***
Guests started arriving around noon. People laughed, talked, and took pictures.
Stephanie walked in last, wearing white, smiling as if she’d already won.
She came over and kissed me on the cheek.
“Everything looks amazing,” she said.
I nodded.
“It will be.”
***
An hour later, everyone gathered around the cake, phones out, recording.
I picked up the mic and the screen remote.
“Before we find out if it’s a boy or a girl, there’s something else everyone deserves to see.”
Guests started arriving around noon.
The room quieted. Behind Stephanie, the projector screen lit up.
She turned slightly, confused at first, and then the color drained from her face so fast it was as if someone had flipped a switch.
The screen showed a timeline.
“I need you all to understand something first,” I said into the mic, my voice steady.
Stephanie let out a short, uneasy laugh. “What is this?”
I didn’t look at her.
She turned slightly, confused at first.
“I was 20 when I discovered I had a genetic condition that could be passed on to my children and ruin their lives. So, I had a procedure done to ensure I couldn’t have them at all.”
A ripple moved through the room.
Her mother frowned while her father shifted his weight. My parents just stared.
Stephanie turned toward me, her voice low and tight. “Why are you saying these things?”
I kept going.
