Here I Am, There You Are (All Time Low Fanfiction | Jack Barakat)

Here I Am, There You Are Pt. 15

Jack and I had Alex and Lisa over for a week. Since they didn't have a house out in LA anymore, they always needed to find places to stay when they did need to be on the West Coast. Since Alex and Jack were working on some band stuff and Lisa was organising the last bits of a wedding at the same time, we had offered to help them out by giving them a place to stay. Afterall, after months of not seeing each other, it was nice to actually have friends around again.

While making dinner for everybody, the fact that I was 36 weeks pregnant hit me pretty hard. I was standing there on my painful feet, cutting up some vegetables when my body decided to warn me that I shouldn't push myself and take enough time to rest. It was nearing the end of their trip, and I wanted to give them one last impressive meal, but my back said no. Luckily, Alex was more than happy to give me a hand. He let me direct him around, doing most of the work while Lisa and Jack were gulping down some rosé.

Unfortunately, I couldn't really enjoy the food we had cooked together. My back was in pain and I was feeling quite nauseous. It wasn't alarming, though. It happened more often; my lower back would decide it had been carrying around the extra weight for more than long enough, then everything would just feel very uncomfortable, and then I'd also start feeling a little sick. Usually, it didn't end up in my throwing up, but it definitely wasn't the most pleasant of feelings.

I got a few bites in, but in the end I was mainly just picking at my food. The baby usually loved a combination of vegetable and tomato sauce, but it wasn't happening that day. Luckily, I wasn't really hungry anyway. Lisa and I had gotten a pretty big lunch earlier, so I had had more than enough to eat already. Since everybody already knew I wasn't feeling great, and because I had made the food myself, nobody was particularly worried. It happened, pregnancy wasn't just happiness and people telling you you looked like you were glowing.

But my back really was hurting, and I could just feel myself going into an unsafe territory. The territory in which I'd no longer be fun to be around. Before I got too annoyed at jokes and laughter, and any other sound made, I knew I had to distance myself.

"I think I'm going to go to bed," I announced after putting my fork down. I knew it was early, it was only past dinner time. But it sounded like the only bearable thing right now.

"Everything alright?" Jack checked up on me, taking in just how uncomfortable I looked.

I nodded and pushed my chair back. "Yeah. I just need to lie down and I'm pretty tired. Why not combine both?"

"Call if you need anything, okay?"

I got up and pressed a kiss to the top of his head to show that I definitely wouldn't think twice to call him if I needed him. He really was the best husband right now, he had been the entire time really. He'd help to tie my shoes when I was really struggling, he'd bring me snacks when I was hungry, and he'd help me get as comfortable as possible, even if that meant rubbing my back. Of course, we had our arguments, but he was the most supportive person, always there to help me out.

I said goodnight to everybody and retreated upstairs to our bedroom. Olive decided to join me, watching me as I got ready and climbing onto the bed when I got under the blankets. It was a bit strange since she'd usually stay down where the food was being shared, but she probably sensed that I wasn't feeling great. She kept a watchful eye on me as she curled up right next to me.

The two of us just laid there together. Petting her long fur was quite comforting, but it wasn't enough for my body to decide that it was time to relax and no longer be in pain. If anything, the queasy feeling in my stomach was getting worse. I just figured our cheese puff had shifted a little and was squishing all my insides since I had to get up to pee quite a few times as well.