The living room could have easily been mistaken for a floral shop upon first sight. Stephanie had only been home for one full day and, already, her domain was filled with special deliveries from family and friends alike, sending her well wishes for a speedy recovery. An endless supply of vibrant flower arrangements peppered the faces of the available tables in the room, each bouquet grouped inside their own vase. Some had multicolored helium balloons attached, while other arrived with Mylar balloons, the majority boasting a reassuring "Get well soon!" on their surface. The extent of the relationships Stephanie had formed throughout her life hadn't rang clear until the heartfelt outpouring of support she had gotten since arriving at and, subsequently, leaving the hospital.

Chris made good on his promise to find a gold chain, and Stephanie held tightly to her engagement ring, where it was secured on the necklace he had purchased for her. She slid the ring back and forth along the chain, while a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth when she caught sight of her newly decorated casts. Since Adam and Jay hadn't made it up to the hospital, they were the first visitors Chris and Stephanie had when they arrived home to Connecticut, and they had flown in with a full set of markers in tow. Adam had drawn a wrestling ring on the arm of her cast, near her wrist, and Jay followed that up with a humorous, sloppy caricature of her holding up the Women's Championship, just like old times.

Her most favorite creation of all, however, had been Chris's stick figure drawing of their family. He had drawn himself beside her and, above each of their heads, he perfected a picture representation of the baby, a blue blanket over his narrow body. Each of the three designs was done in good fun, but they brought a smile to Stephanie's face every time her eyes wandered upon them, the pictures finding their own special places within her heart. Stephanie absently tapped the bottom of her two-way radio against the arm of her chair, whistling through pursed lips while she decided whether or not to make her voice heard.

To escape her boredom, she brought the radio to her lips and pressed the talk button. It wasn't in her nature to whine about any set of circumstances, no matter how dire, but she saw an opportunity to be coddled, and she was going to milk it for all it was worth. "Mommy, Chris — where are you?"

Her end of the receiver cackled to life, and Linda's voice floated through the room. "We're coming, sweetie. We've almost got your lunch ready."

"What am I having?" she asked. Chris had already told her once, but Stephanie was so starved for a break in the general monotony of the day that she was willing to start a conversation about almost any subject, even if it was redundant.

After an extended gap, Chris's voice came over the line. "Didn't we already talk about this?"

"We did, but I want you to tell me again," she requested. "Can't I just enjoy hearing your voice?"

There was another slight pause before he answered, "Sure you can." His words bounced off the walls, echoing across the living room. Stephanie recognized from the muddy sound of his reply that they were in the same room and turned her head, smiling when she spotted him leaning against the far wall. Chris strolled to her reclined seat and bent over to kiss the top of her head. "You're making it very hard for me to help your mom with lunch when you won't give me the chance to cook it."

"But I miss you."

Chris smiled and kissed her upper arm. "We'll be back in just a minute. I've got milk and water for you to drink. The milk will help the baby, and the doctor said it's good for your broken bones, so that's two pluses. For food, we're doing grilled chicken breast for you, and there's baked potatoes, baby carrots, and a spinach salad, but it's the fresh kind of spinach, not the canned kind."

"Do I get a dessert?" she raised an eyebrow, and Chris poked her in the side.

"You and your sweet tooth," he laughed. "Your mom knew you would want something sweet, so we made a fruit salad. It's got apples, pears, melons, bananas, and strawberries. I'll put whipped cream on top for you."

"That's it? I don't get chocolate or anything?"

Chris pursed his lips and sent her a stern expression, shaking his head. "What did we just talk about with Dr. Womack when you saw her yesterday?"

"I know she said I have to be careful about what I eat and drink, but I'm a pregnant woman," Stephanie reminded, waving her hands in front of her stomach. "I have pregnant needs, and those needs include cravings. I can't help it if Renner wants a Hershey bar."

"Oh, I see, so now you're pawning your cravings off on our son," Chris smirked, leaning in towards her stomach and speaking directly to his offspring. "You hear that, kiddo? Mommy's already blaming you for stuff, and you haven't even been born yet."

"I am not, Renn! Don't listen to Daddy," she shot back. Chris brought a hand to her chin and tilted it, looking over the side of her face. The signs of trauma that had befallen her eye and cheek were fading more each day, and the bruising had lightened from black to a dim shade of gray. "It looks better, doesn't it?"

"It sure does. You're getting better faster than I thought you might."

"I'm glad it's not taking me long to recover. My leg and arm will take a while, but you know what I mean."

"And the good news is you'll be out of your casts before the baby comes. We've got to figure out how we want the nursery to look, because I'm going to start painting while we have all of this downtime," Chris said. "We can do the sky blue background you wanted on all the walls, with maybe some clouds or something. We'll figure it out."

"Wrestling rings."

"That's what you want on his wall?"

She shrugged self-consciously. "I thought it might be cool."

"I don't think it's a bad idea, but I'd have to find a way to get a stencil design of it. We might be able to even find some wall decals."

"I'll ask my dad," Stephanie said. "He probably knows someone in the products department who can point us in the direction of a company that could custom make a bunch of wrestling-themed stuff for us. It just might work."

"It might, but you have to eat first," Chris said, tapping her nose with his fingertip. "Let me go help your mom with the rest of your lunch, and then we'll come sit with you."

"Okay, but hurry back," Stephanie relented, holding her hands outstretched for him. Chris kissed each of her palms and ruffled her hair before slipping into the next room. She watched him go, thoughts drifting back to the baby when she felt his shift inside of her, near her pelvis. Her baby boy was alert again, and it felt great.

Lunch was calm, with Linda staying to enjoy the meal and join in on their conversations about the wedding and nursery. She departed at the conclusion of the meal, with the promise to return the next day, wanting to be an integral part of Stephanie's healing process. Stephanie was thankful to be home and surrounded by family and friends, because keeping them close would ensure she beat her brief health scare and brought a healthy baby boy home from the hospital in April. The first trip they had made after getting off the plane the day before was to Dr. Womack's office, where she did a thorough examination of Stephanie and determined she and the baby would make a healthy recovery, with lots of care and rest.

Rich had made good on his promise to visit Stephanie in the hospital, and his arrival had awarded Chris the opportunity to let him know he was taking a break from Fozzy to regroup. He would still write lyrics in his free time, but there were more important things at hand, as he explained to the rest of the band — Paul, Billy, and Frank — through a conference call he had while at Ted's house the night before Stephanie was released from the hospital. At her insistence, Chris had agreed to spend the final night at his dad's place and get a good night's sleep there instead of dozing in a chair next to her hospital bed. Through all the chaos, Chris had made it clear he only had eyes for his future bride and unborn child, and nothing would come in between that, be it work or play.

Slowing down enough to take an extended break with Stephanie was refreshing in a way he hadn't entirely expected. Though he loved being with her, Chris assumed he would immediately miss working hard and jetting from one place to another, but, surprisingly, he didn't want his time at home to end. Work would come back around eventually and he'd be expected to live up to his prior obligations, but the tours with his band and any wrestling shows he would have been scheduled for could all go on hold for months, as far as he was concerned. Vince, while disappointed he wouldn't be around, was proud Chris was stepping up to take care of his responsibilities and made it clear that the door was open for his return when the right time came about.

When night fell, Chris wheeled Stephanie into the master bathroom in their upstairs bedroom and helped her into the tub after fitting waterproof cast protectors over her left arm and leg. She preferred a bath to a shower, simply because it provided the least possibility of falling, and Chris flitted off to the kitchen to finish washing the leftover dirty dishes from dinner while she soaked in the soapy suds. If he could have had his way, he wouldn't have left her at all, but Stephanie insisted on getting back some semblance of her independence, and Chris did his best to respect her wishes. Her headstrong traits were returning full force, and Chris wasn't going to even attempt stepping on her toes in that regard.

Chris returned only when she beckoned him on her two-way radio, and he entered the bathroom with a clean towel, helping her out of the bathtub and wrapping her in it. He strategically placed a chair beside the bathtub, specifically for Stephanie's use until her casts were removed, and Chris helped her to have a seat so she could dry off without losing her balance and falling over. Before she bathed, she had chosen her nightwear for bed, so he returned to the closet and scooped the selected clothing off of the awaiting shelf. By the time he returned to the bathroom doorway, Stephanie was done drying her body and was using the towel to wring out her drenched hair.

"I'll help you get dressed when you're ready."

"I can do it," Stephanie responded, fierce determination blossoming in her eyes and burning like a flame. Chris smirked and lowered himself behind her chair, kissing the back of her neck while her head was tilted.

"I love it when you get like this."

"Like what?"

"Tough, and confident, and sure of yourself. It's a turn-on."

Stephanie smiled softly as she reached for the cotton swab sticks and freed one, using it to clean her inner ears. "Well, I like it when you cheer me on for doing things by myself. That's a turn-on to me."

"So I don't get to baby you?" he teased, pinching her upper thigh.

"I won't lie, I kind of like that some of the time. When you and Mom were making me lunch today, I felt like being babied, but I try to make it pretty clear when I'm in the mood to be independent. As long as you pick up on the difference between the two, we'll be fine."

"Okay, but if I don't catch your cues some of the time, be patient with me," Chris requested. "If I'm ever overbearing, it's only because I want to protect you."

"I know, and I think it's sweet, but I still need my space sometimes."

"Then I'll try to read between the lines and give you what you need," Chris said. He rose from his hunched position after dropping a second kiss onto Stephanie's bare shoulder and held her clothes out. "Take what you need one at a time, and if you run into trouble, I'll help you."

"I can do it," she repeated, using her free hand to pull a pair of underwear from the top of the pile in his hands.

She squinted, a sign of her unwavering resolve, and her tongue peeked out between her lips as she used both arms to stick her right foot through the opening of her panties. All Chris could do was smile and watch, endeared by her steely determination. That was the Stephanie he knew and loved, through and through. The process of dressing was much longer than normal, as was expected, but Chris waited patiently with her until she pulled her panties on. Her bra proved to be too difficult to maneuver in her condition, so he slid it on for her and clasped the back, rubbing lotion into her exposed limbs before she went to work on her t-shirt and sweatpants.

Aside from getting Chris's assistance with a couple of difficult moments, Stephanie finished dressing herself and beamed proudly at Chris. "I told you I could do it."

"I always knew you could, babe. I believe in you," Chris said. He reached for the hairbrush on the counter and held it out for her. Stephanie accepted it in her good hand and worked it through her dampened locks. "Do you want to blow dry your hair, or are you going to let it air dry?"

"Air dry."

"I'll bring you downstairs when you finish brushing then," he said. "We've also got to make sure you use the bathroom before you fall asleep so you don't have to go in the middle of the night. I mean, it's okay if you end up having to, but we'll try to make sure you don't, because it'll be easier on you to not have to get up when you're tired. You can wake me up if you need me, though."

"I can go by myself if that happens. We have a bathroom downstairs, and I'm sleeping in the recliner, right?" Stephanie wondered. She didn't get an answer from Chris, so she slowed her strokes with the hair brush and glanced up at him. She couldn't place the look on his face, but his expression wasn't an indication of anything good. "What?"

"I know you want to be independent, and that's fine, but you can't be reckless about it."

"I'm not."

"I don't want you getting up in the middle of the night by yourself. You've got a cast on your left arm and left leg, and you don't need to be using the bathroom when you're half-asleep without someone else there to help."

"Why are you getting so testy?"

"Um, gee, I don't know, maybe because I love you and don't want you falling and getting even more hurt than you already are," Chris said, placing his palms flat on the bathroom counter as he stared blankly into the mirror.

Stephanie watched him, his words sinking in, and as much as her instinct was to fight against his feelings and argue her own capabilities, she didn't. In fact, she understood. If the shoe were on the other foot and Chris was the hurt one, she wouldn't want him taking chances. They had a son coming in a matter of months, and it wouldn't have been responsible as a parent for either of them to put themselves in danger when a tiny human being was going to be depending on them before long. Whether Stephanie wanted to believe it or not, she wasn't the only person who had gotten into that car accident in Winnipeg.

The morning that car collided with hers, the impact had rippled through the lives of Chris, Renner, Vince, Linda, Shane, and every other member of her family. Plenty had been hurt by the waves created from her accident, and as understanding as she needed them to be with her, Stephanie had to extend the same courtesy. Chris was going through an adjustment period not completely unlike hers, and she didn't want to be inconsiderate of what he felt. In his eyes, he was doing what was necessary to protect the mother of his child and, at some point, she had to sit back and allow him to take care of her. The time for self-reliance would come, but now was the time to let Chris be her fiancée, the man who would always protect her from harm.

Locking eyes with his reflection, she tossed her brush onto the counter before grabbing his hand and pulling him close. Chris's pupils flashed, as if prepared for the fight he was certain Stephanie was going to put up, but his features softened when he received a pleasant surprise instead. "I won't get up in the middle of the night by myself. If I have to go to the bathroom or get water, I'll wake you up."

Without the need for verbally hashing out their unique points of view, they had reached an understanding. "Good, I'm glad."

Leaving her wheelchair waiting for next use at the top of the stairs, Chris scooped Stephanie out of the seat and carried her down the stairs to her designated recliner chair. She had originally planned on sleeping in bed, but the doctors suggested she find a comfy chair that reclined, since it would be more comfortable for her until her body was more healed. Stephanie heeded their advice, and Chris placed her down gently in the seat that had become solely hers. He already had a blanket spread on the couch, because he didn't want to be in bed upstairs while Stephanie was an entire floor down from him. He was going to sleep on the couch beside her in case she needed something in the middle of the night, as he would every night until she could return to bed.

"You really don't have to sleep down here with me," Stephanie said. The back of her head rested against the cushioning of the chair, but she tilted it to look at Chris. "I can use the radio to call you if I need something."

"I want to be down here with you."

"I know, but you haven't gotten a good night's sleep in an actual bed since you stayed with me in the hospital," she pointed out. "You've been sleeping in chairs and on couches ever since then, and it makes me feel bad. I want you to get comfortable in our bed upstairs. You deserve it after everything you've done for me since the accident."

Chris sat up on the couch, running his hand over the top of a pillow in his lap. "You know what I think? I think you deserve better than having to sleep in a hospital bed and then a recliner. You're pregnant, and none of this ever should have happened to you, but it did, and if that means I have to sleep down here to be close to you, I'll do it for as long as it takes. I'm not sleeping in our bed again until I can have you in there next to me."

"You don't have to take it that far."

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" Chris raised an eyebrow, trying to hide a smirk. "Do you not want me around?"

Stephanie giggled and reached for the television remote on the table beside her chair. "I love having you around, and you know that. Stop digging for compliments."

"But you're making me feel inadequate, and it's hurting my feelings," he pouted, exaggeratedly so.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and stared him down, but the longer she looked at him, the more embellished his expression grew. She turned her focus to the TV guide on the screen, scrolling through each of the channels as she tried to find a watchable program. Chris slipped off the couch and crawled across the living room floor to Stephanie's chair, poking her uninjured leg while she tried her hardest to ignore him and keep a straight face. Each of them jumped in surprise when their quiet night was interrupted by the buzzer near their front door intercom, announcing someone's arrival outside the gate.

Chris and Stephanie sent each other puzzled glances, and Chris was first to break the silence. "Were you expecting someone?"

"No, I thought maybe you were."

He shook his head, adding, "I have no clue who it would be. It's starting to get kind of late for visitors," he replied. Chris rose from the floor and went to the intercom, pressing the speak button in. "Hi, who is it?"

He released the button and the intercom came to life. "It's me again, Chris," Linda said. "I'm sorry to come back so late without calling first, but I missed my baby girl, and I brought some wedding things for her to look at."

Chris laughed, responding, "It's okay, Linda. Come on in."

He pressed the button near the front door that controlled the gate and checked out the window to make sure Linda had time to drive inside before closing the barrier around the home. As he was pulling the front door open, Stephanie spoke up. "I wonder why she didn't punch in the code to get inside the gate. She knows what it is."

"I'm not sure, but I'll be right back," he said. Chris slipped out of the front door and shut it behind himself as he jogged to Linda's vehicle to help her. She seemed to be trying to remove something heavy from the backseat, so he felt it was the least he could do to offer her a hand. "Need some help?"

"Oh, thank you," Linda sighed, relief flooding her tone as she pulled away and allowed Chris to hoist up the paper bag in the backseat. She shut the car door when he got it out, and he hung back and allowed her up the walkway first, trailing closely behind. "I hope you two weren't getting ready for bed."

"Not at all," Chris replied. "We were actually about to watch some TV or find a movie. We just had dinner, and Steph took a bath."

"How did that go?" Linda asked just as she stepped onto the porch.

"It went really well, actually, and she dressed herself, for the most part," he announced.

Linda held the door open for Chris, but he insisted she enter first, which she kindly obliged to. As soon as she was through the door, she went straight for Stephanie, dropping a kiss onto her forehead and stroking her hair while Chris set the filled bag down in the first chair he came to and shut the front door. As he was walking away, he caught sight of a bridal magazine and smiled, glancing at Stephanie as his eyes traveled down to the engagement ring hanging around her neck. Through their latest set of hardships, he didn't want to allow himself to forget that, not only was he getting a son, but he was marrying the love of his life. There was a lot to look forward to and to give thanks for.

"You didn't have to come back for me, Mom. I would have been fine," Stephanie said.

"I know, but I thought of you with your broken bones, and it tugged at my heartstrings. I needed to see you, and your dad wants to see you, too. He was working tonight, but he'll be here later this week."

"Okay," Stephanie said, checking out the bag behind Linda. She extended her index finger towards it. "What's all that?"

"Oh, those are bridal magazines and some wedding things I thought we could look at to get ideas. We can figure out what kind of theme you want to have and what you want the cake to look like. We'll have to go looking for wedding dresses as soon as you get out of your casts," she replied, walking over and pulling the items out of the bag. She paused for a moment and smirked, slowly pulling something out and holding it up victoriously. "I even got you some chocolate-covered cherries, but eat them in moderation."

"You're my hero," Stephanie pumped her fist as Chris and Linda laughed at her enthusiastic reaction. Linda handed the box off to Chris, and he removed the plastic covering and opened them before setting the box down in Stephanie's lap. She tugged on his hand, and he knelt beside her, stroking her cheek lightly while Linda sorted through the magazines.

"What's up, doll?" he asked, using a shortened version of his nickname for her.

"I think I want a simple wedding like we talked about earlier. After all the stuff that's happened, we need to keep things demure," she said, lowering her voice and leaning in. "I don't want a big wedding. Tell my mom."

"Me? How did I get recruited into this?" Chris asked, turning back to find Linda glancing with interest between the two of them.

"What's going on with you both?" she questioned.

Chris cleared his throat and stood, dropping a limp hand gently on top of Stephanie's head and scratching lightly at her scalp. Stephanie's admittance was only the second one he had heard about her not wanting an extravagant wedding and, while he wasn't against keeping things simple, the last thing either of them wanted was for Linda to be disappointed. Straightforward was the best option, so he went for it before talking himself out of telling her the truth. "We really appreciate everything you're doing, Linda. You've been amazing this whole time, but Steph doesn't...not only her, but we don't think we want a big wedding anymore. We're trying to keep it simple with our clothes, the cake, and all that stuff."

"Oh?" Linda raised an eyebrow, shifting the focus to Stephanie.

"Yeah. I haven't gotten much time to talk it over with Chris, but I told him today that I want the guest list to be really exclusive. We're not having a bunch of people we work with there. This is going to be a really special day, and our baby's going to be there, so we only want our closest family and friends. What was the number we decided on, honey?" Stephanie asked.

"We were aiming in the ballpark of 50-75 guests, tops," Chris supplied.

Linda gasped, actually gasped, and brought a hand to her heart. "Oh, you can't be serious."

"Mom, it's not a big deal," Stephanie said. "Chris and I just want it to be a meaningful event. We don't want to invite people just for the sake of inviting them. We each are inviting an equal amount of people who mean the most to us in our lives, that's all. Don't worry, you make the list," she laughed at her lighthearted attempt, smile faltering when she noticed Linda wasn't smiling at all. Not even close. "Mom? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Linda said, albeit shakily. She smoothed her hair down and took a heavy seat in the chair with the paper bag, placing it down on the floor.

"Were you going to show me some stuff out of there?" Stephanie asked.

"No, there's no need for that," she shook her head. "It's probably all too fancy for what you want."

"We can still look," she offered.

"You go ahead and eat your chocolate," Linda urged, continuing to pat her hair as she turned towards the television, blankly watching the TV guide that still filled the screen. Stephanie exchanged glances with Chris, mouthing to him to ask about what was bothering Linda, but he shrugged. Something unidentifiable was in the air, but Stephanie couldn't imagine it was only the wedding. Still, she had time to dig for information and put to rest any doubts in Linda's mind about how her wedding was going to play out.

"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings," Stephanie apologized.

Linda chuckled, though it was a hollow gesture. "Don't be silly, sweetie. I'm not hurt at all."

The expression on her face, however, told a different tale.