Always you (A Catching Feelings sequel)

Chapter 30

Tiana was in shock. She couldn't believe what Steve just told her. No, she didn't want to believe what he had told her. "What do you mean my mom is not my mom? That doesn't make any sense." She said, confused. "I know it sounds insane but trust me. That woman isn't your mother. Your mother disappeared when you were three years old. ". Steve explained. "I'm not saying that I believe you but if I did, why would this person impersonate my mother? What does she have to gain from pretending to be my mother? Also, I think I would remember my mom disappearing and being replaced by someone else. "Tiana said, voice trembling with anger.

"To be honest , we;re still trying to figure out what her motive is. That's why I didn't want to tell you anything until I had all the answers." Steve said."How long have you known?" Tiana demanded. "A few weeks." Steve said. "A few weeks and you didn't say anything!" Tiana said shrilly. "I'm sorry, I really am. I just didn't know how to tell you. I didn't want to keep it from you for so long but we were not getting closer to the truth." He explained quickly. "I don't want to hear how sorry you are. I can't even look at you right now." She shouted, as she stormed out of the room.

Steve collapsed onto the floor. This was not how he wanted Tiana to find out. Everything had gone terribly wrong. He didn't know how to fix the situation. He knew if he was in the same situation, he'd be furious too, He didn't want to hurt her. It was the last thing he wanted to do. As he sat on the floor, he broke down into tears, wishing he could make things right.

Tiana was still fuming as she walked into the kitchen to make a cup of tea, She couldn't believe Steve didn't tell her the truth sooner. Did he think she was incapable of handling the information? She iis not someone that needs to be coddled. She could handle it. It burned her, that he kept this startling information from her so long. She could just scream from the top of her lungs, that's how frustrated she was.

After she calmed down a bit, she could hear a sound coming from upstairs. She made her way upstairs. The closer she got, she realised it was the sound of sobbing. Steve was in tears. She walked into the room to find Steve collapsed onto the floor, balling his eyes out. At that moment, her heart broke into pieces. All of her anger disappeared. She had never seen him so vulnerable like this, except when she was in danger. He never really showed his vulnerable side.

"Oh, Steve." She whispered, as she knelt on the floor and took him in her arms. She hated seeing him like this. "I'm so sorry Tiana. I never meant to hurt you." He sobbed, as she hugged him tighter. "Shh. It's okay." She said, soothingly. In that moment, she realised how hard it must have been for Steve. She knew he would never lie to her unless he had a good reason or if it kept her safe. She loved Steve so much, it didn't matter if he kept something important from her. She was glad she was finally aware of the truth. Despite him not willingly telling her.

"It's not okay. I kept something important from you. You deserved to know from the beginning." Steve hiccupped. "It doesn't matter anymore. At least you told me now. As long as you don't keep anything else from me, we'll be alright. Okay?" She said, as she gently rubbed circles on his back. "Promise me you won't keep anything from me again." She said."I promise." Steve muttered, still hiccuping. "Good." She said, with a small smile.
"Tell me everything you know, so far." Tiana said to Steve, half an hour later. "We know that she is definitely not your mother." He started, watching Tiana's reaction. "Oh, I see. Do you know what happened to my real mother?" She asked. "We're still working on that." He said, sheepishly. "I really wish I could give you more information but that's what we have so far." Steve admitted. "It's okay. If I know you, I know that you are doing everything in your power to find the answers. No one works harder than you." She smiled, kissing his cheek. "Thanks, babe." He grinned.

"Is there anything I can help you with, regarding this case?" Tiana asked, hoping she could help find out what happened to her real mom. "Hmm, Maybe you can." Steve said, thoughtfully. "Maybe if you could talk about what your childhood was like, then maybe we can figure something out from that." He beamed. "Okay, sure. Which part of my childhood would you like to know about? " She asked . "Well, do you remember anything specific about her? " Steve asked. "I remember she had hazel eyes. They were so kind and warm." She said, with a smile on her face. "She sounded lovely." Steve smiled. "She really was. That's all I remember. That was the one good thing about her before she suddenly had a personality change." She sighed in frustration. "That's because she was an entirely different person." Steve added. "I see it now." Tiana said, angrily. "That woman ruined my life. I thought my mom just suddenly hated me for some reason. Now I know it was an imposter. " She seethed with rage.

"Don't worry. We will find this woman and bring justice to your mom.This woman is not going to get away with taking your mom from you." Steve reassured her. "Thanks, Steve." She said, showing a small smile. "You said, you were still having trouble identifying her. How will you search for her?" Tiana questioned. "I'm still not very sure but I won't rest until I get answers. I will find out what happened to your mom. Don't worry!" He said with determination. "I know that you will." She smiled.

***
Tiana and Steve decided they should forget about the current situation for a little while and continue with the wedding planning. Steve wanted to get back to finding the mysterious women but Tiana urged him to take a break.. "I really want to do some wedding planning with my fiancé." She pleaded with Steve. "Alright, then. I have been wanting to do some wedding planning too." Steve grinned.

"What should we start with? "How about cake tasting?" Tiana grinned. "Didn't you go with Nat for cake tasting." Steve asked. "We were supposed to but then we thought it would be better if we do it together." Tiana gestured to her and Steve. "Good decision." Steve grinned."Now I get to do cake tasting with my fiancé." He smiled, as he took her hand in his. "Let's go!" Tiana said happily.

The first place they went to they had a wide variety of cakes, which low-key overwhelmed them a little. "Where should we start?" Steve asked,as he gazed upon the delicious cakes in front of him. "Let's start with the simple flavours and make our way to the more decadent flavours." Tiana said, eyeing the richer cakes."Good idea. In that way, we won't get too sick." Steve added. "Exactly!"

It wasn't long before they were on their fifth round of cake tasting. Already trying the simple flavours, they were now trying the more decadent flavours. Something that Tiana was looking forward to the most. She bit into the lemon blueberry cake, which just melted in her mouth."Mmm." She expressed. "You really like that one, huh?" Steve smiled as he then took a bite of it."Yeah, It's heavenly. It has the right amount of sweetness." She explained. Steve nodded in agreement."It is great! Although, I think the lemon is a bit overpowering for me." He admitted. "Oh, okay. Let's try a few more then!" Tiana said, trying not to sound too disappointed.

She gave him another piece of cake. . He took a bite from the cake. "Mmm. This tastes amazing! What is this one?" He asked, as he took another bite. "This one is lemon and poppy seed." Tiana smiled, as she watched Steve enjoy the cake. "Looks like you found your favourite." Tiana smiled. "I think so." He said, voice muffled as he swallowed. "Don't we still have a few more places to try out? He questioned. "We do. This is just the beginning." Tiana smirked. "I'm all for it but I think I need a little break before we go to the next place." Steve said as took a sip of coffee. "Agreed."

Soon they were shopping at a mall, buying some much needed clothes, as Tiana's clothes were becoming a little tighter due to the continuous growth of her baby bump. After only two stores, Tiana was already exhausted. "I really hate shopping sometimes. I'm so exhausted now." She groaned, as Steve took the shopping bags from here. "I feel the same way." Steve chuckled. "Let's go back to cake tasting." She said, dragging her feet. "Okay, in a bit. Let me just pop into one more store. You don't have to come with. You stand outside. I won't be long." He said, almost like he was speaking to a child. "Thank you." 'She said, gratefully.

As she was waiting, something caught her eye. She spotted baby clothes in the window. She couldn't help but move closer. It was next to the shop Steve went into. Steve would be able to find her. She then dashed inside. Almost overcome with emotion, she walked towards the baby clothes. She picked up an adorable yellow onesie with a cute duck on the front. She started tearing up, she couldn't wait to hold her little one in her arms . She still had a few more months to go. She also found adorable baby shoes. She held them to her chest. She couldn't wait to be a mom. After spending a few emotional minutes in the baby store, Tiana decided she should go and wait outside. Steve could be looking for her.

He wasn't waiting for her. He must have still been inside the shop. After a few more minutes, she was starting to worry. He said he would only be there for a few minutes. She called him, his phone was ringing but there was no answer. It then cut off. She tried again, moving closer to the store. She could hear a cellphone ringing but she couldn't be sure if it was Steve's. She walked into the store, still listening to the ringing. She could hear it clearer now, his phone was in the store but where was Steve. The ringing got louder. Soon enough she found his cellphone... on the ground, abandoned. She froze with fear. Someone took Steve. She had a feeling she knew who it was.