TONY.
“You… might need to do a paternity check on the baby,” Luca blurted out.
“What the fuck?” I exclaimed immediately after he said that. I was taken aback, as that was not even close to what I was expecting him to say. What was I even expecting? I thought as I searched my head, but I didn’t know what to think. I wasn’t thinking straight at the moment. “What the heck did you just say, man? This ain’t no joke. You realize that, yeah?” I asked him again with a stern look on my face.
I knew Luca so well, and I knew that he was fond of trying to make a person laugh when everything seems tense. I wanted to believe that was what he was trying to do again, because I couldn’t bring myself to understand what he meant when he said I might need to do a paternity check. Does that mean the baby has a high probability that it won’t be mine? What the heck?
“Calm down, man. I told you it was going to be shocking.” He said to me.
“No, you didn’t.” I objected immediately. “Wait, what? You aren’t joking? You’re serious about that?”
He nodded his head affirmatively, but slowly. “According to my findings, I think she might be carrying that man’s baby.” He added.
“Which man? Who is he?”
“His name is Damien. I went back to the club to find out stuff about him and I got to know that he was out of the country, hence the foreign number he had used to text Lara. I was told he used to date her before you came into the picture, but it seemed like she hadn’t been able to let go of him for you and-”
I racked my brain as that name he mentioned sounded familiar. “Damien?” I asked him.
“Yeah? Do you know him?” He asked with raised eyebrows.
“Nope. But it sounds familiar,” I simply replied as my mind tried to process everything Luca just told me. “Are you telling me that it’s possible the baby was just pinned on me? My assumptions about her cheating were correct?”
“I’m afraid they might be,” he said and let out a sigh. “But, uhm…you have to confront her first, or probably catch her while doing it before you can say that. Then, don’t forget the paternity check. It’s quite important at this stage.” He added a look of concern on his face.
Luca has never looked so serious, making me realize that he meant what he was talking about. If I had to do something, I had to do it fast. I had never for any reason doubted Lara before, until she started being shady. Besides, I had always been honest and loyal to her in our relationship, so it was surprising to me that she couldn’t do the same to me.
“Wow,” was all I could mutter as I sat back on the chair and thought of it all. I already had a long and tiring day at work, and here was another thing to make my night stressed. “Wow,” I muttered again. “Then, that means…” my voice trailed off as the thought came to my mind.
“What?” Luca asked.
If our assumptions were indeed right, then that meant that her friends also knew about it all along. But I wasn’t surprised about the other girls, I was only surprised that Beth could be a part of all this. She was always talking about loyalty and being honest in one’s relationship. She even warned me several times not to cheat on Lara for any reason, whereas her best friend was cheating on me and she couldn’t talk her out of it. “Wow,” I muttered again, unable to register the shock I was feeling.
“Why do you keep saying wow?” Luca asked me again, a confused stare on his face as he stared at me. “Still the same news or something else is on your mind?” He added.
“Dude, if Lara was cheating, that meant that her friends knew about it.”
“Yeah, most likely.” He said and shrugged. “Why? I don’t think you have any reason to be bothered about that?”
“I have every reason to be bothered about that, Luca. That means Beth knows about it! It would even get worse if I end up finding out that the baby Lara is carrying isn’t mine. That meant they all plotted to pin it on me, and Beth didn’t speak up, despite her carrying my child!” I ranted and suddenly stopped. “What if hers ain’t mine either?” I asked no one in particular, but Luca heard me quite well.
He chuckled lightly. “Hers is yours. She literally has no other man in her life. I don’t think there’s anyone else she’s had sex with since you, man.” He said and shrugged. “But just to be safe, do your check on her baby too. Trust no man, they say.”
“There’s a way to make paternal tests on an unborn baby, yeah?” I asked, knowing fully well that it was possible. But I was tense at the moment and all I needed was for him to reassure me. I’ve never been played so hard by a lady before.
“Yeah. The non-invasive test.” He said. “But how would you get her to go with you to the hospital? That’s the actual problem at hand now, man.”
“That’s quite easy,” I said with a small smile on my face.
“How?” He asked with raised eyebrows.
“Oh, I’m driving her tomorrow to see the doctor for her antenatal. I’d call him beforehand, so he can know he has something else to do for me.”
“And let him know you don’t want her to know.”
“Sure,” I replied, then stood up from the chair and headed into the house.
“Don’t you think you ought to tell me something?” He shouted after me.
I stopped in my tracks to think about what he was saying, but I couldn’t. “What is it?” I shouted back to him.
“You didn’t appreciate me yet, dawg. I got you quality information about something that could make your entire life crash! I deserve something in return.” I heard him say from the sitting room.
I shook my head at him, even though I knew he couldn’t see me. “Fine!” I exclaimed. “I’d take you out for a drink later. But that’s after I figure everything out. If your assumptions were wrong, I’m cancelling it!”
“It’s a date!”
“Ew! Don’t make it gross, man.” I snapped back at him and I heard him giggle. Then, I walked up the stairs and headed to my room. “Such a long day,” I muttered.