After the disastrous dinner that resulted in Tim just leaving, feeling no longer welcome, no one was really ready to sit back down and continue eating except Georgie who remained at the table with Lou and Katie piling shepherd's pie into her mouth.
Amy wandered out onto the porch and sat on the bench, rubbing her hands over her face in frustration. Of course Tim would be the one to make this whole pregnancy into a negative, pointing out all of the worries and concerns everyone was probably thinking anyway. Someone had to be the bad guy, though, and it was usually Tim. He played it well with making pretty much everyone at the table irritated with him. He did mean well and Amy understood that eventually, but that didn't mean she still forgave him for making Ty out to be an inadequate husband and making it sound like this pregnancy was just going to turn into a huge regret. Amy had been worried about it in the beginning when that stick first turned blue, but after telling Ty and talking with him a little bit she had started feeling better and excited about finally starting a family with him. Now, Tim succeeded in making those doubts creep back into her mind.
Ty stood at the kitchen window helping Lou clear the table, looking out to see Amy rub her face then fold her legs up to her chest and stare out toward the barn.
"Don't worry about Tim. He'll come around. You know how he is." Jack appeared next to Ty, setting a few plates on the counter then looking out at Amy as well.
"Yeah. I just wish he would have surprised us all and been supportive, even excited about being a grand father again. Now… I'm just afraid Amy's going to start having doubts and rethinking this whole thing. I don't want her looking back after we have this baby and regret not waiting." They didn't have much of a choice in the matter since they hadn't been planning to get pregnant right now, which is what worried Ty most. Unless they went against all they believed in and had an abortion, they were stuck having this baby. Ty knew they wouldn't get rid of it just to make their lives easier. The guilt would eat both of them alive inside. He just didn't want Amy thinking she had no choice, which she very well might be.
"Well, all I know is that no matter what you decide, or what Tim thinks, you'll always have my support. And if you need the space, well I suppose I could take Tim's advice and tack on another wing to the house." Jack reached out to rest his hand on Ty's shoulder with a reassuring smile, giving him a squeeze before heading back into the dining room.
After grabbing his still full plate, Ty joined Amy on the porch. He paused in front of her, offering her the plate. "You should eat something."
Amy looked at the shepherd's pie and felt her stomach churn all over again, making a face of disgust and turning away. "Oh.. not that, please. Just looking at it makes me feel sick." Smelling it would probably make her throw up again and she really didn't want to do that.
"So this is what pregnancy is like, huh? Should be interesting," he smiled looking down at the plate. There was definitely going to be a lot to learn.
Ty moved to set it on the little table beside the bench then slid next to his wife and positioned his body to keep the plate from her view. "We'll find you something else later." She smiled softly at him then they both turned their eyes out toward the slowly setting sun for a few moments, lost in their own thoughts.
"Ty… do you think maybe we're rushing things?" Amy asked finally, a crease in her brow as she turned to look at him.
Sighing, Ty glanced down at the old wooden boards of the porch, taking a moment to choose his words wisely, but instead just reciprocated the question, unsure of how he wanted to answer. "Do you?"
Lowering her gaze, Amy considered the question carefully. "I don't know. What Dad said made sense. I mean, what am I going to do about the horses? I know it's too dangerous to work with them, but we both know it'll be too hard for me to just quit."
"But it'll only be temporary, just until you can have the baby."
"Yeah, but Ty, babies need a lot of care and attention. With you working full-time at the clinic, I won't be able to leave the baby alone to work with the horses and I won't be able to bring him with me."
Ty studied Amy, taking in her reasoning and trying to think of something to ease her concerns. He supposed this was going to be a conversation that came up between them eventually, but thanks to Tim it came up sooner rather than later. Ty couldn't yet decide if that was a good or a bad thing when they had still been wallowing in their happiness.
"Him?" Ty grinned, catching her use of a gender identifier and unable to ignore it.
"Or her. Ty, come on, I'm being serious."
"I know. I'm just… I don't think we're rushing into anything. Maybe it wasn't the right time, but that doesn't mean we can't make it the right time. We still have time to get a plan in order. But I don't want you to think you have no choice in this. It's your decision more than it is mine. And I'll stick with you, whatever you want to do." Reaching out, Ty took Amy's hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"So you think we should have this baby?" Amy asked, knowing that the idea of an abortion wasn't really something that settled comfortably in her mind.
The way Amy asked that question made Ty a little bit uneasy, realizing what sort of dangerous territory they were falling into. If she wasn't already pregnant this conversation would be so much easier. "Like I said, I think it's your decision to make."
"Well, can you at least tell me what you think?"
"I already told you, Amy. I think if we do have this baby that we'll be okay. We'll figure it out and make it work."
"Yeah, but do you want to? Are you ready to be a father?" Amy's voice became more pushy, demanding an answer and not another attempt at evasion.
"I…" Ty sighed, blinking in thought as he looked away from his wife again. "Amy I don't want to push you into-"
"Oh, so you don't think I'm ready for this." Amy's harsh tone left Ty with a sense of dread. He didn't like where this was heading.
"No, Amy, it's just that everything was fine this morning and then as soon as your dad mentioned all of that stuff about what else was out there waiting for you, all the sudden you seem…"
"What?" Amy dared him, fixing him with a hard frown.
"You seem like you're having second thoughts." Ty finished slowly, forcing his voice to remain calm even though Amy was getting worked up.
"Maybe I am." Planting her feet on the floor Amy got up and crossed the porch to the stairs.
Ty looked up at her, startled, watching her walk away. "You're not thinking about… Amy…" He quickly got up to follow her, catching her before she hit the gate. "Amy, look at me. Are you really considering…"
Breath heavy in her chest, Amy stared down at the path. Her mind was swimming. She had so many emotions running wild through her she didn't know which to settle on, or which would help her put her thoughts together. "No… I don't know…" Running her hand through her hair, Amy turned headed for the barn, needing space and just time alone to think.
Ty was frozen in place, watching her go, confused and feeling his heart sink at the thought of Amy really thinking about ending this pregnancy. In a matter of minutes their excitement and happiness came completely unraveled, leaving them both questioning if they really were ready. It had felt like they were. Ty started to feel an eagerness to have that baby in his arms he'd never felt before when he and Amy were just kicking the ideas around, having fun picturing a life for themselves. Now that it had been handed to them and they were given the opportunity to make something of it, it just fell apart before it could really begin.