Unexpected Happenings, Chapter 23
 

Simone had fallen asleep. Reese pulled a blanket over her and went to the other side of the room to read some for school.

" Reese?", Simone called out. Reese rushed over to her.

" I'm here, Simone."

Simone looked into his eyes. They were so sad. He couldn't remember them being that sad before.

" So, it wasn't a nightmare of mine. My Dad really did tell me that he had an affair and got some slut knocked up?"

" Seems like it."

" How could this happen? In all my life, I would never expect this from my father? My father? He's been spouting off morals and ethics since the day we were born, and he would do something LIKE THIS? Explain it to me!"

" I can't , Simone."

" I don't even know where my Mom is, Reese. When Whitney and I got back to the house, it looked like a tornado had blown through it. My Dad said that my mother had done the damage. If that's true, she's in SO much pain, Reese."

" I would imagine."

" My mother did EVERYTHING for him. What does love mean? What does marriage mean, when someone can do EVERYTHING for someone and STILL he cheats! Are those talk shows right? ALL men cheat?"

" Now, wait a minute, Simone. I know that you're feeling bad right now, but don't go making blanket statements like that."

" How can I not? There are few things that I was sure of, Reese. My parents being together is one of them. My father not cheating on my mother is another. Now, they've both been shot to hell."

" Maybe your parents can work it out?"

Simone shook her head. " Reese, if it was just the cheating, I think I'd probably be begging my mother to go to Father Lonigan. But, it's not just cheating. There's a baby involved, Reese. A baby. I have another sibling out there. My father would never walk away from his child. Which means that this baby would have to be a part of my mother's and our lives. I don't think I can handle that, Reese. And, I'm pretty sure that my mother can't. How humiliating for my father to ask her to accept ANOTHER woman's child into HER home? I don't have the stomach for it. No…the baby is the deal breaker. My parents' marriage is over. Just like that. Yesterday at this time, I had a family. Today, it's all gone, will never come back, I don't know where my mother is, and I hate my father."

" Simone, you don't hate him."

" Don't tell me what I feel, Reese! I hate him! I don't ever want to speak to him again. He can go be with his OTHER family, since he threw us away when he went to bed with that OTHER woman. "

" Simone.."

" No. I'm finished with him. I only have to deal with my mother. I have to help her survive this."

" What about Whitney?"

" I….. I hadn't thought about Whitney. I was so mad when 'he' told us that I stormed out. I don't even know what her reaction was. I can only imagine she's as devastated as I am. Well, Whitney has people. I'm sure she's either with the Lopez-Fitzgeralds or Chad. They will help her out. I can't deal with that. I'm thinking about my mother. Where do you think she is?"

" I don't know. Simone, I think the best thing you can do for her is to have your cellphone available. Your Mom just got a shock to her system. Let her get herself together."

" But, what if she needs me?"

" She'll reach out to you. She has to handle it in her own way."

" I….I feel so lost, Reese. Where am I going to go? I can't go home. I don't want to see ' him'. I don't feel like I can go to the Bennetts. My parents are best friends with them and they're probably split down the middle like my parents."

" You can stay at my house.", Reese offered.

Simone looked at Reese. " Reese, I can't.."

" Look. There's a foldout bed in the basement. Plus, there's a full bath down there too. You can stay there."

" Don't you think you have to run it by your parents first?"

" Simone, you can stay with me. I'll make it ok."

Simone looked at Reese and began to cry. " I don't know what to say…it's so generous of you."

Reese pulled Simone into a hug. " It will be ok. I promise."
 

" Hey Theresa. I got your message. I came as soon as my shift ended.", Chad said, entering the Lopez-Fitzgerald house.

" Chad! I'm so happy to see you."

" What's wrong? You said something was wrong with Whitney. She hurt? She in the hospital?"

Theresa shook her head. " No. Whitney is here. She's in bad shape, Chad."

" Why?"

" Her parents broke up."

" Coach and Doc Russell? No. You have to be wrong."

" It's true. They're finished. "

" Theresa, they're the most solid marriage I've ever seen. What happened?"

" Coach Russell had an affair."

" Naw. You're wrong."

" Chad, if you had seen Whitney when she showed up at my back door, you wouldn't doubt it. She's devastated."

" The Coach? Another woman? I….I can't believe it. I don't want to believe it."

" Well, you better. Because that's the only way that you'll be able to help Whitney. She's so hurt."

" I can imagine. Hey, what about Simone?"

" I don't know where she is. When Whitney finally stopped crying, she said that Simone ran out of the house and she didn't know where she was."

" You think Simone is alone? Maybe I should go find her."

" Chad, I think Simone is probably with Kay and the Bennetts. I have Whitney's cellphone, so in case she tried to call her. I think Whitney needs you."

" Theresa, Whitney just admitted that she liked me. You think she wants me around now?"

" I'm sure of it. Go to my room."

Chad went to Theresa's room and slowly opened the door. Whitney was there. She was asleep. Chad sat down on the edge of the bed. Whitney opened her eyes when Chad softly stroked her face.

" Chad.."

" Hey, Girl."

" Chad….I…"

Chad just lifted Whitney off the bed and held her in his arms. " You can cry, Baby. Nothin' wrong with crying. Let it all out."

Whitney did as he said. Chad shook his head. He couldn't believe this had happened.
 

TC was in the middle of cleaning up the trashed living room when he heard a knock at the door.

" Sam?"

" Hey, TC." Sam looked around the room. " What the hell happened here? You had a burglary and didn't tell me?"

" No. This wasn't done by burglars."

" If not a burglar, then who?….TC, you didn't. What would make you this upset to trash your home?"

TC was going to speak, but Sam interrupted him.

" Sorry, but, I don't even care what made you this upset. I got some upsetting news of my own, and I needed to be with my best friend right now."

" What happened?"

" Grace came to see me."

" She did?"

" Yes. She told me that she was pregnant."

" Pregnant? Really?"

" Yeah. That was my reaction too. I then told her that I would be happy to move home, only she told me it wasn't necessary."

" Really?"

" Yeah. My WIFE then told me that she wasn't pregnant by ME. That it was ANOTHER man's baby! Can you believe THAT shit? Grace - pregnant by another man!"

" Sounds incredible."

" It fucking is. Unbelievable. I can't believe it now. She's pregnant. Who…WHO is the scum, TC? WHO would fuck another man's wife? WHO did this to me? I know that I had moved out, but I always held out hope that Grace and I would get back together. Even with the Ivy bullshit, I still love Grace. I still wanted MY family. Now she's going to have another family with some other guy? WHO is this asshole who destroyed my family? That's what I want to know. WHO is he?"

Sam walked around the room, kicking garbage on the floor, furious. TC decided that this would be as good a time as any.

" I'm the asshole."

Sam stopped in his tracks and looked over to TC. " What did you say?"

" I said I am the asshole. Grace is having my baby."