A New Start For You and I, Part 5

A New Start For You and I, Part 5

Setting: The Club Penguin Hospital
Date: March 4th, 2015
Time: 4:15 AM PST
(Point of View: Franky)

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The words echoed in my head over and over again, but they didn’t give me a headache like the echoing usually does. Cadence’s dark eyes were locked with mine. She had the familiar glint in them that comes when she’s excited, performing, talking about what she loves, or simply excited. My stomach dropped, but not in a negative way-- it was more of a shock thing, the same anticipation I feel right before I start to sing onstage. I felt my own face go red a little, glancing down at the print in my flippers. Now I could see it-- the oval shape isn’t just an oval. It’s an egg. As in, an egg with a small penguin inside of it. As in, I made that egg. As in, I’m going to be a dad.
“Really?” I cried, my voice way more high-pitched than even its usual tone.
She laughed. “Yes,” she said with a wide smile. “Yeah, really.”
I felt myself start to beam. “Oh, my God!!”
“Do you get it now?” She clasped my left flipper as I held the print with my right. “Doesn’t it all make sense?”
“I should’ve known!” I jumped forward and toppled her over with a tight hug, then laughed out loud against her shoulder and shook my head. “I can’t believe I didn’t make that connection-- I-- oh, my fish--”
She pushed me back just slightly so she could look me in the eye, then said, “Can you believe that we didn’t figure it out on our own?”
“I guess I never thought about it,” I replied, shaking my head. “I just didn’t expect-- but this is great!!”
“You’re happy, right?” She paused expectantly.
“Of course I’m happy! I’m--” I hugged her tightly again, then kissed her abruptly and grinned widely. “I can’t really talk right now. I’m sorry. I’m so unorganized. It’s four in the morning and I don’t even care because I’m just too happy to-- I’m sorry, Cadence--”
“It’s fine, it’s fine, Franky, don’t apologize.”
“Are you happy?”
“Isn’t it obvious? This is the best news I think I’ve ever gotten.”
“Oh, God!! We’re gonna be parents. I feel so old!!”
“I know, right?”
I raised my eyes at her and softly said, “What are the guys going to think of this?”
“They’re probably going to make fun of us.”
“Petey might scream like a little girl.”
“He is a little girl.” Laughing again, she then looked at the nurse. “So are we good to go?”
She nodded. “You’re all set. Congratulations!”
“Thank you,” she cried, jumping off of the bench thing she was sitting on. I tucked the print into my sweatshirt’s pocket and followed her as she grabbed my flipper and practically dragged me along. For someone who, pregnant or not, is still really tired, she seemed completely giddy-- and why wouldn’t she be?
We walked down the hall and back out the door I had come in just five minutes ago. Stompin’ Bob, Billy, and Petey were sitting in the chairs in the waiting-room, looking more tired than anything else.
“That was fast,” Stomp remarked as we came out.
“You look happy,” Petey said to me. “Actually, you both look happy. What happened?”
Cadence grinned. “You’re not gonna believe this.”
“I have a hunch,” Stomp mused softly, crossing his flippers. “But I’ll wait until you tell us.”
“Okay.” She took a deep breath and looked at me, then back at them. Leaning down and making her voice a little secretive, she used a loud whisper. “I’m pregnant.”
All at once, the three of them reacted. Petey lifted both of his flippers to his face and said something in a high-pitched voice that I couldn’t comprehend. Billy just widened his eyes and opened his beak a little, looking between the two of us and then grinning with half of his face. And Stomp… he sprang out of his chair and pointed at her. “I knew it!!” he cried, his gray eyes wide and his face a huge smile. With his exclamation came a few unimpressed glances from the other penguins in the otherwise-quiet room, but he disregarded them. “I knew it!!” he repeated.
“Then… why didn’t you tell me?” Cadence asked, grinning slyly.
“Because I… I don’t know.” He grinned, too. “I wanted you to find it out for yourself.”
“Suuuure.” She nodded.
“Ahh!” Petey cried, standing up as well so he could barrel her tired figure over with a hug. “Congratulations!!”
“Thank you!” She laughed.
The next sort of minute was full of hugging and laughing, and above all, disturbing the others in the room, but that was the last thing on my mind. Petey had his very girly freakout, but we didn’t care because it was just a more Petey-esque version of the reaction I had had. Stomp was the most energetic I had seen him since… I don’t even know when, and Billy was just plain excited. I guess, by a non-blood method, they’re going to be kind-of-uncles, so they have every right to disturb the waiting-room by having a reaction.
I can’t believe this, but it’s a good kind of disbelief. The thing that surprises me most is that I didn’t actually know what was going on with Cadence-- I might not be a doctor, but most penguins know the symptoms that she was having and connect them back to being pregnant. I’m such an idiot. But it’s okay, because we’re having a baby! A real live penguin that I’m going to get to watch grow up!!
Stomp held out his flipper to me and shook mine. “Hey, buddy… was I right or was I right?”
“Keep dreaming, Stomp,” I said with a laugh.
“No, but in all seriousness, I am proud of you.” He grinned. “I wish you the best of luck.”

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