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Challenge 4: Table of Doom: Picture
Title: Paternity
Prompt: Picture: night rain
Word Count: 562
Rating: T
Original/Fandom: original
Pairings (if any): none
Warnings (Non-Con/Dub-Con/Underage): none
Summary: Dinner takes a turn for the uncomfortable.
It is raining. Helena pulls her rain coat closer and walks faster. It isn’t raining too hard nor is it too cold, but she is running late and doesn’t want to get any wetter than she has to.
It is a bit of a relief when she gets to the restaurant, and Mara is sitting at one of the tables outside the building.
“Hi,” she greets her friend with a smile.
Mara smiles back at her. “We can go inside if you want to, but I thought it would be nice to sit outside.” Her fingers are twitching in the way that tells Helena she wants a cigarette. If she wasn’t there, Mara probably would have already lit up and have been ignoring the glares from other patrons and requests from the wait staff to stop doing that.
“No, it’s fine out here,” she assures Mara. The light from the street lights reflecting off of the water on the ground and the dark forms of the trees on the other sides do create a lovely scene even if she would prefer to go inside.
“Good, good,” Mara says and takes a sip of her coffee.
Helena sits down and asks, “So what is it that you wanted to talk about?” as the waitress stops by to take her drink order.
Mara takes another long sip of her drink before she speaks. “It’s about your child.”
Her stomach sways uncomfortably. It has been doing that far too frequently, but morning sickness has always been the cause, not her friend asking her questions.
“What about it?”
“It’s about the father.” Mara breaks off as the waitress returns with Helena’s drink and takes their order.
She takes a long drink of her water in hopes of delaying Mara’s questioning, but Mara is nothing if not persistent. She waits until Helena finishes, a bland smile on her face. Even after years of friendship, it still freaks her out some.
“About your child’s father,” she says, “I was wondering who exactly he is.”
Helena takes a deep breath. With anyone else, she could have deflected long enough to make them forget their original question or even have just told them that the father didn’t matter. Too bad Mara isn’t the average person and really knows her too well to be convinced that no, she really doesn’t need to know who the father is.
“You don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to. I think that I already know who it is anyways.” Mara’s words are more disheartening than they should be.
“Yes,” she says, “I’m sure that it’s the person you’re thinking of.” It’s hard to admit that she made such a poor decision in regards to men, but it was too late for that now.
Mara nods. “Are you sure that it’s a good idea to have his child then?”
“No,” Helena says. “But I want it.”
“I guess that’s enough then.”
“Mara, please just don’t tell anyone else about this.”
Mara stares at her for a second and then shrugs. “If that’s what you want. Although no one else knows him.”
“I know, but I don’t want to risk anyone every finding out. I don’t want my child growing up with that burden on it.”
“If that’s what you want,” Mara says laying her hand on Helena’s, “then I won’t tell a soul.”
Prompt: Picture: night rain
Word Count: 562
Rating: T
Original/Fandom: original
Pairings (if any): none
Warnings (Non-Con/Dub-Con/Underage): none
Summary: Dinner takes a turn for the uncomfortable.
It is raining. Helena pulls her rain coat closer and walks faster. It isn’t raining too hard nor is it too cold, but she is running late and doesn’t want to get any wetter than she has to.
It is a bit of a relief when she gets to the restaurant, and Mara is sitting at one of the tables outside the building.
“Hi,” she greets her friend with a smile.
Mara smiles back at her. “We can go inside if you want to, but I thought it would be nice to sit outside.” Her fingers are twitching in the way that tells Helena she wants a cigarette. If she wasn’t there, Mara probably would have already lit up and have been ignoring the glares from other patrons and requests from the wait staff to stop doing that.
“No, it’s fine out here,” she assures Mara. The light from the street lights reflecting off of the water on the ground and the dark forms of the trees on the other sides do create a lovely scene even if she would prefer to go inside.
“Good, good,” Mara says and takes a sip of her coffee.
Helena sits down and asks, “So what is it that you wanted to talk about?” as the waitress stops by to take her drink order.
Mara takes another long sip of her drink before she speaks. “It’s about your child.”
Her stomach sways uncomfortably. It has been doing that far too frequently, but morning sickness has always been the cause, not her friend asking her questions.
“What about it?”
“It’s about the father.” Mara breaks off as the waitress returns with Helena’s drink and takes their order.
She takes a long drink of her water in hopes of delaying Mara’s questioning, but Mara is nothing if not persistent. She waits until Helena finishes, a bland smile on her face. Even after years of friendship, it still freaks her out some.
“About your child’s father,” she says, “I was wondering who exactly he is.”
Helena takes a deep breath. With anyone else, she could have deflected long enough to make them forget their original question or even have just told them that the father didn’t matter. Too bad Mara isn’t the average person and really knows her too well to be convinced that no, she really doesn’t need to know who the father is.
“You don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to. I think that I already know who it is anyways.” Mara’s words are more disheartening than they should be.
“Yes,” she says, “I’m sure that it’s the person you’re thinking of.” It’s hard to admit that she made such a poor decision in regards to men, but it was too late for that now.
Mara nods. “Are you sure that it’s a good idea to have his child then?”
“No,” Helena says. “But I want it.”
“I guess that’s enough then.”
“Mara, please just don’t tell anyone else about this.”
Mara stares at her for a second and then shrugs. “If that’s what you want. Although no one else knows him.”
“I know, but I don’t want to risk anyone every finding out. I don’t want my child growing up with that burden on it.”
“If that’s what you want,” Mara says laying her hand on Helena’s, “then I won’t tell a soul.”