Hope for All- chapter 32
Angela and Tony's flight arrived on time at the airport and they were able to get their luggage quickly. Tony was able to hail a taxi and soon they were on their way back to Connecticut. Angela curled into Tony's side and was soon asleep. As they pulled up to the house, Tony gently woke her up with a soft kiss. He helped her out of the taxi and then grabbed the luggage from the driver before paying the fare. They walked into the house through the front door as Mrs. Rossini was coming into the living room from the kitchen.
"Tony! Angela! Welcome back! How was your trip? I can't wait to hear all about it! I've made enough food for you all for the next few days! I'm just finishing a lasagna!" she said as she wiped her hands on her apron.
"It was absolutely perfect Mrs. Rossini! I couldn't have planned a better honeymoon! The cruise, the excursions, the hotel rooms- everything was wonderful!" he gushed as he leaned over and kissed Angela.
"It really was perfect but I'm glad to be home! How was everything? Did anyone cause you any problems?" asked Angela.
"No! No problems at all! It was pretty much a ghost town around here all week! The kids came home late in the afternoon and we all had dinner together before they headed up to do homework before bed. Mona does live here too right? I haven't seen her at all the whole time! Anyway, everything got done on your list Tony!" she said.
"You're the greatest Mrs. Rossini! I hope you can stay for dinner?" said Tony.
"No Tony I have to go. Joey called me… my cat Fiorello isn't feeling well. He took him to the vet and put him on a new medication. I want to go and check on my little guy! Just let me finish in the kitchen and then I'm off!" she said as she went back into the kitchen.
When she came back in, Angela had found her souvenir in the suitcase and handed it to Mrs. Rossini. She squealed in delight at the necklace they gave her, giving them each a big hug. They wished her a safe trip home.
"Alright Angela, since dinner is already done, I think I'm going to get a head start on our laundry. Why don't you lie down for a bit?" said Tony.
"Tony I slept on the ride home! I need to catch up on some work. I'll stop in a little while for a snack when the kids come home. I've really missed them!" she said as she teared up.
"I know… me too! Okay if you need anything, let me know. Just don't work too hard okay?" he said with some concern in his voice. Angela just rolled her eyes and walked into her office.
A few hours later, both Samantha and Jonathan came into the house. Tony was already in the living room folding laundry. Angela came in from her office and they all hugged each other.
"Oh we've missed you both so much!" gushed Angela as tears formed in her eyes.
"Yeah we miss you both! Did Mona make herself present at all or was she missing in action the whole time?" Tony said with a laugh.
"Do you want the real answer or the one she paid us each ten bucks to say?" laughed Jonathan.
"So how was the honeymoon? What did you all do on the cruise?" asked Samantha.
"It was lovely! We did a few excursions each day, got to shop a bit, see some beautiful beaches and places on the islands and on the last day we did a photo shoot of us on the beach! It was just magical!" smiled Angela.
"The best part though was I got to feel the babies move for the first time during the photo shoot! The photographer captured it on film- we were only able to get a few of the proofs but the rest should be here in a few weeks. I can't wait to see them!" said Tony.
"Wait? You felt the babies? Oh my gosh that's awesome! Can I feel? Are they moving now?" asked Samantha with a mixture of awe and excitement in her voice.
"Sure! They just started moving again once you all came home! I think they are excited to see you!" she said as she rubbed her stomach. Samantha came over to where Angela was standing and carefully placed a hand near where Angela's hand already was resting. Samantha's eyes lit up, just like Tony's had, when she felt the kicks and movements.
"I can feel them! Oh they're so strong! How are you feeling Angela?" she asked as she followed the movements of the babies across her stomach.
"So far so good! I'm getting more tired and the trips to the bathroom are becoming more frequent, but otherwise things are going well" she said.
"Can I feel too Mom?" asked Jonathan.
"Sure! Come place your hand right here. I think this is baby A" she said as she took his hand and placed it on her stomach. His eyes lit up too as he felt the movements.
"Does it hurt when they move? Like do they kick your internal organs or something?" he asked innocently.
"No, it's doesn't hurt. Sometimes it surprises me how strong they already are but no it doesn't hurt. Once they get bigger, some of their kicks can hurt a little. You used to love kicking me in the ribs. A few times it actually hurt to breath when you did that in the weeks leading up to your birth!" she said with a laugh.
"I remember Samantha kicked Marie so hard one time in the middle of the night she cried out in pain. I jumped out of bed thinking she was in labor, tripping over the nightstand and ending up on the floor!" he chuckled.
"Dad! You never told me that!" said Samantha with a laugh.
"It never came up! Anyway, these guys enjoyed the trip I think! And we get to see them again next week at your appointment! I can't wait to see how big they've gotten!" said Tony as his hand joined the family's on her stomach.
"Alright! I'm hungry! I think Mrs. Rossini's lasagna is ready! Let's go eat!" said Angela. The family headed into the kitchen and sat down to eat dinner. At the end of dinner, just as they were cleaning up, Mona walked into the kitchen with a suitcase, large oversized hat and sunglasses. She dropped the suitcase by Tony's feet.
"Oh good you are back… so am I… here's my laundry Tony. I'm heading up to bed… I haven't slept much in the past week or so…" she said with a smirk and a wink.
"Mother! Where were you? I thought you were managing the office while I was gone! Not to mention the house and the kids!" shouted Angela, although she was anything but surprised.
"Oh relax Angela! The agency was well taken care of… I checked in with Jack every few days. As for around here… Carmela I'm sure ran a tight ship… she didn't need me getting in the way…" she said with a smirk as she made herself a plate of food and sat down in Tony's seat.
"Still! You could have waited until we got back!" said Angela as she rolled her eyes at Mona.
"Not to change the subject, but I will. How was the honeymoon? See any sights other than your bedroom?" asks Mona with a smirk.
"Oh gross Mona!" shouted Samantha.
"Yeah that's gross Grandma!" said Jonathan as he made gagging sounds.
"You do realize they took your advice Jonathan and had sex anyway… and if you think the time they got pregnant was a one and done thing, think again!" she laughed as all four sets of eyes collectively rolled.
"For your information, we had a wonderful time… outside the bedroom…" said Tony as he told them in more details about their trip, leaving out of course the parts Mona most wanted to hear. Mona had her chance to feel the babies move. Her normal rough exterior temporarily softening when she felt the movements. The moment was short lived as Mona could only show genuine real affection for a limited amount of time before making a joke at Angela's expense. Soon, the family headed their separate ways to get ready for the start of their week. Tony and Angela headed up to bed, Tony making sure he had his nightly chat with the twins soon after Angela fell asleep. He curled into her and soon he was asleep as well.
The next few weeks continued to pass by in relative bliss for the family. Angela had two more follow up appointments and continued to get clean bills of health for all three of them. Baby B was still measuring slightly behind Baby A but still not a concern for her doctor. Jonathan officially signed up for his summer camp and was slated to start right after the 4th of July.
The family was invited to Brooklyn for a Memorial Day barbecue. Tony spent the day before cooking and baking for the trip, making some of their favorite dishes. The had just loaded the jeep and was heading back into the house.
"Eh oh, oh eh! Where is everybody? We have to go if we are going to make it to Brooklyn on time!" he yelled up the stairs.
"Coming!" shouted multiple voices from up the stairs. Jonathan was the first one down.
"One down, two to go!" said Tony.
"Wait… I thought Grandma was coming?" said Jonathan.
"She had last minute plans… made three weeks ago I'm sure…" he said with a chuckle.
"Alright Dad I'm ready!" said Samantha as she came down the stairs in a very tight fitting shirt cut very low in the front.
"Think again Samantha! It's either a jacket over that shirt that stays on the whole time or go and change… now!" shouted Tony. She rolled her eyes and headed back upstairs just as Angela was coming down the stairs.
"Why is she going back upstairs?" asked Angela.
"Did you see that shirt? It left nothing to the imagination! No way is she leaving the house dressed like that!" he shouted.
"Okay okay! I just asked! Since we are waiting, I'm going to go grab a snack before we head out" said Angela as she headed into the kitchen.
"We're never getting out of here on time…" mumbled Tony under his breath.
"C'mon Samantha! Let's go!" yelled Tony.
"Like she's going to be ready anytime soon… I'm going to get a snack too" said Jonathan as he walked into the kitchen. Tony gave up and collapsed on the sofa, wondering how long the ice packs would keep the food cold in the jeep. Finally after ten more minutes, the family was ready to go and headed out the door.
They arrived in Brooklyn and were greeted by what appeared to be the entire neighborhood as the street was blocked off for the celebration. The women immediately crowded all around Angela, fussing over her as soon as they got there.
"Mrs. Rossini! I've got food for you! Where should I put it?" asked Tony.
"You shouldn't have Tony! We have plenty but thank you! Feel free to put it up in my apartment. Here Angela I want you to meet some of the ladies in the neighborhood! This is Ginger and her sister Lynn. Ginger is married to one of Tony's childhood friends Dennis. They all grew up together! Ginger and Lynn are both pregnant too! They are due not too long after you I believe!" she said as she made introductions.
"Hi Angie! It's great to meet you! Carmela has told me so much about you I feel like I already know ya! She couldn't stop gushing over your surprise wedding!" said Ginger as she pulled up chairs for them all to sit at together.
"Thank you! It's a pleasure to meet you both too! Yes it really was such a magical day!" said Angela.
"I can't wait to hear all about it from you! So Carmela said you're having twins! So is Lynn here! Only one for me this time but I've got a whole bunch running around upstairs. I'll point them out if they ever slow down enough for me to make introductions!" laughed Ginger.
"So how have you been feeling Angela? I know carrying twins this time has been harder, especially with taking care of the other kids" said Lynn.
"Yes it's definitely been harder this time around but then again it's been thirteen years since I did it before! I started showing much earlier with these ones than I did with my son. I was about this size when I was eight or nine months pregnant with Jonathan but being only almost six months now, it terrifies me to think about just how big I'm going to get!" laughed Angela.
"Have you done any of those classes? Whatcha call it? Child birth ones?" asked Ginger.
"Lamaze classes… I think that's what they are called. We actually scheduled a class for us to attend starting next week. It's four weeks, once each week on Saturdays. My son's father wasn't there when he was born and Tony couldn't be there for Marie so we figured we wanted to both be prepared, as much as we can be I suppose!" chuckled Angela.
"Oh I can't imagine Dennis being in there with me. He can't stand to see me in pain, he freaks out! He'd probably hit the doctor, yell at the nurse and then pass out!" she laughed.
"Same with my husband! He'd be more of a nuisance! I'll have our mother join me again. She's a pain but when her grandchildren are being born, she's there for us!" said Lynn.
"I'm pretty sure my mother would be little to no help. She loves to criticize me, mostly jokingly, but still… it would get very old very quick and I'd probably end up an orphan before they were born! Besides, I don't think I could keep Tony out of the room to meet these little ones. He's been so attentive throughout this pregnancy. I don't know how I would be doing everything I do if it wasn't for him taking care of me, well us" she said as she rubbed her belly.
"Tony's going to be great! He's always been the sensitive one out of all the guys. If one of us was having a bad day, he'd know just how to cheer you up. That tough guy exterior was just that, especially when Marie came around. He was always so doting to her, especially when they just got together. He treated her like a queen… us ladies were always so jealous… I mean not of them as people, just as a loving couple. We all knew they would get married" said Ginger.
"I wish I had known Marie. I know that may sound weird but she was such a big part of their lives. Tony doesn't often talk about her, which I can understand, but it is nice to hear about that part of their lives. I'm really looking forward to seeing Tony as a father of little babies. I just have this picture of him rocking a baby, well two babies, in his arms. Singing lullabies, making goofy faces at them. I had a brief glimpse of it when we watched a little boy a few years ago. It was the sweetest thing…" she said as she wiped tears away.
"He was absolutely adorable with Samantha as a baby! Well… when he was home. By that time he was on the road most of the time with the Cards and was only home a few days at a time during the season. I know he's so happy to have a second chance at parenthood again" said Lynn.
"What are you ladies chatting about?" said Tony as he came over with lemonades for the women.
"You Tony!" laughed Ginger as she took a sip from the lemonade.
"Me? What about me?" he said with a chuckle.
"Just about how you are looking forward to becoming a father again. Getting to be around from the very beginning" said Lynn.
For a moment, a look of sadness crossed his face. He quickly pushed it away and smiled at the women, nodding his head in agreement as he placed his hand on Angela's stomach. Angela was the only one who caught the initial sadness on his face and placed her own hand on top of his, giving it a slight squeeze.
"Sweetheart, the food is ready. Can I bring you down a plate?" asked Tony.
"No it's okay I need to get up and stretch a bit, plus find a bathroom! One of these guys has already turned my bladder in their own punching bag!" she said with a laugh as Tony helped her up.
"You okay Tony? I saw that look on your face when Lynn mentioned being around from the beginning" said Angela as they made their way up the stairs and into the apartment.
"Yeah I'm fine. I just wish I was around more for Marie during that time. Back then, we thought we had all the time in the world, when we didn't. So much time wasted on a career that ended almost as soon as it began, all the while missing out on most of her pregnancy and the beginning of Samantha's life. I'm not going to make that mistake again" he said as he wrapped his arms around Angela.
"Oh Tony… it wasn't a mistake! You were providing a great life for them! I do understand you feeling that way though and I'm so happy you and I are getting this second chance together!" she said as she leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips. It soon turned into a more passionate kiss, which was soon interrupted by Jonathan running into the apartment to get food.
"Ew gross guys! Get a room!" he yelled as he ran past them, causing them to break away and laugh.
"C'mon let's get some food! These little ones need to eat!" he laughed as he rubbed her belly. They each made a plate of food, which Tony carried down for them. They sat down with everyone and enjoyed their meal. After they were finished, Tony offered to help clean up and headed upstairs. Ginger smacked Dennis until he begrudgingly headed up behind Tony to help.
"Hey Tony! What gives? You making us all look bad offering to do the women's work!" said Dennis as they headed into the kitchen.
"Women's work? Newsflash Dennis it's the 80's! Men can do the dishes from time to time! And besides, our women are pregnant! They shouldn't be doing this stuff… they should be off their feet and relaxing!" said Tony as he started in on the dishes.
"Oh Tony, Tony, Tony… they like doing this stuff! It keeps them busy! Gives them a sense of purpose… they like it!" said Dennis.
"It amazes me you're still married sometimes Dennis…" he said with a laugh.
"Anyway, you should come back to the old neighborhood more often Tony! Shoot some pool, play a few games of bowling! Remind yourself your a real man…" said Dennis.
"Eh oh, oh eh! What's that supposed to mean?" asked Tony with more than a hint of anger in his voice.
"Nothing I swear! It's just some of the guys still think you've… gone soft that's all! I mean Tony c'mon! You're practically June freaking Cleaver… a male Mary Poppins!" started Dennis until he saw the rage building up in Tony.
"I'd think very carefully about the next words that come out of your mouth Dennis…" he said as he glared at him. Just then, Angela came in with some dishes. She immediately noticed the tension.
"Everything okay in here?" she asked as she moved closer to Tony.
"Yeah everything is fine!" said Dennis as he backed out of the room. She turned to him and gave Tony a look for him to tell her what was going on.
"Dennis was just egging me on that's all… no biggie…" he said as he went back to washing dishes.
"No biggie? You looked like you were going to punch him in the face! What was he saying?" she asked as she slowly rubbed his back.
"He said… he said the guys still think I've gone soft. Look it was no big deal" he said as he finished the last dish and dried his hands.
"I think it is a big deal, if the size of that vein on your temple is any indication. You'd think they would have moved past that idea after a few years ago, but I guess not. What does soft mean anyway? You are a happily married man. You have two children who adore you, two more on the way. You are putting yourself through college to have a better life for you and your family. Nothing about that says you are soft or weak!" she shouted.
"I know it doesn't and I wouldn't trade my life or what has gotten me to this place for anything in the world. It's just… he didn't say it but part of me still gets insecure about me not working and you being the breadwinner. I know it's only temporary until I graduate but even then I'll still most likely never be as successful as you are and it bothers me from time to time. I just want to be able to contribute more than being a male Mary Poppins…" he said.
"Look… I know this is still an issue for you from time to time. I don't care what you end up doing- heck you could mow lawns in Central Park and I wouldn't care but I know you would. You are planning on taking extra courses over the summer so you can have a lighter load in the fall. Once we are settled in with the twins, why don't you look at getting a part time job? Maybe something at the local YMCA or even at your college. Something where you can feel like you are contributing. I know we haven't talked about it but I want to take a full maternity leave and then only go back part time into work for at least the first six months or so, maybe longer. That would give you time to be out of the house for as little or as long as you want…" she said.
"You wouldn't mind that?" asked Tony.
"Of course not! If it makes you happy and makes you feel like you are contributing to our family, even though you already are… most times more than I am to be honest… then I'll support you no matter what!" she said.
"What did I do to get so lucky to find such a beautiful, amazing, understanding and beautiful wife?" he asked as he pulled her into a loving embrace.
"You knocked on my door…" she said with a smirk as they entered into a passionate kiss, forgetting all about barbecues, jobs, insecurities and anything other than each other.