Story continued from chapter one.

Two days later she sat beside Tony on the first pew in a crowded church in downtown Chicago. Both of her hands covered Tony's left one while he had the other arm around his mother. Alex and Anna were on the other side of Rena, jaws squared with the same stoniness Tony had adopted as soon as he exited the bed that morning.

The previous night had been difficult; the wake had zapped everyone's energy and having even more people over had worn thin. Tony had gotten up three or four times during the night, coming back each time sniffling and pressing his damp cheek against her bare shoulder. He'd pretended to be asleep when she rolled over to talk to him, but instead of calling him on it, she'd simply kissed his face and settled more firmly against him.

The service concluded solemnly, and their row stood. She knew that they were going to say another goodbye and squeezed Tony's hand tightly. She'd wait there. His answering press was shaky and his fingers fell away reluctantly as he led his mother up the narrow aisle and to the casket. Michelle lowered her head, giving them all some privacy. Tony returned some time later, wiping his reddened eyes on his handkerchief. She held out her hand and clasped his fingers again. Together they walked from the church, moving to the limo and silently sliding inside. Tony's mother, brother, and sister followed each accepting Michelle's quiet condolences with a nod and a soft thank you.

The graveside service was significantly less crowded, acting as a quiet, family affair. Michelle stayed by Tony's side, arm wrapped supportively around him. Anna was on his other side, clinging to his hand while their mother leaned on Alex this time.

Michelle glanced around, taking in the bowed heads of Tony's aunts and uncles. She liked them all; even the ones Anna proclaimed to be weird were friendly, and Michelle found herself even sadder that she'd never gotten to meet the man they were all there to celebrate. Tony had said much the same the night before after she'd been treated to a tale from Tony's childhood. Everyone involved had easily agreed that Aunt Melinda's reenactment was sub-par compared to Nick Almeida's.

Tony's hand touched her shoulder, squeezing lightly. She felt his lips touch her temple and she sniffed. Tony kissed her temple again.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

She nodded, pushing her face into his shoulder to stifle her emotions. Tony just held her tighter. A few minutes later, he gave her shoulders another squeeze, signaling that it was time to go. She nodded, letting him lead her away from the group. Once there was distance between them and the others, they stopped and he cupped her face. His thumbs lightly caressed her cheeks.

"I love you," he whispered, kissing her lightly. She gave him a watery smile and returned his affection.

"I love you, too."

"C'mon, let's take a walk."

She looked back to where the limo was waiting. Tony's mom was still leaning on Alex, but she smiled tightly at them. Michelle flushed and looked back at Tony.

He waved the others on. "We'll take a cab," he called.

Satisfied, she tangled their fingers and fell in step beside him.

She let him lead her around, weaving between plots in the quiet, tree lined cemetery. It was strangely peaceful, separate from the noise and the cars outside the walls, and as they walked, Michelle felt him relax beside her.

"What can I do?" she asked quietly, trying not to disturb the calm too much.

Tony's lips turned upwards and he shook his head. "You're doing more than enough."

She didn't feel that way, especially given the night before, but she nodded.

Tony touched her chin. "I mean it. I wouldn't have been able to keep it together without you." To emphasize his point, he shower her his hand, palm up. He wasn't shaking anymore. Smiling slightly, she took hold of both of his hands, pulling him closer and kissing his mouth firmly.

She felt him smile against her lips and pulled away.

"What?"

"I got my first kiss right here, you know."

Michelle looked around; taking in the serene way the breeze ruffled the leaves of the trees. Returning her attention to him, she disentangled one hand and ran her fingers through his hair.

"I'm not even sure I want to know why." She shook her head, causing Tony to grin.

"We were just playing around. You know that game where you find someone who died the day you were born? I won, it was my prize."

Michelle nodded. "Should I be jealous?"

He shrugged, jiggling their hands quickly. "Are you?"

She chewed one corner of her lip, smiling teasingly. "Maybe."

Tony's hands landed on her hips, sliding against her satin skirt. His hands felt warm through her clothes.

"Don't be. Her braces cut my lip."

"How old were you?" she snickered.

"Eight or nine," he answered. "She was twelve."

Michelle laughed. "An older woman, I'm impressed."

He nodded. "I had a thing about dating girls my own age for a while."

"Still do, honey," she reminded helpfully. She was close to five years his junior, and she loved to remind him of that. He groused a little and tugged her closer. Just to let her know he was kidding, he kissed her softly and ran his hand up her back and underneath her hair, squeezing her neck.

"You ready to head back?"

She nodded, reaching for his hand again, letting him lead her back to the cemetery gate and hail a cab.

Tony disappeared after changing out of his dress clothes, leaving her with his siblings as they argued over the menu for the evening meal – more precisely what type of potatoes to have. Michelle was full enough from their buffet lunch that she was content to curl up in a chair and observe. She dozed off sometime during the mashed vs. French argument, and woke sometime later to find Tony smiling down at her. Somehow he'd squished into the armchair beside her without waking her up.

Blinking, she smiled sleepily and touched his cheek.

"You came back."

He pecked her mouth lightly and nodded like it was the most normal thing in the world for them to be doing different things in his parents' home.

"Mom wanted to talk to me about some things."

She would have been concerned, if not for the fact that the smile didn't fade from his face. It might have dimmed, but it didn't go anywhere.

"Everything okay?"

Tony nodded, squirming in the chair and rearranging their limbs so that she was mostly draped across his lap. "What're you doing tonight?" he asked conversationally, like he didn't know what she had planned.

She shrugged. "Besides apparently eating an assortment of potatoes and not much else? Nothing."

He snorted. "Well as long as you aren't looking forward to that, come on. We're going out." He stood, lifting her onto her feet as well. She felt her cheeks flush when he started looking her over, oblivious to the fact that anyone could walk into the room at any time.

"You need to change clothes first."

She followed his gaze, plucking at her blouse. "What's wrong with this?"

Tony shook his head, leading her by the shoulders up to their room where he closed the door and moved to the middle drawer in the dresser.

"Nothing's wrong with it," he promised, rooting around and ahah-ing victoriously. He straightened up, blue and white pin stripes in his hands. "This is just better for where we're going."

She snickered, shaking her head and realizing that he'd changed again while she was asleep. Now he was wearing something she knew he hadn't packed. Trust the Almeidas to have spare Cubs apparel lying around.

He dressed her before she could really mount an argument, concluding his antics by cupping the back of her head and kissing her softly.

"There."

"Do I conform to dress code now?" she asked dryly.

"You do."

"Ready then?" she asked before she decided to lock the door and amend the dress code just a little for them both.

Tony nodded, ushering her back downstairs, and into the living room. Alex and Anna were back on the couch, this time reading through recipe books. To her embarrassment, they made catcalls about her wearing Tony's favorite brand of lingerie, until their mother cleared her throat. Rena beckoned Tony and Michelle into the kitchen, holding out two tickets with an indulgent, if not dimmed, smile.

"Have fun you two." She kissed them both. "Keep him in line, Michelle. And don't let him cry when it's time to go."

Michelle grinned, letting Tony drag her out of the house.

"My dad has, had, season tickets. Wednesdays were his and Mom's standing date at Wrigley," Tony explained as he backed out of the driveway, answering her question before she could ask. "She offered them to us for tonight. She just can't go."

Michelle nodded. "Remind me to thank her when we get back."

Tony's head bob was relatively non committal and she glanced his way.

"So are you going to show me around when we get there?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

"You sure? You don't sound too enthused."

Tony shot her a glare and she recognized her error, apologizing softly. Her hand covered his.

"This is going to be weird, isn't it?" she murmured. "Using your dad's tickets?"

After a second, Tony nodded and she squeezed his fingers.

"Can I make a suggestion, then?" she asked, having the stirrings of an idea but not really knowing how receptive he'd be to it.

"You don't want to go?" he assumed immediately. She wasn't known to be the biggest fan of baseball, but for him she tolerated the near submersion in the sport.

She shook her head. "I do, I do. It'll be fun, and we've been talking about doing this for a while. I just was thinking maybe we could find different seats."

"Scalp some tickets you mean?"

She shrugged. "Or trade with someone else if that's possible."

He seemed rightfully hesitant, but she rubbed the top of his hand and he nodded.

"Okay, I trust ya. We'll do that."

Satisfied, she lifted his hand to her lips and kissed one of his knuckles.

"So Wednesdays were your mom and dad's baseball date nights. When did you go?"

"Weekends usually. Some Fridays if the games were at the right time for us to get out of school and Dad to get off work. Since he only had two, sometimes three tickets, we had to rotate who got to go when."

"Even Anna?"

Tony laughed. "Baby, we were bringing her before she could sit up. Her first words were splitter and home run."

"Yeah yeah. You Almeidas and your baseball. When I was growing up we actually played our sports."

He rolled his eyes, taking the bait in their familiar argument. "Whatever, Michelle. Tee ball doesn't count."

"Bite me, Tony. I played soccer. Danny was the one who played tee ball."

"Yeah, your brother would."

Michelle lightly slapped his arm. "Hey."

As he slowed to a stop at a red light, he snuck a glance at her. Seconds later he leaned over and kissed her softly. It was his usual half-hearted apology for his half-serious insulting of her brother. There really was no love lost between the two; Tony thought Danny treated her like crap, and Danny still thought Tony was just using her like Carrie had used him.

The light turned green and she chuckled, shoving him back onto his side of the car.

"I don't wanna be late to my first Cubs game," she drawled by way of explanation.

"First of many," he added, giving her hand a squeeze.

Now wasn't really the time to have the big relationship discussion, but she did give him a nod of confirmation. She wanted to be with him for a long time to come, and he obviously felt the same.

"Alright, tell me something." She changed the subject again, turning to face him.

"Yeah?"

She smirked, playing dumb. "Why do you guys hate the White Sox so much?"

Tony scowled. "I'm gonna pretend you didn't just ask that. Otherwise I might need to put ya outta the car."

"You do that and I'm telling your mom," she taunted.

"She'll be on my side when I tell her why I did it," he retorted. "Mom hates the Sox more than the rest of us combined."

Michelle snorted. "Then I guess I retract the question."

The rest of the week passed quickly as they split their time between helping Tony's mom and exploring the city. Tony proved to be a fantastic tour guide - a byproduct of one too many days of school skipped – and when they ran out of places for him to show her, they tackled a few of the sights even Tony had never seen.

Alex only stayed for another day after the funeral. He'd recently started a new job and he couldn't afford to take more than a couple of days off. Anna was able to arrange for a few weeks off from work, so they got to spend the rest of their time with her as well. Michelle knew Tony had worried about having to leave his mom so soon, but his worry lessened after Anna announced she was staying.

For her part, Michelle was trying to keep an eye on Tony without making a big deal about it. She knew the strains of being someone's emotional crutch and wanted to help keep him from that stress. So far he seemed to be okay; he was laughing and smiling and the shadows were mostly gone from his eyes.

"You ready?"

Michelle turned, expecting a greeting like that to have come from Tony. Instead, his mother was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over her chest. Michelle smiled, squeezing the worn teddy bear she'd been clutching since Tony waggled it in her face and ordered her to take care of it. Rena smiled back, crossing the room and reaching out to touch the bear. Michelle relinquished it to Tony's mother, who regarded it with a fond smile.

"He once tried to throw him away. We were on a trip with my brother and his family. My nephew gave him a hard time about it and on the day we left Tony announced that he wasn't a baby and wouldn't sleep with a toy anymore. We were so busy that we didn't notice him throwing it on the top of the garbage." Mrs. Almeida stroked the bear's matted fur gently. "Alex was the only one who knew what he'd done until we were halfway home and Tony needed a nap and he just couldn't sleep without his bear. His father turned the car around without a word and drove all the way back. Maid service had picked it up and taken it to the front desk. Tony fell asleep as soon as he had him back."

Rena sniffed, holding the bear to her for just a few seconds before handing it back to Michelle. She patted its head and cuddled it close again.

"My brother had thrown out all of his stuffed toys by the time he was ten. I can't believe Tony kept it," she murmured.

"I told him once he should keep things like this for when he has his own family. Tony's getting sentimental in his old age," Rena quipped.

Michelle flushed; the thought of having a family with Tony was simultaneously exciting and terrifying.

Rena laughed at the look on her face. "Relax, Michelle. I'm not begging for grandchildren yet."

Michelle coughed, jumping when Tony groaned.

"Jeez, Ma. You gonna let us get married first?"

His hand connected with her back, and he rubbed the shock out of her while his mother just laughed. Clearly she enjoyed toying with them.

"I guess I can do that."

Tony shook his head, rolling his eyes. "We should get outta here. Before she calls up the minister tonight. I know her, she's not kidding."

"What time's our flight?" she asked, gathering the smallest of her bags. Tony had already packed their larger suitcases into the car, anticipating their getting on a mid-afternoon flight. It was mid-evening now and they were hoping to get on the last flight of the night. They both had to be at work in the morning.

"Nine fifteen," Tony answered, leading her out of the room and down the stairs. Tony's mom followed silently, and a look back showed Michelle that she'd picked up the bear again.

Out by the car, Mrs. Almeida handed the bear to Michelle, pressing the nearly flat toy into her hand, despite Michelle's protests.

"Rena, I can't take this. It's something that should stay here."

Tony's mom shook her head. "I want to make sure that whatever happens, the things that should be saved are. Take it. Put it on Tony's bed when he's not looking."

Michelle nodded, moving the bear under one arm and hugging Rena tightly. She really liked Tony's mom.

"We'll see each other soon," Rena assured, kissing Michelle's cheek gently. "Take care of Tony?"

Michelle nodded, brushing her fingers under her eyes. She hated goodbyes. "I will."

Rena smiled, pushing Michelle's hair back behind her ear. "I know you will, honey. Have a safe trip."

They exchanged another hug before Rena moved to Tony's side. He'd been trying to coax a smile out of his little sister before enveloping her in a bear hug and lifting Anna off her feet. Once Tony let her go, Anna moved around the car to Michelle.

"So, you gonna tell anyone about us?" she teased.

Michelle laughed. "Course not; I think I'm going to stick around."

Anna smiled. "Good." They wrapped their arms around one another, chuckling. They weren't best friends after just a week, but Michelle liked Anna; she seemed reserved at first, but once she opened up she was quirky and fun. Really, she was just the type of sister Michelle had always wanted.

"Call us if you need anything," Michelle murmured, knowing that things would get harder once she and Tony weren't there to distract. "Even if it's just to talk."

Anna nodded. "Thanks."

They separated just in time to see Rena handing her son something. Tony's hand trembled slightly, but he took it and gripped his mother tightly. Rena kissed his cheek gently and shoved him away.

"You're going to be late. Call when you get in, don't worry about the time."

Tony nodded. "I will."

Rena turned to Michelle. "Call when you get in? He'll forget."

Michelle nodded, smothering a giggle. "I will."

Tony feigned offense and waved a hand in the direction of the car. "Let's go."

Michelle snickered, squeezing Anna's shoulders gently before pulling away. "Yes, dear."

"Don't 'yes, dear' me, Michelle," he retorted as they slid into the car.

She watched his face as they drove away. He looked a little sad, but mostly he looked relaxed.

"Hey," she prompted quietly, getting his attention.

"Hey," he greeted, holding out his hand. "Mom loves you."

She smiled. "I figured she wouldn't try to marry you off to just anyone."

"Well, I am in my thirties, Michelle. She's probably giving up hope."

She snickered. "Old maid."

Tony glared, she smiled sweetly. Gingerly she tugged on his arm, pulling him across the car. Her lips touched his softly.

"I love you," she whispered.

"Suck up," he retorted, biting her lower lip softly. "I love you, too."