Chapter 1.7

Chapter 1.7- Attached

He is a man of sense who does not grieve for what he has not, but rejoices in what he has.
- Epictetus

             'Steve' recognizes it right away...

Waffles. He loves waffles for breakfast. The aroma in the house is fantastic, and he’s very glad Elena isn’t still so sore that she won’t fix him breakfast. He would probably end up burning the house down before successfully creating any meal he attempted, making him very appreciative of anyone who not only will make the effort to feed him, but who does it without being asked to.

                She sets a plate out for him at the small table without a word. She still hasn’t spoken to him, though she knows that she’s going to have to in the near future. He managed to get her into a corner last night, and worse, he was right.

                “I think we need to get Cyrus a few toys,” Steve finally breaks the silence. “Little boys need things to play with.”

                “It’s his birthday today,” Steve takes heart from the smile on Elena’s face. He’s in safe territory and has pleased her, so he pushes on. “Maybe a set of blocks as a birthday gift. From me.”

                Elena chuckles softly.

                “And where is he going to play with this block set?” Elena is glad he’s thinking about her son so fondly. The two were planning on celebrating Cyrus' birthday early today, shortly after breakfast as they were going to a wedding that afternoon. Elena had heard others talking about while at the store yesterday, the entire town was invited, though she hadn’t heard a bride or groom mentioned. To her unending surprise, 'Steve' knew more about it than she did. He implied knowing the location as well as the time for the ceremony, said he'd picked it up at work and from time he spent around town.

                “Maybe you could take him down to the pond with you the next time you go out,” Elena ventures to suggest. “Teach him a few things about the water.”

                Steve chokes on a bite of waffle in his haste to take a breath; he's got to set her right about whatever plans she has for her son, Steve, and Steve’s arch nemesis: Water.

                Elena calmly continues to eat though she longs to laugh at his predicament. If he’d let her finish he wouldn’t be choking.

                Steve finally gulps in a fresh breath, his skin pink.

                “I’m not talking about you teaching him to swim,” Elena says. “I know your aversion to water. I mean you should take him to the pond and teach him to fish. Let him learn to love nature early on.” Elena paused, lips pursed. “Let me say it all before you freak out next time, ok?”

                Steve decides it’s safest to stay silent. If he thought the tension was out of the air, he was wrong. The conversation is forced, painful for both of them. Maybe it is time to move out. Let her take care of herself.

                “Waffles were good,” Steve tells Elena as she cleans up her dish. “Thank you for breakfast.”

                Elena doesn’t respond, sighing heavily as she turns to take his plate. If she doesn’t wash it he’ll leave specks on it and she can’t handle that. She had hoped waffles would take the edge off after last night. She needed to talk to him before this wedding and make sure they were on the same page. Right now, that didn’t look like it would be any fun at all. Right now, she wondered if she was going to break his heart, or if he would even care.

                She had been about to put breakfasts' leftovers away when she realized he was still in the kitchen. It may not have been the very best time to talk to him, but she needed to do it sooner rather than later. Turning, they stood silently in the kitchen, staring at each other. The look on his face made her stomach knot as she considered what to tell him. She wanted to wait, but couldn’t. She wanted to cry but her eyes were dry. She wanted to run but her legs wouldn’t even make her leave the room. She wanted to do anything, anything other than to confirm to Steve just how awful a sim she really was.

                His words of the night before hung between them, adding to her misery. The look of hurt was still on his face. Could she really kick him when he was down? Wouldn’t that just make him right? Wait. He was already right. So then, would he be more right? Elena frowned, trying to puzzle it out.

                Elena shook her head. Just how right he was was neither here nor there. Right now, she needed to tell him that it was time for him to move on. That she was going to get her newest Baby’s Daddy to take care of her and her baby.

                Her legs were rubber, her mouth dry.

                “Steve?”

                He gave her his easy grin; lopsided, calm.

                “Um,” Elena paused, trying to get her brain to work. “You were right last night. There is a guy, and he’s great. Really nice. Really into photography. And I’m having his baby.”

                His face froze, his eyes piercing, probing hers.

                “I think he’ll probably want to take care of it, so you should be able to have this place all to yourself pretty soon, just how we had talked about. We’ll be out of your hair.”

                Still, no response from him.

                Elena finally quit talking. There was nothing more to say. She had hoped Steve would have acted excited at least. Would have said how glad he was to be getting them out of his hair, that he had taken care of them for too long, that Cyrus waking him up at night was getting old. At least a congratulation on the coming baby.  

The knot in her stomach tightened, her heart in her throat.

                Steve stared at her. He knew she hadn’t talked to this guy in quite a while. She’d been beating herself up over one night with this guy for far too long.  She didn’t go out at night or during the day either, unless she was taking photographs. Maybe she went and saw him then? But where did the money come from then? So she didn’t see him during the day, or at night, and he didn’t call her and she didn’t call him. Now he was going to take care of her and his baby? AND a baby she had from someone whose name she refused to speak?

                The answer came to him in a flash of insight he rarely had.

                She just wanted 'Steve' to go away.

                His shoulders fell. He could take a hint. He would go.

                He nodded jerkily, though he still hadn’t said anything to her.

                Elena lifted one hand helplessly, taking a deep breath. But when words failed her, she let it fall again, along with her gaze.

                “I guess, congratulations then,” Steve finally spoke.

                Elena looked up, hope in her eyes.

                “Just,” he cast about in his mind, trying to find something, anything, to say. “Jus’ don’t leave without saying goodbye. I’ll need to take a moment with Cyrus. Kinda gotten attached to the rugrat.”

                Elena smiled kindly at him.

                “We’re not leaving right now,” Elena teased. “You don’t have to get all emotional. And I thought we were going to the wedding all together tonight?”

                “Oh, yeah!” Steve grabbed this lifeline and held tight. “An' it’s Cyrus’ birthday! We oughta get 'im up and give 'im a cake an' candle!”

                Elena laughed at his obvious relief, but a little black bubble had surfaced in her brain refusing to let go. ‘Last night, he said he cared. Maybe he meant it.’ The thought made her pause. ‘Surely not.’

                She turned away from him.

                “I’ll get the cake out,” she said over her shoulder. “Go and get Cyrus and bring him in here. And for PlumbBob’s sake, get some clothes on. I don’t need to see you parading around in your underwear all day.”

                Steve grinned.

                “I see you took markers to your old gown,” he shot at her. “Maybe I should take some scissors to it and make it more fitting for my tastes!”

                Elena stuck her tongue out at him as he walked into the bedroom. They were trying to break the tension, but it just wouldn’t go away.

                It took him so long to get dressed that Elena had already changed, and was in the process of cleaning the kitchen sink when he finally emerged carrying Cyrus.

                Steve felt as though he were walking to his own execution. He had cuddled little Cyrus and talked softly to him, trying to string out every moment he had left with the boy. And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get his lips to smile.

                He noticed the roots of Elena’s hair, wondering if she was intending on dying it again. She hadn’t used a permanent dye, she had told him, she still didn’t know what color she wanted and this kind would wash out after a little while. From the bottom of his heart, he wished she’d just let it go back to her natural color.

                Turning from her was painful, but he couldn’t look at her forever. And Cyrus needed his help with the candle now.

                Elena turned her focus off of herself for a second trying her hardest to give her son the party he deserved. Cyrus was growing up so quickly. She would never want to forget this moment. But taking her mind off her inner turmoil was proving difficult.

                Blowing her hardest on the noisemaker only made it worse. The sound echoed around the tiny room making it sound lonely and awkward.

                The candle blown out by Steve, he placed Cyrus on the floor so he had more room to grow. He clapped a little for the boy’s amusement, trying to show him how excited he was.

                Elena was cheered by the first smile from Steve she had seen since her announcement. It made it easier for her to feel excited about Cyrus growing up, too. She still couldn’t believe her little boy would soon be walking and talking.

                Sparkles!

                Cyrus feels… different.

                But he likes it! Cyrus thinks this birthday thing is pretty neat. It makes him happy.

                Elena looks across the table, again, at Steve.

                “You know, you’ve been really great with Cyrus,” Elena said. “And one day, you’re going to make a great father.”

                “Maybe sooner than you think, Princess,” Steve almost smiled at his own words. ‘Princess’ choked on her cake as soon as he said the magic word. He would certainly miss pushing her buttons.

                “Don’t call me that!” Elena gasped.

It made Steve chuckle as she tried to clear her airway.

‘Seems we’re both choking on their words today,’ he thought. ‘Irony.’

 

                “Come on, you!” Steve swung Cyrus high into the air making him squeal and giggle. “We’re leaving early so you can play at the park!”

 

                As he brought him back down, Steve couldn’t resist pulling Cyrus close. He would miss this little tyke more than he could even imagine. Cyrus had pooped, peed, vomited, spit up, and cried all over Steve at some point in time. Steve was even the one who had brought him home from the hospital! This was his boy. And now he was going to lose him.

                Steve pressed a kiss into Cyrus’ hair, breathing deeply to the baby perfume that still clung to him.

                “I won’t let you go,” he whispered. “No matter how far Mama takes you, I won’t let you go.”

                Cyrus cuddled into Steve’s shoulder, content with how his world was.

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                It was an hour or so before the party was to start. Now, what were they supposed to do? Cyrus could explore, sure. But he didn’t need the two of them hovering, and the park was small enough that avoiding one another would be impossible.

                Elena and Steve knew very few other people in town, and while Steve didn’t recognize, and couldn’t remember if his life depended on it, the names of the couple getting married. The biggest reason for coming early was to try and meet a few neighbors, maybe find a friend or two. Now, they were stuck here with only each other.

                The moment Steve set Cyrus down he had crawled off as fast as he could, heading for a distant clump of flowers. Who needs toys when you have nature? 'Steve,' amused, watched him tug at a dandelion until Elena tapped him on the shoulder.

                When he turned, she just stared at him. Steve wondered if he’d ever figure her out.

                “So,” Elena finally said. “So, I’m going to try this again. Because nothing went right the first time.”

                If Steve had been confused before, he definitely was now.

                “Steve,” Elena told him firmly. “I’m having a baby. I’m happy. I’m going to keep it. The father will be thrilled. You are thrilled.”

                Steve blinked slowly, trying to wrap his head around her words.

                “You,” Elena pointed at him. “You are happy. You are happy for me.”

                Steve still looked lost, so Elena kept it up.

                “You are happy I’m going to have a baby and that I am happy that I’m going to have a baby.”

                Crickets chirped.

                “PlumbBob love you, Steve.” Elena finally gave up.

                “Oh, PlumbBob does, PlumbBob does!” Steve finally had something to say.

                Elena laughed.

                “It’s cause I’m such a lovable guy, you know,” he continued, smiling and ducking his head.

                “When you’re not being annoying at least,” Elena tried to keep it up.

                “Not nearly as annoyin’ as you,” Steve paused, Elena’s eyes widened in challenge. “Princess.”

                “AAAARRRGH! Will you stop-“

                “-Won’t stop till you do!”

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PICTURE SPAM OF CYRUS!!!

                Cyrus had discovered the azaleas. He had also discovered that they were not at all amenable to having a toddler try and climb through them.

                “The Azaleas are attacking! The Azaleas are attacking!”

Cyrus wonders why this leaf tastes funny.

            That might be why.

            Cyrus now has a pic up in the generational goal tab!

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So, short chapter and all that, but Stay Tuned! The wedding starts in Chapter 1.8! and... uh... it's gonna get good. :D

There you go, Gemly! Roots are coming back in on Helen. ;)