Blue Plaid

Parenthood

In which Stella and Tyson discover that they can do this after all.

//

I was panicking.

Not in the 'oh shit, I lost one of the Louboutins I was lent for an event' kind of way, but more in a 'I have absolutely no idea what to do and I need some help' kind of way.

I'd purposely made sure I was available the entire day and night, because the restaurant where Tyson worked was hosting a fundraising event which, if all went well, would in one night, bring in the same amount of revenue they usually got in a month. They'd been prepping for the dinner for weeks and I'd laughed as I'd watched Tyson pace back and forth as he debated different options for the menu, but in reality I was excited for him. A dish that he'd concocted had been chosen for the event's menu, which meant some major exposure for him and perhaps a good stepping stone into finally opening his own restaurant.

And the reason I was currently freaking out was because Tyson had been at the restaurant all day to prepare for the event that night and I was pretty sure Cooper was sick.

He'd been fussy all day, which was very unlike him and the only way I'd been able to get him to stop crying thus far was to carry him around and rap Kanye West songs into his ear. I'd tried setting him down once, but he started wailing, so I'd quickly pulled him into my chest again before scrolling through my phone contacts and calling the only person I could think of that would actually know how to handle the situation.

As always, she picked up after two rings.

"Hey, baby doll. What's up?"

"Hey, Mom," I said, trying not to reveal how stressed I actually was.

Of course, that didn't work because she had some sort of superhuman powers which made her able to hear my exhaustion through the phone. "What's wrong?"

My mother knew all about my situation with Cooper and Tyson partly because I knew I would never be able to keep a secret of that magnitude from her and partly because I knew I would end up needing her help eventually. It was times like these that I was thankful that she was completely nonjudgmental. She might have thought I was a little too irresponsible to be raising a child, but she did understand why I'd made the decision to do so.

"Cooper's burning up and he won't stop crying unless I'm carrying him and I'm all alone and I have no idea what to do."

"Sounds like you need to take him to the emergency room immediately," she instructed, her tone calming but firm, just like it had always been when she was dealing with my less than angelic behavior as a teenager. "Call Tyson and have him meet you there."

"I can't," I shook my head, knowing full well that she couldn't actually see me. "Tonight's so important to him. I don't wanna ruin it. I'll go by myself."

"Estelle," my mother sighed and I didn't wince because she was the only one who was allowed to call me that. "He has a right to know."

"This isn't about whether or not he has a right to know, Mom," I explained. "If he comes to the hospital, he'll miss out on a huge career opportunity and I'm not gonna make him make that choice. I can handle this."

"Fine," she agreed. "Call me if you need anything, baby."

"Will do. Thanks, Mom. Love you."

Once I hung up, I stuck the phone in the back pocket of my jeans and carried Cooper, who was whimpering against my shoulder, to his room. Knowing better than to set him down, I managed to pack his bag with his favorite toys with one hand before grabbing my purse and heading down to the lobby.