ability to argue, though he’d have bitten his tongue off before admitting he’d been damned near thrilled over Matt’s brand of stubbornness.
As he lay on his bed, though, frustration was taking over. He could keep down water for the most part, so it wasn’t serious enough to warrant a trip to the hospital. He’d called the doctor’s office, and they’d suggested an antinausea medication, but other than that, had insisted rest and fluids was the best treatment, which had backed up what his mom had already said. She’d encouraged him to call, though, in case they decided he should go in. They hadn’t, only the other suggestions. As annoyed as Adam had been with their reply, he had to acknowledge there wasn’t anything they could really do.
With Matt’s help he had, thus far, been able to keep up with his homework. He didn’t know how long that would last without attending the lectures himself. One professor didn’t seem to care at all about attendance, but that still left three others to worry about.
He was contemplating his options—not that there were many—when a knock sounded at the door. Glancing at the clock, he frowned. It was too early to be Matt. “Yeah?”
His mother opened the door. “How are you?”
Adam wrinkled his nose. “It’s calmed down for now.”
“That’s good. Have you kept anything down?”
“Toast. And apparently I can eat pretzels. Not much else.”
His mom frowned but didn’t say anything for a moment as she crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed. She bit her lip as she looked him over. “Um… Adam… have you considered you might be pregnant?”
Adam blinked at her and tried really hard to not blush. He failed. Epically. “Uh… no. Um… Matt and I, uh, used condoms.” He wondered if the nausea would stop if he sank through the floor. Spontaneous human combustion from the heat in his face might do it….
“Well, I assumed so,” Mom said, rather matter-of-factly. “I didn’t think you wouldn’t. But condoms can fail, even if it’s not obviously broken. Don’t forget, baby, your body is made to get pregnant.”
“Uh, yeah, I know that. But… I mean, I took the Sepel.” He scowled. “Even if it didn’t seem to be doing much.” He muttered that, but apparently his mom heard it.
“Oh?”
“Oh God, can I die now?” Adam asked, burying his hot face in his hands.
“Adam Cook! You’re an adult. Act like it.”
His mom’s sharp words had Adam dropping his hands. He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “You’re right. Uh… neither of us. The suppressant for me and Matt both seemed to, uh, wear off pretty fast this time.”
“That can happen. I think you should consider taking a test. I can pick it up for you, but it can’t hurt to be sure. It was right around this time when I was pregnant with you that I started getting sick. Right around two and a half weeks after my heat.” His mom patted his knee and stood.
Adam frowned at the floor. He didn’t think he was pregnant, was still sure it was a stomach bug, but it would at least ease his mom’s mind to rule that out. “Okay, yeah. Uh… go ahead?”
She smiled at him and brushed at his hair. “All right, then. I’m going out in a bit for some other things. I’ll get them then. Rest. You’re still pale.”
When she left, Adam flopped back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. This was so not happening. It was just a bug. That was all.
Adam stared at the two boxes for a full minute, trying to decide which one to use. His mom had bought two separate types of kits. One was simpler—and likely a lot less expensive—than the other one. He set the more expensive one aside and opened the first box. It had two tests in it, but he left one in the box and took the other and the instructions into the bathroom.
His heart pounded, which annoyed him. He shouldn’t be worried about this. Because he wasn’t pregnant. It was just a stomach bug. That was all.
He set the test down on the counter and opened the paper. The process was quite simple, and the instructions were only slightly more verbose than the directions for his Ikea desk. And most of that text was for the warnings.
This test should not substitute for an actual doctor visit.
No shit. Adam shook his head and tore open the foil package. Once he’d peed on