Go Baby Grow

Chapter 6 – Shocking Realizations

Saturday, April 17th

When the phone rang, Nolan was in the other room helping Linnea into her chair. Lissa was in the room too, talking nonstop with her dear friend and recounting details and coincidences of March 15. Ryder, who uncharacteristically had nothing to do on a Saturday night, was hanging out at Nolan and Lissa's. Sitting on the floor playing with Molly, Ryder was relishing in his status as uncle.

Nolan's phone sounded and he called to his brother, "Hey, Ry, grab that call for me, k?"

"Hello?" Ryder answered as he attempted not to laugh while Molly climbed on him.

"Baby Bear?!" Amelia celebrated.

"Hi Mama. How's life?" Ryder wondered aloud.

"I called Nolan, didn't I?" she honestly questioned, afraid the pregnancy hormones were affecting her memory.

Ryder displayed a wry grin and considered telling her she had called his phone. Softened by his niece's giggles, he played nice, "You did. I brought Linnea over and I haven't left. I like imposing on Nolan. It's good for him."

Giggling, Amelia sighed, "I miss you, Baby Bear."

"I know," Ryder assured her.

"I'm rolling my eyes, Ryder Blake," Amelia teased. "Back to why I called… Dad and I would like to come over there for a bit. Does that work?"

"Sure," Ryder agreed on behalf of the others. After his mother gently admonished him for not asking Nolan or Lissa, Ryder ended the call and looked at Molly. "Guess who's coming over, Shrimp? Gamma and Papa!" Together, the two clapped their hands.

A few minutes later, after Ryder had informed the others about the impending visitors, they sat on the sofa chatting and waiting.

"Did she say why they're coming over?" Lissa inquired, finding the surprise visit a little strange.

Ryder shrugged, "I didn't ask. I think once Mom knew I was here, she couldn't stay away."

Nolan threw a pillow at Ryder and it landed on his face. Molly laughed while Lissa rolled her eyes. Ryder, of course, threw two pillows in response. An all-out pillow fight commenced as the two brothers emptied the couch of its myriad throw pillows. Lissa regretted the choice in furniture as she shook her head, but eventually laughed. The brothers were climbing all over the couch like a play structure, chasing one another, circling the kitchen island, and general acting like small boys.

Owen and Amelia let themselves in and discovered the scene. Simply to taunt them, Owen whistled as he would've done years prior. Instinctively, both boys froze.

"Boys…" Owen greeted jokingly. He turned to Lissa and Linnea and offered, "and ladies."

From behind, Nolan and Ryder attacked Owen with handfuls of pillows. He threw them back with force. Without intending to stop the hijinks, Molly called out for Owen and his attention honed in on her. Nolan began gathering the pillows and placing them back where they belonged, and Ryder reluctantly helped.

"Molly!" Owen exclaimed with happiness. "How's my girl?" He picked her up, simultaneously doting on her and examining her stitches, commenting, "She's looking great, Liss."

"She's acting as if nothing happened, unless, of course, it's mentioned. Then the Olivia-level acting begins," Lissa laughed as she fed Lizzy. Amelia was sitting next to Lissa holding Emmy and cooing.

As everyone settled down on the sofa, Nolan mentioned, "Glad you guys stopped by."

"We have some news to share," Owen grinned shyly as he peered over at his wife. He sat down next to her and grasped her hand.

"Let's see… you're moving to Uganda and starting a medical clinic there?" Ryder kidded.

"No," Amelia shook her head and grinned.

"You've found a boarding school that will take Olivia?" Nolan teased.

Owen scoffed. "Not exactly. Besides, that's the one we've been needing to send away," he chided as he motioned toward Ryder.

"Ten weeks, Dad… Ten short weeks and you're free of me," Ryder responded with a joking tone and underlying sarcasm.

With a frown, Amelia repeated, "Ten weeks… really? Is that all?" She patted the open spot next to her and her tall, lanky "baby" sat down next to her. She threw an arm around him and kissed him. "Now, I'm going to cry," she sighed.

"There's no crying at the Academy, Mama," Ryder joked gently.

"Anyway…" Owen interrupted. "Our news…" He looked at Amelia and asked if she wanted to announce it.

With a coy gaze toward the ceiling, Amelia disclosed, "Well… Molly, Lizzy, and Emmy are going to have an aunt."

"Huh?" Ryder questioned as he pulled away to look at his mom.

"I'm pregnant. Due October 25th," she giggled.

"That's wonderful!" Lissa and Linnea exclaimed.

Nolan quickly shot a look to Ryder, hoping his younger brother would pop off with what they were both thinking. Instead, Ryder was so shocked that he said nothing. He quickly calculated that he wouldn't be present when the baby was born and wouldn't see him or her until Christmas. For the first time since he'd committed to the Academy, Ryder realized he was not only heading off an adventure but that life at home would move on without him.

With raised eyebrows and anticipation, Owen glanced at his sons. Nolan stuck his hand out and congratulated Owen, then hugged his mom. His formal response created an awkward scene.

"You'll still be my Baby Bear," Amelia teased as she squeezed Ryder, shocked that he hadn't responded verbally.

Ryder forced a smile and replied, "Yeah…" Then he stood up and excused himself. He locked himself in the bathroom, overwhelmed with emotion and wishing he could talk to Julie. Although not confirmed, he assumed she was grounded for not communicating with Adam the previous day.

Knowing he couldn't hide in the bathroom all night, Ryder steadied himself enough to high tail it out the front door. After approaching the Great Room, he called out, "Hey, guys, I forgot I have something lined up tonight. I gotta skate." With that, he hurried out the door without further goodbyes or hugs.

Owen began to stand up to follow him, but Amelia insisted she'd go instead. Owen, concerned about Nolan's response to the news, forced himself to be joyous as he spoke with Linnea and Lissa.

Already on his bike and ready to start it, Ryder nodded when he saw Amelia step out onto the front porch. He pointed at his wrist and waved, indicating he needed to leave. Behind his face shield, which was steaming up, a few tears escaped from his eyes. Amelia called out, "Wait!" and ran toward the bike.

"I'm late, Mom," Ryder lied.

"No, you're not," Amelia grimaced. "Ryder, what's up?"

He pulled off his helmet, displaying his signature bed head and his tears. He shook his head and mumbled, "Nothing." He grasped her hand with his leather glove and tried to assure her, "I'm happy for you. Really. Just bad timing. I forgot all about this thing tonight."

"I'm not stupid, Ryder," Amelia insisted as her blue eyes honed in on him.

Shaking his head again, Ryder admitted, "I… I can't go there right now, Mom… I dunno…"

"Olivia is disgusted by us. Now she's sure we're having sex," Amelia shared with a gentle smile.

Ryder laughed and looked at his mom silently. With his eyes reddening, he choked out, "I won't be here when the baby's born."

Closing her eyes slowly, Amelia pulled in her lips. She opened her eyes and wrapped her baby in an enormous, tight, pained hug. She hadn't yet put together that Ryder would be away at school and would not be able to come home whenever he desired.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

Sunday, April 18th

Nolan and Lissa wanted to take Linnea out to dinner on her last night in town. That afternoon, after repeatedly trying to reach Julie, Lissa called Ryder.

"Julie's not answering her phone," she began as soon as he said hello.

"I'm pretty sure she's grounded. Why do you need to talk to her?" Ryder inquired.

"I was hoping she could help with the kids. We want to take Linnea out to dinner. I thought if Livie came over and helped, the two of them could handle whatever our trio might throw at them," Lissa explained.

"You could try calling her dad. I mean, she technically works for you. I can't imagine he'd get in the way of that," Ryder put forth. He gave her Adam's number and wished her luck before adding, "I could come help."

Lissa giggled, "Are you serious? It involves diapers and spit up, Ryder."

"Jules could handle that part. I'll help with the fun stuff," he joked.

"That won't be very helpful, but you can if you really want to," Lissa relented.

Lissa followed Ryder's advice and reached Adam. Although he initially hesitated, he agreed to send Julie over. He called upstairs after completing the call, "Julia. Front and center."

She ran down the stairs, wondering what he had in store for her. "Yes?" she asked as she stood before him.

"Mrs. Tremblay-Hunt called. She needs you to work tonight. I told her you'd be there in 30 minutes," he informed her. Julie nodded and Adam continued, "You can drive over and take your phone. I expect you not to use the phone unless there's an emergency. No texts or calls, you know the drill."

"Yes, Sir," she responded. Her last three words were the most she'd spoken since Adam slapped her.

He stared at her without emotion and snapped, "As you were."

Julie ran upstairs to change clothes and brush her hair. As she stood at the bathroom mirror, she noticed her cheek was bruised. She opened the drawer to dig through her seldom-used makeup but found the drawer empty. He'd removed all of it.

In a quandary, Julie weighed her options. She could leave and risk having Nolan or Lissa ask about the bruise or she could approach Adam and ask for her makeup. Both options horrified her. She felt so ashamed, both by the bruise and by what she had said to bring it about. Summoning up her courage, she decided to speak to Adam.

Tentatively descending the stairs, Julie eeked out a soft, "Umm… Dad?" He looked up from the book he was reading but said nothing. She continued, "I… please hear me out… umm…"

"Spit it out," he commanded sternly not appreciating her hesitation.

"My cheek has a mark on it. I was hoping I could use some makeup to cover it," she blurted quickly.

He stood up and examined her face in the dim light. Although he couldn't see any bruising, he told her to follow him. Then he ordered her to wait in the hallway while he entered his bedroom. He walked into Julie's bathroom and turned on the bright lights. Now able to see the bruise, he handed her foundation and questioned, "Is this what you need?"

"There's another one, too," she informed him quietly. She explained the concealer tube. He left and returned with it.

A part of him wanted to apologize to her. He continued to feel frustrated with himself about losing his composure and slapping her. However, her attitude was far beyond acceptable in his book. Apologizing, Adam thought, lessened the impact of his reaction. As Adam pondered his perspective, Julie considered hers. She was embarrassed for having acted so disrespectfully. There was no gray area where she could reason away her behavior. While still shocked at having been struck, a part of her felt she truly deserved it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

Before Ryder headed over to Nolan and Lissa's, he stopped by the Lake House. After harassing Lucas and the twins, he moseyed into Owen's office.

"Hey," Owen grinned as he saw his son. "How was last night?"

"Huh?" Ryder inquired, confused. The previous night, he'd left Nolan's and headed to the apartment. After privately crying and coming face-to-face with some of the realities Academy life would bring, he fell asleep on the couch. The night, in a word, had been horrific.

"Last night. You had to leave in a hurry. You had a thing…" Owen reminded him.

"Right… oh, it ended up falling through," Ryder lied.

"That's too bad. You should've come back over – we had a great time listening to Linnea's pro-football wife stories," the father smiled.

"Do you have a few minutes, Dad?" Ryder asked, proving his disengagement with the small talk Owen had attempted to start. After Owen offered Ryder a seat, Ryder confessed, "I need to say some things that are tough to talk about." He paused and forced himself to look at Owen. "When I turned 18 and moved out, I was a jerk about it. Now, my grades are slipping and I eat like crap. I should be living at home."

Owen studied his son and pushed a little as he sought to confirm, "Are you saying you're not ready to be on your own?"

Looking down at the floor, Ryder admitted, "I guess I am."

"That's a tough realization, isn't it?" Owen stated plainly. Ryder looked up and nodded. Leaning back in his chair and folding his arms, Owen pondered. He swiveled his chair so he was facing the lake and gazed out the window.

After a period of silence, Owen turned back toward Ryder and explained, "Since you left, Ryder, the littles are more cooperative and well-behaved. I didn't see the connection before. They saw you model disrespectful behavior and they followed suit. My stress level has gone down – I no longer have to worry about what rule you might be bending or what argument you and I will have. I love you deeply, Son, but I need some time to think about this."

"Oh…" Ryder sounded, shocked by Owen's honesty.

"If I were to say yes, you'd come back to the same rules this house has always had. I'd expect you to follow them without grousing or complaining. If you cross the line, there will be consequences and I'll expect you to honor them," Owen described. "It will be a huge backward step compared to the freedom you have now."

"I'll take that to heart," Ryder promised.

Owen concluded, "Let me talk with your mom. I'll touch base with you on Tuesday or Wednesday."

"Sounds good. Thanks, Dad," Ryder offered. As he stood to leave, Ryder added, "I'm not sure if I convinced you how sorry I am about how I acted. Even if I can't come home, I want you to know that I apologize. I wasn't the person you raised me to be, and I'm sorry for being such an argumentative, hard-headed ass. I don't want to leave for the Academy with tension between us, Dad."

Owen drew his hand to his chin. "Thank you, Ryder. Apology accepted. I want us to be on solid ground before you leave, too."