Chapter 4- Pregnant
A/N: I am sorry about the long update time. I have been quite busy, not to mention I have been rewatching the last scene of the finale over and over! I really didn't mean to just let you hanging at one of the bigger cliffhangers of the story, it just happened. I hope to get to write now more that the season is over and I am approaching the summer months. Also thank you all for the reviews!
The words on the screen swirl in his head. Pregnant, pregnant, pregnant. He clicks on the link for the Mayo Clinic, because it is one of the few he trusts. Pregnant, pregnant, pregnant. The word keeps repeating over and over again. Pregnant, pregnant, pregnant. He reads the article, and strangely it all makes sense. Everything that has happened over the past few days makes sense now. This is not at all what he was expecting to find when he promised himself he was going to get to the bottom of this.
He takes a deep breath, and then the questions come. 'She is on the pill. She never wanted to have kids. Do I even want kids? Why hasn't she told me? Why is she hiding this from me? She told me the last time. When was the last time she had a drink? Has she been to the doctor? How far along is she? Why didn't I notice these things before?' His brain is on overload with questions. He thinks that he needs to calm down and have a drink. He grabs the flask from the bottom desk drawer and takes a swig. He is going to be a dad.
"Calm down Stinson. You can do this."
He thinks about how he is going to broach this subject with her. She has obviously been hiding it from him, so he wants to go into the conversation with her knowing that he is excited about this. He is excited. He is going to be a dad, with Robin. He knows that she will make a great mother. Her interactions with Marvin prove that. The first time she held him, she didn't even want to put him down. They are ready for this.
Yes, the last time they thought she was pregnant, it was not the best of situations. They had cheated on their significant others with each other. She had turned him down afterwards and stayed with Kevin. He did want to have a baby with her back then, and he still does. Robin, however, thought she wasn't ready to be a mom.
It was a relief in the end that she turned out not to be pregnant. Looking back on it now, he knows that neither of them were truly ready back then. Now though, they could be parents together and start the next part of their lives as a family. Honestly, he likes the way things turned out. Who knows if they would be even be married right now if she had been pregnant then.
He knows, though, that there was a part of her back then that wanted to be pregnant. Yes, they weren't together and she stayed with Kevin, and yes, it was rough to be around each other, but the few times he did see her, he could feel the sadness emanating off of her. From the time she ran out of We-Be-Babies when Ted showed her the maple leaf onesie, to her last minute New Year's Eve broadcast where she talked about wanting 2011 to be over, he could tell she was depressed about not being pregnant. There was a part of her that was terrified, but another part of her really did want to have a baby.
The question is why she is not telling him now. Does she possibly think that he might be scared about this? He has to show her that he is on board about being a dad. He comes up with a plan. He takes the rest of the day off to finish it.
The first stop on his way home is We-Be-Babies. His goal is to buy the maple leaf onesie. He knows that now, she will be happy to see it. He walks into the store, locates it, and afterwards is drawn to the wall of stuffed animals. His eyes catch an adorable stuffed beaver that he just knows that Robin will love.
Second, he stops at the florist. He decides on three dozen red roses, one dozen for each member of their future family. His last stop is at the bodega to get a bottle of sparkling grape juice before heading home.
On his way home, he calls her and asks her what she is thinking about for dinner.
"Hey Scherbatsky, what's up for dinner!" he boasts excitedly in the phone. He is trying to ignore the fact that she is not telling him, but today, nothing can spoil his mood. He is going to be a dad.
"I don't know. I could really go for some fettuccine alfredo from Delarusso's." He figures this is probably a craving. He hopes that they can tell Lily soon, so they can get advice from her about how to help with the cravings.
"Sounds great! Are you going to be home early tonight? I think you could use the night off."
"You know, I really could. I'll be home by 6, ok?"
"Sounds great. I'll have dinner waiting for you."
"Thank you Barney! I love you."
"I love you too. I'd do anything for you remember?"
"Of course I remember. See you at six."
"Yes, see you at 6."
Six. That means he has one hour to pick up the food and get the apartment ready for a soft candlelight dinner.
When Robin arrives home that night, Barney is standing in the living room of their now candlelit apartment holding the roses he bought earlier. On the coffee table is a beautifully wrapped gift box containing the purchases he made at from We-Be-Babies. As she walks in the door her face is a mix of questioning and glee.
"Barney? What's all this?" Her questioning look changes to all smiles.
"I just wanted a night at home with you to make you feel better."
"Barney," she stutters confused as the smile disappears from her face. "It seems like a little much just to cheer me up."
'Of course,' he thinks to himself. She always has been one to not see the beauty in the grand romantic gesture.
"I mean presents? Really, Barney?"
"Yes. There is something I really need to give you. Just open it, okay?" Barney whines in the child-like way he does when he doesn't get his way.
Resigning to Barney's antics, Robin sits down on the couch with the present in her hands, while he puts the flowers in a vase on the kitchen counter. He returns to the couch.
"So, what's in here? It's a little big to be jewelry."
"It's better," Barney squeals excitedly. "Just open it."
She unties the white ribbon on the box and places it on the table. She timidly opens the pastel wrapping paper. She opens the box. At that moment her face turns white.
"Barney!" she whispers. "What the HELL IS THIS?" She ends in a scream.
"Robin," Barney says confidently and sweetly, trying his best to be supportive. "You don't need to lie to me. I know you're pregnant."
"I'M NOT PREGNANT!" Robin screams as she throws the gift down on table. She throws herself on her feet in anger and storms to the front door. "For you to even suggest that..." she seethes with tears streaming down her face as she slams the door, leaving a shell-shocked Barney by himself for the second time that day.