Chapter 18
"So what do you think?" Hailey asks leaving the dressing room after slipping on her newly fitted wedding dress.
"Hailey you look beautiful," Marissa and Kirsten breath. Hailey's wedding dress was a cream colored v-neck halter that clung to her entire body and had a small train in back.
"So you guys like it?" Hailey asks turning in front of her sister and future step-daughter.
"Love it," both agree.
"Would you guys like to see the dresses I've picked out for you?" Hailey asks and when both nod she motions to the woman standing nearby. Withing a few minutes she has returned with identical dresses in a dark pink color. "Try them on," Hailey urges.
Marissa is the first to emerge from the dressing room, "I like it," she states staring at herself in the mirror. The dress is sleeveless with a tight fitting bodice that flares out into an a-line skirt where the back is slight longer than the front.
"You do?" Hailey asks cheerfully.
"I do too," Kirsten states as she too emerges.
"Good," Hailey smiles brightly. "I have six days until the wedding, our clothes are out of the way, Caitlin's dress is too, so are the tuxes. Caterers have the menu picked out, we have the music...everything but actually setting up."
"Well this quick wedding seems to be going better than I would have expected." Kirsten comments as her cell phone rings, "excuse me. Hello?" She asks quickly.
Her shoulders sag when Sandy asks, "have you heard from the doctor yet?"
"No," Kirsten sighs, "when I called her yesterday she said that the lab was backed up and she was trying to get my test in there. She apologized but there wasn't much she could do."
"I'm sure we'll here back soon," Sandy states. "Did you want to take Ryan tomorrow, or do you want me to do it?"
"Why don't you take him," Kirsten responds. "He's always been more comfortable with you about these things than with you."
"Okay. Do you want me to bring home dinner?"
"No, I told Hailey we'd go to dinner with her, Jimmy and Marissa. Maybe you could bring something home for Ryan though, I think he said something about not wanting to take Aurora out tonight." Kirsten states.
"Okay," Sandy agrees. "I'll call him and see if there's something particular he wants me to bring home."
"Hey Seth," Kirsten greets when she gets home.
Seth pauses his video game and turns to face his mother, "hey. Both Ryan and Aurora are asleep in his bedroom and your doctor called."
"Doctor James?" Kirsten asks quickly.
Seth shrugs, his attention back on his video game, "sure."
"I'm going to call her back in my room, can you field any disruptions?"
Seth shrugs again, "sure."
With shaky fingers Kirsten dials the doctor's number, "doctor James please. Hi, it's Kirsten Cohen, Seth said you called." Kirsten listens intently, "what do you mean? But all the results said...I understand, thank you for calling."
"Seth said you were up here," Sandy appears in the bedroom just as Kirsten is hanging up the phone. "He said you got a call from your doctor. So when is there going to be a new little Cohen running around?"
Kirsten swallows hard, "there's not."
"What do you mean?" Sandy questions.
Kirsten continues to sit with her back to Sandy, "she said that there are times when the at home pregnancy tests are positive but the lab work comes back negative. It was a fluke, I'm not pregnant."
Sandy sets down on the bed next to Kirsten, "I'm sorry, sweetie, but maybe it's for the best. I don't know how we would have handled another baby around here."
Kirsten's mouth drops, "I had no idea you didn't want another baby..."
"I just think we have a lot going on right now to make another addition to this family," Sandy states slowly.
"I can't believe you!" Kirsten exclaims, "you made me believe that you wanted another child, you talked me into wanting one that didn't even exist and here you never even wanted another baby."
"Kirsten..."
"No," Kirsten shakes her head, "I can't believe you and I don't want to talk about this anymore. I have to take a shower, we're supposed to meet Hailey in an hour and a half. But you're welcome to stay home."
Sandy sighs, taking off his tie he drops it on the bed and then wanders out of the bedroom. "Hey," Ryan is quietly closing his bedroom door, baby monitor in hand.
"Kirsten's yelling didn't wake you, did it?" Sandy asks.
"What?" Ryan shakes his head, "no."
"I don't think I'm going to go tonight either, we can order in if you want or we can go out. It's up to you. I know you told Kirsten you didn't feel like taking Kirsten out but I have the feeling you just didn't feel like going to dinner with Marissa."
"How'd you know?" Ryan questions.
"Your mysterious need to go home before dinner last night and the lack of Marissa appearances today," Sandy states. "You guys have been fighting already?"
Ryan shrugs, "I don't think there's a chance in hell Marissa and I can ever be together."
"Why do you say that?" Sandy asks.
"Because if one of us isn't doing something unforgivable the other is saying something unforgivable," Ryan sighs. "It's just never going to work out for us and I think we just need to quit trying."
"If you're willing to give her up that easily," Sandy states, "then yeah, I do think you should give up on her. But if you think she's worth fighting for, then fight Ryan, I know you've been through a lot in your life and you deserve to be happy. You've fought for a lot of things, your family, your freedom, Seth, acceptance in this small minded town, for your little girl and now you need to learn how to fight for your happiness."
"Sandy, I..." Ryan is cut off by the cries coming from both the baby monitor and the other side of the door. "I've got to go get her, she needs to be fed and she probably needs a diaper change. But if you still want to go out to dinner that's fine."
"Good," Sandy nods. "Oh, I thought I'd take you tomorrow why don't you think about what time we should leave here."
"So what do you think?" Hailey asks leaving the dressing room after slipping on her newly fitted wedding dress.
"Hailey you look beautiful," Marissa and Kirsten breath. Hailey's wedding dress was a cream colored v-neck halter that clung to her entire body and had a small train in back.
"So you guys like it?" Hailey asks turning in front of her sister and future step-daughter.
"Love it," both agree.
"Would you guys like to see the dresses I've picked out for you?" Hailey asks and when both nod she motions to the woman standing nearby. Withing a few minutes she has returned with identical dresses in a dark pink color. "Try them on," Hailey urges.
Marissa is the first to emerge from the dressing room, "I like it," she states staring at herself in the mirror. The dress is sleeveless with a tight fitting bodice that flares out into an a-line skirt where the back is slight longer than the front.
"You do?" Hailey asks cheerfully.
"I do too," Kirsten states as she too emerges.
"Good," Hailey smiles brightly. "I have six days until the wedding, our clothes are out of the way, Caitlin's dress is too, so are the tuxes. Caterers have the menu picked out, we have the music...everything but actually setting up."
"Well this quick wedding seems to be going better than I would have expected." Kirsten comments as her cell phone rings, "excuse me. Hello?" She asks quickly.
Her shoulders sag when Sandy asks, "have you heard from the doctor yet?"
"No," Kirsten sighs, "when I called her yesterday she said that the lab was backed up and she was trying to get my test in there. She apologized but there wasn't much she could do."
"I'm sure we'll here back soon," Sandy states. "Did you want to take Ryan tomorrow, or do you want me to do it?"
"Why don't you take him," Kirsten responds. "He's always been more comfortable with you about these things than with you."
"Okay. Do you want me to bring home dinner?"
"No, I told Hailey we'd go to dinner with her, Jimmy and Marissa. Maybe you could bring something home for Ryan though, I think he said something about not wanting to take Aurora out tonight." Kirsten states.
"Okay," Sandy agrees. "I'll call him and see if there's something particular he wants me to bring home."
"Hey Seth," Kirsten greets when she gets home.
Seth pauses his video game and turns to face his mother, "hey. Both Ryan and Aurora are asleep in his bedroom and your doctor called."
"Doctor James?" Kirsten asks quickly.
Seth shrugs, his attention back on his video game, "sure."
"I'm going to call her back in my room, can you field any disruptions?"
Seth shrugs again, "sure."
With shaky fingers Kirsten dials the doctor's number, "doctor James please. Hi, it's Kirsten Cohen, Seth said you called." Kirsten listens intently, "what do you mean? But all the results said...I understand, thank you for calling."
"Seth said you were up here," Sandy appears in the bedroom just as Kirsten is hanging up the phone. "He said you got a call from your doctor. So when is there going to be a new little Cohen running around?"
Kirsten swallows hard, "there's not."
"What do you mean?" Sandy questions.
Kirsten continues to sit with her back to Sandy, "she said that there are times when the at home pregnancy tests are positive but the lab work comes back negative. It was a fluke, I'm not pregnant."
Sandy sets down on the bed next to Kirsten, "I'm sorry, sweetie, but maybe it's for the best. I don't know how we would have handled another baby around here."
Kirsten's mouth drops, "I had no idea you didn't want another baby..."
"I just think we have a lot going on right now to make another addition to this family," Sandy states slowly.
"I can't believe you!" Kirsten exclaims, "you made me believe that you wanted another child, you talked me into wanting one that didn't even exist and here you never even wanted another baby."
"Kirsten..."
"No," Kirsten shakes her head, "I can't believe you and I don't want to talk about this anymore. I have to take a shower, we're supposed to meet Hailey in an hour and a half. But you're welcome to stay home."
Sandy sighs, taking off his tie he drops it on the bed and then wanders out of the bedroom. "Hey," Ryan is quietly closing his bedroom door, baby monitor in hand.
"Kirsten's yelling didn't wake you, did it?" Sandy asks.
"What?" Ryan shakes his head, "no."
"I don't think I'm going to go tonight either, we can order in if you want or we can go out. It's up to you. I know you told Kirsten you didn't feel like taking Kirsten out but I have the feeling you just didn't feel like going to dinner with Marissa."
"How'd you know?" Ryan questions.
"Your mysterious need to go home before dinner last night and the lack of Marissa appearances today," Sandy states. "You guys have been fighting already?"
Ryan shrugs, "I don't think there's a chance in hell Marissa and I can ever be together."
"Why do you say that?" Sandy asks.
"Because if one of us isn't doing something unforgivable the other is saying something unforgivable," Ryan sighs. "It's just never going to work out for us and I think we just need to quit trying."
"If you're willing to give her up that easily," Sandy states, "then yeah, I do think you should give up on her. But if you think she's worth fighting for, then fight Ryan, I know you've been through a lot in your life and you deserve to be happy. You've fought for a lot of things, your family, your freedom, Seth, acceptance in this small minded town, for your little girl and now you need to learn how to fight for your happiness."
"Sandy, I..." Ryan is cut off by the cries coming from both the baby monitor and the other side of the door. "I've got to go get her, she needs to be fed and she probably needs a diaper change. But if you still want to go out to dinner that's fine."
"Good," Sandy nods. "Oh, I thought I'd take you tomorrow why don't you think about what time we should leave here."