Since she was a little girl, Stephanie had always thought being pregnant was the pinnacle of love. The pinnacle of marriage. There was nothing that represented either of those better. Your husband would be drawn to you due to the simple fact that, hey, you were carrying around his baby. You'd have a tiny, barely showing baby bump and all those cravings and shit people always grumbled about was either an urban legend or, if it had to exist, then it was certainly quirky and attractive.

As with most things in life, dreams of children rarely reflect reality.

She wasn't attractive or sexy, she felt gross and tired and that barely showing bump was huge and she worried frequently that Paul didn't even like her anymore because how could he? When she didn't like her? And there was nothing quirky or cute about craving salt constantly. At all. Or blowing up like a balloon. She'd always suffered from body issues, a lot of things that had been laid to rest came simmering back to the surface and she just felt, constantly, like a monster.

This all wouldn't have been the end of the world though were it not for her husband's new story line up at work. New being relative, really, as he'd been through all of this before.

In the final two months of her pregnancy, he began another run with Shawn in some sort of neo-DX and it went...well enough. Crass, really, in some ways, as a lot had changed in the short amount of years since it's inception, but he enjoyed himself at least. Thoroughly.

That was what was important right?

Maybe.

A lot of the content that DX was built around not only felt a bit outdated after less than a decade of being away, but also was built on things that a married man shouldn't be envisioned doing. Which a married man wasn't. Because Hunter wasn't.

Unfortunately, Paul was.

"It's just an act," Stephanie replied any time he muttered something to her of the same sentiment. "I'm not stupid."

And she wasn't. Her husband wasn't screwing around on her. For a lot of reason. A lot of very obvious reasons. For one, he gave no notions of doing so. For two, it would be completely stupid to be hooking up with anyone at work as she would eventually find out(though, considering their original circumstance, perhaps this had little to do with anything). Most importantly though, he wasn't sneaking around or doing anything shady at all that would indicate such a thing.

But that didn't mean that she was wholly comfortable with the situation.

Because yes, deep down, she knew it was just an act and some stupid shit just like all the other stupid shit they had to do for their stupid as shit company. His identity as a character was built to appeal to the lowest form of entertainment and he nailed it perfectly. Jacked up guys and attractive women.

It just kind of sucked that...she wasn't an attractive woman anymore.

In the short period of time that her pregnancy drew to a close, this hit her worse in certain moments than it did others. About two weeks out from her due date, she found herself feeling that low as she laid in bed one night. She wasn't waiting up for him, not really, as he'd stumble in some time around twelve after a few days on the road while she hung back. He'd called before to say he'd be a little late, as some guys wanted to go out, but he asked her, really, for permission and what would she look like? Saying no?

When he tumbled in some time around midnight, it was with as minimal noise as possible. Until he got to their bedroom that is. Because her own personal sentry was standing guard as he always did, really, over his mother, but even more so since she'd fallen pregnant. Bluto, their Mastiff, was very protective over her.

"Shuddup, ya mutt."

Even when it came to his master.

Stephanie meant that much to him.

Bluto did jump down off the bed, after Paul ordered him to, but only went to sleep on the floor in front of it, not wanting to leave his mother alone. The man only dropped his pants though and pulled his shirt over his head before taking the canine's spot. Even though she was only giving him her back, Paul knew immediately his wife wasn't truly sleeping.

"I wake you?" he asked as he didn't get under the covers with her (too hot for that), but did cuddle up to her back some. "Stephie?"

When he got a mutter in response, he frowned and kept going.

"You alright? Baby?" Worried now, he pushed up some, so he could stare donw at her. "Are you sick? Or- Oh, shit, do you think it's time-"

"Leave me alone."

"Stephie-"

"I said-"

"Are you crying?"

She sniffled as she replied, "No."

"Steph."

"It's nothing." She sniffled longer that time as he fell back to the bed, still snuggled to her back. "I'm just emotional. That's all."

"Well...I can't sleep if you're crying."

"I'm not crying."

"Stephanie-"

"Tomorrow you have to head out for-"

"I don't care. Fuck sleep. What's wrong?" Then he frowned. "Is it your dad? Fuck Vince. Your brother? Fuck him too. Now, I won't say fuck your mother because my own mother raised me very-"

"It's you."

That made him frown.

"What did I do?" Other than, in his own mind, be a very great husband. No specifications on the reasoning for such a title. He just felt, personally, as if his accolades spoke for themselves. "Huh?"

"Noth-"

"I'm not going to just leave you alone, you know. Especially not now."

She took his this ragged breath too before retorting, "It's just that I'm ugly and you're not and that's not fair because I'm the only one out of the two of us that has to get fat and gross for the baby and I hate it."

He made a face. Then a different one.

Then, softly, he said, "I think you're hot."

"Shut up."

"I do."

"Paul-"

"You're damn sexy to me."

"You're not helping."

"Why not?"

"Because it's not about you."

Frowning, he asked, "Then who are you so afraid of not being attractive to? Huh? I'm telling you right now that I'd love to bone ya, belly and all. What more could you want?"

A lot, actually, but it was late and she didn't feel like going into the whole spiel.

"It's about me, stupid," she complained as she glared over her shoulder at him. If she wasn't in the perfect position right then (which was hell to find in her current state) she might have rolled over to face him. "It's about what I feel. Not you or some other guy. Me."

He took a moment there, just staring at her, uncertain of where to go to next. Slowly, he asked, "What can I do to make you feel better then?"

"Nothing. Because it has nothing to do with you. That's why I asked you to leave me alone."

"You know I can't do that."

"Well, you should."

"Steph-"

"I'm not even crying anymore, so-"

"Well, now you sound all worked up about it."

She was. But she was also close to going back to crying. Depending how long he pushed it, she might just do some crying while yelling.

"Because," she complained, "I said I don't want to talk about it and you keep-"

"You're pregnant, Steph. So what? You're not going to be as attractive as non-pregnant women. There. Is that what you want to hear?"

No.

Absolutely not.

When she didn't answer, he only sighed some, wrapping an arm around her.

"And I'm not looking too hot, recently, I feel."

"Shut up, Paul."

"I'm not. Feel real flabby."

"You're on my nerves."

"I ate really bad this week too. Other women wouldn't even want me."

"It's not about-"

"Me. I know. I'm just saying."

She rolled her eyes though she did move to fold her hand over the one he had resting on her stomach.

"And they do. Women. They want you."

"Do not."

"How do you know? Huh?"

He took a deep breath, thinking, before saying, "I used to have to have a pole, you know."

"You what?"

"A ten foot pole. Knock 'em all away from me. Gone down to an eight footer. Sad day."

"What would the length of the pole have to do with-"

"Don't ruin my jokes, babe. It doesn't help your attractiveness at all."

"You're an ass."

But she didn't resist as he nuzzled his head against her neck. Pressing a kiss there, he whispered, "You don't really think that I'd ever be with someone else, do you?"

"I told you that it's not about-"

"Do you?"

"No."

"Good." His slow exhale tickled her ear. "Good."

"But I hate it sometimes," she went on. "That's all. I'm tired of this. Of feeling like this. And don't tell me that it's almost over."

Good thing she said something, because that's exactly what he was planning on saying.

"There's so many other women that look, you know, so stunning and regal when they're pregnant and I look-"

"You look real, Steph."

"I look hideous."

"You look like my wife. Would Triple H have an ugly wife?"

"I don't know. I heard he's getting flabby."

He smiled then, finally, and though she didn't return it, he knew she was feeling at least a bit better.

"I know it won't make you feel any better, baby, but I love you. And Bluto loves you. And we're so glad that you're going through all this for us, so that we get a new family member. I couldn't do it. Feeling the way you do. Bluto probably could, because he's a lazy sack of shit-"

"Don't say that."

He exhaled heavily again and she shivered in the early July heat.

"Just wait until you have the baby, huh?" He whistled. "Then you get to higher one of those rich people personal trainers, right? And a new nutritionist. And all that shit. Be super slim. Before the baby's even a year old. And people can go, "Damn, look at her. You go, Steph. Leave your flabby husband. You can land a man." And you can be all, "No way. He stuck by me and loved me and he's just the greatest husband ever, don't ask for anymore examples because he doesn't have to explain himself.""

Stephanie blinked. Then she patted the hand beneath hers. "Yeah, babe. Can't wait for that."

"You're sacrificing for our baby, Stephie." Her neck got another kiss. "And there's nothing hotter than that."

There was. There were a lot of things, actually. Things that got other women the ability to be basically props for the stupid shit their show did day in and day out. Things that she wouldn't have, she felt, ever again, even after the baby was born. Things that would make her jealous and envious and feel inadequate.

Butt no one with, or without, those things, other than her, ever got to feel her husband's embrace as he gently rubbed her stomach and muttered stuff, softly, as they fell asleep together in their, and only their, bed.

Sometimes there were trade offs in life. And, even though when she was feeling real low, she felt like she was getting the raw end of the deal, she always came to her senses eventually.

"Remember this, babe," he yawned in her ear at one point. "When you get that hot new post-baby body, okay? I didn't turn my back on you. Don't do it to me."

"Shut up and go to sleep."

He grinned and knew it wasn't far off anyways, but only because she was okay. Always only if she was okay.

This was a request for something Steph said, apparently, during an interview or something? I can't remember. About her being self-conscious during her pregnancy during DX's run. The weird thing to me was that Steph would have only been pregnant for two more months during their run, so I assume the self-consciousness bled over into post-pregnancy stuff as well (I mean, obviously), but just pregnancy was asked for. Ask and receive and all that.

Requests are always open. Working through them as diligently as I can claim.