Chenford: One Shot to the Heart

Tim Bradford + Lucy Chen = Ben

*This ended up being way deeper than I anticipated. It was just supposed to be drunk Angela coming up with a really good idea. Also, disclaimer: no offense intended to anyone named Chad.* 

Leave it to drunk Angela to come up with the best ideas. The ceremony had ended hours ago, most of the guests had grouped together, talking quietly. Some couples, bride and groom now husband and wife included, were swaying on the dancefloor to the soft music crooning through the speakers. All was calm and bright... until a clearly intoxicated Angela Evers came tumbling toward the newlyweds. Wesley was about ten yards behind, clearly desperate. Something was about to go down and he was failing to stop it.  

"IF YOU GUYS HAVE A SON YOU COULD NAME HIM BEN!"

Nobody reacted dramatically. Well, if utter silence counts as a non-dramatic reaction then no, no one reacted dramatically. But, the hum of the conversation stopped. All that could be heard was the music still quietly coming through the speakers and the slowing of Wesley's stride as he neared his inebriated wife who had found yet another way to mortify him (but he knew what he was getting into when he proposed in the first place). 

Tim knew how to deal with drunk Angela. You treat her the same way you treat sober Angela. With the attention and respect, she demands. "Why?" Drunk Angela, happy for the encouragement proclaimed loudly, "IT'S LITERALLY YOUR LOVE CHILD. WHY NOT TAKE THE "B" FROM BRADFORD AND THE "-EN" FROM CHEN? IT'S PERFECT!" 

Lucy said, "But Angela, I'm Lucy Bradford now." She blushed horribly, while Tim tried to suppress the swelling of pride in his chest. 

"YEAH, YEAH, WHATEVER. YOU HAVE TO DO IT!"

"Well," said Tim, "how about this. You go home, with Wesley, get good sleep, and then this is your assignment." Angela looked at him, wide-eyed and eager. "You write down every name you can think of for our hypothetical future child and give a good reason for why we should name them it. If the reason is solid enough, we will take it into consideration." Clearly delighted by this idea Angela turned to Wesley, who had been nervously hovering the entire time, and said, "Okay, take me home Sir! And I want Dairy Queen first. No funny business either." Beet red, Wesley mumbled something but let Angela drag him out without protest. 

~~~Later~~~

Curled up in his arms later after all the chairs had been put away and way too much champagne had been drunk, Lucy sighed contentedly. 

"Tell me what you're thinking Lucy," she heard him whisper. She smiled into the dark. "You hate it when I talk about my feelings, remember," she said teasingly. She shivered delightfully as he began to draw circles on her arm. "Tell me what you're thinking Tim."

"Do you want children?"

Her eyes flew open, finding his already gazing into her own, question and reservation glinting. Her voice was very, very small when she said, "Yes. Is it-is it something you want?" He sighed, "Always have."

A moment or two of silence filled the hotel room. "We're both scared of something aren't we?" She heard the grudge in his voice when he replied with yes. "I'll go first," she said. "My mom had a sister. My aunt. She had trouble getting pregnant. And then, when she did, there were complications during labor. Both she and the baby died. My mom had some of the same issues. She was stronger, so she managed to pull through. We've never determined whether it was a genetic issue. Even so, genetic and hereditary traits tend to skip generations. But I've always been so scared that it would happen to me anyway. I never worried about myself I worried about the baby. And the person I'd leave behind."

He didn't say anything. So she nudged him and said, "It's your turn."

"My dad," he responded, quickly and quietly. She wasn't sure he was going to say anything more. Technically those two syllables said it all. "He wasn't a good person, you know, of course. He was mean and angry and violent. We, my mom, my sisters, and I, could never catch a break. I always wanted kids. But I couldn't with Isabel. It was clearly something she didn't want. She was too focused on the career she was building. Then after she fell off the rails, it was never something I could consider. And in that time when I was dealing with the heartbreak of her leaving, I started seeing my dad in the mirror. I could look back and see him in the way I acted. I was mean and angry and violent. I was scared that I was becoming him. But then I found my way back. Mostly because of you. And you have nothing to be scared of. You are the strongest person I know. You have literally survived hell and back. There is nothing you can't do, and you don't get to let anyone, including your fears, tell you you can't."

"I still just can't help fearing that because of him I'm too messed up to be a good dad."

She leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. "That," she whispered, "is exactly why you will make the perfect dad. You'll make mistakes. But you know how to fix him. The worst thing you can do is let the fear control you. It'll only turn you into what you fear. You are the best man I know. Nothing will ever change that." 

Silence enveloped them once again until Lucy said, "It's a good idea."

"What is?"

"Ben, for a name." It took a moment for his sleepy mind to process what she had said. 

"No."

"But why? It's a cute idea."

"If we name our future hypothetical son Ben, it means we let Angela win."

"She was drunk. How could she possibly know it was her idea?"

"There are three Angela's when alcohol is involved. Sober, drunk, and hungover. All of them have one thing in common: a sharp memory. Trust me, she will know."

"Good grief. What about as a middle name?"

"No. One, Ben as a middle name doesn't make much sense with anything else. Two, it'll still be a grudging acceptance of the brilliance of her idea."

"So you do think it's a brilliant idea?"

"Stay on topic, Chen." And... he screwed up. Hadn't even been married for the second time for over 24 hours and he had screwed up.

"What the hell did you just call me?" Knowing words would not fix this, he pressed a deep kiss to her lips before breathing out, "I'm so so so sorry Lucy." "Forgetting something," she asked, trying to make her tone as angry as possible, but failing. He started over. "I am so so so sorry Mrs. Lucy Bradford." She sighed contentedly. "That's better. Apology accepted."

"Hey Tim?"

"Yes?"

"What would you say if our future child was less of a hypothetical, less of a part of the future, and more a part of the real present?"

"I swear to God Luce, if this is some messed up undercover prank again..."

"It's not, I promise." Her eyes were glowing. "Are you serious," he asked. She nodded.

"Holy fuck."

"TIM!!!"

"Maybe we should name the baby Ben," he said, dazed.

"Only if it's a boy," she reminded him.

"Hopefully Angela comes up with some really good names then."

"Tim, they'll be great. Besides, she came up with the sanest combination of our names. She could've picked... Chad." 

He grimaced. "Yeah, I think we're safe... but Angela definitely won."

"Who cares? We both won in the best ways today."

"That we did, Luce."