Miranda found someone to take care of her apartment with no problem. One of her cast mates was looking for a place to crash that was close to Broadway. Subsequent to RENT, Kent- who had played Collins- had a role in another play that was in a month and no one knew how long it would run. “If you needed to take on a roommate, I’m cool with that. Just let me know who they are. I’ve put you on all of the bills and my rent is paid through for a year”, Miranda explained.
“You’re a peach Miranda”, Kent said to her.
“So I’ve been told.”
“So, what’s going on that you need to sublet?”
“My parents want me home while I’m pregnant with their first grandchild and my grandparents’ first great- grandchild. My mom’s insistent that I be there so that she can tend to me and all that good shit.”
“Mom must be excited.”
“Well, there’s that but it’s more for my protection than anything. My father is Malachai Draiman. My grandfather is David Draiman. My brother is renowned artist Elijah Draiman. The last name is pretty well known if you get my drift.”
“So do you think it would be possible to get me an audition with your Aunt or Uncle? The ones that work in Hollywood?” he laughed.
Miranda laughed as well. “Aunt Makayla maybe. She’s always looking for good dancers. Uncle Marc, however, works in Audio- Visual Effects. He has a crew that he trusts and that’s all he needs.”
Kent laughed as he checked the fridge. “Girl, don’t you believe in grocery shopping?”
“I do, but I never have the time. I’m always trying to keep myself busy and making money. When I’m not auditioning, I work at Julliard doing voice lessons and tutoring Jazz and Tap.”
“You went to Julliard?”
“Yeah, me and my twin brother both went to Julliard on scholarships. Between those and the college fund that our grandparents set up for us, Julliard was completely paid for.”
“Pretty cool”, he said as he started making a list of what to buy for the apartment. “So, may I ask a rather personal question?”
“Shoot.”
“Who’s the father?” He nodded toward her stomach.
“Who do you think?”
“Really? That poor child. Now, I’ve just got to know, did your grandmother really get the best of him?”
“That’s the story I’m told. She threw a bucket of ice in his face and bitch slapped him.”
“How old is your grandma?”
“She’s 81 in a couple of days. I’ll be there for her birthday.”
“Cool. Your grandma must be a ninja or something like that.”
“Not really. She just took really good care of herself when she was younger. Worked out intensely and ate right. She made sure that everyone around her ate properly too.”
Kent sighed. “Well, I’m sure that your parents are ready to for you to go home. Are you all packed and ready to go?”
She grinned. “As ready as I can be, I suppose. There are a few small things that I have to take care of, but they’ll have to wait until I get home to Colorado.”
“Like?”
“Personal stuff.”
“Ah. I see. Well, darling, I’ll take good care of place while you’re gone. Good luck honey. You’re going to need it if you’re carrying the spawn of the Anti- Christ.”
“You do realize that I’m not Christian, right?”
“What are you then?”
“Jewish.”
“My apologies then. Oh, and I’m letting you know that I’m moving my boyfriend in.”
“Ok, whatever makes you happy baby. Now, I need to get out of here. My Dad’s getting impatient in his old age.”
“How old is your Dad?”
“50 years young. My brothers and I always tease him that he’s getting old. He adamantly denies it and says that he now understands why Grampa denies that he’s old, even though he’s 84.”
“That’s funny.” He paused and gave her a hug. “Get out of here and keep us posted on what that baby is. I hope you find a guy who will take care of that baby like it’s his own.”
She gave him a gentle squeeze. “Me too, Kent. Me too.”
---------------
The flight home was pretty boring. All Miranda could do was read because she couldn’t sleep. She hoped and prayed that she got to talk to Callan soon so that she could tell him about her situation. She hoped that he would understand. She was lost in her thoughts when her mother started talking to her about plans for the baby. “I put in a call to Uncle James and Aunt Kenna. She’s more than happy to come out to be your midwife. Uncle James chuckled when Kenna told him that they were coming out here for nine months. He thought it was a good idea citing that Gabe and the twins need to spend as much time with Gramma and Grampa as possible and that he wants to be present for the birth of the first great- grandchild”, he mother said, grabbing her attention.
“That’s great news, Mom”, Miranda replied with disinterest.
“What’s wrong baby?”
“My thoughts are going a million miles an hour and in a million different directions. I’m worried about the pregnancy, I’m worried about what Callan will say when I tell him I’m pregnant and we both know that it’s not his. I’m freaking out here, Mom, and I don’t know what to do.”
“What you need to do, Miranda, is calm down and not worry so much”, her father said, not looking up from his Nook reading pad. “You have nothing to be worried about. If this Callan boy is anything like you said he is, then he’ll be a man about it if he loves you. He’ll do what Grampa did for me and Uncle James did for Hunter. He’ll step up and raise that baby, no matter what. And seeing as he’s got the chance to start from the beginning, there won’t be the need for adoption. He’ll be able to just sign the birth certificate and you won’t have to worry with that monkey Zack. Worry about what to tell Callan when the time comes. Unless he’s calls you the moment we touch down- which is unlikely- you have time to worry about it. Now, listen to what your mother has to say about plans for the baby and we’ll be home in no time. Your younger brothers and sisters are waiting for you to come home.”
“Did you tell them that I’m making them Aunts and Uncles?”
“No. You can tell all of your siblings that yourself, Jayde. Eli is still in town with B, working on his show collection. He’s trying to meet the deadline, but B keeps telling his parents that genius can’t be rushed.” He chuckled.
“Well, I’ve got to hand it to B, then. If he’s willing to go to bat with his parents over Eli’s work, then I’m proud to have him in the family.”
“He asked Gramma for advice on how to deal with it the other day, from what Grampa told me. Gramma told him to just keep doing what he’s doing.”
“I wonder if they’re ever going to adopt.”
“You never know”, her mother said. “Eli seems like he wants kids, but not until he knows that B’s not going anywhere and they’ve gotten married. I know your little brother well enough to know that.”
“I’m so glad that Gay Marriage is legal. Was there really a time when it wasn’t?”
“Oh yeah”, her father said. “It was illegal for gays and lesbians to get married until after the Utopian Occupation. Your Great- great aunt Gail changed all that when she was the president. You can ask Gramma and Grampa about how hard they fought it make it possible for same sex unions to be possible.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Gramma used to do rallies and stuff like that. I remember her meeting with her friends and organizing all that.”
“What about Uncle Jake and Aunt Jordan?”
“They weren’t born yet. There’s a 5 year separation between me and them.”
“Ah. That’s right. I forgot for a sec. I just want Eli to be happy. He deserves it like anyone else.”
“You’re not the only one that hopes that he finds it. He seems to have found it in B”, her mother said.
“That’s good. I’m really glad he’s got someone who understands him and the way his mind works. He really needs that.”
“What about that Callan boy? Does he make you happy?”
“He does. I can’t describe it. It’s just something about him. You know? He just puts me at ease.”
“Then, what are you so worried about? Are you worried that he’ll freak out when you tell him that you’re pregnant?” her father asked, having led the conversation back to the original topic.
“Yeah, a little.”
“If he puts you at ease, then what are you so worried about?”
---------------
When Miranda got home, she had the sudden urge to open all of the windows and burn incense. She could still smell him in her room. She ran down the stairs to find her mother. “Mom, I need clean sheets and a clean comforter for my bed. My room stinks.”
“Why does your room smell?” her mother asked.
“It smells like that douche that knocked me up and denies that I’m having his baby. Need I say more, Mom?”
Amanda Draiman chuckled softly. “No dear. No need to say anything else. I understand where you’re coming from. I’ve had a boyfriend or two like that”, she said as she moved across the laundry room to the linen closet.
“Before Dad, I assume”, Miranda said as she followed.
“Yes, all before your Dad. Your father and I have been together just a little longer than you and Isaiah have been alive.”
“About how much longer?”
“A year. I know our wedding anniversary is after your birthday. That’s because your dad’s band was taking off and we felt it was better to wait until after you were born to get married.”
“What do you mean things were taking off?”
“Well, they were getting a LOT of gigs. Then, your great- uncle Matt passed away. That’s the performance that landed them the deal with Intoxication.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. They did ‘Remember’ and Aunt Jordan impressed your great- uncle Danny. He loved the song and said that she was amazing. Not long after we’d all recovered from his passing, things started rolling downhill for Reckless Disregard. They took off, and while they were in the studio recording their first record, you and your twin were born. Production was halted for a few days until we were out of the hospital.”
“That’s pretty cool. Now, I know there’s an insane story about Miri’s birth and how Ira came about his name. I remember those crazy times. Is there anything crazy about your pregnancy with me and Isaiah?”
“Well, I guess now that you’re nearly 30, it’s ok to tell you. You and Isaiah were a happy accident.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, the condom broke dear.”
Miranda laughed. “Wow. Does Isaiah know about that?”
“No. Just you, me, your father, and your grandparents to my knowledge.”
“What was Gramma and Grampa’s reaction when you told them?”
“Shock. I don’t think it actually hit Grampa until several hours later. The next day they went out and bought a single crib, bassinet, and stroller- car seat combo for you. When we told them twins, they went out and started buying everything in twos. When we said a boy and a girl, they went and bought out a little boutique downtown of all of the clothes and threatened to buy the little girl out.”
“What ever happened to that little place?”
“Oh, I don’t know baby. You’ll have to ask Gramma and Grampa. They would know better than I would. I didn’t keep track of all of that.”
“Did you ever finish school? I know Dad got a degree in Business Management, but did you ever get your degree?”
“I did when around the time Uncle Jake got his stem cell treatment approved by the DHS and FDA. I got my degree in psychology.”
“Cool. That’s good.”
“Yep. I was proud of myself and so was your Dad. I couldn’t have been more proud of myself. I actually finished my degree. Have I used it? Not really. I don’t need to. Your Dad takes plenty good care of me.” She held out a clean set of sheets and a clean comforter. “Bring down the Zack smelling things and I’ll wash them.”
“Cool. Be back in a little bit.” Miranda walked off and put her clean sheets on the bed after bringing the others down so that they could be washed. As she made her bad, her thoughts drifted to the man in Venezuela. She desperately needed to talk to him and let him know what was going in. Her aunt would be there soon and she would be able to tell her how far along she was pregnant. That way she would have news to give him other than “I’m pregnant by my ex.”
She missed Callan, but she realized that he had a job to do. He was a Marine and he was serving his country. That’s what Marines did. They were the first ones in to the eye of the storm and the last ones out after the dust cleared. She knew that. She just wanted to hear from him to know that he was ok. A carrier pigeon would have done the job. She just needed to know that he was ok.
Was this what her mother went through every time her father went out on tour? Had her grandmother gone through it when her grandfather had left her at home with the ten children they raised together? She would have to ask about that sometime. It would help to know if there were tricks to get used to the idea of him being away like he was going to have to be and if anyone would have known it would have been her grandmother.
---------------
That night all of her siblings but Isaiah were home for dinner. Isaiah was being off being a professor at Julliard- their Alma Mater- teaching acting. She was sure that he would call and ask her for help and she’d have to tell him that she wasn’t there and why. But, that would wait until another time. Her primary focus was on telling her younger siblings what was going in. She could see that Shawn and Kelsi were suspicious. Jenni was off in La-La Land. She spent a lot of time there. She was a creative one like Eli and she was super smart. Her mind worked in a way that Miranda only wished she understood.
Once dinner was served and everyone was tucked into the table to eat, Kelsi looked at Miranda. “Hey sis, what’s brought you home from New York?” she asked.
“Well, that’s a really good question Kels. The answer is that you’re going to be aunts and uncles next year, probably around Aunt Maddie’s birthday. I’m pregnant.”
Eli choked on the piece of bread he’d been eating. “What?” he said carefully. “Since when?”
“I found out about two weeks ago, the night before the play debuted.”
“Who’s the father?”
“As much as I wish it wasn’t true, Eli, it’s Zack. He denies that it’s his, and that’s fine with me. I’ve found a really great guy who I’m almost positive will treat this baby like his own.”
“Are you sure it’s not his?”
“Yeah. He and I haven’t ever…”
“Ah. I see. You see, this is one of the reasons I’m glad I’m gay. There’s no such thing as a pregnancy scare, or getting a man knocked up and saying it’s not yours. I’m not trying to make light of your situation, sis. I hope you understand that. I’m just trying to wrap my head around the fact that this douche bag had the nerve to get your pregnant and then swear that it’s not his.”
“Don’t worry about, Elijah, I took care of it”, Malachai said as he broke a piece of his bread off to mop up the pasta sauce on his plate. “He said a few things about your sister that I didn’t quite like. He’s lucky I didn’t beat his face in.”
“What stopped you?” Miranda asked.
“I’m better than that, Miranda. I’m a man about my business. I should be, by now. I’m 50 years young. Zachary will forever be a pompous child. He will never grow up.”
Miranda nodded. “I know that’s right. I wonder what I ever saw in his.”
“Don’t”, Amanda said. “Just move on. You now know what you’re NOT looking for. Keep that in mind as you scourer the country looking for Mr. Right. He’s out there somewhere.”
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