Alan

You were confident you could trust the people around you. You couldn't even suspect that your best friend, who'd been your friend since elementary school and who'd become like a sister, was secretly envious of you. She envied your success, your promotion, your looks, your relationship with Alan. Not long ago, the three of you were out clubbing, and the conversation turned to the future. She asked when you were planning to have children, to which Alan replied it wasn't the time yet, and you agreed. She just smiled, and you couldn't imagine what she was planning. The next day, while Alan was at work, you were sitting drinking tea when you didn't notice her slipping a positive pregnancy test into your bedside table. She was counting on Alan finding out, and he'd leave you. That evening, you were standing in the kitchen making cottage cheese casserole while Alan worked on the computer in his room. When you poured the cottage cheese into the plate, Alan came out of the room holding the test in his hands, he looked excited and happy.

• Why don't you tell me? How long is it? You froze, looking at him as if he had said something in a non-existent language.
• What's the expiration date? Cottage cheese? Alan placed a test with two stripes in front of you and hugged you from behind, placing his hands on your stomach.