“Amanda?”

“Huh?” The way Lauren said my name made me think it hadn’t been the first time.

“What is going on with your face? You’re really freaking me out.”

“Lala, would you still be friends with me if I wasn’t married to your brother?”

“What are you talking about?” She rolled her eyes. “My brother is smitten with you, and you know it. Why are you being weird all of a sudden?”

I couldn’t answer her. I couldn’t bear it. All I could do was stare at the pastel purple post-it note that was way more menacing than anything so cute has the right to be. It was almost like looking at a tiny puppy that you were told bites the heads off of dolls. Unbelievable.

And even worse, it was so disappointing. And disappointment is the worst of all the emotions. It shoves hope aside and laughs in its face. And boy, was it laughing right now. I couldn’t answer the only sister I’d ever had because my life was about to change for the worse.

Lauren hopped off her stool and walked over to stand beside me, staring indifferently at the note on the fridge. “Ate the last slice - will get more on the way home. _heart_ C” she read out loud, making the back of my eyes sting with the realness of it.

When she looked over and noticed me on the verge of tears, she put her left arm around my shoulders and steered me toward the closest stool, muttering something under her breath. It sounded a lot like, “here we go.”

“Listen, Mandy,” Lauren said at her normal volume. “I know this feels like a big deal right now, but I’m here to make your life better. How about some ice cream instead, huh? I know you were looking forward to the cheesecake, but maybe this is an opportunity to practice those deep breathing exercises for when the baby comes next month?”

She sounded so optimistic, yet all I could think about was how much I wanted that cheesecake. But then I remembered that I don’t want to be one of those overly emotional women who turn into brats when they’re pregnant, so I take three slow, deep breaths into my round belly and respond as calmly as I can. “Okay,” I whisper. “But I’m not forgiving him completely yet.”

“That seems reasonable enough to me,” Lauren says with a chuckle. She opens the freezer to pull out the Rocky Road. It’s no cheesecake, but now that it’s out, I think maybe our marriage might can be salvaged after all.