6 weeks later
Edna Hyde began her shift at the new diner that had just opened in Point Place called Carl's Diner. She was flat broke, which of course wasn't a big change.
Ever since she had called to get Steven's phone number all those weeks ago she would get up the courage to call her son, but the minute someone answered she would immediately hang up in fear of Steven's reaction.
The last few times she had called the girl who answered had gotten very irate that she wouldn't identify herself and Steven just sounded annoyed whenever he picked up. Of course she would recognize Steven's voice anywhere and apparently he was living with a girlfriend or a roommate.
Edna desperately wanted to patch things up between her and Steven but feared the rift was too large and painful to fix this time. The one thing she knew for sure was that somehow, someway she would have to try.
Otherwise things were gradually starting to improve for Edna. She had a new apartment, a new job and she was completely sober for the first time in several years. Thanks to the help of a good friend and weekly AA meetings she was finally on the right track, now if only she could fix things with Steven.
Sobriety was wonderful but it was also like a bucket of freezing cold water tossed on her conscience. Now she realized what a terrible and selfish mother she had been to Steven all those years. She realized how she had let her bitterness towards Steven's father affect her parenting. She hoped that someday when Steven was a parent himself he would understand better how difficult it is raising a child, especially alone.
Steven Hyde took his hour lunch break everyday at noon. Today was no exception, except for the fact that today he and a co-worker were going out to lunch instead of going home. Normally Hyde went home everyday for lunch but since Jackie's morning sickness had gotten so much worse several weeks ago, she had not been able to stand the smell of much of anything cooking and just felt absolutely horrible.
Recently Hyde had become good friends with a supervisor from another department. Hyde himself had only just become a supervisor and was really enjoying the pay increase and the extra responsibilities along with a few additional perks. His new friend, Dave Morgan, was about 28 years old and married with 3 young children. Hyde was glad to finally have a friend that he had fatherhood in common with because none of his close friends had any children.
After a very short drive Dave and Hyde got out of Dave's pickup and walked into the diner and seated themselves. A young girl brought them their silverware, menus, and water and told them that their waitress would be with them shortly.
Dave began to chat with Hyde. "Hey, How's Jackie doing?, feeling any better yet?" asked Dave.
"Not much, she still throws up constantly and can't stand the smell of anything cooking. Last week she fainted at work so I haven't let her go back yet. The Dr says it should hopefully clear up in the next 2-3 weeks." said Hyde solemnly.
"Man that's too bad. Pam was sick as a dog with our first two and not at all for our last one. So who's been taking care of Kaitlyn while Jackie's been so sick?" asked Dave curiously.
"Luckily Mrs. Forman helps out a lot. Jackie tries to keep up with Katie but since she started walking a few weeks ago she's into everything, and I mean everything. Jackie's had to keep really close to the toilet and it's a little hard to do that chasing after a 1 year old, though usually in the evenings she feels a lot better. By then though she's so exhausted she falls asleep and goes to bed early. I asked the doctor about it and he says nausea and fatigue are normal for the first trimester. It's just new to us because when she was pregnant with Katie she didn't go through any of this stuff except for being really tired all the time." explained Hyde. "How old are your kids again, Dave?"
"6,4, &1." answered Dave.
"Oh that's right, your youngest is the same age as Katie." said Hyde.
Their conversation was interrupted by the waitress coming to the table. Hyde looked up to find himself staring at someone very familiar yet unwelcome. Hyde couldn't believe it, it was his mother, of all people. Edna was in complete shock and was about to ask her friend to change tables with her but there was no getting out of finally facing her son.
"What can I get you boys?" asked Edna nervously.
"Oh, I don't know. What are the specials Mom?!" exclaimed Hyde stressing the Mom part very sarcastically.
Dave began to feel kind of uncomfortable as he knew Hyde was estranged from his mother and father but didn't know much about it and decided to keep and quiet and just listen.
Edna wished that the floor would swallow her but knew that she was on her own in this mess that was of her own making. "Hi Steven, How are you?" Edna enquired quietly.
Hyde who was getting angrier by the second replied bitterly "Oh just great, you wouldn't believe how my life has changed in the last 4 years."
Edna sighed and stared at the floor and looked back up into her son's angry blue eyes. "Steven, I'd really like to talk to you and explain everything but now isn't the best time to get into it."
"Oh yes, I know, Its only what is good & convenient for you isn't it? asked Hyde rhetorically. "Oh and by the way, Can you please stop calling my house and hanging up constantly?! I know it's you because Mrs. Forman told me she gave you my number. Then the very next day and ever since then we get about 3 hang up calls a day." stated Hyde angrily.
"Steven I'm sorry, I just didn't know what to say. I didn't mean to upset you and your girlfriend." said Edna apologetically.
"Hey Edna, you didn't upset my girlfriend, but you sure pissed off my wife!" yelled Hyde.
"Your wife!?" asked Edna, who was flabbergasted.
"Yes, my wife!, holding up his left hand and pointing to the gold band on his ring finger. "Oh but you wouldn't know that since you've haven't let me know where you are for the last 3-1/2 years." said Hyde bitterly.
"Steven, I'm going to have Janet take your order but we need to talk about this later at a more appropriate place." said Edna, who was on the verge of tears.
"Edna, save your breath, I'm not interested in anything you have to say. You can save the explanations for someone who gives a damn!" said Hyde harshly.
Edna walked away from the table just in time before the flood of tears began. She knew it wouldn't be easy but she never imagined Steven was this bitter. Edna tried up her tears long enough to ask her co-worker Janet to please take her table.
"Edna, what's wrong?" asked Janet.
"I'll tell you later." said Edna who was trying very hard to hold it together.
Janet shook her head in agreement to Edna's request, curious about what could have upset her co-worker in such a short amount of time, as Edna had been cheerful when she first arrived to work an hour ago. "Edna, why don't you go ahead and take your break, we've got it covered out here."
"Thanks Janet, you're a lifesaver." said Edna gratefully.
Hyde and Dave ate their lunch in silence since Dave sensed now was not the time to ask a bunch of questions. In the short time they'd been friends Dave had picked up on that Hyde had a lot of emotional baggage about his parents and his childhood.
Hyde was quiet because he was livid. He couldn't believe it, of all days to run into his mother. It was bad enough that she called his house and hung up all the time but now she wanted to "patch" everything up and be one big happy family. As far as he was concerned the only family he had were Jackie, Katie, & the Formans.
The rest of the day at work seemed to crawl at a snails pace. He couldn't get Edna's words or hurt expression as she the left the table off his mind. "Why the hell should I even care!" he thought to himself. Things were going fine the way they were. He didn't need her.
For the most part he'd never been happier in his life. He had a beautiful wife, an adorable little girl and another baby on the way. Sure the timing of Jackie's latest pregnancy wasn't the most convenient but overall he was happy about it, except for Jackie's having been so sick lately.
He felt so bad for her but there was nothing he could do about it except try to comfort her through it and help out with Katie as much as possible. Thank God for Mrs. Forman's help the last few weeks or he didn't want to think about what things would have been like with Jackie barely able to get out of bed or to be away from the bathroom and with him having to work 50 hours a week to support their growing family.
Mrs. Forman had taken Katie off Jackie's hands many times so she could rest, fixed Hyde many sandwiches and other goodies, cleaned their apartment, and had even bought them groceries.
Sometimes he couldn't even begin to fathom the difference between Edna and Mrs. Forman. All his life all Edna had ever done was compare him to his "no good" father and criticize everything he did. Sometimes he wondered if it wasn't a blessing that Edna did take off on him. There was no way he could ever repay the Formans for all that they had done for him. Hyde then realized he had been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice it was time to be heading home.
A short time later Hyde arrived home. He walked in to find Jackie asleep, curled up on one end of the couch with Katie asleep on the other end. He sat down on the floor next to Jackie and kissed her forehead. She immediately woke up and smiled as soon as she saw Hyde.
"Hi Honey, How was work?" asked Jackie sleepily. "Same old, same old. How are you feeling?"
"Oh you know, same old, same old." said Jackie jokingly. "Oh Steven, what I wouldn't give for just one day where I didn't feel so nauseous and exhausted."
"I know babe. Hopefully it will go away in a few weeks like the doctor said." answered Hyde sympathetically.
Jackie sat up and said "Mrs. Forman dropped off some sandwiches and a pie if you're hungry."
"I'll have some later. Dave and I went to that new diner for lunch and guess who's working there?"
"I have no idea Steven, who?"
"My mother!"
"What!?"
"Yes, Edna, a.k.a my sorry excuse for a mother. She wants to talk things over and make excuses but I told her to save it for someone who cares." said Hyde angrily.
"Steven!" exclaimed Jackie disapprovingly.
"I know, I just got so mad. I told you, she's the one who's been calling here and hanging up. She thought you were my girlfriend." said Hyde mockingly.
"What did you tell her?"
"Oh, just that her calling and hanging up didn't upset my girlfriend but it sure pissed off my wife." answered Hyde.
"What did she say?"
"Not much, she was pretty shocked."
"Did you tell her about Kaitlyn?"
"No, we didn't get that far."
"Steven are you sure you don't want to see or talk to her." asked Jackie somewhat concerned.
"I don't know, I need to think about it."
"Steven, don't you think it would be nice for her to get to know Kaitlyn." asked Jackie, trying to remind her husband that its not just about him anymore.
"That's the part that really worries me. It's bad enough she's let me down and abandoned me more times than I can count but I will not put up with her doing that to my kids." said Hyde.
Jackie, knowing Steven better than anyone, could see behind the façade and knew how much the situation with his mother still hurt him. She put her arms around him and kissed him on the lips and hugged him. "I love you, Steven." she whispered in his ear.
"I love you too, baby" and held on to her as tight as he could without hurting her. As far as he was concerned all that truly mattered to him was in his arms and asleep on the couch.
Edna Hyde began her shift at the new diner that had just opened in Point Place called Carl's Diner. She was flat broke, which of course wasn't a big change.
Ever since she had called to get Steven's phone number all those weeks ago she would get up the courage to call her son, but the minute someone answered she would immediately hang up in fear of Steven's reaction.
The last few times she had called the girl who answered had gotten very irate that she wouldn't identify herself and Steven just sounded annoyed whenever he picked up. Of course she would recognize Steven's voice anywhere and apparently he was living with a girlfriend or a roommate.
Edna desperately wanted to patch things up between her and Steven but feared the rift was too large and painful to fix this time. The one thing she knew for sure was that somehow, someway she would have to try.
Otherwise things were gradually starting to improve for Edna. She had a new apartment, a new job and she was completely sober for the first time in several years. Thanks to the help of a good friend and weekly AA meetings she was finally on the right track, now if only she could fix things with Steven.
Sobriety was wonderful but it was also like a bucket of freezing cold water tossed on her conscience. Now she realized what a terrible and selfish mother she had been to Steven all those years. She realized how she had let her bitterness towards Steven's father affect her parenting. She hoped that someday when Steven was a parent himself he would understand better how difficult it is raising a child, especially alone.
Steven Hyde took his hour lunch break everyday at noon. Today was no exception, except for the fact that today he and a co-worker were going out to lunch instead of going home. Normally Hyde went home everyday for lunch but since Jackie's morning sickness had gotten so much worse several weeks ago, she had not been able to stand the smell of much of anything cooking and just felt absolutely horrible.
Recently Hyde had become good friends with a supervisor from another department. Hyde himself had only just become a supervisor and was really enjoying the pay increase and the extra responsibilities along with a few additional perks. His new friend, Dave Morgan, was about 28 years old and married with 3 young children. Hyde was glad to finally have a friend that he had fatherhood in common with because none of his close friends had any children.
After a very short drive Dave and Hyde got out of Dave's pickup and walked into the diner and seated themselves. A young girl brought them their silverware, menus, and water and told them that their waitress would be with them shortly.
Dave began to chat with Hyde. "Hey, How's Jackie doing?, feeling any better yet?" asked Dave.
"Not much, she still throws up constantly and can't stand the smell of anything cooking. Last week she fainted at work so I haven't let her go back yet. The Dr says it should hopefully clear up in the next 2-3 weeks." said Hyde solemnly.
"Man that's too bad. Pam was sick as a dog with our first two and not at all for our last one. So who's been taking care of Kaitlyn while Jackie's been so sick?" asked Dave curiously.
"Luckily Mrs. Forman helps out a lot. Jackie tries to keep up with Katie but since she started walking a few weeks ago she's into everything, and I mean everything. Jackie's had to keep really close to the toilet and it's a little hard to do that chasing after a 1 year old, though usually in the evenings she feels a lot better. By then though she's so exhausted she falls asleep and goes to bed early. I asked the doctor about it and he says nausea and fatigue are normal for the first trimester. It's just new to us because when she was pregnant with Katie she didn't go through any of this stuff except for being really tired all the time." explained Hyde. "How old are your kids again, Dave?"
"6,4, &1." answered Dave.
"Oh that's right, your youngest is the same age as Katie." said Hyde.
Their conversation was interrupted by the waitress coming to the table. Hyde looked up to find himself staring at someone very familiar yet unwelcome. Hyde couldn't believe it, it was his mother, of all people. Edna was in complete shock and was about to ask her friend to change tables with her but there was no getting out of finally facing her son.
"What can I get you boys?" asked Edna nervously.
"Oh, I don't know. What are the specials Mom?!" exclaimed Hyde stressing the Mom part very sarcastically.
Dave began to feel kind of uncomfortable as he knew Hyde was estranged from his mother and father but didn't know much about it and decided to keep and quiet and just listen.
Edna wished that the floor would swallow her but knew that she was on her own in this mess that was of her own making. "Hi Steven, How are you?" Edna enquired quietly.
Hyde who was getting angrier by the second replied bitterly "Oh just great, you wouldn't believe how my life has changed in the last 4 years."
Edna sighed and stared at the floor and looked back up into her son's angry blue eyes. "Steven, I'd really like to talk to you and explain everything but now isn't the best time to get into it."
"Oh yes, I know, Its only what is good & convenient for you isn't it? asked Hyde rhetorically. "Oh and by the way, Can you please stop calling my house and hanging up constantly?! I know it's you because Mrs. Forman told me she gave you my number. Then the very next day and ever since then we get about 3 hang up calls a day." stated Hyde angrily.
"Steven I'm sorry, I just didn't know what to say. I didn't mean to upset you and your girlfriend." said Edna apologetically.
"Hey Edna, you didn't upset my girlfriend, but you sure pissed off my wife!" yelled Hyde.
"Your wife!?" asked Edna, who was flabbergasted.
"Yes, my wife!, holding up his left hand and pointing to the gold band on his ring finger. "Oh but you wouldn't know that since you've haven't let me know where you are for the last 3-1/2 years." said Hyde bitterly.
"Steven, I'm going to have Janet take your order but we need to talk about this later at a more appropriate place." said Edna, who was on the verge of tears.
"Edna, save your breath, I'm not interested in anything you have to say. You can save the explanations for someone who gives a damn!" said Hyde harshly.
Edna walked away from the table just in time before the flood of tears began. She knew it wouldn't be easy but she never imagined Steven was this bitter. Edna tried up her tears long enough to ask her co-worker Janet to please take her table.
"Edna, what's wrong?" asked Janet.
"I'll tell you later." said Edna who was trying very hard to hold it together.
Janet shook her head in agreement to Edna's request, curious about what could have upset her co-worker in such a short amount of time, as Edna had been cheerful when she first arrived to work an hour ago. "Edna, why don't you go ahead and take your break, we've got it covered out here."
"Thanks Janet, you're a lifesaver." said Edna gratefully.
Hyde and Dave ate their lunch in silence since Dave sensed now was not the time to ask a bunch of questions. In the short time they'd been friends Dave had picked up on that Hyde had a lot of emotional baggage about his parents and his childhood.
Hyde was quiet because he was livid. He couldn't believe it, of all days to run into his mother. It was bad enough that she called his house and hung up all the time but now she wanted to "patch" everything up and be one big happy family. As far as he was concerned the only family he had were Jackie, Katie, & the Formans.
The rest of the day at work seemed to crawl at a snails pace. He couldn't get Edna's words or hurt expression as she the left the table off his mind. "Why the hell should I even care!" he thought to himself. Things were going fine the way they were. He didn't need her.
For the most part he'd never been happier in his life. He had a beautiful wife, an adorable little girl and another baby on the way. Sure the timing of Jackie's latest pregnancy wasn't the most convenient but overall he was happy about it, except for Jackie's having been so sick lately.
He felt so bad for her but there was nothing he could do about it except try to comfort her through it and help out with Katie as much as possible. Thank God for Mrs. Forman's help the last few weeks or he didn't want to think about what things would have been like with Jackie barely able to get out of bed or to be away from the bathroom and with him having to work 50 hours a week to support their growing family.
Mrs. Forman had taken Katie off Jackie's hands many times so she could rest, fixed Hyde many sandwiches and other goodies, cleaned their apartment, and had even bought them groceries.
Sometimes he couldn't even begin to fathom the difference between Edna and Mrs. Forman. All his life all Edna had ever done was compare him to his "no good" father and criticize everything he did. Sometimes he wondered if it wasn't a blessing that Edna did take off on him. There was no way he could ever repay the Formans for all that they had done for him. Hyde then realized he had been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice it was time to be heading home.
A short time later Hyde arrived home. He walked in to find Jackie asleep, curled up on one end of the couch with Katie asleep on the other end. He sat down on the floor next to Jackie and kissed her forehead. She immediately woke up and smiled as soon as she saw Hyde.
"Hi Honey, How was work?" asked Jackie sleepily. "Same old, same old. How are you feeling?"
"Oh you know, same old, same old." said Jackie jokingly. "Oh Steven, what I wouldn't give for just one day where I didn't feel so nauseous and exhausted."
"I know babe. Hopefully it will go away in a few weeks like the doctor said." answered Hyde sympathetically.
Jackie sat up and said "Mrs. Forman dropped off some sandwiches and a pie if you're hungry."
"I'll have some later. Dave and I went to that new diner for lunch and guess who's working there?"
"I have no idea Steven, who?"
"My mother!"
"What!?"
"Yes, Edna, a.k.a my sorry excuse for a mother. She wants to talk things over and make excuses but I told her to save it for someone who cares." said Hyde angrily.
"Steven!" exclaimed Jackie disapprovingly.
"I know, I just got so mad. I told you, she's the one who's been calling here and hanging up. She thought you were my girlfriend." said Hyde mockingly.
"What did you tell her?"
"Oh, just that her calling and hanging up didn't upset my girlfriend but it sure pissed off my wife." answered Hyde.
"What did she say?"
"Not much, she was pretty shocked."
"Did you tell her about Kaitlyn?"
"No, we didn't get that far."
"Steven are you sure you don't want to see or talk to her." asked Jackie somewhat concerned.
"I don't know, I need to think about it."
"Steven, don't you think it would be nice for her to get to know Kaitlyn." asked Jackie, trying to remind her husband that its not just about him anymore.
"That's the part that really worries me. It's bad enough she's let me down and abandoned me more times than I can count but I will not put up with her doing that to my kids." said Hyde.
Jackie, knowing Steven better than anyone, could see behind the façade and knew how much the situation with his mother still hurt him. She put her arms around him and kissed him on the lips and hugged him. "I love you, Steven." she whispered in his ear.
"I love you too, baby" and held on to her as tight as he could without hurting her. As far as he was concerned all that truly mattered to him was in his arms and asleep on the couch.