Chapter 3

Stephanie held her newborn son in her arms. He was born a few days early, on March 12th. "You are a handsome boy," Stephanie said.

"Have you named him yet?" the kind nurse asked.

"Yes. Jayden Ricardo," she replied. "But I'm going to call him Jay."

Frank Plum Sr entered Stephanie's room, closely followed by Calvin Winters and Halton Evans. "I found these two lurking in the hallway. Do you know them?" Stephanie's grandfather asked.

"Yes. Cal was my Biology lab partner, and I tutored Hal for Math," Stephanie replied. "Why are you guys here?"

"We wanted to see our nephew," Hal answered, blushing. Hal was a freshman in high school. The math teacher got Stephanie to tutor him when he struggled to understand the concepts.

"Do you want to hold Jay?" Stephanie asked. Cal sat on the bed beside Stephanie to hold the child. "Support his head."

"You are a handsome boy," Cal said. Both Cal and Hal noticed the boy had darker skin than Stephanie, but they didn't comment.

"When are you coming back to school?" Hal asked. "We missed you."

"In a few weeks. My grandparents said they'd babysit Jay," Stephanie replied.

Hal climbed onto the bed on the opposite side to Cal. He waited until Cal leaned over Stephanie to pass him Jay. "You make cute babies, Steph," Hal said.

"Thanks, guys."

Frank watched Stephanie interact with the two boys from school. They visited with Stephanie for an hour before excusing themselves.

Hal kissed Stephanie's forehead before kissing Jay. Cal kissed Jay's forehead but kissed Stephanie on the lips. "I love you, Hermana," Cal whispered.

"I love you too, Hermano," she reciprocated.

When the boys left the hospital room, Frank Sr asked, "Are you dating the older boy?"

"No. We're best friends. Hal and Cal are the brothers I always wanted. Cal is protective," Stephanie explained. "Cal got used to kissing me. In high school, the girls are mean. Cal helped by pretending to be my boyfriend and Jay's dad."

"The boy is in love with you," he added.

"I know. Cal knows I'm in love with Jay's dad. He understands that it can't be more," Stephanie sadly stated. "I'm still hoping Ricky would call. Mary Lou gave him your phone number."

"Did Mary Lou tell him about Jayden?" grandpa asked.

"No. I asked her to give him the number but not say why I had left. The pregnancy news should come from me," Stephanie replied.

One year later…

"Happy birthday, Jay," everyone said as Stephanie placed the chocolate cupcake on his high chair tray.

Jay's curls shook, and his blue eyes shone as he smashed the cupcake. He grabbed a fistful to shove into his mouth. Cameras flashed as people took pictures. Jay resembled his father more than Stephanie.

Cal wrapped his arms around Stephanie as he stood behind her. He grew several inches over the past year. His chin rested on Stephanie's head. "Jay has your eyes and hair. Does he look like his dad, Steph?" Cal asked, whispering.

"Yes," she replied. Stephanie wondered if Ricky thought about her as much as she thought about him. "When do you leave?" Stephanie asked.

"After our last exam. Training starts at the beginning of July," Cal replied. "Hal wants to sign up too."

"I'm not surprised. He has to wait a few years," Stephanie stated. "Doesn't he have to be eighteen?"

"He can sign at seventeen with parental permission," Cal replied.

"Did you get accepted into your first-choice college?" Hal asked.

"Yes, but they don't have a residence to support a family," Stephanie answered. "I got offered a full scholarship at Douglass in New Jersey."

"You made a decision?" Cal wondered.

"I have. Jay and I move to Newark at the end of August," Stephanie replied. "My dad has friends in Newark. Jace Collins and his wife, Belinda, offered us a room. Belinda said she'll babysit while I attend class. Their son, Tim, joined the Army last year."

Frank Sr. watched Cal and Stephanie. She insisted they were best friends, but he behaved more like a boyfriend. They had an easiness to their relationship. Hal blushed whenever he saw them embrace. Frank smiled, knowing Hal loved his granddaughter too.

"You love Stephanie," Frank quietly said.

"I do. Steph is beautiful, kind and caring. It's not hard to love her," Hal said, blushing a deeper red. "I'm going to miss her and Jay when they leave."

~~~

Stephanie got too busy to pay attention to the time flying past. Raising a child and attending school kept her occupied. She packed the car during the last week of August. "You have too many things, Jay," Stephanie said as she buckled him into the car seat. "Uncle Cal is driving with us."

Jay smiled and made Stephanie's heart ache. He reminded her of Ricky. "Are you okay?" Cal asked, placing his duffle on the seat beside Jay.

"I will be. Jay looks more like his father every day," she replied. "I wonder if Ricky remembers me."

"He'd be a fool not to remember. We should go before the highways get too busy," Cal said.

"Okay. Thank you for driving with me. You could have taken a flight in a few days," Stephanie reminded him.

"I promised your grandfather that I'd deliver you to the Collins' home."

Stephanie spent the previous night with Hal and her grandparents. Hal was sad when he left. She kissed him gently on the lips when she walked him to the door. "I love you," Stephanie had whispered. Hal reciprocated and made her promise to email and call.

Grandpa and Grandma Plum gave Stephanie a cellphone for graduation. She programmed their home number along with Hal and Cal's phone numbers. Stephanie wiped a tear from her eye as Cal backed out of the driveway.

Cal and Stephanie talked during the drive. They frequently stopped to swap seats, eat or feed Jay. "He's handling the trip quite well," Cal commented.

"Jay is a calm baby. He rarely woke up during the night. Cal, I'm scared," Stephanie said.

"You'll do well in college, Steph," Cal said to comfort her.

Stephanie giggled. "Not about college. I'm scared to live an hour away from Trenton. I haven't seen my family in two years," she quietly explained.

"Sweetheart, tell me, what's really bothering you?" Cal asked.

"Valerie's wedding is on Saturday. I'm a bridesmaid," Stephanie replied.

"What is scary about a wedding?" Cal asked.

"The bridesmaid dress," she answered. "Imagine a bright pink floor-length dress with ruffles and a huge bow covering my ass."

Cal shivered, "That's not a dress. It's a nightmare." They laughed for the next few miles.

Stephanie's dad, Frank, drove to Newark when Jace said Stephanie had called from Harrisburg. Frank couldn't wait to see his daughter and grandson. They talked once a month, but it wasn't enough. He needed to hold his daughter in his arms.

Cal parked Stephanie's car in the driveway. He unloaded the car with the help of Jace Collins. "Hi, Uncle Jace," Stephanie said as she hugged him. "Is my dad here?"

"Yes, he is. I called to let him know your ETA. Do you mind?" Jace asked.

"Not one bit," Stephanie replied before removing Jay from his car seat. She followed the men into the house. Frank waited for Stephanie to enter before he approached. "Hi, Daddy."

"Pumpkin," Frank said before he pulled her into his embrace. Jay got squashed between their chests.

"Mama," Jay complained.

"Who is this little guy?" Frank asked.

"Daddy, meet your grandson, Jayden Ricardo Plum," she replied. "I call him Jay."

"Hi, Jay. I'm your Nonno," Frank said. Jay reached towards his grandfather, smiling. He took the child from Stephanie's arms and hugged him. "Are you hungry?" Frank asked when Jay's stomach grumbled.

"Ya," Jay answered. Frank laughed as he carried his grandson to the kitchen.

"He's adorable," Belinda said, placing goldfish crackers on the high chair tray. "Does he like Mac and cheese?"

Stephanie laughed, "Is he my son?"

Belinda shook her head before gathering the ingredients to make Jay's dinner. "What nationality is his father?" Belinda asked, nodding towards Jay.

"Cuban. Jay resembles his dad, except for the curly hair and blue eyes. Those are me," Stephanie replied. She wiped her eye as she remembered Ricky again. Every time she looked at her son, she got reminded of the boy she loved.

Stephanie rubbed her chest above her heart and prayed for Ricky's safety and happiness. Cal interrupted her thoughts. "Sweetheart, I need to leave. Your dad will drive me to the airport. I'm going to miss you," Cal said. Cal said goodbye to Jay and kissed his forehead.

She hugged her best friend and reciprocated, "I'll miss you too. Stay safe." Stephanie kissed Cal on the lips before he left the house.

Frank returned within the hour. He talked to Jace about the plans for the weekend. Stephanie had to attend Valerie's wedding rehearsal the following night. Belinda offered to watch Jay. "Harry and Edna offered us the guest room. We can stay at the house with Jay during the rehearsal," she said.

"Where will I stay, Daddy?" Stephanie asked.

"With your Mazur grandparents," he replied. "I made the arrangements, assuming you didn't want to stay at the house."

"You're correct. I want to be close to Jay. He's never spent a night away from me."

"Have you lost weight?" Frank asked.

"Cal, Hal and I used the school gym. We also took step-classes, self-defence and karate," Stephanie answered.

"Your grandparents said you kept active. I'm glad you took care of your safety."

"I did it for Jay more than myself. His safety matters the most," she replied. Frank spent a few hours with his daughter and grandson before it was time to leave with Cal.

That night, Stephanie took the time needed to get Jay settled into his new room. Jay liked the "big boy" bed that Jace placed in his bedroom. Belinda and Jace treated them like daughter and grandson. Stephanie and Jay would thrive under their guidance.

Stephanie arrived at the church for the wedding rehearsal. She felt her mom's eyes on her as she walked towards Valerie and her friends. Helen thought Stephanie looked too skinny. Her stomach was flat, despite having a child.

It wasn't just any child. Stephanie gave birth to a coloured child. Helen was disgusted and had no interest in meeting the bastard. It was not her grandson.

Stephanie wore a simple pale blue sundress and white wedge sandals. Her stomach felt squishy from being in Trenton. There was one man, Joe Morelli, that Stephanie hoped to avoid. Helen had to admit that Stephanie was a beautiful woman.

She saw Valerie standing with her friends near the altar. Steve Sutton stood beside his friends across the aisle. Stephanie approached the group and froze when Joseph Morelli stepped out from behind Steve.

"You made it," Valerie squealed. "I didn't think you'd come."

"Val, I told you I'd be here. Did you pick up my bridesmaid dress?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes. It's a size eight. Mom said it should fit," Valerie replied. "Mom dropped it off at Grandma's house."

Stephanie cringed. She wore a size four, not eight. The dress was going to look horrible on her. No doubt her mother would blame her for everything going wrong. They ran through the routine a few times to ensure they knew what to do. Stephanie refrained from rolling her eyes. It wasn't too hard. Step, one, two, step, etc.

At the house, Edna had unpacked Stephanie's luggage. She immediately noticed the clothing size was much smaller than Helen thought. "Belinda, how are your sewing skills?" she asked.

"Not too shabby. Why?"

"Stephanie's bridesmaid dress is going to be huge on her small frame. Helen ordered a size eight," Edna replied.

"Why would she do that? Stephanie wears a size four. I thought Helen asked Philomena for Stephanie's dress size," Belinda said.

"She did but knowing Helen, she probably thought it was wrong," Edna said. "Stephanie wore a size six before she left Trenton."

"So Helen decided to order a size larger, assuming she gained weight?" Belinda asked.

"You got it," Edna replied, shaking her head. She grabbed a dress from Stephanie's closet to use as a guideline. The women carefully pinned the fabric to alter it. Harry and Jace kept Jay amused while the women fixed Stephanie's dress.

After the rehearsal dinner, Stephanie returned home, crestfallen. "How will we get the dress altered in time?" Stephanie asked her grandma.

"Belinda and I handled it. We are waiting for you, Steph. The waist and hips got altered, but we didn't know about the chest. Can you try on the dress?" Edna asked.

Stephanie put on the dress and held the chest to stop it from exposing her breasts. "I think it needs to get taken in a few inches," Stephanie yelled. Edna and Belinda entered her bedroom to pin the chest.

"All of those awful ruffles are going to be a pain," Edna groaned.

"There's a way to fix it, Edna. Leave the dress with me. I'll fix it for Stephanie."

"Thanks, Grandma and Belinda. When Valerie said mom ordered a size eight, I was afraid I'd have to wear a potato sack to the service tomorrow," Stephanie said. She hugged the two women before looking for Jay.

He was in the living room playing with a toy garage and cars. Jay grabbed the black Porsche and drove it around the garage. "Your son has expensive tastes," Jace joked.

"Great. Jay would like the Porsche," she said before he grabbed the black Mercedes SUV. "Correction. Jay likes expensive black cars."

"Stay away from Morelli," Grandpa Mazur said.

"No problem there, Grandpa. I didn't like how he leered at me tonight."

When Valerie, Helen and Frank got home, Helen pulled Valerie aside to change the head table and bridesmaid placement. "Get Shiela to switch places with Stephanie. I want Stephanie to walk down the aisle with Joseph. Then at the table, instead of having the women sit to your left, get the bridesmaids and groomsmen to sit beside their partner," Helen said as she rearranged the names on the board.

"I don't think Stephanie would like to sit beside Joe, mom."

"It doesn't matter what she would like. Stephanie has a bastard child and needs a husband," Helen snapped. "Joseph would be a good husband for her." Valerie disagreed.

The day of the wedding was chaotic. Stephanie's shoes were too large. She had to put tissue in the toe to keep them on her feet. Thankfully, Valerie had selected closed-toed shoes. Her dress fit perfectly, thanks to Belinda and grandma Mazur, but the colour made her look pasty.

"I look like cotton candy on a vanilla cone," Stephanie grumbled when she walked down the stairs. Frank blinked a few times to shake the image Stephanie planted in his brain.

Stephanie got angry when her position got swapped with Shiela. It forced her to walk down the aisle with Morelli after the ceremony. She pasted on a fake smile as she walked towards the altar, remembering to pause a few seconds between steps.

Valerie walked down the aisle on Frank's arm. Stephanie stifled a laugh when she saw the full effects of the wedding gown. It was frilly, large, and made skinny Valerie look like a humongous, white whale.

The reception was at the veteran's hall. Stephanie checked the board to see where she got seated. Her temper peaked when she found her name beside Morelli. "Damn it!" Stephanie snapped.

"Is something wrong?" Helen asked, smirking.

"Nothing, mother," Stephanie sweetly replied before taking her seat beside Joe.