Hey, guys, just wanted to drop in real quick to inform you that I am also now posting my stories on AO3 and to thank you for reading my stories. It's really appreciated.


Friday: November 23, 2012 10:45 A.M.

I woke up in bed alone. I was confused about that before looking at the time. Randy wouldn't ever sleep in this late, unless he was sick. He isn't sick, so I shouldn't be surprised. My doctor's appointment with my OBGYN was today in just about three hours. I also had my therapy session today a few hours after that.

I got out of bed and looked at myself in the mirror for a few moments. I looked absolutely exhausted. I sighed before slowly walking out of the bedroom to go look for Randy.

He wasn't that hard to find. I find him pacing around in the hallway. I watch him for a few minutes without him noticing me.

"Are you alright there?" I ask.

Randy stopped pacing as he looked at me. "Hey, didn't know you were up."

"I'm up. I have only about three hours until I have to be at the doctor's appointment."

"Oh, I didn't realize it was that late in the morning."

"What's bothering you? You pace like that when you're trying to figure something out."

"I don't know which room to turn into a nursery."

"Why are you worrying about that already?"

"Because we have to move stuff out of whichever guest room we choose. Then we have to decorate and find a crib and other stuff."

"I guess that is a lot. I figured we were just going to do the one closest to our room."

"Oh, that makes sense. I didn't think about that."

"Stop stressing out. I have to go to the OBGYN and therapy today. We can't both stress out."

"My parents want us to come over for dinner tonight. We didn't make it over for actual Thanksgiving yesterday, so they want all of us kids over there tonight."

"Did they invite Tyler?"

"He won't be able to make it. I asked. You have nothing to worry about."

"Except telling your parents."

"Well, that, I meant about your brother."

"In that case, nothing to worry about. Outside of that, there is much to worry about."

Randy nods. "We'll figure it all out. Go eat something."

"Okay, has Spike been fed yet?"

"I filled his food and water when I got up. You might want to check though."

"Okay." I kiss his cheek. "I love you, babe."

"I love you too, Rissa. Go eat."


I laid down at the doctor. I was a bit anxious about being at the doctor for a pregnancy. The doctor started to do an ultrasound.

"It's not very big yet, but there's your baby." The doctor tells me and Randy. "From the looks of it, you're between seven and eight weeks along."

I look at Randy with tears in my eyes. "Do you know my due date?"

"Between what your ultrasound looks like and what you've told me, I'd say probably July 6."

"Alright, that sounds like it lines up about right."

"Do you want to hear the baby's heartbeat?"

"Of course."

Randy and I listened as we heard the heartbeat. Randy smiled and grabbed my hand. I grabbed onto his hand.

"That's our baby." Randy whispered.

I smiled. "Yeah, that's our baby."

Randy kissed my forehead. I smiled as I once again looked at the ultrasound. It just still felt so unreal that I was actually pregnant.

"Everything looks good." The doctor says. "Let's just set up your next appointment, and you're good to go."

"Alright."

The doctor wrote down some stuff before handing me a card with the date of my next appointment. "And you're good to go. Have a nice day, you two."

"Thank you."

"Wait, let me print a couple of your ultrasound pictures for you."

"Okay."

Randy and I wait for the ultrasound pictures to print out. We lean on each other. Randy wraps an arm around me.

The doctor comes back and hands us the pictures. "Here you go. Have a nice day."

"Thanks, you too." Randy and I both say before walking out while holding each other's hand.


Randy parks in the parking lot for my therapist's office. I still sat in the passenger's seat, looking at the ultrasound pictures.

Randy smiles at me. "Are you okay?"

I nod. "It just still doesn't feel real."

"I know. I honestly would've never thought it'd happen by accident for us."

"Me either. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around it."

"It's real though. You've had a positive pregnancy test. The ultrasound showed you are pregnant. It's real, and it's amazing."

"Yeah, it is. Sorry in advance for how moody I'll probably get during this pregnancy."

Randy gave a soft laugh. "It's alright. I understand. You're creating our baby."

"Yeah, I am. This little one could be such a gifted wrestler with our genetics."

"The baby probably will be. You need to get inside for your therapy session."

Randy and I exit the car and head inside my therapist's office. Dr. Sullivan peeks her head out and gestures for Randy and I to come back. Randy and I followed Dr. Sullivan to have my therapy session. We sit down with her.

"Hey," Dr. Sullivan says to me. "How are things going this week?"

I give a small laugh. "Well, things are going."

"How are they going?"

"I read the last letter."

"And?"

"And it quite upset me."

"How did it upset you?"

"I spent about seven years thinking that she had been pretty upset with me when she had passed away, but she hadn't been. She really had wanted me to do well. I'm just upset with myself for thinking she was upset with me. I spent seven years dwelling on that. I don't even think that letter gave me closure." I look away with tears in my eyes.

"It takes a lot to admit something like that. You may not find that closure. That's just something to think about, finding a way to get closure."

"I understand."

"What else is bothering you?"

"Things didn't go well with my older brother and his girlfriend. I've decided to cut off communication with them for now. I've got a lot on my plate, and his recent behavior has been toxic."

"That might be what's best for now, but I do think opening up communication with him at some point once you're both past the issue may be a good idea."

"Thank you. I just don't want any unnecessary drama because I'm pregnant and I'm already trying to keep it pretty quiet right now."

"I see. Congratulations. I understand where you're coming from. A pregnancy can cause a lot of stress."

"Yeah, but considering what we went through in the past, I'm grateful."

"You and me both." Randy says before kissing my forehead.

Dr. Sullivan smiles. "Your biggest priority should be your pregnancy right now."

"That's what I'm going to keep as my biggest priority."

"Good. Our session is about over. All I'm going to say is try to enjoy yourself and prioritize your pregnancy."

"I will. Thank you, Dr. Sullivan."

"Have a nice evening."

"You too."


Randy smiled as we pulled into his parents' driveway. "Are you ready?"

I take in a deep breath. "Just give me a minute."

Randy grabbed my hand and moved my face to look at him. "Are you nervous?"

I nod. "Sure am. I don't know why telling your parents is such a big deal that I'm nervous."

"Maybe because my parents have known you since you were twelve. My mom has been the biggest mother figure in your life for ages."

"That's likely."

"My parents won't be upset though. We both know that. They've always been supportive of our marriage. This won't be any different. They'll be excited about having another grandchild."

"I know you are right. I just have anxiety about it."

Randy kissed my cheek. "I know. It'll be okay. I can even do all the talking."

"Thank you, babe. You are so great. You know that?"

"That's what you say. I'm not sure that many people would agree with you."

"How many other people's opinions should matter to you though?"

"Not very many." Randy grabs my hand. "Yours always matters though."

"And your opinion will always matter to me as well."

"Well, I think that you're the best thing to ever happen to me, so I hope you realize that."

I smile. "That makes me feel pretty good. Let's head inside now."

"Okay."

Randy and I exit the car and head inside. I keep my grip on his arm in nervousness.

Elaine walks over and hugs us both. "Hi! Glad you two could make it!"

"Hi, Elaine!" I say as I hug her. "Glad to be here!"

"Hey, Mom." Randy says.

"Come sit!" Elaine tells us as she is practically pushing us towards the dining room. "Food is almost done."

Randy and I enter the dining room and sit down at the table.

As soon as we sit down, Randy's sister Becky looks at me. "You look exhausted."

I nod. "I am pretty tired."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I've just been having trouble sleeping."

"I see. Hi, Randy."

Randy smirks. "Hi, Rebecca. Nice to know that you still actually care about me."

"Sometimes I wish I didn't."

"Do you two have to do this?" I ask.

Randy puts a hand on my shoulder. "Sorry, babe."

"Thank you."

Elaine passed plates to us. "I would say welcome to my world, Marissa, but I think after eighteen years, you would know that already. I'm going to go get Bob and Nathan."

"Okay. Thanks for food."

"Absolutely." Elaine exits the room.

I give Randy a serious look. Randy gives me a stern look himself.

"What's going on?" Becky asks. "You two are exchanging looks like something's going on."

"Everything's fine." Randy replies.

"Whatever. This has been a thing since you two have worked together. There's always something going on when you start exchanging looks."

"I'm pregnant." I say to Becky. "I'm a bit nervous about telling your parents. I'm not very far along. We just found out about it Sunday night."

"Oh…well, congratulations. I don't understand why you're so nervous. Our parents have wanted a bunch of grandkids anyway. Our parents adore you to bits. You two have been married for over a year. You tried to have a baby before, and they were happy about it."

"I know. I just feel nervous for some reason."

Randy kissed my forehead. "I said that I'll do the talking."

"I know. I love you."

"I love you too. I'll say something when everyone's sat down to eat."

"Okay."

"How'd Tyler respond?" Becky asks.

"We're actually not talking at the moment. He doesn't know."

"Oh." Becky looks at Randy. "That's why you asked about him coming."

Randy shrugs. "I'm not talking to him either, but that was mainly for her sake."

"Understandable."

Bob, Elaine, and Nathan all walked in. The three of us at the table went silent.

"Is the food good?" Elaine asks.

"It's fantastic." I reply.

Bob hugs me. "How ya doing, kid?"

"Good."

Bob looks at Randy. "What about you, son?"

Randy laughs. "Rissa is happy. That means I'm doing pretty good."

"That's good to hear."

Randy and I glance at each other. Everyone else gets their plates and sits down.

"So…" Randy starts to say. "Rissa and I have news."

Everyone looks at Randy.

"What is it?" Bob asks.

"We're having a baby." Randy says as he smiles at me. "It's not very far along yet. Just about eight weeks, so we're not telling many people yet."

Elaine grins. "Congratulations! That's great!"

Bob smiles. "You've wanted this for awhile. I'm very happy for you guys."

"Thanks." Randy and I say.

Elaine looks at me. "I thought you were looking a bit tired. That explains a lot."

I nod. "Yeah, I'm pregnant."

I go back to eating as everyone else is talking. Randy keeps an arm wrapped around me. I finish eating my food.

"Everyone done?" Elaine asks. "Looks like it. Someone please do the dishes. Marissa, come upstairs with me."

I stand up. "Okay…"

Randy glances at me and gives me a small smile. I smile at him before following Elaine upstairs.

Elaine leads me into a small room. "So how are you feeling about being pregnant?"

I smile. "I'm happy, but it doesn't feel real to me yet. I didn't think it would ever happen accidentally like this."

"The world works in crazy ways. How'd Vince take the news?"

"We haven't told him yet. He'll make a big deal out of it. Tyler doesn't know either. We're not talking."

"I see. Are you doing alright?"

"I mean I guess."

"Marissa, I've known you since you were twelve. While I know you're happy to be pregnant, I also know that you would usually get really worried about something this big. That's how you are. You can't tell me you aren't worried about something."

"I'm worried about a lot actually. I don't know how to be a mom. It'll take time to figure it out. Plus, Randy is still going to be wrestling when I have the baby. He won't be able to be home to always help. He's much better at being a parent than I could ever be. I don't know if I'd be able to figure it out." My eyes start to water.

Elaine pulls me into a hug. "Is it because you think Randy is better at parenting or because your mom isn't around?"

"A bit of both honestly. Sometimes I worry that her not being around affected how well I'd be of a parent. I didn't get much of an example of a parent until you came around, Elaine."

"You're being too hard on yourself. You're great with Al. She's your child too. I think you'll be just fine. Nobody knows how to parent at first anyway."

"We don't have Al all the time though. This is full time. It's hard to think about. I don't know what would happen if I'm a full time parent to a newborn."

"If I can figure out how to parent my three crazy children, as well as handle you and Tyler sometimes, you can figure out how to parent. Even if Randy is working, you have family that are willing to help. I'd be more than happy to help when you have the baby."

"Thanks, Elaine. I really needed to hear that."

"Of course. These are books about parenting. I bought these when you and Randy had been trying just in case you had these kinds of worries. Here." Elaine passed me the books. "I'm going to head back downstairs. You take some time to calm down. I'll tell Randy where you are."

"Thanks, Elaine."

Elaine exits the room and heads downstairs. I set the books down next to me before looking at my stomach.

I place a hand on my stomach. "Hey, little one, it's your mommy. I've never been a full time parent before, so I'm going to apologize in advance if I screw something up when you're born. I promise I'm gonna try my best though. I'll be the best mom I can be for you. I love you so much already. You're going to change my life so much, and I'm so excited to get to meet you."

Randy peeks in the room. "Hey…is this one of those times you need to be alone or can I sit?"

I smile as I look at him. "I'd actually prefer if you did come sit."

Randy sat next to me. "I'm here."

I lay my head on his shoulder. "I don't doubt that you'll be around, but just so you know, I need you so much. I'm not going to be able to do this without you."

"I'm not going anywhere, Rissa. Don't worry."