Gypsy Caravan

(Alright it's not great and I'm sorry, but here it is haha.)

Keelin yawned as she woke up from a rather sleepless night. She had been tossing and turning all night, worrying about many different things. She scolded herself for worrying, though, since that would mean she'd be grouchy for the whole day, which was never a good thing.

She yawned once more as she washed her face and got ready for the day. She wore a brightly colored skirt made of what looked like scraps of blues, greens, and purple material. She wrapped an orange wrap adorned with coins and beads around her skirt. She put on her usual gold and beaded jewelry before tying her hair back with a red scarf.

As she walked out into the daylight and looked around she gasped. Her stomach dropped and she instantly felt like she was going to throw up. In fact she actually had to run off and do so. Whag caused this reaction was a caravan, one she now knew very well. One that wasn't always with them, it was Aiden's caravan.

___________

Liam pulled the small fishing boat up to the dock and tied it up. Him and his brother had been out since the early hours, catching fish and it was now time for a small break before trying to sell the fish.

So with that thought in mind, he parted ways with his brother and silently walked down the road. He greeted a few of the towns folk as he went, but he didn't stop to talk. He was on a mission, a mission to go to the gypsy camp and have his palms read by a certain girl he was beginning to very much like seeing. He knew though he couldn't tell anyone for her sake and his. If his family found out they'd forbid him from going back in fear that the 'untrustworthy' gypsies would kill him and steal all his money. He knew that was ridiculous though, so off he went to the gypsie camp.

Devin awoke shortly after the sister closest in age to her. She had an older brother, yes, but he was preparing to move in with his new gypsy bride and start his own family. Devin found herself waking up before the younger siblings usually, but lately, she's found herself exhausted. She blames it on wearing out her mind, thinking too hard on things she knew she shouldn't. Like the man who had been seeking her for palm readings lately... He had been crossing her mind much more often than she knew was considered right. But she wouldn't stop him. In fact, she found herself dressing nicely for the day in the event that he may visit her again. She wore an emerald green skirt with white patches, and a white blouse. Oddly, she found her hair was working with her as she ran a comb through it. She decided to leave her raven locks down today.

By the time she made her way out of the caravan, she saw Keelin bending forward and heaving. She'd been puking often lately. Devin assumed that it was just part of the pregnancy, but the sight of a nearby familiar caravan changed her mind. Devin rushed over to her sister. Putting a gentle hand on her back, she rubbed gently. "Shh... It's okay." Devin looked to the caravan in the distance and saw the boy who caused Keelin all of this trouble. Devin rushed to get her a glass of water to rinse out her mouth before returning to her side.

:::♦:::

Aiden had been awake for a while now, counting the coins that he had made in the nearby town the previous day. By the time he'd returned home last night, he was exhausted from the dancing duet he'd performed with his older sister. It'd been a tough crowd, and he'd had to give it his all to appease them. He seemed to have done alright though, judging by the coins in front of him.

Leaving his caravan, he saw a sight he'd been hoping to see. Keelin was out, along with her sister Devin. He didn't pay much attention to the dark-haired sister, finding himself much more interested in the girl he'd been seeing. He wanted to call out to her, but he knew that she had a large family, and he didn't want to wake any of her sleeping siblings. They'd never get any alone time that way. Instead, he decided to walk over and have a chat with her. She was bent over in a weird way, but from the distance of their camps he couldn't tell what she was doing.

(OOC: It was fine to me! :) And by the way, Aiden doesn't know she's pregnant, right? Just Devin?)

(Yeah only Devin knows right now.)

Keelin jumped and gasped a little when she felt the presance of her sister. She only did this because she didn't realize it was her at first, but shen she looked at her she immediately calmed her down. She loved how her sister could do that for her.

She took the glass of water with shakey hands and took a small drink to wash away the taste. She took a few deep breaths while staring at the ground, still shaking a little. "What am I to do Devin?" She asked her sister in a whisper as she slowly looked up. That's when she noticed Aiden coming closer to them. Her eyes widened a little and the sick feeling came back. She willed herself not to throw up again and start crying like she really wanted to. She needed to act somewhat normal, though how well she could pull that off she didn't know. She took one more look around and noticed a redheaded man approaching their camp. "It appears you have a visitor dear sister..." She started as she turned back to her. "Please be careful with him and don't leave me with Aiden too long...I'm so scared Devin." She finished the last part in a soft whisper.

So with one more deep breath, Keelin forced a smile onto her face as she turned back towards Aiden and closed the distance between them. "Well hello and good morning to you." She said, trying to sound as normal as ever, but there definitely was a hint of something out of the ordinary in her voice. Whether Aiden picked up on it or not, she did not know.

______________

Liam had watched part of the scene that just happened in the camp as he approached and wondered what was happening. Gypsies weren't that much different from the country folk, he thought. They just traveled instead of staying in one spot. They had regular lives and jobs just like him and his family members so he couldn't understand why people treated gypsies any dofferently.

"Good morning to ya, my lovely Devin. Is it too early to have you read my palms? Might I also mention that you're looking very pretty today?" He said, a small smirk crossing his features as he approached. He then realized others were around as he looked over to Aiden and Keelin. A sheepish smile and somewhat nervous laugh came over him as he rubbed the back of his head. He wasn't too familiar with gypsy culture and things like that, but he figured that if his people shunned them that they might be the same way towards country folk. He didn't want to get Devin in trouble nor himself in trouble with them.

Devin's hands clung to Keelin's shoulders in a strong reassuring grasp. "I don't know the answer, Keelin. But the answer will come to us. For now, do your best to approach the situation lightly, you hear? If you so even choose to bring it up. You'll be okay."

Upon hearing that she had a visitor, she raised an eyebrow and turned to see Liam. She bit her lips as she tried to hide the growing smile and looked away. Seeing her sister in hurt again took away her smile. "I'll be back soon, I promise to you. Aiden's never hurt you, you'll be safe." Devin assured. Her gentle hand rubbed her sister's back again as she went to approach Aiden. She watched her greet him and hoped that in the short time she'd be gone, that nothing happened within the family. If she chose to bring it up now... Well, Devin just hoped that they would at least be out of earshot of their sleeping parents and siblings.

Devin's smile returned brighter than ever as Liam greeted her. "I thank you, sir Liam. It's not too early at all. Follow me to the outskirts of the nearby town, my stand is set up there."
She wanted to apologize for taking him back the way he came, but it wasn't too far of a walk. She took his hand and walked with him quickly, leading him away from the gypsy camp before letting go of his hand. In all honesty, Devin had wanted to keep his hand, but knew that if she did so the entire walk there that it would be improper. Bringing her attention back to her sister and Aiden one last time, her eyes dropped to the ground. Aiden had a skeptical look on his face as he watched the two leave. He would have to be one to avoid, Devin realized. He could be the one to rat out the daily visitings.
"I trust you had a good night?" She mused, seeking conversation with Liam as they walked away from the camp.

:::♦:::

As he approached, Keelin closed the distance between the two of them.
"Good morning to you," Aiden smiled at her, and took her in for a hug. She was just as beautiful as he remembered, he thought. His family had been traveling a different way for the past week, and he'd caught no sight of her then. He missed having her in his arms like this. But eventually, he pulled away. He wanted to remain a gentleman, and strike a conversation with her.
"How have you been?" He questioned. "I hope you and your family's travels have gone smoothly. I've missed you," he voiced honestly. It wasn't until then that he realized that something about Keelin seemed different. He wanted to tack it on the fact that it'd been a week since he'd seen her, but he thought he knew her well enough to know that that wasn't it. It was in the way she didn't hug him as closely, and the way her smile seemed forced. For a short moment, he wondered if he had done something to offend her. He chose to wait until she spoke again to ask any questions about it.

Keelin stiffened a little as he hugged her, but she hugged him back. She had to admit that it did feel good to be back in his arms despite the fact she was freaking out how he was going to react when she told him about being pregnant.

"Um I'm good, how have you been?" She replied and paused while determining if she should respond to his 'I missed you.' She had missed him too, but was also partially glad that she hadn't seen him for that week because then she didn't have to think about the baby and having to tell him. Finally after a moment of pausing she responded. "I missed you too." She said in almost a whisper and then gave him another small smile. "Hey can we go sit somewhere, I feel the need to sit down?" She asked him sweetly as she looked for a place to sit.

_______________

Liam smiled as she took his hand, but noticed her look back at the other two he'd seen as he walked up. He hoped that he wasn't getting her in trouble for coming to see her every day. "I did, I did. My brother and I went fishing like always this morning too." He said with a smile as they walked. He wasn't too thrilled when she.had let go of his hand because he wished she would continue to hold it. "What about you, did you have a good night?" He asked her with a smile.

Devin smiled. "Did either of you catch any fish?" She wondered out loud. He'd told her one of the previous days that he and his brother enjoy fishing in the early morning. She wondered just how early they would wake up to do so.
When he asked about her night, Devin had to watch what she said. Liam had been appearing in her dreams lately, quite often. She desperately desired a dream dictionary, for she didn't know much about the art of deciphering dreams. In fact, when it came to dreams she knew very little. She made a mental note to research that next time she was in town. "My night was well, thank you. I happen to have woken up hoping that I would see you today," she said honestly.
Devin saw her wooden stand coming up next to the town. It was a stand she took apart and rebuilt every time they hunkered down for a few nights in one town. Eventually, she would need new wood after running out of new places to hammer in nails, but for now, it worked.

:::♦:::

Aiden wanted to raise an eyebrow and tilt his head. Something seemed different about her. She's never hesitated to say "I missed you" before. But then, maybe she was just being emotional and she had missed him a lot... When she asked for a place to sit down, he nodded right away. "Of course."

Taking her hand, he led her to the tree line where there were four different flat boulders, each of different sizes. They were well out of earshot of the gypsy camp, unless one of them yelled, which he didn't see happening. He pulled himself up onto one of the boulders and let his legs dangle as he sat. He helped her up onto the boulder next to him. "Are you feeling alright, Keelin?" He asked.

Keelin silently followed him up onto the boulder. Her mind wandered to other things as she sat there. It took her a minute to realize that Aiden had asked her another question. "Huh? Oh I'm fine, just feeling a little under the weather. It's nothing to worry about really." She said, not really thinking about what she was saying especially since when someone in the caravan was throwin gb up it meant there either something really serious wrong or, in Keelin's case, they were pregnant.

After a moment she looked up and back towards the camp. "Aiden what are our plans for the future?" She asked as she looked over to him. "I mean I kind of really need to know cause there's something important I need to..." She started and then trailed off as she saw her father come out of the caravan. She gasped and jumped as he looked their way. She lost her balance and fell off the boulder backwards, landing with a thud on the ground and her over skirt over top of her face. She quickly sat up straight and fixed her skirts. You could tell she was slightly in a panic as her hand flew to her stomach. She loomed up to Aiden and calmed herself down. She hadn't fallen down that far and she didn't feel any different nor was she in much pain. Mostly her rear end hurt since that's what she mostly landed on.

Still Keelin felt a little paniced and stood up. "Aiden I need to go talk to my sister, will you come with me please?" She asked him pleadingly. She was worried shs hurt the baby, she doubted she did a little, but she was still worried and wanted to ask her sister about it.

_______________

Liam nodded at her question. "Oh yes, we both caught quite a bit of fish. I'll actually be heading back to meet with my brother after this to try and sell the fish." He said with a smile to her and saw the booth. Then the next thing he said made him smirk a little. "You did now huh? Well that's interesting." He said as he looked at her again. He wasn't gonna lie, he woke up excited to be going to see her today to.

"Oh I almost forgot, in town us younder ones are having a small party if you and some of your friends would care to come too. You'll be more than welcome there." He said with a smile, hoping that she would agree to come. He honestly wasn't too too positive on bow the others would react with having some teen gypsies there two, but he was hoping that they'd all be too drunk to care.

A party? Devin smiled. She liked celebrations, but...she always found herself hanging around the edges or in the shadows. She wondered if Liam would accompany her the entire night, or if he'd want to be in the heart of the people. She was willing to give it a try, she decided. They'd reached her telling booth, and she took a seat on the cushion on the enclosed side. There was a cushioned seat on the other side for customers, or in this case, Liam.
"I would love to attend the party with you," she agreed. Reaching across the wooden table for his wrists, he held his palms upright in front of her. Looking into his striking blue eyes, a smile played on her lips. "Well, Liam, I'll make you a deal. Keep your coin this morning... but accompany me as a date to the party. How does that sound?" She asked. Generally, she would never have been so bold with a man. But Liam... he wouldn't be offended. She just knew somehow.

:::♦:::

"Aiden, what are our plans for the future?" A pause. "I mean I kind of really need to know cause there's something important I need to..."
Aiden was trying to think of an answer to the first question when suddenly she fell backwards off of the rock. He inhaled sharply and reached out to try to catch her arm before she fell to the ground with a thud, but she was already out of her reach. He jumped down from the boulder and helped stand her back up. "Are you okay? What happened?" He asked. She'd been balanced just fine and then...wham. She was falling to the ground.
Aiden didn't understand why her hand had instantly moved to her stomach. It was weird behavior, and he thought she had knocked the wind out of herself. That couldn't be right though. When she spoke again, her breathing was fine and she was asking him to go with her to find her sister. He tilted his head sideways in curiosity, but agreed. "I'll go with you. Which sister?" He asked, questioning whether they were following after Devin and the boy from town or waking one up from her camp.

(Sorry it's not very good haha.)

Keelin looked at Aiden.and couldn't help but giggle a little at the reason she fell. "Oh it's Papa, he doesn't like seeing me with me. It bothers him and I guess seeing him startled me and caused me to fall." It was the first time she'd laughed a little in a week and it felt good, then her mind went to other things again. "Come on, I need to talk to Devin." Shesaid as she grabbed his hand and led him towards town and Devin's stand. "She's the only one that knows and I can talk to about this." She whispered mostly to herself. She then pressed forward towards her stand and in a few minutes time saw it come into view.

________________

Liam made it look like he was really thinking about this proposition made even though he knew what his answer would be immediately. "Hmm accompany you as your date in return for a free palm reading?" He started and then smiled. "Deal, I shall be your date then." He said and then looked over to see the two from earlier approaching. "Oh should I invite them to the party too?" He asked as he returned to looking at Devin.

Devin grinned, watching him pretend to think about it. When he accepted, she laughed. "Excellent. I'm offended you had to think about it so long," she winked at him.

She turned over his right hand. Every other time, she'd been deciphering his left hand. The difference between palms was great when reading. His left hand was what Liam had been born with. His right hand was what he'd earned throughout his life. The right hand was much more personal, and when she had to explain she hoped it wouldn't bother him that she had chosen this one today.
Suddenly he looked away, and she wondered if he'd somehow known. That was, until he asked, "Oh, should I invite them to the party too?"

Devin peeked her head closer to Liam to look outside of her stand. She saw Keelin and Aiden walking their way. She wanted to pout a little, but knew that if her sister had gone after her it was probably something she thought to be important. She refrained from sighing, and leaned back to answer his question. It looked like the palm reading would have to wait for a little while anyway. "If you want to invite them, go ahead. It doesn't bother me any."

:::♦:::

Aiden smiled a little when she took his hand and began leading him down the dirt road. Knows about what, though? He wondered on that. Now that he thought about it, it did seem that Keelin was hiding something. What would she have to hide from him?

"That knows what?" he finally asked. He watched her carefully while they walked towards the stand, making sure he hadn't done the wrong thing by letting his curiosity get the better of him.

Keelin visibly stiffened as he asked what Devin knew about. Now she was definitely going to have to tell him soon no matter how much she was trying to put it off. “Um…I-I’ll talk to you about it later.” She said softly, hoping he wouldn’t stop her and try and make her tell him right then.

She looked towards her sisters booth and saw that man still there. She bit her lip and stopped, debating on going all the way over there and interrupting her. She didn’t quite want to since she knew that she was beginning to like that guy. They were close enough that they could hear them speak so she decided that she could wait until she was done. “Sorry, ignore us, but Devin I need to talk to you when you’re done if I can please?” She said as she turned to look back at Aiden. She was being so indecisive right now and she wasn’t sure why. She decided to just blame it on the baby.

“Come on, let’s leave them alone for now. I guess I can wait for a little bit to talk to her.” She said, but wasn’t sure where to go now. Maybe into town, she needed to get a few things anyways. “Want to head in to town?” She asked him.

-------------

Liam looked over to the two again when the girl spoke and a puzzled look came over his face. He looked back at Devin with the same look. “That was strange. Is that your sister?” He asked her. He never really asked if it was or wasn’t so he wasn’t positive on that. Might as well ask now right? That’s when he noticed that she had begun to examine his right hand rather than his left like she normally did. “Is there a different between which hand you examine?” He asked, now interested in the palm reading again. He had a short attention span sometimes which was being shown right now.

Seeing Keelin come up to her at 'work' surprised her, but it must not have been too important since she decided to wait until she and Liam were finished. She still looked as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, though. She hadn't told him yet. Devin shook her head and returned her thoughts to Liam.

Devin laughed at Liam's short attention span. But he was sharp; he'd noticed that she'd switched palms. She was hoping he wouldn't, but knew now she had to explain. She only hoped that he didn't jerk his hand back from her.
"Yes, that's Keelin. She's one of my sisters; the closest in age to me."
She sighed when she couldn't avoid the other topic any longer. She looked him in the eye from across the booth, still holding his hand up. "In palm reading, the lines in the left hand tell of what you are born with," she felt like she was answering a question she'd answered a thousand times before. It was the basics.
"The lines in the right... well, they're sort of like scars. They are there to tell about things that have happened to you since your birth, or the person you've grown to be." A bit of her passion for the art of palm reading showed through her voice. She bit her tongue and calmed herself, knowing she could go on for hours on the subject. "I hope you don't mind me reading this one?" She asked.

:::♦:::

Aiden found himself growing more confused as the minutes went by. One minute it was important enough to seek out her sister right away, the next it's not, and now they were heading into town? What was going on. He shrugged. "Yeah, we can go into town," he said, still holding her hand while they walked through the city gates and past the guards. "What's so important, Keelin? I feel like there's something you're not telling me," he admitted.

Devin bit her lip, she had to tell him. She just had to ignore.her fears and come out and say it. That's what she was having issues with though, overcoming the fear of how he'll react. "I..." She started and then let go ofhis hand as she walked further ahead from him while thinking how to say it. Tears began to roll down her face and she stopped walking. "I'm so scared to tell you, but I have to." She managed to say in a small, fightened voice. She turned to look at him. "Aiden, I'm with child." She managed to gasp out as she began to sob. She looked at the ground waiting for some sort of reaction, bracing herself for whatever it would be.

_______________

Liam nodded. "I see and is that the person your sister is seeing that was with her?" He asked curiously, he was always curious about things like that especially since.he was planning on inviting them to the party tonight. He was actually excited about the party tonight now since Devin agreed to come. He hoped she'd dance with him while they were there.

His attention was then turned back to the palm reading again. "Really? Well that's really interesting." He said as he thought about.it. Then he smiled. "I don't mind at all honestly." He was always up for trying new things.

Devin gently stretched out his palm straight once she'd been given permission. She was embarrassed that she was smiling so much around him, but it felt so natural. "Yes... they're together. In more ways than one," she mumbled the last part to herself. Devin found herself wondering if Keelin would even be interested in a party after today. Especially if she tells Aiden that he's soon to be a father. She shook the thoughts off of her mind, looking into the lines of his hands.
Suddenly she laughed to herself. "Your hands still faintly smell of fish. You really must have had a good fishing session."

:::♦:::

Aiden suddenly stopped as she walked forward. It was clear that she was upset. But he hadn't been prepared for this at all. Her small voice broke as she told him that she was carrying a child before she broke out in tears. Aiden was speechless.
With child... That can't be... He couldn't put the pieces together. He remembered his nights with her, and of course he knew the consequences that could happen, but he never thought that they really would. His head was spinning, and he'd broken out in a cold sweat. When he finally realized that he hadn't moved or said anything, he blinked and knew he had to comfort her somehow. But he felt numb. With heavy legs, he simply walked up to her and brought her in his arms.

He knew that if this was his child as he suspected that they had a long future ahead of them. He also knew that if it wasn't his child, then this would be the last hug he received from her while still loving her. But he knew. It was an instinct; a gut feeling. "It's mine?" He said it like a question, but it was a statement.

Keelin began to.sob a little harder as he didn't respond, she was officially freaking out. Then the next thing she knew she was pullrd into a hug. This helped her calm herself a little, even though.he had still yet to say anything. For all she knew he could be a hug goodbye, but she didn't quite want to think of that.

Finally he said something, a question of two words. "Well I'm certainly not a whore." Was her response, her crude sense of humor coming out. She then looked up at him, trying to see his facial expressions. "You can't tell anyone, Devin knows, but no one else must know for right now. Promise me you won't tell anyone else please?" She begged him, hoping he'd comply with her wishes.

_______________

Liam looked a little confused when she said that they were together in more ways that one. He didn't press further on it though because it really wasn't his place. Instead he laughed whdn she said his hands still smelt faintly of fish. "Unfortunately I always smell like fish no matter what and I've never gotten used to it honestly." He said with a humerous smile. It really wasn't a pleasant smell and he hated it, but he couldn't do anything about it.

Devin winked at him. "I don't mind. It could be worse," she said, looking on the positive side. Her mind kept going back to the idea of attending a party with him. Finally, she decided to ask questions about it. She started with, "When does the party begin?"

:::♦:::

Aiden snickered when Keelin assured him it was his, though he still wasn't sure what he was feeling. Numb was the only way he could put it. "I know you're not a whore. It wasn't really a question," he whispered into her hair. Suddenly she pulled back to look at him, and he hoped his face didn't express any emotion that was false. He was asked to keep it a secret. His child, a secret. In normal circumstances where he was married and excited about it, he would have told the whole town! But he knew that this was different. The two of them were kids. Unmarried kids at that.
"I won't tell a soul," he finally agreed. "How long have you known?" He asked. Though he was gone for the past week, he couldn't help but wonder if she'd hidden it from him during their last encounter.

"Thank you." Keelin said as she kissed his cheek. She finally managed to calm herself some and she wiped the tears off her face. "Are you doing okay?" She asked him in almost a whisper. She wanted to honestly know what he was thinking about this. She was still slightly freaking out about that.

_______________


"Good to know, good to know." Liam said with a small laugh. He sat quiet for a few minutes and looked around him, thinking about random things when Devin spoke again. "Oh it starts at sundown. I'll meet you back here if you want so I can bring you to where it's at?" He asked with a small smile.

Devin smiled, "I'd like that."
While Devin took the time to examine his palm, she pointed out what the different lengths and shapes of the lines mean. She'd never been so genuinely interested before. Before she knew it, she'd gone over nearly every crease of his hand. Her mind went back to her sister, who she vaguely heard had brought Aiden into town. She knew that she should try to track her down to see what she'd needed, but she didn't know where in the town she would go.

:::♦:::

Aiden nodded. He wasn't sure what to say. This wasn't how he expected to spend his morning, but he couldn't control something like this. Well, he thought, he could have, but he didn't. "What should we do?" Aiden knew it was custom for a mother to raise her child, but it was his child as well. Though he knew nothing about them, he wanted a role in his or her life too. "Fake a marriage? Run away, keep it hidden? It doesn't seem like it but we do have options..."

(Sorry, not my best post D: I just woke up but I wanted to get something in.)

(Hey no worries, mine haven't been that great either haha.)

Keelin sighed and shook her head. They couldn't do those things, their familes would find out one way or another. There had to be some other way to do it. One thing she feared was if their families found out then there'd be a full blown family feud which wouldn't be good at all. "We can't run away. It would break bot Mama's and Papa's hearts and I can't do that to them." She said with a sigh as she thought anout it. "But what do you mean by faking a marriage?" She asked him. She thought of another plan that she didn't like the thoughts of, but it may be their safest plan. She decided to wait for him to answer her question before she brought it up.

__________________

Liam listened intently to her explaining things, enjoying the time he was spending with her. He then realized how long he'd been gone and knew his brother was probably going to be upset with him once he got back. "Unfortunately, Devin, I need to get back to my brother. Were you olanning on going into town to find your sister? If so I could walk with you?" He offered with a smile, trying to get thsm more time together.

Devin nodded. "That would be great. I'm sorry I kept you so long," she said, trying to force back any redness that may have come to her cheeks. She loved his company, but perhaps she'd been asking for too much of it. But considering he offered to walk her into town and seemed excited about the party tonight, she supposed he couldn't have minded too much.
"You and your brother seem to have a close relationship. Is that so?" She asked, stepping from the booth with Liam and making her way for the main road.

:::♦:::

Aiden silently agreed with her; he didn't want to run away. Not only would his parents fear that he had died, but it wasn't right to do to her folks either. "Well I suppose it would be a real marriage... but we could hold an actual celebration when we're truly ready. If we're ever ready. I could put a ring on your finger and we could hold a public announcement, and in the meantime, we could focus our attention on the child."
Even as he spoke though, he could see it on her face that she had something else in mind. He tried to read her expression but couldn't find anything. He had to ask. "What's on your mind?" He questioned, holding eye contact with her. If there was any time to be honest with him, it would be now.

Keelin nodded at his suggustion. It could work, but the next question was did he really ever want to marry her. She sighed as she thought how her idea, though, might be the better rout. "Well I ws just thinking about how my parents really want me to marry Gavin, the guy I told you about awhile ago. Well I could just tell my parents I'm ready to be married now, get married to him, and then no one has to know anything. The child would still have a father, you'd be free to live your life as you please and marry whoever, everyone ends up happy." She said, though the very last thing she said was a lie. She definitely wouldn't be happy without him, but she would live. "You wouldn't have to worry about the child, you could forget it ever happened." She said as she turned away from him, trying to hide the fact that she was trying to supress tears.

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Liam coukdn't help but laugh a little. "Oh don't worry about keeping me for that long. I'd much rather be here with you than gutting and selling fish." He said as he stood up. He held his arm out so she could take hold of it as they walked. He thought a littke bit about her next question. "Yeah I suppose you can say that. I mean we have ever since we were little looked out for one another and we both understand eachother, so yeah I guess we are pretty close." He said with a small smile. "And what about you and your sister? You guys seem pretty close too." He asked as he looked at her.

Devin eagerly took his arm, happy to have a place at his side. She didn't know if they were "exclusive" or not, but it made her feel like they were and she liked it. She listened to the words he spoke and found herself enjoying the sound of his voice, something she'd never really noticed she liked before. "My sister and I are very close. I'm closer to her than my other siblings. I used to be the closest with my older brother, but alas he moved out to start a family of his own. My other siblings are just too young to really get along with all of the time, but Keelin's mature for her age."
And that's a good thing, given the situation she's in... Devin found herself thinking. They'd reached the cobblestone main road of the town. She wanted to tell Liam about Keelin's pregnancy; she didn't like hiding things from him, even if he didn't know she was. But she knew that for now, her relationship with Keelin was more important than a relationship with a man no one in her family would approve of... right?

:::♦:::

A mix of anger and jealousy rose in Aiden as she spoke of Gavin. Aiden, unlike her parents, didn't like Gavin at all. From what he'd seen, he treated women as objects, prizes almost. If this was the way that Keelin wanted to handle this, Aiden wanted to knock some sense into the boy first. And then knowing that Keelin would have to lay with Gavin as soon as she could to hide the fact that the baby wasn't Gavin's made him even more tense with anger. No, he didn't like this plan at all. He refused to see someone he cared so deeply for in such an unequal relationship raising his offspring. It simply wasn't right.

Aiden didn't stop her from turning away, and literally bit his tongue to keep him from saying nasty things. Keelin was only trying to do the best she could for herself and the child, and Aiden recognized this. He had to keep his composure. "If that's what you think is best, to raise my child with a man you don't love, then do so. But know that if you choose to be with him, I'm not going anywhere. I want to raise my child like a real father would. Like Gavin never could."

Silent tears rolled down Keelin's face as she continued to stay facing away from him. She didn't want to marry Gavin at all, ever. He was right, she didn't love him at all. He was a selfish man that really only cared for himself and only wanted a wife so he could have someone to clean and cook for him. If she married him she wouldn't be able to do what she loved anymore, she wouldn't be able to dance and sing. She knew that Aiden, especially since he was a performer too, would probably let her continue doing those things and she longed for that. She would never be willing to give up her music and dancing, not in a million years.

Finally, after what seemed forever but was truly only a few minutes, she turned around to face Aiden and spoke. "Do you love me Aiden?" She started as she looked up at him, some tears still running down her face. "Be honest now, do you really love me or am I just something that you were just having fun with and didn't plan to go anywhere with it?" She asked him, wanting to know the absolute truth that way she could make her decision.

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Liam listened as she spoke and wondered how many siblings she truly had. He'd never asked so he wasn't sure, but he knew that she had at least more than three. "That's good, I think it's nice to be really close to at least one of your siblings. I could kind of tell that your sister is rather mature even though I haven't really met her. That should take her far in life. I'm told I'm mature for my age, but I honestly don't really think so. I look at others and see how much more mature they act than me and I envy them sometimes. Like you, you seem to be way more mature than I am and I envy you for that." He said as he looked at her with a smile. There were a few people watching them as they came into town, some where whispering to each other, but Liam could care less. He figured they all needed to mind their own business anyways.

Devin shook her head. "I still have some childish ways embedded in me, have no doubts about that," she assured, but she returned the smile. Though Devin felt more comfortable with Liam than nearly anyone she's ever met, she grew uncomfortable under the stares of the strangers. The selfish side of her wondered if this would affect her business, but she quickly shook off the thought and told herself, I wouldn't care even if it did. Afterall, Liam meant more than her business at just one city. There were four or five other cities she could work at, and maybe someday Liam would be traveling to them with her.
The thought made her stumble a step before she regained her consistent walk. Why was she thinking so far ahead? Devin decided that it was time she deciphered just how much she cared for this man. What was he worth to her? Was he worth the family trouble the two of them would cause, should they someday marry? But Devin kept telling herself yes before she had the time to think it through. She sighed inwardly. This was what she meant about acting like a child; she hadn't even gone through the pro's and con's and she knew she wanted Liam at her side. Even if that meant all of the scowls on the faces of strangers around them.
"These townsfolk... they aren't very accepting, are they?"

:::♦:::

Aiden watched a thin stream of tears run down from each of Keelin's eyes, and Aiden found himself swallowing past a lump in his throat as well. Truth is, the idea of her marrying such a lowly man infuriated him, and it made him upset that she'd even come up with the idea.
She asked if he loved her. "Yes" came to his mind, but as she continued, he knew that she didn't want a one-answer half-truth. He would tell her exactly how he felt. Without honesty, there would be no reason to be around her.

"You were... a fun time. I didn't plan to turn my life... our lives, into this. But I got to know you, and I couldn't stop thinking about you, and I wanted to spend all my time with you. I don't know when, or even how, but during our visits I fell in love with you." He swallowed again, and he wondered if it was audible through the clogged feeling of his throat. He spoke more confidently now, less vulnerably: "I got us into this mess, and I would find us a way out. But... do what you think is best for you and the child. I want you to be happy."

Aiden knew that ultimately, it was her choice. They weren't married, he wasn't the "dominant" person in the relationship. On unmarried ground, they were equals. But it wasn't him that was carrying the child. Aiden knew that if Keelin chose to bring Gavin into this mess, it may be for the better. But Aiden would never be happy with her decision.

Keelin felt her stomach churn and she felt like she needed to throw up again, whether it was from the baby or not she did not know. She bit her lip trying to figure out what to do and she began to look around her. That's when she noticed people were now staring at them. She had totally firgotten that they were in town and discussing this. This only made her feel even more sick and she needed to sit somewhere. "Come Aiden, we need to sit and talk about this somewhere." Is all she said for the time being and she grabbed his hand. She was heading to the pub that way they could be surrounded by people who were too drunk to care about them, she could sit down, and Aiden could have a drink if he wished. She would maybe even have a drink too, not knowing that it wouldn't be good for the baby.

Once they got there she lead him over to a corner and sat down. She looked around and saw there was quite a few people in there even though it was the beginning of the day. She then focused on Aiden. "Alright Aiden the only reason I thought if what I did is because I love you more than you know and if I do as I said you could be free of the worry of this. I'm giving you a chance to leave this and continue on with your life." She started and kept the tears in, she had to be strong while saying this and frankly she was tired of crying. She then continued. "I won't be happy with that plan, but that does not matter. Do not worry if I will be happy or not because that does not matter. What will make me happy is knowing you are happy and can continue on with your life as you please." She said, showing confidence on her face, but inside her heart was breaking. She then leaned closer to him and looked him straight in the eye. "I know you don't like that plan so be honest and tell me what you would like to do because I will do what will make you happy?" She said and gave him a soft, reassuring smile.

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"Sure." Liam said with a small laugh as he shook his head. He knew she was probably right, but she was definitely more mature than most girls their age. A lot of girls his age strived for attention from guys and did so foolishly. They acted like they were stupid and did things that were ridiculous like that and he didn't care for them. Devin awas definitely different though and he liked that about her.

Her next question made him think a little. "No...they're not unfortunately." Was all he said as he looked at the people, giving some of them glares. He thought that they all should mind their own business and not murmur about sut petty little things.

Liam frowned when he realised that they would be having to part ways soon. He didn't want to leave her, but at this point he was going to be in big trouble by his brother. "Devin I need to go and find my brother now, see you tonight?" He said while giving her a look and a small sad smile.