Sinking down in her chair casually, Stevie's eyes never left her sons, though she was incredibly speechless. "Well," she lingered, biting down on her lower lip. "If that's what you think is best for you and for your child." She didn't know exactly what to say- it had been a long time since she'd given him any sort of advice and a part of her wasn't even sure that's what he wanted.
When he was younger and she tried to help him through life, he would tell her, with a harsh tone and cold eyes that he didn't care what she said... she was wrong- she always was, in his opinion.
So she didn't want to over step, and have him upset with her for trying to throw her two cents in where it didn't belong- that was all.
"I just... I just don't feel the same way about her anymore." He needed to hear from one of the only people he had known who went above and beyond to make their family happy, and she was one of those people.
He was ready to admit, after years of dragging her through the dirt that she really was the most amazing mother to those kids. She did everything for them- everything. She was the kind of mother who packed them lunches every morning before school, and she packed two for Levy- one for his best friend, whose mom had six kids, and worked doubles in a restaurant each night to make ends meet. Stevie would sing her kids to bed every night and read them the stories in the best animated voices. And she always asked, no matter how hard things had been, what their favorite part of the day was.
She cared. She cared far more than he had ever realized, and now, after thirty- three years, he finally understood just how one- of- a- kind she was.
He felt bad for taking her for granted for as long as he did, but he also knew that he wanted her to be apart of his child's life more than he actually knew.
"Have you tried to talk to her about this?" She chirped, heart sinking into the pit of her stomach when he shook his head in response.
"I don't feel like I can talk to her." He shrugged, eyes soft and sad. "We just argue, all the time." He didn't mind admitting that to her- she understood, she had been married for almost thirty- seven years... She knew it was hard, but she also knew what was worth it and what wasn't.
"Crosby," she sighed, not sure she wanted to voice ur opinions. "You have to do what's right for you." She didn't want anything to come back and bite her in the ass for saying the wrong things, so she decided to keep it simple.
"Does it gets easier after kids?" His words caused her to grin almost immediately.
"Not at all." She wasn't going to lie, not about something like that. "Listen, honey." She leaned forward in her chair, a soft, welcoming expression written across her face. "Marriage isn't even easy when it's just two people, but when you add in these tiny, needy, fussy little humans, it's hard to juggle your relationship with your spouse when you have people who literally depend on you for survival." Her voice was gentle and her eyes never left his. "Now," she held up her hand, shaking her head lightly. "Is it worth it?" She asked, "I think it is. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way, and I wouldn't have wanted to spend my life with anyone other than your father." She cracked a little smile, only because her mind had drifted back to her husband for a split second.
They weren't perfect- no one was, but they were good for each other. They were a good mix and an even better balance. Like she said, it wasn't always easy being married, raising children and having two very different, very stressful careers, but if she had the chance to go back and do anything differently, she wouldn't have.
"Thank you, mom." He reached across the table, letting his hand meet hers to give it a soft squeeze. "I appreciate you."
~
Later that night, after having spent most of the evening telling Lindsey about the talk she had with their oldest, Stevie finally found herself laying in bed, watching the nightly news.
She was going to stay up for Lindsey to come to bed, but when midnight rolled around, she figured that he probably wasn't going to be coming upstairs anytime soon. But as soon as she closed her eyes to get some rest, this sharp pain shot through her upper abdomen and literally took her breath away.
"Oh, my gosh." Sitting up abruptly, Stevie winced from the pain.
She tossed the blanket off, making sure she wasn't bleeding before she tried to move her legs. They were red, and suddenly a lot more swollen then they were when she had laid down a couple of hours earlier.
She knew she had to get up- there was no telling when Lindsey would come to bed, and the chances of him hearing her shout were slim to none.
"Lindsey?" She mumbled, holding onto the wall to keep herself balanced as she trailed through the room.
It was bad, worst than she remembered when she was pregnant with any of her boys. It was like a stabbing pain- one that hit every couples seconds in seemed.
"Lindsey?" She repeated a little louder this time, hoping by then she'd finally gotten close enough for him to hear her.
She stared blankly at the staircase for a long moment, trying to decide if she had enough courage to try to make it down there. But after repeating Lindsey's name two more times and nothing followed, she knew she had no other choice.
Rolling her eyes, Stevie slowly ventured down the stairs. "I'm getting that man hearing aids." She mumbled to herself, banging her hand against the wall on her way down.
It wasn't until she'd made it to the foyer before he casually slipped up from the studio, a look of confusion written across his face when he saw her.
"Steph?" He could tell, by the look in her eyes that she wasn't feeling too hot.
"We have to go to the hospital." She whispered, tears filling the brims of her eyes. "Something's really wrong."
