••• TWENTY-FOUR •••
Sophie

I sat on my bed in my room as Katie stared at me in disbelief. I had just finished telling her what Ashton had said and wanted to cry again. "God, could that man be any more perfect?" She asked and I nodded in agreement. "Have you told your Mom and brother yet?" I sighed as I shook my head and stood up.

"I don't want to hurt Patrick more than I already have and my Mom would have a heart attack. She was really hurt when I told her that Ashton and I were secretly dating and that's the reason he and Patrick aren't friends anymore. I just don't want to cause anyone any more pain."

"I get that, but you can't hide your pregnancy forever. I mean, you can probably keep it hidden for another month or two, but you're going to show." She said, looking down at my stomach and then back up at me.

"Well, I need a little more time before I tell them. I barely just told Ashton a week ago!" I frowned and Katie sighed as she grabbed my hands.

"I know you're scared, Soph, but keeping this a secret will cause more damage than what's already been done." She said softly and I slowly nodded my head as I realized she was right.

"You're right, Katie. I know Patrick and Christina are coming over tonight to have dinner with Mom, maybe I should invite Ashton over and we'll just tell them over dinner." I suggested and Katie raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"I mean I was thinking maybe this weekend, but sure, tonight works too." She chuckled and I shrugged as I gave her a small smile.

"I don't want any more secrets. I don't think the stress is good for me or the baby." I admitted and she chuckled again as she stood up.

"It most definitely isn't, let's call Lover Boy over and pray to God your brother doesn't try to murder him." She teased and I let out a nervous giggle as I unlocked my phone and reluctantly invited Ashton over, wishing I hadn't suggested this plan.

"Girls, dinner's almost ready!" My Mom called from downstairs a few moments later and thankfully Ashton responded saying he was only fifteen minutes away.

"You okay, Sophie?" Katie asked as she opened my bedroom door and I took a shaky breath as I nodded my head.

"Let's go." I headed out of my room and down the stairs towards the dining room to see Patrick and Christina setting the table.

"Hey, you guys!" Christina greeted us with a warm smile and Patrick looked up at me. He's barely spoken to me since he found out about Ashton and me but has been starting to talk to me more over the past week.

"Hey, Sophie-Lophie," He greeted me with a small smile and I wanted to cry at that moment. It had been so long since he called me that that I couldn't stop myself from walking up to him and pulling him into a tight hug. "Whoa, are you okay?" He asked nervously as he slowly wrapped his arms around me and I nodded.

"I'm sorry about everything, Patrick." I whispered and he sighed as he gave me a quick squeeze before releasing me.

"You do not have to be sorry, Soph. I was acting like a spoiled, overprotective big brother when I had absolutely no right to tell you that you couldn't date Ashton. So, I'm sorry for everything." I felt a tear fall from my eye and he frowned at me. "Don't cry, sis. It's okay." He assured me and I shook my head.

"But, it's not. I ruined your friendship-"

"Again, you didn't do anything, Soph." He said cutting me off. "I mean I was really hurt and completely taken by surprise to find out that my best friend was in love with my little sister and that you two didn't tell me, but I'm the one who ruined my friendship with Ashton. I just hope one day he could forgive me." He sighed and I felt the guilt start to build up inside me that I hadn't told him I was pregnant, but I couldn't tell them without Ashton.

"Oh, good! My babies made up," My Mom grinned at us as she entered the dining room carrying a salad bowl, but frowned when she noticed I was crying. "What's wrong, sweetheart?" She asked as she set the bowl down and then walked up to us.

"Nothing, Mom. Just missed Patrick, that's all." I admitted and it wasn't a total lie. I did miss my brother, but I was crying because I was scared of how they were going to react when they heard my news.

"I understand, honey. Well, why don't we all sit down and enjoy dinner." Katie let out a cough and I remembered that I had to tell them that Ashton was coming over.

"Please, don't be upset with me," I started just before everyone sat down. "But, I invited Ashton over to have dinner with us." I said and Patrick blinked a couple of times before letting out a deep breath.

"So, you two are still seeing each other?" He asked, and I quickly shook my head.

"No, we aren't dating anymore." It still felt like a punch in the gut as I said those words out loud, but it was the truth. We weren't dating anymore and I hoped one day it wouldn't hurt as much as it did at that moment.

"Oh," Patrick said in surprise and then looked at my Mother then back at me before nodding. "Um, okay then. That's fine. I'd like to talk to him anyway. I've been trying to talk to him ever since the fight he had with Justin last week, but he's been avoiding me." He admitted with a chuckle and I let out a sigh of relief as I collapsed in the seat next to my Mother and Katie squeezed my shoulders reassuringly as she sat across from me, next to Christina.

We started plating dishes when I heard the front door open and then close and it felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. Ashton appeared in the doorway, carrying two bouquets, and smiled at us nervously. "Hey everybody, hope I'm not intruding." He chuckled as he walked over to my Mom and I then handed each of us a bouquet. "I just wanted to say thank you for having me over for dinner."

"We've missed you." My Mother said gently as she gave him a watery smile and squeezed his hand.

I stared at my bouquet as tears welled in my eyes and I tried to blame it on the hormones, but even I knew it was useless. He had brought me a bouquet of daisies. "I hope you like them." Ashton said gently as he sat down next to me and I gave him a grateful smile as I clutched them to my chest.

"They're beautiful. Thank you." We stared at each other for a couple of moments, remembering what happened the last time he brought me daisies before Patrick cleared his throat and I tore my gaze away from Ashton to stare at him.

"Um, Ashton, I'd like to apologize to you," He said and I looked over at Ashton to see him staring back at Patrick in surprise. "I shouldn't have acted the way I had when I found out you two were together. It was immature of me and you're the best friend I've ever had. I was just really hurt." Patrick admitted and Ashton frowned.

"That's the last thing we wanted to do to you, Patrick. Sophie and I never wanted to hurt you. We just wanted to wait until we were serious before dropping that bomb on you." He said and Patrick gave us a sad smile as he looked between us.

"I get it, but I can't help but feel like I'm the reason you two aren't together anymore. I want you guys to know that I'm totally supportive if you guys want to start dating again, I'm not going to throw another hissy fit like I did last time. Just don't keep secrets from me anymore." He chuckled as he squeezed Christina's hand and I tensed as I looked nervously over at Ashton.

He reached out and grabbed my free hand that was resting on the table and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "We're not dating anymore, but we do have one more secret that we've been keeping from you." He said and I took in a ragged breath before looking at my Mom and then at Patrick.

"I'm pregnant." I breathed out and you could hear a pin drop with how silent the room went. Patrick stared between us in complete disbelief and my Mother's jaw was on the floor.

"Are you serious?" My Mother asked, breaking the silence and I slowly nodded.

"I just found out last week."

"I'm going to kill him," Patrick chuckled humorlessly as he jumped from his seat, and suddenly everyone was jumping out of their seats and yelling. I stood in front of Ashton trying to protect him as Christina, Katie, and my Mother tried to hold Patrick back and keep him from attacking Ashton. "Let go of me! You son of a bitch, you got my little sister pregnant?!" He screamed angrily and we both tried to apologize, but he just kept yelling.

Suddenly, a glass breaking stopped us all and we looked over at our Mother who had thrown a plate on the ground. "That is enough!" She exclaimed and looked at all of us. "Everyone stop yelling and sit down this instant!" She pointed at our seats and we all immediately sat down. "None of this is good for Sophia and the baby," She said sternly and Patrick clenched his jaw as he glared at Ashton and I felt another tear escape my eye. I hate that I was causing so much drama between them, but there was nothing I could do to fix this.

"Now, we are all going to sit here and talk about this like adults! If anyone starts yelling, you can leave and come back once you've calmed down." She continued and gave Patrick a pointed stare before he slowly nodded. My Mother then turned her gaze to me and shook her head in shock. "Sophia, how could this have happened? I mean you barely graduated college not even seven months ago and you're pregnant?" She asked in disbelief and I took a ragged breath as I shrugged.

"We genuinely don't know how it happened either, Mom. We were being safe and I'm on the pill, you know that. It just... happened. I'm sorry." I sighed and Patrick scoffed.

"Do not apologize, Sophie. I'm sorry that you got pregnant by an asshole who won't even date you after he got you knocked up." He sneered and I gasped as I recoiled away from his words.

"Do not speak to your sister like that, Patrick." My Mother warned and he shrugged.

"But, it's true! You heard them, they're not dating and I know it's because Ashton can't commit to anyone. I've known him my whole life and he abandons every single relationship he's ever had-"

"You don't know anything, Patrick!" Ashton exclaimed angrily, cutting him off and taking us all by surprise. "We aren't dating anymore because we both hurt each other. As of right now, I don't want the stress of a relationship to harm your sister during her pregnancy with our child. I love this child, Patrick. I know you've seen how I've handled relationships in the past, but those girls meant nothing to me. I love Sophie and I hope one day we can get back together, but right now my main focus is her health and our baby's." He said sternly, and Patrick stared at him in complete shock and so did I.

Hearing Ashton say he loves me and this baby, filled my heart with so much hope that one day we could be together again because I still loved him too. I reached out and grabbed Ashton's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. He gave me a small smile as he stroked the back of my hand with his thumb and I wanted nothing more at that moment than to kiss him, but I just smiled back and then looked over at Patrick.

"I'm sorry for what I said," He said sincerely and I looked down at the table then back up at him. "I didn't mean what I said to either of you. God," He said as he ran down his face and frowned. "I keep fucking up with you two. I'm sorry, how I acted and what I said was out of line. I just didn't realize how much my sister meant to you." He sighed and then looked at me. "Soph, are you happy about this pregnancy? Because if you are then I'll support you one-hundred percent of the way." He said gently and I looked at him then at my Mom who gave me a reassuring smile.

"I'll support you too, sweetie." She assured me as she placed her hand on my cheek and I let out a choked sob as I smiled at them.

"I'm very happy about having this baby with Ashton." I admitted and my Mother grinned at me.

"I'm going to be a grandma!" She croaked out and I giggled as I pulled her into a hug. Patrick then approached us and looked between Ashton and me.

"Congratulations, you guys." He sighed before pulling us both into a hug.

In that moment, I couldn't have been happier. I just hoped that Ashton and Patrick could fix their friendship and that I could somehow get back together with Ashton before the baby was born. Then life would be perfect.