"You what?" Derek asked his wife of a few weeks in disbelief as he looked at her with a confused expression on his face.
The bags from their honeymoon to the Florida Keys were still scattered around the house, half-unpacked, like most of their personal belongings that were still on hastily labeled boxes from their quick move into Edmonton shortly before the start of the hockey season.
The woman would nag him about it sometimes, but neither of them had the time or the energy to deal with it, so there they remained. Untouched.
"I'm pregnant, Derek." Casey told him again, the pregnancy test still being held in her manicured hands as she nervously fidgeted with it, in spite of her profound disgust of it. "You know, that thing that happens when a mommy and a daddy love each other very much."
Just a few minutes ago she had found out that she was, indeed, pregnant. She already had a slight suspicion, of course, over the morning sickness and the fact her bleeding had not came down that month, but only after she took the test is that she became one hundred percent sure.
Perhaps she would have been more tactful or even romantic if they were in different circumstances, but not now, not today. She was too nervous. So she just came down from the bathroom and said it.
Casey was definitively not ready to be a mother right now. They just moved to Alberta, fresh from college, from Kingston, and she was still trying to find herself in the city, but it seems like nothing would come out of that. How on Earth will she take care of a newborn while working, after all? Or how would she be able to make friends?
Not to mention the huge expenses they would incur. Or the bodily changes.
A shudder runs through her spine when she recalls when her mother was pregnant with Lizzie. It had been tough.
Why, God, why?!, she wanted to scream, but she did not. She would not. A child is a blessing, no matter how nervous she is about it, she reminds herself. As soon as she has seen those royal blue lines on the stick, there is no other choice but buckle down and do the best they can, and even better still.
"Aren't you happy about it, Der?" The woman asked him instead, with a hurt tone on her voice, trying to coax a response from him after her new husband had not said anything for quite some time.
"Well, I don't know. How did that happen?" The hockey player asked her.
She raised her eyebrow as she looked at him perplexed. Breathe, Casey, breathe.
"What do you mean, how did it happen? We had sex for fucks sake!" She told him as she laid the pregnancy test down on the kitchen counter.
Derek rolled his eyes as he walked over to her and took the test in his hands, looking at it intently.
"Well, I know that, but we always used protection and if we didn't, we always made sure to still be safe. We can't be parents yet. We just can't. I'm gone a lot, Casey, and you can't take care of a kid all on your own. It's my first season, too. I have to prove myself to the league, to the fans!" He stated before he continued his arguments on why they should not have a child just yet.
She could not believe how he reacted. She knew that they were still young however she did not think he would not want the child.
"Derek." She said, quietly, trying to stop his rambling with a hand in his. "I know we haven't talked about this yet, and I know we're not ready yet, but I'm getting there. If you really don't want to be a dad then I guess we both know what we have to do."
With that, Casey rises to her feet and leaves to the bedroom. She needed to lay down, or else she would break down in tears. She still could not quite wrap her head around on what Derek had just told her.
For the love of God, she had seen time and time again that he was amazing with kids! He loved Marti so much, and he took such good care of her. Even as a preteen. Would it be all that different? If anything, it would be easier, now that he was a fairly responsible adult, with a car, a generous salary and a wife.
For now, at least. As it stands, their marriage could implode as soon as it began.
She remained alone on her dark bedroom for quite a while until she heard the door being opened. She did not dare to look up as she wiped away the tears that were escaping her eyes.
"I'm sorry." The young Canadian man said as he sat down next to her strewn body. "I was just too overwhelmed by the whole situation. Like I said we haven't even talked about having kids yet."
His bright brown eyes were flashing at Casey's with complete honesty, before he slowly took her hand in his, waiting for her reaction. He took as a good sign the fact she did not pull away.
"Just because you've been surprised does not mean you won't be a great dad, Derek." The woman stated, finally looking up into his eyes as he looked at her with a slight smile on his lips.
"I know that, and I also know that we can work this out somehow. I want us to be parents. I know we can do this and I know you'll be the best mother in the whole wide world for our child." He said, firm, squeezing her hand gently as a soft smile formed itself on her lips, nodding her head at his words.
Derek leaned in and kissed her lips gently. Hope filled both of their hearts, with the thought they would be able to get over all that and come out on the other side all the better for it.
As a family. A loving, picturesque family.
Their fairytale ending would be a little unconventional, but Casey assured herself everything would fit together soon, and then it all would be absolutely perfect.