shit and get the fuck out of my house. Now."

She has no suitcase, they are all his, so she's forced to scoop her stuff into a trash bag, which adds to her humiliation. He stands with his arms crossed, watching as she crawls around the floor to retrieve her things, and she's not crying, no, she's getting angry now because why should he treat her this way?

"You don't have to be an asshole about this," she mutters, yanking drawstring on the bag so that it closes. By this time, he's thrown her dresses and other clothes from the closet down as well and she has to get another bag. Her shoes are treated the same way.

"I'm the asshole? That's kind of funny, Miranda, because you and I both know who the real asshole is here." Chris walks away before she can respond, which is perfectly fine; what does she have to say to him, anyway?

"Give me your key," he says after she's dragged the bags to the door. Wordlessly, she yanks it off the ring with her other keys and throws it at him as hard as she can. Startled, he doesn't catch it and it clangs on the hardwood floor.

"Fuck you, Chris," she hisses when he opens the door. "Fuck Richard and fuck that fucking slut, too--hey!" She nearly falls onto the sidewalk because he's tossed the bags out even though she stopped in the doorway to curse at him, and the heavy bags hit her legs and knock her off balance. Before she can do more than squawk in surprise the door slams shut, and she hears a click. It's over. All that's left is for her to drag her stupid bags out to her car and go--where?

***

(Chris)

Veronica welcomes me back with open arms, murmuring in my ear that she knew I wouldn't be able to stay away, and I tell her I'm sorry and she kisses me, and we go back to her bedroom, where I haven't been in a long time (since I got with Miranda; I never cheated on her) and the sex is better than ever with her and the feel of her arms around me is all I want.

******

(Richard)

When Lainey tells him she can't have kids, it's like a load is lifted from his shoulders. He's never wanted kids, knows he'd be a shitty father and he's relieved she is ok without them as well.

***the end***