It's Up To You

Part 16

Stevie was mad more than anything else. She blamed herself, saying she was an idiot, falling for Kim's lie. She couldn't have possibly known it was all just an act. Lindsey didn't want to upset her even more, so he kept his opinion to himself, but in all honesty, he didn't believe Kim. Lindsey prayed Kim was genuine, when talking to Stevie, but he knew there had to be something else. 

Having put Matthew to bed, Lindsey returned to Stevie, who was soaking herself in hot bath water, which Lindsey convinced her to take, saying it might help her relax if only a little. He knocked on the bathroom door and walked in, his heart skipping a beat, when he noticed a glass by the bathtub. 

Stevie followed his line of sight, speaking up. "It's just water." Lindsey nodded, sitting down on the closed toilet seat, but she knew he didn't believe it. "Smell the glass if you don't trust me that much."

"No, I do. You can understand why I worry though." 

Sighing, she gave him a nod, dipping in a little deeper into the bubbles. "I really though he was sincere..."

"There was no way of knowing for sure, Steph." Lindsey told her softly. "Turns out he's just a jerk."

"I was so happy for those couple of days." Tearing up a little, Stevie looked over at Lindsey, who sighed, moving to sit on the floor next to her. "I though, we could finally finish recording that freaking album, we'd put Fleetwood Mac behind us and finally focus on us, become a family."

"And we are going to do that, Stevie. Nothing changes, baby. We're just going to have to put up a serious fight to get Matthew, but we'll do it. You have my full support on this, babe, you know that."

"Your support..." She trailed off, cocking her head back against the bathtub. "I need the judge's support, Linds. I don't know-"

"Don't." Lindsey help up a hand. "Don't even think that. Due to recent events, Kim's record isn't clear anymore. I don't think he realizes it won't be as easy as he imagines. Assigning complete custody of a small child isn't just any decision, Steph."

"That's true, but Kim hasn't been addicted to cocaine for years. I've overdosed and it's been documented. I can't see that going down very well."

"But you quit. I... I hope you quit." Lindsey added, somewhat carefully. Stevie faced him, her eyes narrowing, but before she could speak, he did. "Again, Stevie, you've been seriously hooked on that shit. I do believe you if you tell me you haven't done it since you were released from the hospital."

"I haven't." She shook her head, her tone sharper that before. "I haven't snorted a single line, I haven't smoked a cigarette, a joint, I haven't had a drink."

"And I'm so unbelievably proud of you, sweetheart." Lindsey smiled, taking her hand and kissing the palm. "It's only for the better. You don't need it."

"Neither do you, Lindsey." She said, snatching her hand away from him.

"I-" He frowned, but Stevie continued.

"No, you've never been a cocaine addict, but you still do all of the other stuff."

Sighing, he nodded, for the first time feeling a bit ashamed. Stevie was the one who'd been using a hardcore drug for a long time and yes, it took her to overdose once to quit doing it, but she stopped nevertheless. Lindsey knew it did nothing good for him, but he didn't want to lay it off completely either.

"Would you stop?" Stevie asked, avoiding his eyes. "For me? I mean, just to prove that there's nothing in our house that shouldn't be around a little kid."

Swallowing uneasily, Lindsey bent his legs at the knees, pulling them to his chest. "I would." He replied after some time, seemingly shocking Stevie.

"Seriously?"

"I'd do anything for you. I'll help anyway I can, babe, you know that."

Smiling slightly at him, Stevie didn't say anything, simply looking at Lindsey for a minute, seeing it in his eyes that he meant what he said. 

"I'm sure Kim will demand a drug test." Stevie then said. 

"But it's been weeks since you left the hospital, so if you haven't taken anything, nothing will show up."

"What if he pays someone to present the judge with fake results?"

"Steph..." Lindsey gave her a look, again grasping her hand gently. "I know you're worried and I know that mind of yours is working like crazy right now, but don't, baby. Maybe Kim's not that vindictive after all..." It was a question if either of them believed it. "Besides, does he even have money? As far as I know, he doesn't have a job, does he?"

Shaking her head, Stevie replied. "No. He's a leech."

That made Lindsey laugh, as he then shrugged. "See? He probably won't be forging any results. The way I see it, the odds are in your favor. You're clean, you provide for Matthew, you love him that much, you're quitting the band, so you can focus on him and hopefully adding more to our little family. Everyone's made mistakes, babe." 

"God... I hope you're right, Lindsey, I really do. However, until I hear the verdict, I won't be able to rest easy."

"I understand that, but I also don't want you to stress about it too much. And yes, I know how that sounds; we're not talking about property or some thing, but... well, you get what I mean."

Nodding, Stevie said. "I do. I'm so lucky to have you, Linds. If you weren't with me, I probably would have downed half a bottle of brandy, then got into a car and went to murder that bastard."

Lindsey was slightly taken a back, as he moved behind her, his hands slowly starting to massage her shoulders, feeling how tense she was. "You know, for someone as small in stature as you, you're pretty damn scary."

Stevie smiled, looking over her shoulder. "Don't you ever forget that."

After a while, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck, Lindsey got up on his feet and grabbed a towel. "Come on, the water's gone cold." She didn't disagree, carefully stepping out of the bathtub and into his arms, as he wrapped the plush towel around her, then kissed the tip of her nose. "Get some rest tonight, Steph. Tomorrow we'll decide what to do next."