Subject 001

I Heard a Rumor

Three years ago...

"Hey, babe," Em called, entering their home.

"Yeah, princess?" Diego answered, walking over to her. "How was work?" he asked, pulling her into a kiss.

"It was work," Em said, shrugging. "Have you seen this? Claire just turned two," she added excitedly, holding up a magazine she was holding.

"Already?" Diego asked, holding the magazine and skimming it. Allison, her husband, and Claire were smiling on the front page. "She's so big," he noted quietly.

"Right?" Em asked in 'awe' at the little girl. "Do you think you'll get to meet her?"

"Probably not," Diego muttered. "Allison wants nothing to do with the family, inviting us to her wedding was just a publicity stunt," he shrugged.

"That's a pity, you'd make a great uncle," Em said sympathetically, rubbing his arm.

Diego shrugged, "C'mon you look tired," he said, pulling her to their room.

Diego helped Em out of her buttondown shirt, black pumps, and pencil skirt.

"You know I can undress myself, right?" she asked with a raised brow.

"Yeah, but I like doing it for you," Diego said simply. "You work all day, the least I can do is help you out of your skintight clothes."

"I love you," Em said with a sigh, pulling Diego into a kiss.

"I love you," Diego said with a smile. "You need to stop wearing tights," he said seriously, throwing her nude tights behind his back.

"I can't exactly go to work bare-legged," Em said with a sad smile. "And I'm not allowed to wear pants for whatever stupid reason."

"You're right," Diego nodded. "I just don't like how it marks your skin," he admitted, grazing his fingers over the red line the tights had caused on her abdomen.

"I know," Em muttered, brushing her fingers through his hair. "Have you thought about what dinner's gonna be?" she asked lightly.

"Pizza," Diego said, moving over to the wardrobe.

"Sounds good," Em noted, taking off her bra as he threw shorts and a tank top at her. "But we gotta start cooking, it's gonna take a while," she added, pulling the tank top over her head.

"I thought we could order it," Diego explained, holding her hands in his. "That way you get to relax a bit, watch some TV, who knows what the couch has in store for us," he said with a smirk.

Em chuckled, rolling her eyes, "Sounds good."

Diego ordered the pizza and they sat on the couch.

"Princess," he asked carefully. "Are you happy?"

"What do you mean?" Em asked in surprise. "Of course I am. Are you?"

"Absolutely," Diego said firmly. "But that's not what I meant. Are you happy with your job?"

"It doesn't really matter," Em said dully, shrugging. "It pays the bills."

"What do you really want to do?" Diego asked curiously.

"I guess," Em said pensively. "I guess I want my own bakery? Give people that happy, warm feeling you get with freshly baked cookies... Help them celebrate important moments of their lives with a cake or a pie, make people happy like that..." A small smile played at her lips, thinking about that idea warmed her heart.