The emergency room was the last place Stanley wanted to be. The
sounds and smells of the hospital after spending a week there were still
fresh in his mind and now laying in a cubicle waiting to be seen, not
knowing where Emma or Kyle were, was only causing him more aggrivation. It
felt like hours and finally a medical student accidentally peeked his head
around the curtain.
"You're not Anne Randall."
"Well, that's pretty obvious," Stanley replied cynically, "but I've been waiting here for what seems like hours without even seeing any hospital staff."
"I'm just a med student. I can't really help you out."
"You can get me a doctor, a nurse someone who knows what they're doing. I want to find out where my girlfriend is, and her son, he fell off a skateboard. I feel helpless in here."
"Oh, the kid on the skateboard. He's fine. A couple stitches, I assisted."
"That's great for you, buddy. Where is he?"
"Talking to some cops. So you must be involved in all that FBI crap going out in the waiting room. Pretty interesting."
"Not really. He shouldn't be talking to the cop without an adult present. You find someone for me to talk to now." Stanley gave the student a disgruntled look.
"I'll see what I can do."
Stanley tried to relax back onto the pillows, closing his eyes, but all he could see was Emma being taken away in an ambulance. Tears swelled up in his eyes. He had known about the baby for 24 hours and now it seemed evident that the baby wasn't meant to be. It was killing him inside.
The sound of the curtain being pulled vigorously, startled him, but not as much as laying eyes on the robust figure in a nurse's uniform now facing him. Louise.
"Well, well, well, look who we have here. Mr. Jobson...this is such a nice surprise. " She picked up the chart, "I see the cast has mysteriously disappeared. I guess I'm not surprised."
He gave her the evil eye, "I want to see a doctor, preferably the one that was looking after Emma."
"X-rays first, then you can see a doctor. I'll get a orderly to take you down there."
She started to walk out, "Now wait a minute. I deserve answers here."
"They've taken her up to a room." Stanley noticed how she didn't even make eye contact with him, then continued nonchalantly, "You've already caused enough damage today. I don't want any trouble here, Mr. Jobson. I'm doing my job. X-rays and a reset, that is what your chart says. That arm should never have come out of a cast, this will disrupt the healing process considerably."
"Do you think I fucking care about any of that? My girlfriend, I want to know what's happened to my girlfriend, and until you or somebody else in this shithole tells me, I won't cooperate with anyone."
"Well, will just see about that." Turning abruptly she bumped straight into Agent Roberts. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry. What a clumsy fool I am." she batted her eyelashes.
"It's no problem." He showed his badge, "I'm just hear to have a chat with Mr. Jobson."
"Suit yourself, fair warning, he's incredibly rude and has a foul tongue, but he's all bark and no bite." She winked at Stanley, and he collapsed back onto the bed cringing with pain.
"If you were doing your job, nurse, you wouldn't allow this man to disturb me." Stanley blurted out between sharp pains in his wrist.
After she walked out, Roberts chuckled, "you know how to charm the ladies, don't you, Stanley?"
"Roberts, I'm not in the mood for your little jokes. And another thing, you've been questioning Kyle without an adult present, I know that that's a major no-no in your line of work."
"I think a thank you, Roberts, for showing up when you did might be a nice gesture, Stanley, and you don't have to worry. Kyle, isn't talking. I think he believes I'm going to throw him into prison. And he also thinks he's protecting you."
Stanley couldn't forget the look Kyle had thrown his way as the paramedics loaded Emma into the back of their van. It had been pretty evident the news of the baby was not welcomed in his eyes.
"Emma...how is she?"
"Wish I could tell you, but they've admitted her, taken her to the Women's ward. I can see what I can find out. I saw her being moved, the cramping had stopped. My wife miscarried, Stan, a few years back. It's not an easy thing to go through, but she's young, there will be other babies."
"You don't fucking get it, do you? I don't know if our relationship can survive what happened today and now this." He clenched his eyes tight, fighting tears.
"I know what you're saying but anything worth having is worth fighting for Stanley, of all people you should know that. The two of you will come through this."
"I just want to talk to her doctor. I want to know what's going on."
"Okay. I'll see what i can do, but cooperate with the staff here, Stanley. Get that arm looked at." Roberts knew the guy was suffering. Stanley turned away from him, and buried his head in the pillow. The suffering was more than just the pain in his wrist and his leg. He didn't realize he could feel so strongly about the baby Emma was carrying. He clenched his eyes shut and felt tears pushing their way to the surface.
* * *
* *
Amy was thumbing through a magazine in the waiting room when Kyle walked out limping. She stood up and moved over to him, "You okay?"
"Just a couple of stitches, it's not a big deal."
She couldn't help but notice the glum look on his face. A few hours ago he had been so gung ho about this idea, helping Stanley and his mom and now he was just acting plain weird.
"Hey, you haven't seen my mom have you? No one seems to want to tell me anything."
"Maybe you should talk to Stanley. That agent.. Roberts, he said they were taking him to Xray. He also said Stanley wanted to make sure you were okay."
"Yeah, right."
"Kyle, what is wrong with you?"
"I'm worried about my mom, is that okay with you?" he snapped.
"Don't you take this out on me. What happened at that house? What happened between you and Stanley?"
"Nothing. Can we drop this and find out what they did with my mom?"
"I called Brent, he's bringing Melody over."
"Oh, great. Why didn't you ask me?"
Amy couldn't believe any of this. "I just thought they should know what's going on."
"You know what, why don't you just go home."
"Kyle." She had never seen him like this.
He put his hand to his head, feeling tears. "This isn't about you, Amy. Please just go now. You're right, I shouldn't take this out on you. Thanks for calling, Brent. Melody needs to be here.. And you've been a big help, really. I just need some time alone, you know."
She put her hand on his shoulder, "Will you call me? Please let me know what's happening."
He just nodded, not able to look her in the eye.
"And talk to Stanley, please? He cares about you, Kyle. I think you know that."
* * * *
*
Roberts made sure Stanley got to Xray, and then as he was heading towards the waiting area he saw Kyle trying to talk to a nurse, he was becoming animated and for the life of him, he had a hard time not comparing him to Stanley.
"I just want to know what's wrong with my mom, and where is she? You should be able to tell me that."
"I'll find a doctor to talk to you. Just take a seat."
"I don't want to take a seat. Stop treating me like a kid, I'm her closest living relative, you should tell me what's going on."
Louise walked up to them, "You must be Stanley's boy."
"Not hardly. Don't even mention my name with his."
Roberts put his hand on his shoulder from behind, "Kyle, your mom is up in the woman's center. We'll just wait for Stanley and head on up there, okay."
"Why do we have to wait for Stanley? It's not like he's married to her or anything. She's my mom."
"And no one has forgotten that."
"Then why don't I know what's happened to her? I'm sure Stanley knows." he said sarcastically.
Roberts wasn't used to the rantings of a teenage boy, and was glad to see an orderly wheeling Stanley in a wheelchair, supporting a brand new cast. He overheard Kyle's last words, and knew he had his work cut out for him. He tried to brave a smile as they approached Kyle turned away from him heading for the elevator.
"Great. Stanley's here now, can we go?"
"Kyle hold on."
He turned around and grunted, "I thought you'd be anxious to see her. You love her so much." Once again the sarcasm was evident.
"Hold on a second. You're not going to see your mom with that attitude."
"You're not my dad. And I have more right to see her than you."
"Okay, you're upset with me. And I think I know what this is about. But I don't understand it."
"No, I guess you wouldn't. Look, I just want to see my mom."
The elevator door opened and Kyle quickly entered, Roberts took over the wheelchair and pushed Stanley in. Kyle turned away from Stanley. There was dead silence all the way to the 4th floor.
* * *
* *
Roberts helped Stanley prop himself up against the nurses station desk. Kyle stood next to him, making sure he wasn't left out of anything. "I think Dr. Johansen is still with Ms. Heyward, but if you have a seat I'll make sure he knows you're waiting to talk to him, Mr. Jobson."
When the nurse walked away Stanley, now standing over Kyle confronted him, in a whisper, "Okay, since I don't understand fill me in."
"You got my mom pregnant." He didn't mean to raise his voice, but heads turned to look at the pair of them.
"Kyle, calm down."
"Why should I? I think I'm the only responsible one here. You should have been careful, Stanley. She doesn't want a baby. This is your responsibility."
"Now what one second," his voice now escalated throughout the hall. For a moment, Stanley almost lost it. Then composed himself. This was Emma's son. Closing his eyes and recomposing himself he lowered his voice as all eyes were now focused on them. "Look, lets just go sit down and wait for the doctor to come talk to us." He took hold of his arm and Kyle just glared at it.
"Don't touch me." Stanley immediately took his hand away.
"Kyle." He wanted to give Kyle a good kick in the ass right about now. For the first time in a long time, Stanley felt he had no control and knew that this whole conversation wasn't going to sit well with Emma. He wasn't handling this like a father would, that was for sure.
Roberts immediately came to Stanley's side and helped him sit back down in the wheelchair. Stanley felt defeated as he slumped into it. Roberts wheeled him over to the waiting area and then headed back to Kyle who was just glaring past him at Stanley.
"Kyle, come sit down."
"Is that an order?" he said sarcastically.
"I know you don't want to hear this, but that man over there thinks the world of you and right now, he needs you."
"My mom needs me."
"Of course she does, but Stanley is apart of this equation, Kyle. He's not going away."
"She's losing the baby. I'm not stupid. That's what's happening in there. How could he put my mom through this? Hasn't she been through enough?"
The doctor approached Kyle and Roberts and then looked over at the broken body of Stanley slumped in the wheelchair, "Mr. Jobson."
Stanley immediately looked up as the doctor approached him, Kyle intercepted him, "My mom, is she okay?"
"She should be fine, son. I just need to speak to your father." He pushed by him.
"He's not my father." Kyle shouted. Everyone in the waiting room glared at him. He stood there, tears pushing their way to the surface. He clenched his eyes tight holding them back.
"Kyle." Stanley's soft spoken voice echoed in his mind. He didn't want to open them.
"I just want to see my mom." When he opened his eyes, a glance passed between him and Stanley. He couldn't help but notice the concern in Stanley's eyes. Of course Roberts was right. He loved his mom, but not only that. He treated Melody and Kyle like his own.
"I know." Stanley looked towards the doctor, "Would that be alright? I think Kyle would feel better seeing her."
"That would be fine, but she's not out of the woods yet. I don't want any added stress right now." The doctor looked between the two of them Kyle and Stanley's eyes were locked. Kyle was calming down.
"Did she lose the baby?" Kyle asked, surprising Stanley. He wasn't ready to hear this news and he felt his body tense as he looked up at the doctor.
"The baby is fine." A sigh of relief escaped from Stanley, his body relaxed a bit, "I want to keep her overnight just to keep an eye on her, safety precaution basically." He faced Kyle, "I've checked her records, she had two perfectly healthy pregnancies with you and your sister, there is no reason why this one won't be any different."
Kyle couldn't help but notice the look of relief on Stanley's face. I guess he wanted the baby. It seemed so strange to him. And his mom, he just couldn't believe she would want to have a baby at this time in her life. Did he have this all wrong?
"Why did this happen? She was in so much pain earlier"
"Sometimes these things just happen, but in your mom's case, it seems pretty certain it was stress related."
Kyle focused on Stanley and Stanley immediately put his head down. "Why don't you go on in and see her." Kyle looked at the doctor. He wanted to speak to Stanley alone probably. More secrets. God, it was never ending. "Room 481. She might be a bit dozy."
Kyle looked over at Stanley briefly before walking down the hall.
AS soon as he was gone the doctor sat down next to Stanley, "I can tell he's having a hard time with this."
"Just slightly." Stanley tried to sound lighthearted but it wasn't working. "Emma...she really is okay?"
"She fought this. I've seen it before. She wasn't about to let this baby go. She's one strong lady."
Stanley smiled, "Yeah, she is."
"Like I said earlier, her staying overnight is just a precaution. I don't think there's anything to worry about. You should go see her. She asked for you." He gave him a pat on the shoulder before he stood up and headed back to the nurses station.
Kyle stood over his mom, she smiled up at him as her eyes flicked open and shut. "You're okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a few stitches. I don't think I want to see a stupid skateboard ever again."
She smiled up at him, "It was a brave thing to do, Kyle."
"It was nothing. I'm just glad you're okay."
"I think I'm going to be fine." Kyle noticed she was looking towards the door, "Is Stanley alright? I was worried about him, his arm...and he shouldn't have been on his leg." He wondered how she couldn't be upset with him after everything that had happened in the last 24 hours.
"He's fine." Emma noticed how aloof Kyle seemed. Not his normal self. Then he added, "He's been worried about you....look, I should go call Dad, and let him know we're okay. I'm sure you want to see Stan." He didn't dare mention the baby. He was pretty sure she didn't know he knew about it. And the doctor had said not to make her upset. It was hard to even have a normal conversation, not sure what her reaction would be.
"Kyle." She reached out for his hand. She wanted to tell him but couldn't bring herself to do it.
He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Just rest, mom. That's whats important now."
* * *
* *
The elevator door opened and Melody immediately saw Stanley in the waiting area across from the nurses station. She didn't waste any time pulling herself away from Brent and Chelsea and running towards him. An orderly tried to stop her but she flung herself into Stanley's arms, totally forgetting about his injured body.
Stanley was startled as Melody flew into his lap,. Although his body was healing, the pressure of her weight against him made him cringe with pain. But he dealt with it. Feeling her tears against his cheek, he immediately wrapped his good arm around her comforting her. "Your mom is going to be fine, Melody."
She sensed his discomfort as he spoke and quickly got up, holding her hand over her mouth, "Stanley, I hurt you...I didn't mean to..I just..."
"It's okay. I'm getting used to it and honestly, I needed the hug just as much as you did." He smiled up at her and reached his arms towards her. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek
"Anytime, Stanley."
Kyle walked out of his mom's room and immediately saw the embrace between his sister and Stanley. It seemed like only yesterday she wanted nothing to do with him, now he was like the Dad she never really had. Melody saw him approach, "How is she?"
"Good, she wants to see Stanley."
"Can I go to? I want to see her." She looked at Stanley and saw the glances between him and her brother. It was weird. "Hey, what's wrong with her anyhow? Did she get hurt?"
Now Kyle was really glaring at him, "You going to tell her?"
"That's up to your mother." He was a bit agitated with Kyle mentioning this in front of Melody. Only causing more fuel to the fire.
"What's going on? I'm going in to see her. Mom will tell me." As she started walking past Kyle he grabbed onto her arm. "Let go of me. I want to see her."
"She needs to see Stanley, you can wait."
Melody turned towards Stanley, "Can't I go, please?"
He had this feeling she was going to start crying again and that's the last thing he wanted to happen. Why couldn't he take control of this situation? "Melody, let me just have a minute with her, okay. I promise I won't be long." Chelsea and Brent were now standing beside Roberts and Stanley felt like all eyes were on him. He then refocused on Melody.
"Something's wrong with mom, isn't it? Why won't you tell me, Stanley?"
"I told you your mom is fine." Stanley felt he was going to lose it. Kyle's glares felt like daggers piercing right through him. His head began to pound. He rubbed his temple gently, while Melody waited for a response. God, he was letting Emma down here. He had no control over the situation.
Chelsea put a comforting hand on Melody's shoulder, "let's go get a soda. I bet Kyle could use one too." She nudged Kyle. "Come on." They both knew what Chelsea was doing, but Kyle went along with it grabbing his sister's arm as he followed Chelsea. She didn't fight it, but she looked back at Stanley forlornly, something wasn't right. She just knew it.
Stanley couldn't meet her gaze and quickly turned back to Brent, "What are you waiting for...give me a hand to Emma's room."
"You're not even going to tell me whats going on are you?" he watched as Stanley and Roberts exchanged glances.
"No." Stanley said nonchalantly.
"Great..but I'm still expected to be at your beck and call."
"Exactly, I'm still your boss."
Brent rolled his eyes. "you're a piece of work,Stan, you know that?"
Roberts put his hand on Stanley's shoulder, "I need to get going. I left our friend in my partner's hands and I'm beginning to think that probably wasn't the wisest move I've ever made."
"Hey, I appreciate you giving us a few days."
"Your statements can wait, I think you have enough to deal with right here." He patted his shoulder, "I have faith in you, Stanley. You'll make it okay."
Stanley didn't say anything. He wasn't so sure he agreed with the sentiment.
* * * * * *
She felt the light brush of fingertips across the back of her hand.. It was soothing and comforting. Disoriented, as her eyes opened, it took a second to focus. Hadn't Kyle been here a few minutes ago? But now Stanley was by her bedside, a soft sweet smile appeared across his face as she focused on him.
"Hey," was all he could muster. He had no idea what to say to her. Should he be ecstatic that the baby was okay, should he even bring up the baby? This was unexplored territory, and he wasn't sure how to approach it at all.
He squeezed her hand tightly and she smiled noticing the scrubs he was wearing and a new cast on his arm, "I like the getup."
"Oh, that...well, I don't think the hospital wanted me loitering their halls in my boxers."
"I'm sure the nurses wouldn't have minded."
He looked around the room awkwardly. What was he suppose to say to her? "Melody is here, she wants to see you."
This news wasn't a surprise but she knew that seeing Melody meant answering questions. "I can't do this, Stanley. I just can't."
He didn't want her to get upset and felt her pulling away from him. He held her hand tighter, "What do you mean?" His first thought was she was thinking about an abortion again. This was becoming like a rollercoaster ride.
"The baby. Telling them about the baby. I can't do it." She felt a lump in her throat and her breathing was becoming erratic.
Still some vital information was missing here. What was she going to tell them about the baby? That she really didn't want it? That she was thinking about aborting it?
"You need to calm down. Take deep breaths, relax. The doctor said stress is not good for you right now." How could he keep her calm? He was pretty sure she wasn't going to like it when she found out Kyle already knew.
The deep breathes helped, the last thing she wanted were those horrible cramps that felt as if a knife had been stuck inside her over and over again. Once she had calmed down a bit she continued, "You'll help me...tell them?" He was surprised by this question and looked directly into her eyes.
"Emma, I'm confused..."
"I know...it's my fault. I haven't been myself, and I've been confused too, but I know one thing." She paused, "I know I want to have your child."
He let out a sigh of relief,"Well, that's no problem. We're already a quarter the way there." The corner of his mouth turned up and he had a twinkle in his eye. He got a smile out of her. Then he looked serious, "Of course I'll help you tell them..well, actually tell Melody." Emma looked surprised, "Kyle already knows."
"Stanley, you didn't tell him?"
"No, I would never have done that..he overhead Gabriel, I mean Jake..whoever, look I'm sorry. It shouldn't have been this way."
"It explains his demeanor earlier. He's upset."
"Yeah, you could say that. With me, not you. And he has every right to be. I've been screwing up things royally lately. This whole fiasco is my fault."
This time she did the squeezing, "As i recall I was the one that didnt' want you to use a condom. And I would hardly call it a fiasco. Everything about that night was absolutely perfect." She began to blush. Now Emma was making light of this, trying to make him feel better. The last twenty four hours had been tough on all of them, but they did have a lot to be grateful for. She placed her other hand on her belly, and smiled.
"I meant what happened today, you know. That was the fiasco. If I would have thrown that fucking disc away ages ago, if I would have told you the damn truth from day one, you wouldn't be in the hospital, None of this would've happened."
"But it did happen and as far as I'm concerned, maybe it was the for best. It made me realize I love you no matter what, I don't give a shit about your past, about your prison sentence. I am in love with you and I want to have your baby. Please, don't put up another barrier, Stanley."
Stanley felt as if he was going to cry, but knew he had to be the strong one right now, "You can forgive me for everything? God damn it, Emma, I don't deserve this you know. I don't deserve you or this second chance. I've done a helluva lot of bad things in my life."
"And what about the good things? All you've done for Holly and my kids. And me. That's who you are now. That's whats important. Not the past."
His head lowered. She continued, only this time she felt a lump in her throat and as she spoke her voice quavered, "I'm scared, Stanley. I can't do this alone. I need you."
Stanley immediately lifted his head. Damn it, he made her cry. He had to fix this before she got herself into a state, something that wouldn't be good for the baby. "What are you afraid of?"
"Losing you. Even when I said I hated you last night, I thought, how could I ever go back to the way it was before I met you. "
"I'm not going anywhere, Emma."
"When I thought about...." she couldn't even say the word now "well, it was all selfish reasons. I knew you would want the baby, but I wasn't willing to give up what I have with you."
All of a sudden it made sense to him. "You don't have to give anything up, Emma."
"Oh, yes, I do. In a few months I will be big and fat, and unattractive. I won't be the woman you've known the last few months. You won't want to touch me."
He couldn't help but smile. This was about sex. She didn't want to lose the intimacy between them."Of course I'll want to touch you."
"But I won't be desirable and I want to be desirable, I don't want what we have to go away. I couldn't bear it. You not wanting me."
"Oh, Em. I'm still going to want you."
"How do you know that? Gary didn't want me. He hated my body, and he hated it even worse afterwards."
"Well, he's not me." A smile appeared on his face and he blushed putting his head down slightly. "I had a thought last night, I thought about you...and you were quite aways along. And I had you on my desk."
"Stop it, Stanley. That's cruel. It's not funny."
"It's not meant to be funny. It was incredibly erotic. You with child, and more desirable than I could ever imagine. It gave me a hard-on, and I couldn't concentrate. I looked back on the bed and you were asleep. And you looked so beautiful. Emma, I am looking forward to you being pregnant. I am looking forward to doctor's appointments and hearing the baby's heartbeat, watching you grow and believe it or not, making love to you. I find the whole thing incredibly exciting. First time around, it was hardly that. A woman I didn't love, a woman who hated being pregnant. Far from a turn on."
"It turns you on?"
"Very much so. So you have nothing to worry about in that department." He raised his eyebrows and she blushed. "So what else are you afraid of?"
"The kids. How this is going to effect them."
He drew her hand to his lips and kissed it gently, "We'll deal with this together."
The door slowly opened and Kyle and Melody stood staring at them. "Well, no time like the present." He gave her hand a squeeze, then turned towards the door, "You guys can come in. Your mom and I have something to talk to you about."
Melody moved closer to the bed and gave her mom a kiss on the cheek, "You're okay, right? Why is everyone acting so weird?"
Kyle stood back, leaned against the door with his hands in his pockets.
Emma pulled Melody close to her, kissing her forehead, "Oh, sweetie, I'm okay. I'm going to be even more than okay, but things are going to be a little different." She looked over at Stanley and he nodded for her to continue. "Stanley and I..." she hesitated and looked back at Kyle, who avoided her glance and looked down at his feet, "we're going to have a baby."
Melody pulled back and nearly backed into Stanley. She felt awkward and couldn't look at either one of them.
"I know this is strange. And it's going to take awhile to get used to," Emma continued.
"So you're getting married, right? I mean that's what this means, right?"
Emma looked over at Stanley, and wasn't sure how to take his reaction on this one. "No, that's not what it means." She said it so quickly, Stanley was a bit taken aback. "It just means we are going to be parents and well.."
"It's going to change everything, isn't it?" Emma saw this coming. Melody's jealousy was back.
"Well, yeah, it's going to change, but nothing will change the way I feel about you and Kyle."
"I know that, Mom, but what about the house and living with Stanley? There's not enough room."
Stanley chuckled, "I think we can work something out, Melody."
She turned to him and smiled, "I could share with Holly. That would be okay. It's going to be a bit weird being a big sister, but I guess I've already been practicing with Holly."
"And doing a great job." He gave her a wink.
Kyle remained in the back trying to ignore the family scene unfolding in front of him. There were things he wanted to say, but didn't want to upset his mom. Emma noticed his aloofness, "Kyle."
"Yeah?"
"Are you going to say something?" Kyle looked directly at Stan, then back at his mom.
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to be honest. This is obviously upsetting you."
"I'm sure it will be great." He said with no emotion. "I need to call Amy, so can I go now?"
Emma was about to speak up and Stanley took hold of her arm, giving her a look, to let it go, "You go call, Amy. But make it quick, Brent's taking us back to the house in about 15 minutes."
"Your house? We're staying at your house?" He looked at his mom, "Mom, I can stay with a Todd or Bryan. And Melody would be more comfortable at Rachel's."
"I want to stay with Stanley." Melody looked annoyed at Kyle's outburst.
Stanley didn't even let Emma comment, "You're both staying with me. I could use the help actually. Holly and my dad will be here tomorrow, and you can pick them up at the airport and Agent Roberts is going to want to talk to both of us at some point."
Kyle was about to protest, then looked at his mom. He wasn't suppose to make her upset, "Okay, fine...I'll be quick." He moved over to his mom and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I'm glad you're okay, really. I'm sorry, I'm being such a jerk, it's just jet lag or something. Don't worry about me, okay?"
He quickly went out the door. And Emma became agitated, "Stanley, this isn't good."
He squeezed her hand, "It's going to be fine. I'll talk to him tonight. Now I think you need to rest."
"How can you say this is going to be fine?"
"Because, it will be. He needs some time, and you need to stop worrying about him and worry about yourself and the baby. I can handle Kyle."
"Stanley..."
He turned to Melody, "Can you give me and your mom a couple minutes?"
She nodded and then leaned over giving her mom a kiss, "I'll see you tomorrow. And really, I'm okay with the baby. It's kind of exciting."
Emma smiled, "Yeah, kinda."
"Just don't have a boy. Because we don't need another Kyle."
She walked out and Stanley took hold of Emma's hand, "You're going to let me talk with no interruptions."
Emma laid back on the pillow and sighed, nodding her head.
"Well, that's a good start." He once again took hold of her hand, and squeezed it tightly, looking straight into her eyes. "We've had a really fucked up day, but somehow we made it through. And damn it, I have every intention to get through the next 24 hours as well. Are you with me?"
Emma nodded.
"Good. Do you trust me to deal with Kyle?"
She nodded again. And smiled. He relaxed and smiled back at her, "Why are you smiling like that?"
"You're a wonderful dad, Stanley, you don't have to prove that to me."
"Well, maybe I need to prove it to myself. And to Kyle."
Emma understood. The door opened slightly and Brent peeked his head in, "Hey, Emma."
"Thanks for looking after Melody, Brent."
"No problem. I'd do anything to help you out. Just remember I did this for you,not Stan."
"What's going on with you two?"
Stanley was silent. Then Brent pitched in, "Secrets. Hey, I know all about his frigging FBI record now, what can be bigger than that?"
Emma and Stanley exchanged glances, and both laughed.
"Not you too, Emma? You aren't playing along with this little scheme of his whatever it is, surely?"
"Well, I don't have much choice, Brent. Since I'm kind of part of the scheme, I guess you would say."
Brent looked at Stanley quizzically, "What is she talking about?"
"You're not going to leave me alone til you know, are you?"
"That's right, boss." Brent smiled triumphantly. He leaned over the back of the wheelchair so he was practically in Stanley's face. "So what's going on? You're quite chummy with that Agent Roberts. So are you involved in some inside job? Someone wants to kill you right? This is good. I might be able to write a book,make some extra money. Be famous."
"Give it a rest, Brent." Stanley rolled his eyes.
"So tell me."
Stanley looked at Emma and she shrugged her shoulders. "You might as well tell him."
Stanley wasn't much for broadcasting anything. And this was no exception. He felt awkward. It was something that was just beginning to sink in. He and Emma having a baby. And he wasn't so sure he was ready for the whole world to know. There was still so much they needed to talk about. "We're having a baby." He blurted out, "Okay, satisfied? Now, I think we need to let the mother to be rest and we should be thinking about getting the kids and going home."
"Baby? Really?" He patted Stan on the back, "Wow, that is bigger than your frigging FBI record, that's for sure. You don't waste any time do you, Stan?"
"Can we drop this subject now?" He turned to Emma, "You realize we've unleashed a monster. Everyone in P.B. Will know by tomorrow."
"I won't say anything. Geez, Stan..have some faith in me."
Stan laughed, "yeah, right. I believe that one." He looked over at Emma tenderly, squeezing her hand, wanting to kiss her. Wanting to be alone with her at home, not here in this hospital room.
"I know you need to go." She saw that look in his eyes. "I should be going home with you. This is stupid. Me being here. I'm fine." She started to sit up, "I can go talk to someone, surely, they'll release me tonight. You need me...the kids need me."
"Well, I do need you, but tonight we'll manage. You're staying put."
He gave her hand another tight squeeze. A look passed between them. She could tell he was a bit disappointed. They both hadn't had any time to savor this news between them. She sat up, leaning towards him. Her other hand gently touched his cheek. She wanted to say something but with Brent there it was awkward. She gently brushed her lips across his and he closed his eyes, then slowly opened them. "I don't want you to worry about a thing. You're to rest." He paused, slowly letting go of her hand and placing his own on her abdomen, "And take care of our baby." A smile formed and Emma placed her hand on top of his.
"You're not Anne Randall."
"Well, that's pretty obvious," Stanley replied cynically, "but I've been waiting here for what seems like hours without even seeing any hospital staff."
"I'm just a med student. I can't really help you out."
"You can get me a doctor, a nurse someone who knows what they're doing. I want to find out where my girlfriend is, and her son, he fell off a skateboard. I feel helpless in here."
"Oh, the kid on the skateboard. He's fine. A couple stitches, I assisted."
"That's great for you, buddy. Where is he?"
"Talking to some cops. So you must be involved in all that FBI crap going out in the waiting room. Pretty interesting."
"Not really. He shouldn't be talking to the cop without an adult present. You find someone for me to talk to now." Stanley gave the student a disgruntled look.
"I'll see what I can do."
Stanley tried to relax back onto the pillows, closing his eyes, but all he could see was Emma being taken away in an ambulance. Tears swelled up in his eyes. He had known about the baby for 24 hours and now it seemed evident that the baby wasn't meant to be. It was killing him inside.
The sound of the curtain being pulled vigorously, startled him, but not as much as laying eyes on the robust figure in a nurse's uniform now facing him. Louise.
"Well, well, well, look who we have here. Mr. Jobson...this is such a nice surprise. " She picked up the chart, "I see the cast has mysteriously disappeared. I guess I'm not surprised."
He gave her the evil eye, "I want to see a doctor, preferably the one that was looking after Emma."
"X-rays first, then you can see a doctor. I'll get a orderly to take you down there."
She started to walk out, "Now wait a minute. I deserve answers here."
"They've taken her up to a room." Stanley noticed how she didn't even make eye contact with him, then continued nonchalantly, "You've already caused enough damage today. I don't want any trouble here, Mr. Jobson. I'm doing my job. X-rays and a reset, that is what your chart says. That arm should never have come out of a cast, this will disrupt the healing process considerably."
"Do you think I fucking care about any of that? My girlfriend, I want to know what's happened to my girlfriend, and until you or somebody else in this shithole tells me, I won't cooperate with anyone."
"Well, will just see about that." Turning abruptly she bumped straight into Agent Roberts. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry. What a clumsy fool I am." she batted her eyelashes.
"It's no problem." He showed his badge, "I'm just hear to have a chat with Mr. Jobson."
"Suit yourself, fair warning, he's incredibly rude and has a foul tongue, but he's all bark and no bite." She winked at Stanley, and he collapsed back onto the bed cringing with pain.
"If you were doing your job, nurse, you wouldn't allow this man to disturb me." Stanley blurted out between sharp pains in his wrist.
After she walked out, Roberts chuckled, "you know how to charm the ladies, don't you, Stanley?"
"Roberts, I'm not in the mood for your little jokes. And another thing, you've been questioning Kyle without an adult present, I know that that's a major no-no in your line of work."
"I think a thank you, Roberts, for showing up when you did might be a nice gesture, Stanley, and you don't have to worry. Kyle, isn't talking. I think he believes I'm going to throw him into prison. And he also thinks he's protecting you."
Stanley couldn't forget the look Kyle had thrown his way as the paramedics loaded Emma into the back of their van. It had been pretty evident the news of the baby was not welcomed in his eyes.
"Emma...how is she?"
"Wish I could tell you, but they've admitted her, taken her to the Women's ward. I can see what I can find out. I saw her being moved, the cramping had stopped. My wife miscarried, Stan, a few years back. It's not an easy thing to go through, but she's young, there will be other babies."
"You don't fucking get it, do you? I don't know if our relationship can survive what happened today and now this." He clenched his eyes tight, fighting tears.
"I know what you're saying but anything worth having is worth fighting for Stanley, of all people you should know that. The two of you will come through this."
"I just want to talk to her doctor. I want to know what's going on."
"Okay. I'll see what i can do, but cooperate with the staff here, Stanley. Get that arm looked at." Roberts knew the guy was suffering. Stanley turned away from him, and buried his head in the pillow. The suffering was more than just the pain in his wrist and his leg. He didn't realize he could feel so strongly about the baby Emma was carrying. He clenched his eyes shut and felt tears pushing their way to the surface.
* * *
* *
Amy was thumbing through a magazine in the waiting room when Kyle walked out limping. She stood up and moved over to him, "You okay?"
"Just a couple of stitches, it's not a big deal."
She couldn't help but notice the glum look on his face. A few hours ago he had been so gung ho about this idea, helping Stanley and his mom and now he was just acting plain weird.
"Hey, you haven't seen my mom have you? No one seems to want to tell me anything."
"Maybe you should talk to Stanley. That agent.. Roberts, he said they were taking him to Xray. He also said Stanley wanted to make sure you were okay."
"Yeah, right."
"Kyle, what is wrong with you?"
"I'm worried about my mom, is that okay with you?" he snapped.
"Don't you take this out on me. What happened at that house? What happened between you and Stanley?"
"Nothing. Can we drop this and find out what they did with my mom?"
"I called Brent, he's bringing Melody over."
"Oh, great. Why didn't you ask me?"
Amy couldn't believe any of this. "I just thought they should know what's going on."
"You know what, why don't you just go home."
"Kyle." She had never seen him like this.
He put his hand to his head, feeling tears. "This isn't about you, Amy. Please just go now. You're right, I shouldn't take this out on you. Thanks for calling, Brent. Melody needs to be here.. And you've been a big help, really. I just need some time alone, you know."
She put her hand on his shoulder, "Will you call me? Please let me know what's happening."
He just nodded, not able to look her in the eye.
"And talk to Stanley, please? He cares about you, Kyle. I think you know that."
* * * *
*
Roberts made sure Stanley got to Xray, and then as he was heading towards the waiting area he saw Kyle trying to talk to a nurse, he was becoming animated and for the life of him, he had a hard time not comparing him to Stanley.
"I just want to know what's wrong with my mom, and where is she? You should be able to tell me that."
"I'll find a doctor to talk to you. Just take a seat."
"I don't want to take a seat. Stop treating me like a kid, I'm her closest living relative, you should tell me what's going on."
Louise walked up to them, "You must be Stanley's boy."
"Not hardly. Don't even mention my name with his."
Roberts put his hand on his shoulder from behind, "Kyle, your mom is up in the woman's center. We'll just wait for Stanley and head on up there, okay."
"Why do we have to wait for Stanley? It's not like he's married to her or anything. She's my mom."
"And no one has forgotten that."
"Then why don't I know what's happened to her? I'm sure Stanley knows." he said sarcastically.
Roberts wasn't used to the rantings of a teenage boy, and was glad to see an orderly wheeling Stanley in a wheelchair, supporting a brand new cast. He overheard Kyle's last words, and knew he had his work cut out for him. He tried to brave a smile as they approached Kyle turned away from him heading for the elevator.
"Great. Stanley's here now, can we go?"
"Kyle hold on."
He turned around and grunted, "I thought you'd be anxious to see her. You love her so much." Once again the sarcasm was evident.
"Hold on a second. You're not going to see your mom with that attitude."
"You're not my dad. And I have more right to see her than you."
"Okay, you're upset with me. And I think I know what this is about. But I don't understand it."
"No, I guess you wouldn't. Look, I just want to see my mom."
The elevator door opened and Kyle quickly entered, Roberts took over the wheelchair and pushed Stanley in. Kyle turned away from Stanley. There was dead silence all the way to the 4th floor.
* * *
* *
Roberts helped Stanley prop himself up against the nurses station desk. Kyle stood next to him, making sure he wasn't left out of anything. "I think Dr. Johansen is still with Ms. Heyward, but if you have a seat I'll make sure he knows you're waiting to talk to him, Mr. Jobson."
When the nurse walked away Stanley, now standing over Kyle confronted him, in a whisper, "Okay, since I don't understand fill me in."
"You got my mom pregnant." He didn't mean to raise his voice, but heads turned to look at the pair of them.
"Kyle, calm down."
"Why should I? I think I'm the only responsible one here. You should have been careful, Stanley. She doesn't want a baby. This is your responsibility."
"Now what one second," his voice now escalated throughout the hall. For a moment, Stanley almost lost it. Then composed himself. This was Emma's son. Closing his eyes and recomposing himself he lowered his voice as all eyes were now focused on them. "Look, lets just go sit down and wait for the doctor to come talk to us." He took hold of his arm and Kyle just glared at it.
"Don't touch me." Stanley immediately took his hand away.
"Kyle." He wanted to give Kyle a good kick in the ass right about now. For the first time in a long time, Stanley felt he had no control and knew that this whole conversation wasn't going to sit well with Emma. He wasn't handling this like a father would, that was for sure.
Roberts immediately came to Stanley's side and helped him sit back down in the wheelchair. Stanley felt defeated as he slumped into it. Roberts wheeled him over to the waiting area and then headed back to Kyle who was just glaring past him at Stanley.
"Kyle, come sit down."
"Is that an order?" he said sarcastically.
"I know you don't want to hear this, but that man over there thinks the world of you and right now, he needs you."
"My mom needs me."
"Of course she does, but Stanley is apart of this equation, Kyle. He's not going away."
"She's losing the baby. I'm not stupid. That's what's happening in there. How could he put my mom through this? Hasn't she been through enough?"
The doctor approached Kyle and Roberts and then looked over at the broken body of Stanley slumped in the wheelchair, "Mr. Jobson."
Stanley immediately looked up as the doctor approached him, Kyle intercepted him, "My mom, is she okay?"
"She should be fine, son. I just need to speak to your father." He pushed by him.
"He's not my father." Kyle shouted. Everyone in the waiting room glared at him. He stood there, tears pushing their way to the surface. He clenched his eyes tight holding them back.
"Kyle." Stanley's soft spoken voice echoed in his mind. He didn't want to open them.
"I just want to see my mom." When he opened his eyes, a glance passed between him and Stanley. He couldn't help but notice the concern in Stanley's eyes. Of course Roberts was right. He loved his mom, but not only that. He treated Melody and Kyle like his own.
"I know." Stanley looked towards the doctor, "Would that be alright? I think Kyle would feel better seeing her."
"That would be fine, but she's not out of the woods yet. I don't want any added stress right now." The doctor looked between the two of them Kyle and Stanley's eyes were locked. Kyle was calming down.
"Did she lose the baby?" Kyle asked, surprising Stanley. He wasn't ready to hear this news and he felt his body tense as he looked up at the doctor.
"The baby is fine." A sigh of relief escaped from Stanley, his body relaxed a bit, "I want to keep her overnight just to keep an eye on her, safety precaution basically." He faced Kyle, "I've checked her records, she had two perfectly healthy pregnancies with you and your sister, there is no reason why this one won't be any different."
Kyle couldn't help but notice the look of relief on Stanley's face. I guess he wanted the baby. It seemed so strange to him. And his mom, he just couldn't believe she would want to have a baby at this time in her life. Did he have this all wrong?
"Why did this happen? She was in so much pain earlier"
"Sometimes these things just happen, but in your mom's case, it seems pretty certain it was stress related."
Kyle focused on Stanley and Stanley immediately put his head down. "Why don't you go on in and see her." Kyle looked at the doctor. He wanted to speak to Stanley alone probably. More secrets. God, it was never ending. "Room 481. She might be a bit dozy."
Kyle looked over at Stanley briefly before walking down the hall.
AS soon as he was gone the doctor sat down next to Stanley, "I can tell he's having a hard time with this."
"Just slightly." Stanley tried to sound lighthearted but it wasn't working. "Emma...she really is okay?"
"She fought this. I've seen it before. She wasn't about to let this baby go. She's one strong lady."
Stanley smiled, "Yeah, she is."
"Like I said earlier, her staying overnight is just a precaution. I don't think there's anything to worry about. You should go see her. She asked for you." He gave him a pat on the shoulder before he stood up and headed back to the nurses station.
Kyle stood over his mom, she smiled up at him as her eyes flicked open and shut. "You're okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a few stitches. I don't think I want to see a stupid skateboard ever again."
She smiled up at him, "It was a brave thing to do, Kyle."
"It was nothing. I'm just glad you're okay."
"I think I'm going to be fine." Kyle noticed she was looking towards the door, "Is Stanley alright? I was worried about him, his arm...and he shouldn't have been on his leg." He wondered how she couldn't be upset with him after everything that had happened in the last 24 hours.
"He's fine." Emma noticed how aloof Kyle seemed. Not his normal self. Then he added, "He's been worried about you....look, I should go call Dad, and let him know we're okay. I'm sure you want to see Stan." He didn't dare mention the baby. He was pretty sure she didn't know he knew about it. And the doctor had said not to make her upset. It was hard to even have a normal conversation, not sure what her reaction would be.
"Kyle." She reached out for his hand. She wanted to tell him but couldn't bring herself to do it.
He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Just rest, mom. That's whats important now."
* * *
* *
The elevator door opened and Melody immediately saw Stanley in the waiting area across from the nurses station. She didn't waste any time pulling herself away from Brent and Chelsea and running towards him. An orderly tried to stop her but she flung herself into Stanley's arms, totally forgetting about his injured body.
Stanley was startled as Melody flew into his lap,. Although his body was healing, the pressure of her weight against him made him cringe with pain. But he dealt with it. Feeling her tears against his cheek, he immediately wrapped his good arm around her comforting her. "Your mom is going to be fine, Melody."
She sensed his discomfort as he spoke and quickly got up, holding her hand over her mouth, "Stanley, I hurt you...I didn't mean to..I just..."
"It's okay. I'm getting used to it and honestly, I needed the hug just as much as you did." He smiled up at her and reached his arms towards her. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek
"Anytime, Stanley."
Kyle walked out of his mom's room and immediately saw the embrace between his sister and Stanley. It seemed like only yesterday she wanted nothing to do with him, now he was like the Dad she never really had. Melody saw him approach, "How is she?"
"Good, she wants to see Stanley."
"Can I go to? I want to see her." She looked at Stanley and saw the glances between him and her brother. It was weird. "Hey, what's wrong with her anyhow? Did she get hurt?"
Now Kyle was really glaring at him, "You going to tell her?"
"That's up to your mother." He was a bit agitated with Kyle mentioning this in front of Melody. Only causing more fuel to the fire.
"What's going on? I'm going in to see her. Mom will tell me." As she started walking past Kyle he grabbed onto her arm. "Let go of me. I want to see her."
"She needs to see Stanley, you can wait."
Melody turned towards Stanley, "Can't I go, please?"
He had this feeling she was going to start crying again and that's the last thing he wanted to happen. Why couldn't he take control of this situation? "Melody, let me just have a minute with her, okay. I promise I won't be long." Chelsea and Brent were now standing beside Roberts and Stanley felt like all eyes were on him. He then refocused on Melody.
"Something's wrong with mom, isn't it? Why won't you tell me, Stanley?"
"I told you your mom is fine." Stanley felt he was going to lose it. Kyle's glares felt like daggers piercing right through him. His head began to pound. He rubbed his temple gently, while Melody waited for a response. God, he was letting Emma down here. He had no control over the situation.
Chelsea put a comforting hand on Melody's shoulder, "let's go get a soda. I bet Kyle could use one too." She nudged Kyle. "Come on." They both knew what Chelsea was doing, but Kyle went along with it grabbing his sister's arm as he followed Chelsea. She didn't fight it, but she looked back at Stanley forlornly, something wasn't right. She just knew it.
Stanley couldn't meet her gaze and quickly turned back to Brent, "What are you waiting for...give me a hand to Emma's room."
"You're not even going to tell me whats going on are you?" he watched as Stanley and Roberts exchanged glances.
"No." Stanley said nonchalantly.
"Great..but I'm still expected to be at your beck and call."
"Exactly, I'm still your boss."
Brent rolled his eyes. "you're a piece of work,Stan, you know that?"
Roberts put his hand on Stanley's shoulder, "I need to get going. I left our friend in my partner's hands and I'm beginning to think that probably wasn't the wisest move I've ever made."
"Hey, I appreciate you giving us a few days."
"Your statements can wait, I think you have enough to deal with right here." He patted his shoulder, "I have faith in you, Stanley. You'll make it okay."
Stanley didn't say anything. He wasn't so sure he agreed with the sentiment.
* * * * * *
She felt the light brush of fingertips across the back of her hand.. It was soothing and comforting. Disoriented, as her eyes opened, it took a second to focus. Hadn't Kyle been here a few minutes ago? But now Stanley was by her bedside, a soft sweet smile appeared across his face as she focused on him.
"Hey," was all he could muster. He had no idea what to say to her. Should he be ecstatic that the baby was okay, should he even bring up the baby? This was unexplored territory, and he wasn't sure how to approach it at all.
He squeezed her hand tightly and she smiled noticing the scrubs he was wearing and a new cast on his arm, "I like the getup."
"Oh, that...well, I don't think the hospital wanted me loitering their halls in my boxers."
"I'm sure the nurses wouldn't have minded."
He looked around the room awkwardly. What was he suppose to say to her? "Melody is here, she wants to see you."
This news wasn't a surprise but she knew that seeing Melody meant answering questions. "I can't do this, Stanley. I just can't."
He didn't want her to get upset and felt her pulling away from him. He held her hand tighter, "What do you mean?" His first thought was she was thinking about an abortion again. This was becoming like a rollercoaster ride.
"The baby. Telling them about the baby. I can't do it." She felt a lump in her throat and her breathing was becoming erratic.
Still some vital information was missing here. What was she going to tell them about the baby? That she really didn't want it? That she was thinking about aborting it?
"You need to calm down. Take deep breaths, relax. The doctor said stress is not good for you right now." How could he keep her calm? He was pretty sure she wasn't going to like it when she found out Kyle already knew.
The deep breathes helped, the last thing she wanted were those horrible cramps that felt as if a knife had been stuck inside her over and over again. Once she had calmed down a bit she continued, "You'll help me...tell them?" He was surprised by this question and looked directly into her eyes.
"Emma, I'm confused..."
"I know...it's my fault. I haven't been myself, and I've been confused too, but I know one thing." She paused, "I know I want to have your child."
He let out a sigh of relief,"Well, that's no problem. We're already a quarter the way there." The corner of his mouth turned up and he had a twinkle in his eye. He got a smile out of her. Then he looked serious, "Of course I'll help you tell them..well, actually tell Melody." Emma looked surprised, "Kyle already knows."
"Stanley, you didn't tell him?"
"No, I would never have done that..he overhead Gabriel, I mean Jake..whoever, look I'm sorry. It shouldn't have been this way."
"It explains his demeanor earlier. He's upset."
"Yeah, you could say that. With me, not you. And he has every right to be. I've been screwing up things royally lately. This whole fiasco is my fault."
This time she did the squeezing, "As i recall I was the one that didnt' want you to use a condom. And I would hardly call it a fiasco. Everything about that night was absolutely perfect." She began to blush. Now Emma was making light of this, trying to make him feel better. The last twenty four hours had been tough on all of them, but they did have a lot to be grateful for. She placed her other hand on her belly, and smiled.
"I meant what happened today, you know. That was the fiasco. If I would have thrown that fucking disc away ages ago, if I would have told you the damn truth from day one, you wouldn't be in the hospital, None of this would've happened."
"But it did happen and as far as I'm concerned, maybe it was the for best. It made me realize I love you no matter what, I don't give a shit about your past, about your prison sentence. I am in love with you and I want to have your baby. Please, don't put up another barrier, Stanley."
Stanley felt as if he was going to cry, but knew he had to be the strong one right now, "You can forgive me for everything? God damn it, Emma, I don't deserve this you know. I don't deserve you or this second chance. I've done a helluva lot of bad things in my life."
"And what about the good things? All you've done for Holly and my kids. And me. That's who you are now. That's whats important. Not the past."
His head lowered. She continued, only this time she felt a lump in her throat and as she spoke her voice quavered, "I'm scared, Stanley. I can't do this alone. I need you."
Stanley immediately lifted his head. Damn it, he made her cry. He had to fix this before she got herself into a state, something that wouldn't be good for the baby. "What are you afraid of?"
"Losing you. Even when I said I hated you last night, I thought, how could I ever go back to the way it was before I met you. "
"I'm not going anywhere, Emma."
"When I thought about...." she couldn't even say the word now "well, it was all selfish reasons. I knew you would want the baby, but I wasn't willing to give up what I have with you."
All of a sudden it made sense to him. "You don't have to give anything up, Emma."
"Oh, yes, I do. In a few months I will be big and fat, and unattractive. I won't be the woman you've known the last few months. You won't want to touch me."
He couldn't help but smile. This was about sex. She didn't want to lose the intimacy between them."Of course I'll want to touch you."
"But I won't be desirable and I want to be desirable, I don't want what we have to go away. I couldn't bear it. You not wanting me."
"Oh, Em. I'm still going to want you."
"How do you know that? Gary didn't want me. He hated my body, and he hated it even worse afterwards."
"Well, he's not me." A smile appeared on his face and he blushed putting his head down slightly. "I had a thought last night, I thought about you...and you were quite aways along. And I had you on my desk."
"Stop it, Stanley. That's cruel. It's not funny."
"It's not meant to be funny. It was incredibly erotic. You with child, and more desirable than I could ever imagine. It gave me a hard-on, and I couldn't concentrate. I looked back on the bed and you were asleep. And you looked so beautiful. Emma, I am looking forward to you being pregnant. I am looking forward to doctor's appointments and hearing the baby's heartbeat, watching you grow and believe it or not, making love to you. I find the whole thing incredibly exciting. First time around, it was hardly that. A woman I didn't love, a woman who hated being pregnant. Far from a turn on."
"It turns you on?"
"Very much so. So you have nothing to worry about in that department." He raised his eyebrows and she blushed. "So what else are you afraid of?"
"The kids. How this is going to effect them."
He drew her hand to his lips and kissed it gently, "We'll deal with this together."
The door slowly opened and Kyle and Melody stood staring at them. "Well, no time like the present." He gave her hand a squeeze, then turned towards the door, "You guys can come in. Your mom and I have something to talk to you about."
Melody moved closer to the bed and gave her mom a kiss on the cheek, "You're okay, right? Why is everyone acting so weird?"
Kyle stood back, leaned against the door with his hands in his pockets.
Emma pulled Melody close to her, kissing her forehead, "Oh, sweetie, I'm okay. I'm going to be even more than okay, but things are going to be a little different." She looked over at Stanley and he nodded for her to continue. "Stanley and I..." she hesitated and looked back at Kyle, who avoided her glance and looked down at his feet, "we're going to have a baby."
Melody pulled back and nearly backed into Stanley. She felt awkward and couldn't look at either one of them.
"I know this is strange. And it's going to take awhile to get used to," Emma continued.
"So you're getting married, right? I mean that's what this means, right?"
Emma looked over at Stanley, and wasn't sure how to take his reaction on this one. "No, that's not what it means." She said it so quickly, Stanley was a bit taken aback. "It just means we are going to be parents and well.."
"It's going to change everything, isn't it?" Emma saw this coming. Melody's jealousy was back.
"Well, yeah, it's going to change, but nothing will change the way I feel about you and Kyle."
"I know that, Mom, but what about the house and living with Stanley? There's not enough room."
Stanley chuckled, "I think we can work something out, Melody."
She turned to him and smiled, "I could share with Holly. That would be okay. It's going to be a bit weird being a big sister, but I guess I've already been practicing with Holly."
"And doing a great job." He gave her a wink.
Kyle remained in the back trying to ignore the family scene unfolding in front of him. There were things he wanted to say, but didn't want to upset his mom. Emma noticed his aloofness, "Kyle."
"Yeah?"
"Are you going to say something?" Kyle looked directly at Stan, then back at his mom.
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to be honest. This is obviously upsetting you."
"I'm sure it will be great." He said with no emotion. "I need to call Amy, so can I go now?"
Emma was about to speak up and Stanley took hold of her arm, giving her a look, to let it go, "You go call, Amy. But make it quick, Brent's taking us back to the house in about 15 minutes."
"Your house? We're staying at your house?" He looked at his mom, "Mom, I can stay with a Todd or Bryan. And Melody would be more comfortable at Rachel's."
"I want to stay with Stanley." Melody looked annoyed at Kyle's outburst.
Stanley didn't even let Emma comment, "You're both staying with me. I could use the help actually. Holly and my dad will be here tomorrow, and you can pick them up at the airport and Agent Roberts is going to want to talk to both of us at some point."
Kyle was about to protest, then looked at his mom. He wasn't suppose to make her upset, "Okay, fine...I'll be quick." He moved over to his mom and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I'm glad you're okay, really. I'm sorry, I'm being such a jerk, it's just jet lag or something. Don't worry about me, okay?"
He quickly went out the door. And Emma became agitated, "Stanley, this isn't good."
He squeezed her hand, "It's going to be fine. I'll talk to him tonight. Now I think you need to rest."
"How can you say this is going to be fine?"
"Because, it will be. He needs some time, and you need to stop worrying about him and worry about yourself and the baby. I can handle Kyle."
"Stanley..."
He turned to Melody, "Can you give me and your mom a couple minutes?"
She nodded and then leaned over giving her mom a kiss, "I'll see you tomorrow. And really, I'm okay with the baby. It's kind of exciting."
Emma smiled, "Yeah, kinda."
"Just don't have a boy. Because we don't need another Kyle."
She walked out and Stanley took hold of Emma's hand, "You're going to let me talk with no interruptions."
Emma laid back on the pillow and sighed, nodding her head.
"Well, that's a good start." He once again took hold of her hand, and squeezed it tightly, looking straight into her eyes. "We've had a really fucked up day, but somehow we made it through. And damn it, I have every intention to get through the next 24 hours as well. Are you with me?"
Emma nodded.
"Good. Do you trust me to deal with Kyle?"
She nodded again. And smiled. He relaxed and smiled back at her, "Why are you smiling like that?"
"You're a wonderful dad, Stanley, you don't have to prove that to me."
"Well, maybe I need to prove it to myself. And to Kyle."
Emma understood. The door opened slightly and Brent peeked his head in, "Hey, Emma."
"Thanks for looking after Melody, Brent."
"No problem. I'd do anything to help you out. Just remember I did this for you,not Stan."
"What's going on with you two?"
Stanley was silent. Then Brent pitched in, "Secrets. Hey, I know all about his frigging FBI record now, what can be bigger than that?"
Emma and Stanley exchanged glances, and both laughed.
"Not you too, Emma? You aren't playing along with this little scheme of his whatever it is, surely?"
"Well, I don't have much choice, Brent. Since I'm kind of part of the scheme, I guess you would say."
Brent looked at Stanley quizzically, "What is she talking about?"
"You're not going to leave me alone til you know, are you?"
"That's right, boss." Brent smiled triumphantly. He leaned over the back of the wheelchair so he was practically in Stanley's face. "So what's going on? You're quite chummy with that Agent Roberts. So are you involved in some inside job? Someone wants to kill you right? This is good. I might be able to write a book,make some extra money. Be famous."
"Give it a rest, Brent." Stanley rolled his eyes.
"So tell me."
Stanley looked at Emma and she shrugged her shoulders. "You might as well tell him."
Stanley wasn't much for broadcasting anything. And this was no exception. He felt awkward. It was something that was just beginning to sink in. He and Emma having a baby. And he wasn't so sure he was ready for the whole world to know. There was still so much they needed to talk about. "We're having a baby." He blurted out, "Okay, satisfied? Now, I think we need to let the mother to be rest and we should be thinking about getting the kids and going home."
"Baby? Really?" He patted Stan on the back, "Wow, that is bigger than your frigging FBI record, that's for sure. You don't waste any time do you, Stan?"
"Can we drop this subject now?" He turned to Emma, "You realize we've unleashed a monster. Everyone in P.B. Will know by tomorrow."
"I won't say anything. Geez, Stan..have some faith in me."
Stan laughed, "yeah, right. I believe that one." He looked over at Emma tenderly, squeezing her hand, wanting to kiss her. Wanting to be alone with her at home, not here in this hospital room.
"I know you need to go." She saw that look in his eyes. "I should be going home with you. This is stupid. Me being here. I'm fine." She started to sit up, "I can go talk to someone, surely, they'll release me tonight. You need me...the kids need me."
"Well, I do need you, but tonight we'll manage. You're staying put."
He gave her hand another tight squeeze. A look passed between them. She could tell he was a bit disappointed. They both hadn't had any time to savor this news between them. She sat up, leaning towards him. Her other hand gently touched his cheek. She wanted to say something but with Brent there it was awkward. She gently brushed her lips across his and he closed his eyes, then slowly opened them. "I don't want you to worry about a thing. You're to rest." He paused, slowly letting go of her hand and placing his own on her abdomen, "And take care of our baby." A smile formed and Emma placed her hand on top of his.