"Be honest, Crosby." Pulling on his arm, Stevie caught him right before they walked through the double doors of the restaurant. "How pregnant do I look?" She had tried everything to hide the bump- everything.
She wore a flowing dark blouse that went far enough down to hide how tight her leggings had become, but it didn't work well. Nothing worked. She was becoming quite uncomfortable in her own body, yet she wasn't even half way there.
He gave her gentle smile, not even looking down at her stomach. "Mom, you're beautiful, okay? Don't worry about that." He didn't say that often, or ever, actually.
When he was a teenager, his favorite thing to tell her was how tired she looked, how much weight she had gained, and how many grays she had. He liked to make her feel bad, unlike the younger two boys, who would have never said anything like that to their mother.
He was the honest one, for him to say that, it made her heart melt.
"Well, that was sweet." She returned the smile, patting his arm as she moved around him to get inside.
It might have sounded odd, but in moments like that, she wasn't sure what to say to him. If that compliment had come from Levy, or Kash, she would have told them how much she loved them, but she was certain that was something Crosby didn't want to hear.
"They're all the way in the back." He lightly pointed to the two people sitting next to one another in a booth, bickering over a menu, and a pair of reading glasses.
"There they are!" The older woman slid out of the booth first, quickly wrapping Crosby in a tight hug, before her husband did the exact same.
Chuckling softly, he gave his father- in- law a pat on the back. "We got caught in some traffic." He wasn't going to tell them that they were late, because Stevie had a hard time finding an outfit she was comfortable in... He would have rather lied than put her on the spot in front of strangers. "Anyway, Betty, Kevin, this is my mother- Stevie." One of his hands met her upper back, just to make sure she was still doing alright.
"Hi," Stevie held out her hand to shake, but Lucy's father stunned her when he grabbed ahold of it, and yanked her in for a bear hug.
"It's so nice to finally meet you, Stevie." He gave her such a tight squeeze, she thought she felt the baby come up in her throat for a second. "Crosby didn't tell us how adorable you are." He was still holding her oddly close, and then, just for more dramatic effect, he kissed her forehead.
"Okay," pulling away slowly, she held out her hand to silently tell him to chill out. "It's nice to meet the both of you, as well." She assured, trying hard not to sound too harsh, but she also couldn't believe how awkward she was starting to feel.
And to make things worse, without any warning, both of Betty's hands fell right on her stomach. "We can't wait for this little monster to get here!" Her enthusiasm was too much for Stevie to handle.
With wide eyes, she glanced over at her son, who was busy ordering himself a drink at the bar.... He was his fathers child.
"That's quite the basketball, already." Kevin laughed, not even hesitating to feel the baby as well.
Creasing a brow, Stevie couldn't hide how unimpressed she was. She had never met two people so touchy, and upfront in her entire life... She and Lindsey would have never done something like that, ever. It was ridiculous.
Handing his mother a seltzer, Crosby motioned for them to calm down and back off. "She doesn't like that."
~~
Sitting in the passenger seat, Stevie watched as the unfamiliar city flew passed. It was a beautiful day in Chicago, yet all she could think about was home... she just wanted to go home, and after the afternoon she had, she was tempted to ask Crosby to just drop her off at the airport.
Once Lucy's parents were done squeezing her to pieces, they asked her a million questions. They wanted to know about Lindsey, about her other children, and of course, when they found out she had all sons- they talked about the chances of her giving birth to another... She wanted to tell them that they were ding- dongs, since her track record of babies had nothing to do with this child. But she didn't, she just sat there, smiled and stared a hole through the clock.
She had never felt so embarrassed in her entire life... she wanted to cry.
"Are you okay?" He finally broke the silence that had engulfed them, even though he knew she wasn't in the best mood.
Glancing over at him, she shrugged her shoulders casually. "I've never been better." She mumbled.
He couldn't help but smirk, shaking his head softly. "Look on the bright side, you and dad will have something to laugh at... something other than Lucy snoring." His words caused her to gasp, eyes flying open as she shifted in her seat.
"Crosby, I-" she was getting ready to tell him how sorry she was, she shouldn't have been making fun of his wife, in their home... She knew that.
"Mom, it was funny, okay?" He had a grin on his face as he looked over at her for a moment. "I especially liked your impression of it." He added with a gentle wink.
"Stop!" She pushed him playfully. "Did she hear me?" Stevie felt awful, like the worlds biggest bitch.
"No, she didn't." He assured.
Letting out a heavy sigh, she slouched down in the seat.
"It was funny, alright? Don't worry yourself about it." Crosby actually thought it was pretty hilarious, especially when she started snorting.
"She's probably ready for me to give birth and go home." She was teasing, but she really knew the truth.
Lucy was starting to get a little fed up with her mother- in- law and it was becoming quite obvious, even to Crosby. She already told him that Stevie was overstepping her boundaries in their home. She didn't need someone to cook every night, or clean, or walk their dog... She thought Stevie was babying Crosby and that didn't sit well with her.
Stevie wasn't doing anything wrong, not in the slightest. She picked up after herself, she didn't hog the bathroom mirror, like she did at home, and she never complained.
She didn't understand why Lucy was so unappreciative, and didn't know what else she needed to do to make Lucy like her.... At one point, she figured they would never be friends.
Shaking his head, his eyes stayed glued on the road ahead. "Let's do something fun?" He asked, hoping to get her mind off of that. "Let's go walk around Navy Pier."
