Stevie nearly dropped her glass, but right as it began to slip, she brought herself back to reality. "That's just Karen's niece." She mumbled, slipping her arm out of Christine's. "I'll be right back, sweetie." She forced one foot in front of the other- feeling as if she had sea legs as she trudged that way.
After their little argument a couple of days earlier, Stevie totally dropped the idea of inviting Vivian... in fact, she'd stopped talking about her all together, only because Lindsey didn't seem interested.
She couldn't force him to speak to her about it.
"Hi." It was a huge sigh of relief for the younger woman when she saw Stevie, one of the only people that she recognized.
"Hi, honey." The blonde leaned in for a quick hug, eyes meeting Karen's for a brief moment. "How are you?" She wondered, falling back on her heel.
"I'm good..." she bit down on the inside of her cheek as she glanced around, awkwardly.
To say that she felt out of place would have been an understatement.
Everyone was dressed to the nines, and she was in a pair of jeans, sneakers and an old hoodie.... She didn't grow up with fancy dresses, thousand dollar shoes, or elaborate parties, which is what everyone else seemed pretty accustomed to.
She wanted to just disappear.
"I'm so glad that you're here." Stevie could tell that she felt a little out of place, which was the last thing she wanted. "Let's find you something to drink?" She suggested, motioning towards the house.
Nodding her head softly, Vivian began to follow her towards the door and down the long hallway.
Everything was perfect in that home- the decor, the furniture, and even the people seemed flawless in Vivian's opinion. It was like nothing was out of place, and everything belonged wonderfully.
"Of course, you can help yourself to whatever snacks are outside." Stevie led the way into the kitchen, where the workers of the catering company were scattered out randomly. "But we have soda, juice, tea, coffee..." she lingered, eyes scanning over the drink drawer.
"Uh..." Vivian was so nervous- she could feel the tears building up on the brims of her eyes. "I'll have a soda, please." She stood close, staring down at the floor mat.
Chuckling softly, Stevie nodded her head. "I should have known." She teased, pulling out a can of coca-Cola. "Lindsey drinks soda like it's going out of style." She even cracked the top, before she handed it over.
Vivian let out a very faint, very quiet laugh... she didn't want the older woman to realize that she was nearly on the verge of tears. "Thank you so much." When she reached out to take it, that's when Stevie noticed that her hands were literally shaking.
Creasing a brow, Stevie's heart sank into the very pit of her stomach. "It's only going to be like this for a short while." She assured, a very sympathetic smile on her face. "You'll be part of our family before you know it." She added, hoping that would make her feel, even slightly better.
"Thank you." She repeated in a soft, almost sad tone of voice.
"No crying, okay?" Stevie let out a light giggle... she could see through just about anyones strong front.
Vivian laughed as well, even though hers was more throaty from the emotions. "I'm really happy that you don't hate me."
"Oh, honey." She shook her head softly. "The mistakes that parents make are never their child's fault." If anyone understood that, it was Stevie, herself. "Now, let's go introduce you to some really fabulous people." She said quickly, motioning for Vivian to lead the way out this time.
Outside, not much had changed, except for the fact that there were about twenty more people and the music had been cranked up a notch.
"Steph?" Lindsey caught her as soon as she began the journey back towards Christine, who had found a seat by Mick. "Hey, kiddo." He added, giving Vivian a quick smile.
"Hi..." she mumbled, returning it, before she began to casually glance around the crowded lawn.
His blue eyes met Stevie's once more, slipping his arm around her waist as he nudged her towards the section of the lawn that had been turned into a small dance floor. "Let's dance?" Lindsey asked, not giving her much of a choice as he hurried her that way.
Pursing her lips to one side, she rolled her eyes lightly. "You're-"
"I was going to tell you." He whispered, holding her close as he felt her slip one arm around his neck.
She scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief. "You argued with me for days over this." She reminded him in a harsh tone. "And then you go behind my back?" Stevie creased a brow, totally unenthused with him in that very moment.
He sighed softly, taking the hand that she'd had on his chest in his own. "I was going to tell you last night, but then I got distracted with all this." He cocked his head back, motioning towards all the commotion behind them.
She chuckled sarcastically, not buying that one at all. "When did you invite her?" She wondered, raising a brow lightly.
She had been curious since the moment Vivian had stepped through the door, but she wouldn't have dared asked her... She didn't want her to feel more uncomfortable than she already was.
Nodding softly, he swallowed hard as he looked into the saddest set of brown eyes. "Karen and I met her for coffee, yesterday morning." He admitted, even though he didn't want to. "I... I wanted to prove to you that I am okay with this and-"
"Why wouldn't you just tell me?" She cut him off. "What is so hard about being honest with me?" Stevie was being a bit overdramatic... Lindsey hardly ever lied, not anymore, at least.
"I'm sorry." He whispered, even though he knew that wouldn't be enough... not this time.
Biting down on her lower lip, she could feel the tears roll down her cheeks. "Happy anniversary, Lindsey." She mumbled. "I'm so proud of us." The sarcasm was strong as she untangled her fingers from his and slowly pushed away.
