Final Exams are officially done and I'm out of school! :D Happy summer everyone. Reviews would be great, too. -Zanderluv121
She needed to be romantic. She needed a romantic plan to deliver the secret she had been hiding ever since their wedding. What was a romantic way to tell your husband your pregnant without being too mushy or too straight forward. Emma didn't want to just come out and say it, she wanted something different. And different was revealing itself on a jar of pasta sauce...
"Henry, Emma, I'm home!" Neal yelled as he closed the door to their apartment, his keys jingling as he threw them on the kitchen table. From the hallway, Henry bolted out of the his bedroom and hugged Neal tightly, just as Emma came into the living room, her blonde hair wet and wavy. "Hey, buddy! How was your day?" Neal asked his son, pulling him back from the hug.
"We got our report cards today and guess what I got in every core subject?" Henry questioned enthusiastically, pulling the report card out of Emma's hand and shoving it into his father's face.
Neal bit his lip and jokingly said, "Hm, I wonder... What would an eleven year old get in math, English, social studies, and science when he has a brilliant mother to help him and a grandmother that's his teacher?" Emma rolled her eyes and grimaced as her stomach rumbled in hunger.
"Grandma has nothing to do with this, and Emma, well, it's better if I don't mention her..." Henry answered mysteriously, looking down at the ground. Neal smiled and ruffled his son's hair, lifting the report card to his eyes.
"Let's see... all A pluses except for," Neal glanced up at Henry and snorted. "Gym? How do you not get an A plus in gym?" Gym had been the easiest subject for Neal when he was a kid, the only subject that he looked forward to everyday.
Henry pressed a guilty smile on his face and glanced over at Emma. "I don't change into gym clothes. Emma didn't either when she was younger, so it's something I inherited from her!" Though he didn't quite understand his father's tone, Henry began to defend himself.
Emma raised up her hand and surrendered. "Guilty as charged. I always hated changing in gym." She remembered when her first year in middle school, the year kids had to start changing for gym, the older girls in seventh and eighth grade used to bother Emma because of how skinny she was. They always teased her and called her anorexic. Sometimes, not always, the girls would steal Emma's gym clothes and stuff them inside lockers when she wasn't looking. In the end, the blonde gave up changing for gym and accepted the bad grade. "At least he participates. I never did."
"Well, we'll let that slide then, buddy." Neal said, hugging Henry again. "Who's ready for dinner?"
Emma's heart fluttered and Henry purposely stepped on Emma's foot, signifying that Operation Pacifier is a go.
"The water's on high heat, right?" Neal asked Emma, an apron on his waist and a box of spaghetti in his right hand. Dinner at the Swan-Cassidy-Mills house was always a project. Even a simple task like boiling pasta was hard for the unexperienced cooks. Emma had been used to Mary Margaret's cooking, and Neal, well, Neal relied on microwaveable meals on his late nights. "The box says to put it on high heat so the water can boil faster."
Emma glanced into the calm water and took the box of spaghetti from Neal, pouring it in carefully. The turned the dial on the stove a notch higher and said, "Okay, done. What about sauce?"
Neal read the box and ticked his teeth together, letting the steam from the water rise up and drift towards the lights. "I should go get that from the pantry." He concluded, placing a kiss on his wife's cheek and walking to the pantry cabinet. Neal began searching for the jar of already made sauce, pushing away boxes of cereal, canned vegetables, and pancake mix. Finally, his hands gripped the edges around the jar and he pulled it out, bringing it back to the kitchen without another thought. Now digging through the drawers for a jar opener, he gave a quick look at the pasta sauce jar, then brought his thoughts back to the jar opener resting somewhere in the jar of surprises. The words on the jar processed in Neal's mind, his eyes rising once more to look at the bottle. It wasn't an oridnary pasta sauce label, it was something much more heart-swelling. "Emma... Why does it say Neal and Emma Prego on the jar?" He whipped around and held the sauce in front of him, watching Emma for any answer or sudden movement.
"Um, Neal, that's because I'm pregnant." Emma said, a smile on her lips. The pasta sauce jar idea had been produced by Henry, his little precocious mind, thinking up a plan for Operation Pacifier. The jar had been scribbled the words of: Neal and Emma Prego in yellow and green crayon, artfully done by Henry himself.
Neal's mouth dropped open and his eyes grew teary, the jar slipping from his grip. "I'm going to be a father?" He questioned, his voice small and soft. Happy couldn't even begin to describe what Neal was feeling. He was feeling like he was on Cloud Nine.
"Yeah... and hopefully to another boy." Emma replied, leaning against the stove. Neal grabbed Emma by the waist and dipped her to the ground, his lips pressing upon hers. The blonde placed her hands on Neal's chest, letting her trust in Neal mask her excitement. The electricity sparked through Emma and Neal, running through their veins and sucking them in.
"No, it's going to be a girl," Neal said, once bringing Emma up to her perfect posture.
I rewrote this chapter because I wasn't liking the one I posted before. I hope you all liked this one better.