The Hook-up

Chapter 78

Bruno rolled over in the bed not feeling Lauren's body next to him. He squinted his eyes seeing a piece of paper on the table near the closet. She must have left already. He thought to himself deciding to go back to sleep. Screw it.He thought to himself turning back over in the bed falling asleep. A few minutes later, and during a weird dream, he heard a knock the door. "Whaaaattt." He moaned still half asleep.

"Get up, loser!" he heard Phil yell at the other side of the door.

"Fuck!" Bruno groaned as he stepped out of bed opening the door dramatically letting Phil in.

"You're not even up yet? Geez..." Phil said to him throwing Bruno some clothes. "Get dressed."

"I need to shower." Bruno responded smelling his arm. "Eww. I smell like sex." He smirked.

"Shut your face and get in the shower." Phil said sarcastically.

"I mean...shit...pregnant sex really takes it out of me." Bruno said over the shower water he turned on.

"Ewwww. I did not need to know that. Ever." Phil told Bruno.

"She was all over me last night." Bruno continued to gloat.

"Okay, I get it bro, you and your girlfriend have tons of sex. When you are gonna wife up?" Bruno didn't answer Phil turning off the water and then drying himself off. "Was that too much?" Phil asked him.

"No. It wasn't too much." Bruno answered coming out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist rubbing his fingers through his hair.

"Sooo?" Phil asked.

"I have the ring..." he went into his bag digging to the bottom pulling it out. "I just can't figure out exactly when to ask her."

"Oh shit...." Phil responded shocked that he had a ring for her. "When did you get this?"

"In Hawaii. I went with Tahiti. She said it was perfect. I agreed." Bruno told his friend.

"Sooo...when are you going to ask her?" Phil asked like a gossping teenager.

Bruno shrugged his shoulders looking at the ring shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know. Maybe here, maybe when we get back. She's so busy with work right now. I want her to be able to remember it as something special and not just part of another story, you know? Like Fashion Week is Fashion Week...and getting engaged is getting engaged. Like they're two separate things and I want them to be separate from each other."

"I get it. Do you want it to be like all dramatic or just for the two of you, like just sitting at the table and you ask her?" Phil asked.

"I don't know. She doesn't come off as being dramatic. I think just sitting at the table or whatever would be good." Bruno told his friend.

"Bullshit. You're going to make it a fucking performance, bro." Phil called him out on his statement.

"You're right. I still don't know. I'll figure it out." He said buttoning up a shirt taking his jacket with him to leave the room. "Let's go do this damn thing."

**

'Lauren glanced down at the list of designers on her schedule for the day as she followed the crowd out of the first show of the season, Nicole Miller. "I really liked the stuff. I saw some things we could snag..." Lauren told Estee.

"I liked several of the things. It was a good show." Estee answered putting notes in her phone. "Where are we going next?"

"We're going to Rodarte." Lauren said showing her co-worker the list she was just looking at. "Is that right?"

"You're going to Rodarte. I'm going to CK." Estee said pointing to her list.

"Oh...and what's after? Or are we done?" Lauren asked.

"We can get the last show of the night and then get dinner, but I don't know what you're doing with the boyfriend." Estee said.

"I think he'll be in the studio all night. He is crazy when he is New York. It does something to him. Like he's extra productive. I don't even know how much time I am going to have with him while he's here. We had morning plans for Valentine's but otherwise I think we're just sleeping in the same bed." Lauren told Estee.

"This is a busy time, girl. It will be over soon and before you know it, it will be September." Estee smiled at her.

"Oh my god. Please don't say that. It scares me to think about September." Lauren answered sitting down on a randomly empty bench. "It scares me so much."

"Lauren, it's scary but it will be life changing and one of the best things in your life. No, it will be the best thing ever. Those babies will be your two and only." She laughed.

"Are you sure?" Lauren asked.

"I am so sure. And you four will be a cute little family." Estee said.

"Wow. I'm glad you have confidence in us." Lauren said a little shocked.

"I saw you two yesterday. You are cute together and you can work it out. I know it." She said confidently.

"You think so?" Lauren asked.

"He's trying so hard. I see a difference in him since you got pregnant." Estee told her, not knowing about the fight about Fashion Week that they got in.

"Yeah. You're right. I just wonder if we're forever or for right now." Lauren sighed stretching her legs out looking at her heels.

"Do you think that he thinks about that too?" Estee asked.

"Shit, he has four sisters. It would be a miracle if one of his sisters hasn't asked him about it." She laughed. "I just think we need to figure everything out before we say forever." Lauren said glancing over into the street to a car with its window down blasting familiar lyrics That's the reason I stay...I never knew love would feel like a heart attack and its killing me. And I swear I haven't cried so much....

"Lauren?" Este asked snapping her out of her musical bliss.

"Oh sorry. Are you ready to go? I think my feet are ready for round two." Lauren said standing up.