Under the Hollywood Sign (editing)

Chapter 26

Shane

"What?"

I pulled her out of the hug, and I held her shoulders as we were eye to eye.

"You heard me,"

She said, a slight smile on her face.

"So you're not kidding?"

Delilah shook her head no.

"Oh my GOD, Delilah, this is amazing!"

I had the biggest smile on my face, and when I smiled, she smiled back. I picked her up, and I spun her around.

When I put her down, she said

"By any chance, do we have scrambled eggs with peanut butter and coconut in the house?"

"No, not yet."

I made her scrambled eggs with peanut butter and coconut, and we sat on the couch as she ate them. I asked her a question.

"You're kind of young to be a reporter."

"I know I am."

"Why is that?"

"My parents had me skip a grade, and I took extra classes in High School so I would graduate a year early. I went to college, and here I am."

"So basically, you're brilliant."

"Give or take."

I reached over her shoulder and I took a forkful of her scrambled peanut butter coconut eggs.

It had an... Interesting flavor.

She tilted her head towards me and she said

"I've got a doctor's appointment tomorrow. You coming?"

"Of course I am!"

The next morning, we had to wake up super early. I'm talking 7:30. In the morning. It was an outrage! But we got up, had breakfast, and we drove to the doctor's.

She was a couple weeks along, and I had to contain my excitement.

I was gonna be a dad!

When we got out of the front door, we stood there, looked at each other, and then said

"We're gonna be parents!"

We both smiled wide, and then I gently picked her up and kissed her.

I carried her bridal style back to the car, and I drove to our favorite diner. I picked up two slices of pie, and we sat in the car and ate it.

"Baby, are you up to coming with me to band practice?"

"Your band's members don't really like me all that much."

"Of course they do!"

"No, they don't."

She took another bite of pie.

"So do you want me to drop you off at home? Because I do have practice to go to. I hate leaving you, though."

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

"If you insist..."

I said.

I dropped her off at home hesitantly.

"I don't know Deils,"

"Shane!"

"I'm sorry. Overprotective husband powers- activate!"

She laughed.

We kissed, and then I left.

When I came back a little over an hour later, she was curled up on the couch, fast asleep with a pillow in her grasp.

I carried her to bed, and I went downstairs I practice some songs and write a few lyrics.

I put some pasta on for lunch, and I grabbed a book, and I read while I ate.

I made myself my signature hot cocoa, and I went back to reading.

That stuff gives me weird dreams.

Like... Insane dreams.

As the sun went down, and as the book got slowly more boring, and as the level in hot cocoa went down, I began dozing.

I had a dream that I was best friends with a unicorn and a mermaid, and we were dancing in a dirty river.

And then, Delilah came in from above. She literally fell from heaven, and she had beautiful wings. She had beautiful white wings, but they weren't working, obviously, because she hit the ground hard.

She took her wings off, claimed they were itchy, got a pair of red and black wings, and sat on the bank of the river with a bucket of fried chicken.

She was picking at the rip in her jeans on her left knee, and then, she tied the laces on her red converse sneakers.

I told her to come join the mermaid, me, and the unicorn, and we had a dance party with large trout in a dirty river.

I then passed sticks of cheese around the group, and the unicorn named Bob, by the way, farted up a rainbow, and we followed it all the way to the yellow brick road.

The rest is history.

I woke up with a jolt, and I looked over at the clock.

Eight at night.

I got up, stretched, and I hopped in the shower.

I got into my pajamas, and I went to bed.

I had taken such a long nap, I could barely get to sleep. As for her, she slept for hours and hours. I don't know what it was, but she was squarely asleep.

Is that even a term?

Squarely asleep?

For now it is.

Now, there was one more problem I had to solve.

How was I gonna tell the band that I was going to be a dad?