Against the Odds

5

Ben walked into work and sat his things down on his desk. They were working on a new project and he needed to go over the new developments that he missed on Friday and Monday.

"Hey, you're back. I heard you went on your honeymoon." Sean stated, drinking coffee.

"Yeah, I did. It was great." He responded, cutting his monitors on.

"That's good. You got married young. I didn't know I wanted to get married until I turned 26 and I'm 29 now." He chuckled.

"Yeah, but I knew I wanted to marry Miranda in high school. She wanted to wait until after college, but she's pregnant now so we figured it was no reason to wait."

"Congratulations, my wife is pregnant too, but this is our second."

"Congratulations."

"When is she due?" Sean inquired.

"December the 16th," Ben answered.

"That's not long at all, it will be here before you know."

"I know. That's why I'm trying to get everything together. I've been reading books on this stuff--

"First, throw the books out." He laughed. "Those writers don't know crap. I tried that. It did inform me of everything about pregnancy, but once the baby comes home none of that applies. You're going to feel helpless no matter what you do. Nothing prepares you for the sleep deprivation, long nights, colic God forbid your baby goes through that, endless bottles, diaper changes, moody wife. It's nothing you can prepare for."

"Wow."

"Children are hard and can definitely make or break a marriage. I swear my wife and I didn't like each other until our son turned 1."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it changes your dynamic and how you interact with each other. When at first it's just you and her then adding a baby it's more business-like In the effort to keep the family running smoothly, you start discussing carpool pickups and grocery runs, instead of sharing the latest gossip with each other or thoughts on your day." He explained.

Ben listened to the man talk and he rubbed his neck in nervousness.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry. You look petrified." He stated, with a laugh. "You two will be fine. You both just have to be willing to make it work. It gets better the older the baby gets."

"Thanks for that information though. Do you know of any good apartment buildings not too far from here? I've been looking for an apartment for us."

"It would be better and beneficial if you get a house or a townhouse. Renters go up every year, mortgage typically doesn't unless changes in the value of your home, taxes or insurance, but when you own it you can sell it for more money in the future."

"I wouldn't even know where to start."

"Gerald, but we call him Gee is a realtor. He could help you. Come on he works as a software tester." Sean stated walking off. The two took the elevator to that floor and found his cubicle.

"Hey Gee, you got a minute." Sean inquired.

"Yeah, I'm free." He stated, sitting up in his chair some more.

"This is Ben. Ben this is Gee."

"Nice to meet you."

"You too."

"He just got married and he's looking for a house or townhouse for him and his wife. I told him that you could help him out. It's his first time looking and buying."

"I could definitely help you out with that."

"Do you have a specific area in mind?" Gee asked pulling out a notepad.