Wide Open Spaces

Cold War

"It's a huge opportunity and I'm taking it!"

It's all Stevie can think about as she sits with her mother, crying in her parents' living room. Another fight, now the kids are involved. They are resistant too and Lindsey thinks they will adjust. Kids are good with change, he thinks. He's getting a lot of pressure from his boss and he feels like he has no choice. He's stepping down, not just due to age but to illness and since he has no family of his own and Lindsey may as well be his son, he thought it was the natural choice.

"You said you missed it there."

"I do but this is where I'm from, this is where our kids were born and raised, where our house was built. Our life is here."

"We can build a life elsewhere."

"Lindsey, you're not thinking."

"Yes I am. More money, I will actually have a stake in the business. Hadley's will be mine. He's offering to put my name on it! I will be partner, Stevie! This is a huge deal."

She thinks over everything he's said to her as her mother strokes her hair. She arrived in tears and without a word, her mother had enveloped her in her arms and let her cry. She asked no questions thus far and Stevie felt incredibly safe. Her crying turned to whimpers as she attempted to calm herself down but it didn't last for long. He keeps pressuring her about it, day after day and each time she bursts into tears.

"You're trying to do exactly what Brock did."

"Don't you dare compare me to him!" he booms.

"You're scaring me" she says, her voice barely above a whisper. "I don't want to move when I'm pregnant again. It was horrible and don't you remember last time I started having contractions and had to go to the hospital twice for a mag drip to stop them? I can't have that happen again. This pregnancy is going too good to mess it up."

Her mother whispers comfort in her ear, continuing to stroke her hair. "What happened, baby girl?"

"He wants us to move, mommy" she says, taking deliberate breaths in an attempt to stop her tears.

"Where?"

"Back to California"

"This is your home!"

"Yes and it's the only place our kids know. We moved before they were born and it was hell"

"I remember how hard it was on you but maybe the kids will consider it an adventure. Both of them inherited you and Lindsey's wanderlust"

"Nope, they're just as upset as I am. He sprung it on us. He didn't even ask me about it, he already accepted" She sits up to face her mother and she's shocked.

"When do you leave?"

"As it stands now, he starts in two weeks"

"My goodness" Barbara says and Stevie dissolves into tears once more.

"I'm pregnant. Four months." Stevie tells her. "I'm so scared"

"Oh, TeeDee..." Her mother holds her in a seated embrace, unable to think of what else to do. "Let me get your father"

"Don't leave" Stevie begs.

"Your father is very logical and not as emotional as us women. Maybe he can see some good in this"

"No way is my daughter moving again! I'm giving that boy a stern talking to if it's the last thing I do!" Stevie hears her father shout from the other room. He takes the keys off the kitchen counter and starts for the door.

"Daddy, no!"

"Jess, you can't just go in there like that. This is a delicate situation. You, yourself know that emotions are high enough. TeeDee is pregnant and she could really use some comfort right now. She needs your counsel more than your temper"

"She's pregnant...and he didn't ask her if this was okay? Didn't even seek her opinion?" Barbara shook her head. "Jesus..." He sits down on the couch next to his daughter. "I'm sorry, sweet girl."

"I don't know what to do. I think I've ruined everything we had."

"I'm sure that's not true. Yes, this is a hard decision but you can work on it together"

"I said something I can't take back" Stevie says, sinking back into her own mind.

"If you leave, I'm staying here. I am not uprooting my kids and I'm certainly not putting the baby in danger!"

"So you're breaking up with me?" He asks and she looks at him. His question indicates he's still going despite her pleas and she nods, pulling herself away from him and running as fast as she can to her car.

"I told him, I told him I was done" Stevie tells her father.

"Done? Stevie, think clearly. You have a family to worry about."

"That's why I said it. My kids were crying when I discussed moving with them. Their friends are here, you two are here and I'm so scared this pregnancy will be just as difficult as theirs was. I went into labor much too early due to stress and they were premature. I was cut open to save them, don't you remember?"

"Yes, Stevie"

"I'm not doing it again. I found a great midwife to help me go through this pregnancy in the most holistic, natural way possible and I'm not messing anything up. What if history repeats itself?"

"What if it doesn't? What if you end up just as happy there as you are here?" Her father says, taking her shoulders in his large hands.

"Wh-what?"

"What if you move there and after the settling period, you make a beautiful life for you, Lindsey and your children. We will miss you but if he has to go..."

"He didn't even tell me until he agreed"

"You can't change that. He did a horrible thing but you have to move past it and work on logistics. Do you have a house, is the money good, can you prosper there? I have moved you, your brother and your mother everywhere, no notice at all. Sure, I talked it over with her but they were always done deals. Maybe he wasn't thinking. We know Lindsey and we know he doesn't always do that." Jess chuckles. "One thing I can say though is he does everything with you in mind. He loves you so much. Give him another chance."

"I, I don't know what to say."

"Go home, Stevie. Talk to him. If you love him, try to make this work and help Callie and Dylan understand. Don't let your emotions play with your mind. This could be a really smart move if you all work together. As for the pregnancy, don't you think you're stressing yourself out already?"

Stevie touches her stomach "I don't think I thought about it that way before"

"Go home, sweet girl" She nods, hugging her father then her mother.

"Do you really think she should go?" Barbara asks her husband when their daughter had left.

"I don't want her to go, I just wanted her to think. I was playing Devil's Advocate. She needs that sometimes."

"I'm going to miss her" Barbara says, leaning into her husband.

"Me too" Jess says, kissing his wife's forehead. "Me too"