Notes- It's me again. I said six parts before but it will probably be seven. I have to do a big reunion scene and I can't concentrate on one person to do it. Sorry. Oh yeah, I know I named Charlie's wife Samantha but after I posted it I remembered that Stacey's father married someone by the same name. I hope you don't get confused. Any reference to Samantha in the context of Stacey's father means I'm referring to her stepmother, not Charlie's wife.
Chapter Two
Stacey was running late. Her train was pulling out of Penn Station in 20 minutes and she was still stuck in traffic. She sat and fidgeted in the cab for a few more minutes, before deciding to just walk. Traffic wasn't moving and it didn't look like it was going to within the next few minutes. She paid the cabby for his time and grabbed her bags. If she hurried, she could make it. She just hoped that Sam would remember to pick her up in Stoneybrook. She didn't want to have to deal with a cab there.
She just made her train. As they pulled out of the station, Stacey settled back in her seat and began reviewing the files in her briefcase. Someone had set a nasty virus loose in the computer system of the law firm where she worked, and she was the one who had to deal with the fallout. Well, her department was. But as head of the department, she was the one who was ultimately responsible. And she did not want to have to explain to the senior partners why all the hard drive files had been wiped out, and that they couldn't be reconstructed. At least the important stuff had been backed up on disk. She mentally blessed herself for insisting that everyone back everything up. Nothing was lost for good. But she still had to neutralize the virus and repair the damage to the computer, plus figure out who did it.
45 minutes into the journey, the train screeched to an abrupt halt and sat unmoving on the tracks. The passengers in the car started buzzing about the delay, passing theories back and forth as to the cause. They sat there for nearly 20 minutes before moving again. By the time they pulled into the Stoneybrook station Stacey was thoroughly annoyed, and getting hungry. Luckily she had remembered to pack a few snacks, knowing from experience that the train wouldn't have a dining car.
Sam was waiting for her on the platform. "Hi honey, how was the trip?"
"Annoying. For some reason we stopped for 20 minutes halfway here. No reason at all." Her head was hurting and she was tired. "Hang on a second. I need to go take my insulin. I just realized I forgot my last dose."
"Not good, sweetheart." Sam was a jokester about most things, but his wife's diabetes was a different story. He had seen her collapse once from a high blood sugar when she had the flu, and he never wanted to see that again. He monitored her as closely as she would allow him.
Stacey was back in few seconds, her hip stinging from the shot. Already she was feeling better. She made a mental note to check her sugar level when she got home. "Did you have nice time with your family last night? I'm sorry I couldn't make it."
Sam thought about his answer for a minute. It wasn't his place to tell Stacey about Kristy's baby. Elizabeth had explained to him and Charlie that she was planning to place it for adoption, and had sworn them both to secrecy. Kristy would explain it to them in her own time, and they weren't to push. "Yeah, it was like old times with everyone there again. Charlie and Samantha are having another baby."
"Was Kristy there?"
Oh boy. "Yeah. She surprised all of us." That was an understatement. "Emily was the only one home when she got there, so she just went upstairs to change and walked in an hour later like she'd never left at all."
"I didn't think she'd really come."
"I was surprised too, but she said it was time. Maybe she's finally made her peace with Watson's death." Sam took his wife's suitcase and headed outside towards Charlie's car. "It sure took her long enough."
"Be nice. It was very hard on her. And I don't think she'd made her peace with it at all, I think she came back because Claudia called in that pact we made. You know how she is with keeping promises."
"I know. And I won't say anything about how long it took. I promise. Do you want to stop by your Mom's store before we head for the house?"
"Yeah, could we? I want to see her fall line. Claudia designed some tops for her that are selling like crazy and I'm dying to see what they look like."
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"Hello? Customer with question here?" The store was empty when Stacey walked in. Her mom must be in the back taking inventory or something. She rang the little bell on the counter, then just walked back. "Mom?"
"Stacey!" Her mother looked up from the pile of clothing she was sorting through and grinned. "Come to help out your old mother?"
"If you're old, then I am too. How's business?"
"Pretty busy lately. Those new tops of Claudia's are selling like hot cakes. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. Have you see them?"
"No. Do you have any around?"
"Here." Maureen handed her daughter a brightly printed triangle top that tied in the back. Perfect for summertime. "I love what she comes up with. Like those cute maternity dresses. I sold out of those in a week."
"You know Claud, she can't stand not looking fashionable at all times. Being pregnant was a real strain on her. Have you seen Mimi lately?"
"That child is adorable. And probably the best dressed baby in Stoneybrook. I can't imagine what the Kishi's think of the pictures Claudia sends them."
"They're probably so blinded by the fact they have a grandchild that they don't care." Stacey set her purse down and started helping mother fold clothes for display. "I can't wait to see her again. I hate that I can't get back here very often."
"It's better for you Stacey. You'd be miserable living anywhere but New York. You're like your Dad that way. How is he?" The rancor from the divorce had finally cooled, but Maureen hadn't spoken to her ex for nearly a year. With Stacey grown and married there was little point.
"He's good. The twins are keeping him and Samantha busy. Was I a hellion at age 11?"
"No. You were a good kid. All you cared about was your friends and clothes. You never gave us much trouble." Maureen looked down, not really wanting to discuss Stacey's half-sisters. "You must have gotten that from me."
"I think so. I don't think Dad ever fell into the well-behaved category. How have you been? I know I haven't called in awhile."
"Busy. I'm thinking of opening another store a couple of towns over. This place can't keep up with the demand. I'm getting customers from Massachusetts on a regular basis."
"If you need any help let me know. Where do you want these shirts?"
"On the table by the door, so people can see then as soon as they walk in. Can you set the mannequin up behind it and dress it in the red blouse and skirt? It's the latest outfit I'm trying to promote."
"Sure." Stacey grabbed the plastic dummy, and an armload of clothing. "I can stay for awhile if you want. Sam took my bag back to Charlie's and they have plans for this afternoon." She came back in and began to fit pairs of pants onto hangers.
"I'd like that. It will give you a chance to tell me what's bothering you." Maureen wasn't blind. She could see something was wrong with her daughter the minute she walked in.
"Nothing's wrong Mom. I'm just tired. The office has been a zoo lately, and that virus problem yesterday didn't help much." She turned her head, trying to hide her face. She didn't want to get into a big discussion with her mother over things that couldn't be changed. It was like beating a dead horse. All that happened was that you wore out. The horse wasn't going to move.
"That isn't going to work on me. I know you sweetheart, and I know when you're upset. Talk to me. It might help."
Stacey took a deep breath. She couldn't hold it in anymore and she didn't want to. "I got some disturbing news from my doctor a couple of months ago and I'm not sure how to deal with it."
Maureen's heart jumped into her throat. "Are you sick?"
"No, nothing like that. I wish it was just that, because in a way this is even worse." Stacey felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Sam and I were ready to start a family. But with my diabetes, we thought we should talk to the doctor first and make sure everything would be all right. It wasn't. Dr. McBride told me that with my form of diabetes, and the fact that I can barely control it now, getting pregnant would probably kill me and even if it didn't, I'd never be able carry a baby to term. She said I might as well shoot myself in the head, doing that would be safer than getting pregnant. She recommended that I have my tubes tied, just to make sure. That it was for my own health. Sam and I talked it over and I had the surgery almost a month ago."
"Oh sweetheart."
"It hurts so much Mom. I'll never have children of my own. I'll never get to be pregnant. I never thought my diabetes would lead to this. The only thing I ever worried about was the long-term effects, like blindness or kidney problems. But this is the worst of them all. I'd go blind tomorrow if it meant I could have a baby." The tears were flowing freely now as Stacey poured out all the pain she had held inside for so long. She and Sam talked of course but he could never really understand how cheated she felt. "I feel so robbed."
"I know sweetheart. I know how much it hurts." It was time. Maureen had kept this secret from her daughter long enough, and telling her might help ease her pain. "Did I ever tell you why you were an only child?"
"No." Stacey heard the catch in her mother's voice and looked up. She could sense she was about to hear something important, she just knew it. "Why?"
"We didn't intend for it to be that way. You father and I both wanted lots of children. We had so much love and we wanted to share it. I got pregnant with you very easily, and carried you without a problem. When you were born I thought God himself had smiled on us." Tears rose again in Maureen's eyes as she recalled her first glimpse of her daughter. "The next six months seemed like some wonderful dream. And I got pregnant again. We were delighted, all our dreams were coming true. But I lost the baby."
"We chalked it up to bad luck. Sad for sure, but not the end of the world. We had you, and we could try again. Over the next two years I got pregnant four more times. They never lasted past the third month. Finally, when you were three, I made into my second trimester. I afraid to leave my bed or even breathe for those first few months. Do you remember Grandma coming to stay for awhile because I was sick?"
"Vaguely. I remember that she let me watch cartoons a lot, and eat ice cream almost every night after dinner."
"That's your grandmother all right. The day I felt the baby kick, I burst into tears with relief. This one would be okay. I just knew it. And it was. I made it to my ninth month and went into labor a week before my due date." Maureen stopped talking for a minute, reliving the memories.
"What happened Mom?" Stacey wasn't even sure she should ask, but she had to know.
"Everything was going fine. Until the baby's heartbeat began to slow. They rushed me into an emergency C-section but they were too late. Somehow the cord had kinked, and cut off the oxygen to the baby. He was born dead." Both women were sobbing now, one crying for an unknown brother, the other for a long lost son. "I still remember the look on your father's face when I woke up. I knew before he said anything. The look said it all. All I wanted to do was die and join my baby. I wondered how God could be so cruel. To let me come this close to what I wanted so badly, only to yank it away from me."
"Oh Mom." Stacey embraced her mother, letting her sob on her shoulder. "How horrible."
"I was able to hold him and see him. I spent hours just rocking him, willing him to wake up. I was sure he was just sleeping. He was so little, so perfect. He had blond hair, just like yours. We named him Matthew. I finally had to put him down. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life. My arms literally ached for days afterwards." Maureen took a deep breath. She was over the worst of it and was beginning to calm down. "I had my tubes tied after that. Your father and I agreed that we didn't want to try again. Our hearts had been jerked around too many times, and we wouldn't be able to stand it again. We decided to just accept that you were the only child we were meant to have. But it took a long time for me to stop feeling robbed over Matthew and the babies we lost, and start feeling blessed to have you."
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Stacey stayed at the store for another couple of hours, then headed for Bradford Court. She needed to eat and check her blood sugar, then she wanted to see Claudia. She hadn't seen Mimi since she was born four months ago. Had it really been that long since she'd been in Stoneybrook? Sam was right. She was losing herself in her work.
"Hello? Anybody around?" Stacey let herself in and headed for the kitchen. A note on the table told her to help herself to something to eat, and that Samantha had taken Kelly to the park. Sam and Charlie were at their mother's house and would be back later. Stacey smiled at the loving message Sam had scribbled on the bottom, and went to make herself a sandwich. After she ate, she changed into casual clothes and headed across the street. Claudia should be from the school by now and hard at work in her studio.
She rang the bell, still feeling strange for not walking in the way she use to. But after the Kishi's moved to Florida and deeded the house to Claudia and her husband, she just didn't feel comfortable coming in unannounced. Claudia was still trying to train her out of it.
Too late Stacey realized it was the middle of Mimi's naptime and that Claudia was going to kill her for ringing the bell. She could already here the faint wails of an angry child from behind the door. Was it too late to run?
"Stacey!" Yep. The door swung open to reveal a very frazzled Claudia, and a wailing baby. "Get in here so I can kill you!"
Chapter Two
Stacey was running late. Her train was pulling out of Penn Station in 20 minutes and she was still stuck in traffic. She sat and fidgeted in the cab for a few more minutes, before deciding to just walk. Traffic wasn't moving and it didn't look like it was going to within the next few minutes. She paid the cabby for his time and grabbed her bags. If she hurried, she could make it. She just hoped that Sam would remember to pick her up in Stoneybrook. She didn't want to have to deal with a cab there.
She just made her train. As they pulled out of the station, Stacey settled back in her seat and began reviewing the files in her briefcase. Someone had set a nasty virus loose in the computer system of the law firm where she worked, and she was the one who had to deal with the fallout. Well, her department was. But as head of the department, she was the one who was ultimately responsible. And she did not want to have to explain to the senior partners why all the hard drive files had been wiped out, and that they couldn't be reconstructed. At least the important stuff had been backed up on disk. She mentally blessed herself for insisting that everyone back everything up. Nothing was lost for good. But she still had to neutralize the virus and repair the damage to the computer, plus figure out who did it.
45 minutes into the journey, the train screeched to an abrupt halt and sat unmoving on the tracks. The passengers in the car started buzzing about the delay, passing theories back and forth as to the cause. They sat there for nearly 20 minutes before moving again. By the time they pulled into the Stoneybrook station Stacey was thoroughly annoyed, and getting hungry. Luckily she had remembered to pack a few snacks, knowing from experience that the train wouldn't have a dining car.
Sam was waiting for her on the platform. "Hi honey, how was the trip?"
"Annoying. For some reason we stopped for 20 minutes halfway here. No reason at all." Her head was hurting and she was tired. "Hang on a second. I need to go take my insulin. I just realized I forgot my last dose."
"Not good, sweetheart." Sam was a jokester about most things, but his wife's diabetes was a different story. He had seen her collapse once from a high blood sugar when she had the flu, and he never wanted to see that again. He monitored her as closely as she would allow him.
Stacey was back in few seconds, her hip stinging from the shot. Already she was feeling better. She made a mental note to check her sugar level when she got home. "Did you have nice time with your family last night? I'm sorry I couldn't make it."
Sam thought about his answer for a minute. It wasn't his place to tell Stacey about Kristy's baby. Elizabeth had explained to him and Charlie that she was planning to place it for adoption, and had sworn them both to secrecy. Kristy would explain it to them in her own time, and they weren't to push. "Yeah, it was like old times with everyone there again. Charlie and Samantha are having another baby."
"Was Kristy there?"
Oh boy. "Yeah. She surprised all of us." That was an understatement. "Emily was the only one home when she got there, so she just went upstairs to change and walked in an hour later like she'd never left at all."
"I didn't think she'd really come."
"I was surprised too, but she said it was time. Maybe she's finally made her peace with Watson's death." Sam took his wife's suitcase and headed outside towards Charlie's car. "It sure took her long enough."
"Be nice. It was very hard on her. And I don't think she'd made her peace with it at all, I think she came back because Claudia called in that pact we made. You know how she is with keeping promises."
"I know. And I won't say anything about how long it took. I promise. Do you want to stop by your Mom's store before we head for the house?"
"Yeah, could we? I want to see her fall line. Claudia designed some tops for her that are selling like crazy and I'm dying to see what they look like."
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"Hello? Customer with question here?" The store was empty when Stacey walked in. Her mom must be in the back taking inventory or something. She rang the little bell on the counter, then just walked back. "Mom?"
"Stacey!" Her mother looked up from the pile of clothing she was sorting through and grinned. "Come to help out your old mother?"
"If you're old, then I am too. How's business?"
"Pretty busy lately. Those new tops of Claudia's are selling like hot cakes. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. Have you see them?"
"No. Do you have any around?"
"Here." Maureen handed her daughter a brightly printed triangle top that tied in the back. Perfect for summertime. "I love what she comes up with. Like those cute maternity dresses. I sold out of those in a week."
"You know Claud, she can't stand not looking fashionable at all times. Being pregnant was a real strain on her. Have you seen Mimi lately?"
"That child is adorable. And probably the best dressed baby in Stoneybrook. I can't imagine what the Kishi's think of the pictures Claudia sends them."
"They're probably so blinded by the fact they have a grandchild that they don't care." Stacey set her purse down and started helping mother fold clothes for display. "I can't wait to see her again. I hate that I can't get back here very often."
"It's better for you Stacey. You'd be miserable living anywhere but New York. You're like your Dad that way. How is he?" The rancor from the divorce had finally cooled, but Maureen hadn't spoken to her ex for nearly a year. With Stacey grown and married there was little point.
"He's good. The twins are keeping him and Samantha busy. Was I a hellion at age 11?"
"No. You were a good kid. All you cared about was your friends and clothes. You never gave us much trouble." Maureen looked down, not really wanting to discuss Stacey's half-sisters. "You must have gotten that from me."
"I think so. I don't think Dad ever fell into the well-behaved category. How have you been? I know I haven't called in awhile."
"Busy. I'm thinking of opening another store a couple of towns over. This place can't keep up with the demand. I'm getting customers from Massachusetts on a regular basis."
"If you need any help let me know. Where do you want these shirts?"
"On the table by the door, so people can see then as soon as they walk in. Can you set the mannequin up behind it and dress it in the red blouse and skirt? It's the latest outfit I'm trying to promote."
"Sure." Stacey grabbed the plastic dummy, and an armload of clothing. "I can stay for awhile if you want. Sam took my bag back to Charlie's and they have plans for this afternoon." She came back in and began to fit pairs of pants onto hangers.
"I'd like that. It will give you a chance to tell me what's bothering you." Maureen wasn't blind. She could see something was wrong with her daughter the minute she walked in.
"Nothing's wrong Mom. I'm just tired. The office has been a zoo lately, and that virus problem yesterday didn't help much." She turned her head, trying to hide her face. She didn't want to get into a big discussion with her mother over things that couldn't be changed. It was like beating a dead horse. All that happened was that you wore out. The horse wasn't going to move.
"That isn't going to work on me. I know you sweetheart, and I know when you're upset. Talk to me. It might help."
Stacey took a deep breath. She couldn't hold it in anymore and she didn't want to. "I got some disturbing news from my doctor a couple of months ago and I'm not sure how to deal with it."
Maureen's heart jumped into her throat. "Are you sick?"
"No, nothing like that. I wish it was just that, because in a way this is even worse." Stacey felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Sam and I were ready to start a family. But with my diabetes, we thought we should talk to the doctor first and make sure everything would be all right. It wasn't. Dr. McBride told me that with my form of diabetes, and the fact that I can barely control it now, getting pregnant would probably kill me and even if it didn't, I'd never be able carry a baby to term. She said I might as well shoot myself in the head, doing that would be safer than getting pregnant. She recommended that I have my tubes tied, just to make sure. That it was for my own health. Sam and I talked it over and I had the surgery almost a month ago."
"Oh sweetheart."
"It hurts so much Mom. I'll never have children of my own. I'll never get to be pregnant. I never thought my diabetes would lead to this. The only thing I ever worried about was the long-term effects, like blindness or kidney problems. But this is the worst of them all. I'd go blind tomorrow if it meant I could have a baby." The tears were flowing freely now as Stacey poured out all the pain she had held inside for so long. She and Sam talked of course but he could never really understand how cheated she felt. "I feel so robbed."
"I know sweetheart. I know how much it hurts." It was time. Maureen had kept this secret from her daughter long enough, and telling her might help ease her pain. "Did I ever tell you why you were an only child?"
"No." Stacey heard the catch in her mother's voice and looked up. She could sense she was about to hear something important, she just knew it. "Why?"
"We didn't intend for it to be that way. You father and I both wanted lots of children. We had so much love and we wanted to share it. I got pregnant with you very easily, and carried you without a problem. When you were born I thought God himself had smiled on us." Tears rose again in Maureen's eyes as she recalled her first glimpse of her daughter. "The next six months seemed like some wonderful dream. And I got pregnant again. We were delighted, all our dreams were coming true. But I lost the baby."
"We chalked it up to bad luck. Sad for sure, but not the end of the world. We had you, and we could try again. Over the next two years I got pregnant four more times. They never lasted past the third month. Finally, when you were three, I made into my second trimester. I afraid to leave my bed or even breathe for those first few months. Do you remember Grandma coming to stay for awhile because I was sick?"
"Vaguely. I remember that she let me watch cartoons a lot, and eat ice cream almost every night after dinner."
"That's your grandmother all right. The day I felt the baby kick, I burst into tears with relief. This one would be okay. I just knew it. And it was. I made it to my ninth month and went into labor a week before my due date." Maureen stopped talking for a minute, reliving the memories.
"What happened Mom?" Stacey wasn't even sure she should ask, but she had to know.
"Everything was going fine. Until the baby's heartbeat began to slow. They rushed me into an emergency C-section but they were too late. Somehow the cord had kinked, and cut off the oxygen to the baby. He was born dead." Both women were sobbing now, one crying for an unknown brother, the other for a long lost son. "I still remember the look on your father's face when I woke up. I knew before he said anything. The look said it all. All I wanted to do was die and join my baby. I wondered how God could be so cruel. To let me come this close to what I wanted so badly, only to yank it away from me."
"Oh Mom." Stacey embraced her mother, letting her sob on her shoulder. "How horrible."
"I was able to hold him and see him. I spent hours just rocking him, willing him to wake up. I was sure he was just sleeping. He was so little, so perfect. He had blond hair, just like yours. We named him Matthew. I finally had to put him down. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life. My arms literally ached for days afterwards." Maureen took a deep breath. She was over the worst of it and was beginning to calm down. "I had my tubes tied after that. Your father and I agreed that we didn't want to try again. Our hearts had been jerked around too many times, and we wouldn't be able to stand it again. We decided to just accept that you were the only child we were meant to have. But it took a long time for me to stop feeling robbed over Matthew and the babies we lost, and start feeling blessed to have you."
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Stacey stayed at the store for another couple of hours, then headed for Bradford Court. She needed to eat and check her blood sugar, then she wanted to see Claudia. She hadn't seen Mimi since she was born four months ago. Had it really been that long since she'd been in Stoneybrook? Sam was right. She was losing herself in her work.
"Hello? Anybody around?" Stacey let herself in and headed for the kitchen. A note on the table told her to help herself to something to eat, and that Samantha had taken Kelly to the park. Sam and Charlie were at their mother's house and would be back later. Stacey smiled at the loving message Sam had scribbled on the bottom, and went to make herself a sandwich. After she ate, she changed into casual clothes and headed across the street. Claudia should be from the school by now and hard at work in her studio.
She rang the bell, still feeling strange for not walking in the way she use to. But after the Kishi's moved to Florida and deeded the house to Claudia and her husband, she just didn't feel comfortable coming in unannounced. Claudia was still trying to train her out of it.
Too late Stacey realized it was the middle of Mimi's naptime and that Claudia was going to kill her for ringing the bell. She could already here the faint wails of an angry child from behind the door. Was it too late to run?
"Stacey!" Yep. The door swung open to reveal a very frazzled Claudia, and a wailing baby. "Get in here so I can kill you!"
