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The concert Desmond had grabbed tickets for was that weekend.
I got off work and waited outside my building for forty minutes, and still he didn't come to pick me up.
When I finally called, he seemed to remember only then. "Winnie, sorry, something came up on my end. Go on ahead, I'll be a little late."
So I took an Uber there alone.
By the time the chorus of the third song hit, Desmond finally came ducking in through the side aisle.
I was about to hand him a glow stick when I caught, at the edge of my vision, someone trailing behind him.
Felicity was wearing a dress in the same color family as mine, and she smiled sweetly at me. "Hey, I love this group too. I mentioned it to Des once, and I didn't think he'd actually buy me a ticket. And it turned out to be right next to you two. What a coincidence."
Desmond wiped her seat clean with a tissue as if it were the most natural thing, then reached over and took the canvas bag off her shoulder and set it down by her feet. "You can sit now. All wiped down for you."
Only after that did he turn to look at me. "Fifi's zipper broke right as she was heading out. I tried for ages and couldn't get it, so we got held up a bit."
I turned my head and looked at Felicity's waist.
Her dress was cut open at the waist, and against her fair skin the fingerprints stood out clearly.
For those three hours, Desmond held up his phone recording the solos of the member Felicity liked.
Every so often she leaned in to watch the playback, her head nearly resting on his shoulder.
When it ended she said she was thirsty, so Desmond squeezed past half a row of people to go buy her water.
I sat there beside them, the glow stick sweating in my fist.
Not until the last encore finished and the lights came up did I realize I hadn't taken in a single song.
When we walked out of the arena, the sky suddenly opened into a downpour.
The exit was packed with people sheltering from the rain and calling for cars.
Desmond ran for the cover of the eaves, shielding the top of Felicity's head, and turned back to shout at me: "Winnie, Fifi's been weak since she was little and can't be out in the cold wind. I'll take her home first. Grab yourself a car."
I stood on the steps and watched him circle an arm around her shoulders, tucking her completely under him.
With that whole crowd letting out, it took me about thirty minutes to get a car.
By the time I got home, my hem and my hair were still dripping.
I'd caught a chill after all, and by the middle of the night a fever set in.
I dragged myself up and took some fever medicine. The heat dropped, then climbed again, over and over, until I couldn't hold out and went to the hospital the next day anyway.
After the tests, the doctor looked up from the report and glanced at me. "Congratulations. You're pregnant."
"The fever's serious, so you can't just take any medication now."
My heart lurched. Pregnant?
