The Room, Unslept in
A/N: Time for Chapter 18! These two need to talk before getting married. I originally thought this was going to be one chapter, but realized they needed more than a superficial conversation, so I decided to break this into two chapters (maybe more).
PS – I don't own any of the characters from Who's the Boss? I also don't own the song(s) I use in this story. I also don't own the dialogue I sometimes use in the chapters. I've tried to pick songs that remind me of Tony & Angela and their relationship. If you'd like to hear them, check out YouTube – you can find just about everything there.
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Chapter 18: The Room, Unslept In: An Evening on the Beach, Part I
July 2, 1993
It had been a whirlwind week since Jonathan's graduation. One day faded into the next as the next big event for the family was planned. There was a sense of panic leaving the Micellis and Bowers both frazzled and excited. The boxes on Angela's checklists slowly got checked off: dress shopping; ring selections; tuxedo rentals; music selections; flowers review, menu review with Mrs. Rossini; back-yard set up logistics; and reviewing the guest acceptances and declines.
In less than 24 hours, Tony and Angela were finally going to be husband and wife. They decided to spend their last moments as single people at the beach. Since it was Fourth of July weekend, they knew the beaches were going to be crowded, so they waited until the early evening when they'd clear out enough to make it easier to find parking and a spot on the beach to set up their blanket and food.
The decision surprised Tony's friends who wanted him to spend the night at his to-be-planned bachelor party. He told them he had some unfinished business with Angela for the wedding, so he was going to spend the evening with her instead. They accepted his decision after ragging him for a few days. But Tony didn't want to engage with that childish behavior – not on such an important evening – and not after what happened with a certain ballet date a few years back.
Angela went out with the ladies the night before. She hadn't wanted a big deal to be made either, so a dinner with Mona, Samantha, Fran, Isabel, and Wendy was perfect. They had a lot of laughs and enjoyed a great carefree dinner. Mrs. Rossini was missed, but she had declined the invitation because she was too busy preparing the food for the wedding.
Tony packed a picnic basket that included charcuterie, fresh baked chocolate fudge brownies with walnuts, bottled water, and two plastic wine flutes. He also packed some bubbly he knew Angela wouldn't drink, but that he still wanted to take along for a proper toast to their new lives together. He brought Ginger Ale for her. There seemed to be a never-ending supply of Ginger Ale at their house now since Tony started shopping again. They even added more brands so there was a real assortment to choose from filling up their basement.
They both knew why they were going that evening. As much as for romantic purposes, they both knew they needed to talk out some things that still counted as baggage before they got married the next day. They could've talked earlier in the week, but neither one wanted to bring it up during such a busy week of preparations. So, they left it until that evening. Nothing Tony and Angela did could be considered typical, so why should this heart-to-heart conversation be?
Tony loaded up the Jeep with the food, a large blanket, and their portable radio/cassette player. Angela brought a sweater just in case it got cooler or windier as the evening went on. Tony looked at her as she got into the car and couldn't believe how adorable she looked in her midnight blue, free-flowing sundress with spaghetti straps. She had her hair up in a messy bun with a dark blue ribbon around the bun. She was also wearing large-rimmed sunglasses that completed her outfit. He was dressed in a simple blue button-down short-sleeved shirt and beige linen pants. They both wore regular shoes, but brought beach shoes they were going to change into after they parked the car. Comfort was the goal for their evening since what they were going to talk about was going to be the opposite of comfortable.
It wasn't as easy to find a parking spot as they thought it would be causing them to drive around the parking lot for a while. It seemed like all of Fairfield and its surrounding neighborhoods had gathered on the beach this Friday night even though there weren't going to be any fireworks until Sunday night. Eventually, Tony found a good spot that was close to the boardwalk. Angela carried the blanket and her sweater, and Tony carried everything else. They found a large spot (that was also close to the bathrooms) to set their blanket on. Since they were close to the boardwalk, they'd also have light behind them once the sun set from the businesses that were still going to be opened later into the night. They were also close to the lights that lined the boardwalk that would switch on once the sun set fully. Angela sat down on the blanket and watched Tony set the food down. He asked her if she was comfortable.
"Tony, I'm fine, but I won't be able to do this for much longer," Angela told him casually.
"Sure, Sweetheart. The next time we come to the beach, we'll bring chairs with us," Tony recommended.
"Angela, before we eat or talk, first dance with me."
Tony turned on the cassette player and fast-forwarded to a favorite song. He helped Angela up from the blanket and brought her to his arms. In the background, the sun was starting to set and the sounds of waves could be heard lapping on the shores of the beach. To Tony and Angela, they were the only ones on the beach in that moment.
Angela never got over how perfectly they fit together when they danced. Since they were standing on the blanket over lumpy sand, they didn't move too much while they danced, but they didn't need to. They both got the meaning of the song playing: In the Mood. It took them both back to that Christmas morning the day after she helped him clean out his father's apartment. The song itself was bouncy, but that didn't stop Tony and Angela from dancing slowly in each other's arms.
"It really started with our dancing The Lindy that first Christmas together, didn't it?" Angela softly asked Tony looking into his warm brown eyes.
"Wellllllll," he said drawing this out, "Yeah, but I like to think it started at camp all those years ago with our first kiss." And they kissed to capture the moment.
"That was definitely a surprise finding out we were each other's first kiss," Angela told him back accentuating her voice in recognition of the significance of the event to her – to him. They hadn't spent a lot of time talking about this event either through all their years together. They touched upon it when they first became a couple, but like other events in their lives together, they moved on quickly.
The next song to come on was The Way You Look Tonight. It was the original Fred Astaire version, which both agreed was the best version.
"…oh, but you're lovely …," Tony sang to her.
"That's sweet, Tony," Angela cooed into his ear.
They continued to dance until Angela mentioned she was hungry.
"Sure, Ange, let's sit down and eat some of this delicious food I packed for us." He helped her sit back down on the blanket again.
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As time wore on and most of the food disappeared, there was a palpable silence that filled the air between Tony and Angela. They were both so nervous to begin this conversation. She was pregnant with their baby, and yet there was still a nervousness between them, like a fine line neither wanted to cross to upset the other or a tightrope neither wanted to fall off if painful cans of worms were opened, and they were going to be opened that night. They started to avoid eye contact knowing what was coming. But then Tony cleared his throat and asked Angela a question.
"Angela, there's something I've wondered about these past two years …. The night of the carnival in Brooklyn … the night I gave you the sheepskin seat covers, what WERE you expecting that night from me?"
Angela gulped as Tony opened their heart-to-heart and thought about what to say. She was glad this conversation was opening and that the first topic wasn't going to be too uneasy to get into. "Oooh, Tony, that's a good one." Her eyebrows crinkled in surprise at the question, and she slightly blushed. She wasn't anticipating this one, and it was astonishingly something they never talked about, even in the Tunnel of Love. Once they declared their love for each other, they moved on from the weird night they had – only to add another weird night amongst themselves 24-hours later.
They agreed to be 100% honest and not hide anything from each other. She crafted her response to give Tony an idea of what she was thinking that night. "Earlier in the night, Mother found the watch I had engraved for you, but she hadn't opened the gift yet. She told me she'd tell me what you had gotten me if I told her what I had gotten for you. So, I agreed. She went on to describe that you had gotten me something that you slip on and would feel 'soft against my skin.' When I didn't figure out what it was, she told me it had to be lingerie. I didn't believe you'd get me something like that … I … secretly hoped she was right, I was intrigued thinking about it, but still … Then I told her about the watch, and she saw the engraving not believing I had done it. She was thrilled, but I was still not certain I should give it to you. That's the point where you walked in with the big box that I opened. Then I knew my gift was too … too much and that you weren't ready for it, so I made up that story about it not being complete yet. Tony, you know the rest …" Angela finished filling in the story about what she was anticipating that night.
"Oh, lingerie, huh?" Tony asked as his eyes grew wide. "Hmm, Angela, I didn't think I was ready for that yet. It wasn't something I hadn't thought about by then. I know how close we'd gotten over the summer after we got back from the Washington trip and having to bring Billy back to Mrs. Napoli. I even went to the store to look at some. But, if I'd given lingerie to you, I'd have wanted to watch you try it on …. and then I probably would've wanted to take it off of you."
Angela giggled unexpectedly at Tony's comment. "Funny, that's what Mother said you'd want to do, too."
"Mona's very observant," Tony remarked back snickering.
As the conversation paused for a moment, Angela moved into Tony's arms as he embraced her around her shoulders as she sat in between his legs on the blanket. He bent over to give her a kiss on her forehead as her head came to rest on him.
Then it was Angela's turn to ask a question, but hers was much more difficult. She opened the can of worms. "Tony, why did you keep rejecting me? Why wasn't I enough for you all these years?"
The End – Chapter 18 of The Room, Unslept In – An Evening on the Beach, Part I
Chapter 19 coming soon … let their conversation continue …
