Elliot heaved the last box onto the kitchen counter. It had held all of their dishes and was heavier than he'd thought. He nearly threw his back out bringing it up the steps. He looked around the room and smiled. It was theirs, finally. He left the box and went in search of Olivia. He found her sitting in the living room, in the middle of a cardboard fortress. He sat beside her and took her hand in his.
"Hey. You going to unpack any of those?" He grinned and nudged her lightly and began rifling through the first box he came to. It had all of his stereo equipment in it. He shoved it to the side so she wouldn't have to deal with it.
"Yeah. I just can't believe it's ours. I've never had a house before. I never dreamed it would be this nice. I mean, we looked at this one before but when it's your own, you love it so much more. Just like a child." She patted her growing stomach.
"I'm glad you like it. It's better than the one Kathy and I had. That one always had problems, I think. I guess it's just as well I was never home. Then I'd have to be Mr. Fix-It." He chuckled and took in the surroundings. Of all the things he loved about the new home, one of his favorites was the window. He already had a mental image of his wife and child sitting there, looking out at the falling snow or a rainbow. He couldn't wait for that image to become a reality.
"Mr. Fix-It, huh? Somehow, I can't see you doing any of that. Speaking of, I thought we could look at a swing set. If you don't mind. Nothing fancy. Think you're up for that, Mr. Villa?" She hooked her arm around his and laid her head on his shoulder.
"He's old. I'm not that old, Liv. Sure, we can look, and I'll remember you saying 'nothing fancy' when I'm sitting there with twenty pages of notes in eight different languages." He pulled a box toward him and looked inside. More of his electronics. He felt bad for having so much. Olivia's things compared to his were hardly anything. After the wedding, they had gotten plenty of things to call theirs. He still felt as if she was lacking, though. She was such a simple person. She was content in his presence, she would always say. Now that they were expecting a boy, he was content as well. He was a little disappointed Olivia wasn't getting a little girl. Someday, he thought. Right now, they still needed to come up with a middle name. He caught her staring at him funny and he realized his mind had wandered again.
"Right now I just want one where we can hook up a baby swing. That's all I ask, and I'm pretty sure any of them we find will have that capability. And it has to be safe." She began rattling off things in her head that she needed to pick up.
"I think that can be done. Can you believe it? Three more months, Liv." He wasn't sure who was glowing more. It was as if he, himself, was pregnant.
"I know. It's going to sneak up on us. All the more reason we need to get these unpacked so we can see what we need to buy. I can't believe I don't have more than I do." She blew a strand of hair out of her face before tucking it behind her right ear.
"Little by little, we'll get it all. First, we need to paint and get the crib. Everything else can come here and there." He wouldn't dare say it out loud, but he wanted to plan for the unexpected. Just in case the baby came early, he wanted to have a place for it to sleep. With their track record, it was entirely possible. The stress from the news of Olivia's mother wasn't helping things. They'd been going around-and-around with her mother's lawyers for over a month. They would come home from work and immediately start sifting through stacks of paperwork. It was unbelievable that Olivia's name wasn't anywhere to be found. It was the kind of shock to her fragile system Olivia didn't need. Once they got moved, he promised her he'd take her out to eat.
"What time are the movers coming with the furniture?" She hated the thought of sleeping on the floor. As she grew bigger, she got more and more uncomfortable. She found it hard to find a good sleeping position. She'd jostled her line a few times, waking them up both up in the worst way possible. Elliot would get a smack in the face as Olivia tried to calm her breathing down. It sickened her when she had to look at the IV line. Her nausea had gone away, but the line was starting to burn. She wondered if she'd hit it one too many times. Unknowingly, she began smoothing the medical tape down over the line.
"Is it bothering you again? Did you tell the nurse that when she was over yesterday?" He gently swatted her hand away and picked up her arm to inspect it. The area surrounding the IV was reddish in color. No wonder it was bothering her. He moved her arm onto his lap and held her hand.
"I forgot. I have her number in one of those boxes. I'll ask her tomorrow what to do. I hope they don't have to change it out." She groaned at the thought of having to go through the initial procedure again.
"I have her card in my wallet. I'll call first thing in the morning, that way we won't have to wait until Monday." He pulled out his wallet and got the card out before putting both on the end table.
"Thanks, honey." She squeezed his hand and let him help her up.
"Anything for you." He pulled away her hair so he could kiss the side of her neck.
"I have something to tell you. Don't freak." She turned around to face him.
"Oookay." He took in her serious expression and was immediately filled with concern.
"It's not bad, I don't think. I'm not really sure, but when the nurse was over we were kind of talking and with the house and work and the thing with my mom she mentioned that I should watch out for signs that the baby may be in danger. She said to make sure that I have an outlet for stress and to not let it build. I don't want to put our child in danger. I set up an appointment next week. I want to make sure everything is okay. It's not for another week but the receptionist was able to change it to sooner. It may seem silly, but I don't want to take any chances. I just want to make sure everything is okay." She grabbed his hands and held them firmly in hers as she searched his eyes for any signs of anger.
"You thought I would freak? Honey, I think that's great you're going in. What I hate is that you need to go in the first place. We need to work something out here. You need to let me know when something is up. Liv, I'm a guy. I have three daughters and an ex-wife, but I still can't read your guys' minds. Please tell me if something is bothering you so we can work it out?" He wasn't sure if he was asking or suggesting that's what she should do.
"I will. I know you wouldn't be mad, I just didn't want you to think I was being reckless. I bought a few books and some CD's I think will help me relax. Oh, and I'll have you." She grinned and winked.
"Now, that, I like. Seriously, thank you for taking the initiative here. I know you're not reckless. You're the most un-selfish person I know. Our baby is in good, capable hands." He let go of her hands and wrapped his arms around her midsection.
"Thank you. You have no idea how much I needed to hear that." She blinked away a tear and kissed him gently on the lips before pulling out of his embrace.
"Is that a happy tear?" He waited what seemed like eons before she simply nodded and went back to her boxes.