"I am only your friend," Alfie said as he bit into a chip and looked out the bakery window while Steve had a mouth full of chicken salad to chew. "You can tell me anything and everything." Alfie gave him a puppy-like stare. They were best friends. Weren't they?
"I need to find a better job," Steve was very calm about it. He sipped lemonade through a straw and cleared his throat.
"A better job?" Alfie's face tensed as he snagged another chip and looked it over. "What for?"
Steve only sighed. "You know, we're starting a family."
"Oh." Alfie looked as if he didn't know, but Poppy had told him. Lord knows, she told him everything.
"V won't even tell her parents she's..she's pregnant." He sounded as if he didn't even know how to phrase the touchy subject. Evidently.
"Well, you should tell them." Alfie thought it was all so simple.
"I don't. I don't want her mad at me," Steve squinted. Although, he looked so sad about something so exciting that was going to happen. "She's..just ..I dunno..I don't want to say she's moody, but I'm afraid if I..I say the wrong thing..then..who knows..what if she just ups and leaves?" Steve gave him a serious look.
"She's not going to leave you?" Alfie cracked a laugh. Although, he didn't mean to make light of it.
"I love her," Steve said. "I..I can't believe we even." He sighed heavily. "We would even make it this far." He looked aways and took another sip of lemonade. "Really, I didn't want to have sex with her."
"Well..it's a little late now, bro." Alfie really had a laugh this time.
"No." He fretted a frown as he looked at Alfie. "I just was never going to. With anyone." He pressed his lips tight. "I always felt it would be wrong of me to have children. After..after what happened with my parents when..when I was in middle school. I made them so miserable. They almost got divorced."
Alfie looked at him, seeing the tears well up. "I know I don't deserve her. I don't think I've ever slept a night through until..until."
"Sex makes you sleep?" Alfie's eyes lit as he asked the question. Of course, Steve didn't answer. Alfie was so close to asking him how good the sex was, but then he looked out the big bakery window facing Main Street. There was Poppy and she was with a guy.
Hello!! Thanks for the amazing chapter.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!!
Thx fof this amazing story
ReplyDeleteInteresting -christine cmlk79.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteOoh- who's Poppy with? Methinks I ant to know more. :)
ReplyDeleteI hope you're feeling okay!!!
they should tell V parents about future grandchild!
ReplyDeleteInteresting :-)
ReplyDeleteUy las cosas se complican. Genial fragmento. Te mando un beso.
ReplyDeleteMy heart breaks for Steve! The part about feeling that it would be wrong to have children is especially sad. To carry such a burden and not be able to share it with your person must be awful. For this reason, it makes sense that Alfie "makes light of it." It's like he's telling Steve to relax because he can handle this. The conversation between them is so real. And then, when Alfie's about to ask Steve about the sex and "There was Poppy and she was with a guy," well, it's just, oh wow, Alfie's got problems too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your lovely comments about Beyond Van Gogh! It's funny that you mentioned the movement. At first, I thought I was seeing things when some of the eyes in his self-portraits blinked. But then the husband said, no, he saw it too. I guess it's not for everyone. Yet to borrow your word, we indeed both thought it was "splendid." 😀
Hope you feel better. Regine
ReplyDeletewww.rsrue.blogspot.com
Hopefully, the baby's birth will change things for Steve. He'll enjoy being a father and forget he wanted no kids.
ReplyDeleteParents should know about the birth of a grandchild.
ReplyDelete