Somebody's Supposed To Fall In Love

November

I take a step back and cross my arms, looking around half painted room. It’s almost seven o’clock at night and I’m tired. Mike and I have been painting for two days straight now. We repainted the guest room yesterday, in order to make it the nursery, and now we’ve been repainting the master bedroom. The previous owners had good taste, so not much more needs to be done.

Wearing one of Mike’s snapbacks, Gemma comes running into the room, balancing a tray of sandwiches. She’s biting down on her bottom lip, focused on not spilling anything. “Lana bear, I made peanut butter and jelly!”

I turn back to her and grin. “All by yourself?”

She holds out the tray for me and giggles. “Um… Yes!”

Mike strides into the master bedroom, a few seconds later. He’s wearing a pair of paint-splattered sweatpants and a white tank top. “Gem, hop up on the bed.” He mutters, a juice bag held between his teeth, a beer in his left hand, and a water bottle in his right hand. He sets his beer down on the random nightstand on his side of the bed and tosses Gemma the juice bag.

We just moved in three days ago and our new furniture is supposedly being dropped off tomorrow afternoon. Mike is also having Vic and a few of his old roommates drop off the rest of his boxes. Most of my stuff was dropped off yesterday by my dad, Alex, and Aiden. Surprisingly, even my mom came with them. She had a few pleasant words about the house, mostly the pool and patio. Then she spoke with me about prenatal vitamins, how fun, while my dad blabbered on to Mike about stocks and golf and football and his job. Eventually, he gave some painting tips and tricks, but then went right into taxes. I’m sure Mike wanted to shoot himself.

Gemma climbs onto the bed and sits with her legs crossed, quietly opening her juice bag. “Can I start eating? I’m starving!”

“Of course.” I smile at her and then walk over to Mike, wrapping my arms around his waist.

He presses his lips to my forehead. “You look very domestic, with the paint in your hair and on your arm.”

Smirking, I pull his face down more and press my lips to his. “Do I really?”

“Yeah… It’s really turning me on.”

“Well, you’re permanently turned on.”

“I can’t help that I’m severely attracted to you…” He reaches down, pressing his hands to my growing belly. It’s not that big yet, but I expect that to change soon. “Plus, I’ve really been enjoying the sex lately.”

“Of course you do.” I giggle and kiss him again, before climbing onto the bed with Gemma. “You’re already halfway done your sandwich! Are mom and dad starving you?”

Gemma laughs and shakes her head. “No! Painting made me hungry.”

I take a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from the tray and sit back against the pillows, as Mike flops onto the bed and takes a sip of his beer. “Did you eat anything, baby?” I nudge him with my foot.

He nods. “I had the left over pizza.”

Gemma giggles. “Mikey can’t have a sandwich! They’re all for you.”

“Don’t be mean to him, Gemma… Why’re they all for me?” I laugh, pulling a piece of the crust apart. “I’m not that hungry.”

“Because your baby needs to eat too!” She grins and points to my belly. “It’s growing!”

Mike smirks and takes another sip of his beer, before setting it on the table. “She thinks it’s stealing all your food.”

Gemma leans over and excitedly bounces on her knees, ignoring Mike. “Is it a boy or a girl?!”

“We don’t know yet, Gemma bear.” I hold my hands over the small bump on my stomach and watch my little sister. “But… I’m going to the doctor next month and he might be able to tell me, if the baby is in the right position.”

“Well what do you want a boy or girl? I want you to have a girl!”

“Well—”

“I’m fine with either.” Mike interjects.

“Me too… But I’d really like a girl.” I smile faintly.

“I want to be a big sister!”

“You’re not going to be a sister, Gemma.” I laugh and take the last bite of my sandwich, before sitting up and reaching for my water bottle. “You’re going to be an aunt. Alex will be an aunt too.”

“Oh.” She looks confused for a few seconds and then smiles again. “Well, how much longer until I can be an aunt?”

“You have to wait until April 3rd, just like the rest of us.” Mike sits up and grabs Gemma. She squeals playfully and laughs as he tosses her into the air. “You’re so short! Like a little munchkin.”

“I’m not a munchkin!” She says between bursts of laughter. “Put me down!”

“No!” He smirks. “I’m going to keep you.”

Gemma starts to wiggle violently and then sticks her middle finger up at him. “Let me go!”

Mike laughs loudly and lets her go. “You still remember that?”

“Yes!” She crawls off him. “You told me to stick my middle finger up if someone was being mean, and you were!”

“Gemma, you think everyone is being mean…” I roll my eyes and lean over Mike’s face. “Baby, I’m gonna get a shower… My dad’s picking Gemma up in a few minutes, so if the doorbell rings, it’s him…”

“Yes ma’am.” Mike leans up and playfully bites on my bottom lip, pulling it down a bit. Smirking, I press him back down to the bed and climb over him, before walking to the master bathroom.

“Gemma, I’ll see you for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow night.”

December

“Baby, wake up.” Smiling happily, I crawl over Mike’s legs and rest my chin on his bare chest. I press my lips to one of his tattoos.

Mike groans and pulls his arms out of the covers, before finally opening his eyes. He smiles drowsily and rubs my thighs. “Time?”

“Eight o’clock.”

He nods and sits up, kissing my nose and then my lips. “Merry Christmas, Lana.” Then he looks down and slowly pushes my tank top up, over my tight belly. He runs his skinny fingers over my skin and smiles, pushing his forehead into mine. “And merry Christmas to my baby girl…”

I watch his hands and smile faintly. “I’ve been up since four in the morning.”

“Why?” Mike glances up at me, still curiously moving his hands around.

“Because she was kicking.”

His hands stop moving and he looks at me with wide eyes. “What? Why?” Mike asks nervously.

“The doctor said it’s okay.” I hug one of my arms around his neck, playing with his hair. “Babies typically start moving around six months and I’m almost six months, so…”

“What does it feel like?”

“It doesn’t feel that good.” I laugh quietly and think about it for a few seconds. “Just imagine a baby playing soccer in your belly.”

He scoffs and looks down again, unsure of what to say. “She’s…moving… Holy shit.”

I nod immediately and grin at the nervous, yet excited expression plastered over his face. “She knows her daddy is awake.”

Mike smiles and pushes his face into my shoulder, before sighing calmly. “I love the both of you so much.”

Christmas evening. My aunts and uncles and grandparents are all upstairs, no doubt drinking and arguing politics over dessert. Mike and Vic’s parents are also upstairs. I’m not sure how well they’ve gotten along with my parents so far, but at least they’re here. It’s also the first time most of my family has seen me since last Easter. They of course knew I was expecting, but it’s probably weird to see their twenty-year-old niece or granddaughter with a pregnant stomach.

Most of the younger ones are downstairs. Gemma is playing hide and seek with two of my younger cousins, Taylor and Zayn. Alex is watching a movie with Aiden in the home theatre, no doubt giving him a blowjob as well. My fourteen-year-old cousin, Claire, is sitting silently on a couch, texting. Vic leans against the pool table and sips from his glass of beer, while inspecting his next move.

“Pool is definitely not one of my stronger suits.” He sighs and leans down, aiming for the white ball. “Which sucks, because I’m pretty perfect at everything else.”

“You’re just a sore loser.” Mike smirks and watches as the white ball misses Vic’s intended target. Then he hangs his pool stick up and grabs his beer. “I can’t play you anymore. You fucking suck.”

“Hey.” I glance up from my phone and point to the other room, before going back to the screen. “There’s kids, bigmouth.”

“Yeah! What the hell is wrong with you?” Vic says sarcastically, while running over to hang his pool stick up. “You can’t curse anymore. You’re about to be a father.”

“Fuck, you’re right.” Mike laughs and then covers his mouth, as I glare at him again. “Shit, sorry.”

“It’s a never-ending string of curse words.” Vic sips from his glass again. “What did you get each other for Christmas?”

I set my phone on the bar counter and sigh, looking up at Vic. “Hm. Well, I got Mike, three new pairs of Vans, a pair of Toms, a new phone cover, movies, a watch, tons of clothes, and drum shit.”

“Drum shit?” Mike coughs on his beer and laughs. “How did you get the right shit if you didn’t even know the proper terminology?”

I shrug. “I called Casey.”

His jaw drops slightly. “You’re such a little fucking cheater. I didn’t ask for help on any of your presents!”

“Casey didn’t pay for any of it! He told me what to get and I had to find it, pay for it, and wrap it. He hardly did anything.”

“If you didn’t ask for help, I can’t imagine what you got her, Mike.” Vic pulls a chair out and flops down.

“Well, one thing’s for sure.” I smirk. “He practically bought out Victoria’s Secret.”

“That I did.” Mike grins evilly. “ But, I also got you plenty of clothes, shit for the house, a gift certificate liked you asked, a pillow pet, a necklace, and a new laptop.”

“What kind of gift certificate?” Vic raises an eyebrow.

“Some kind of weird pregnant yoga class.”

I roll my eyes and touch my foot to his leg. “I told you. They’re exercise classes. Plus, I learn about certain things and I think you have to come to a few of them.”

“I’m not doing yoga with pregnant women.”

Vic laughs and rests his head in his hands. “I didn’t think you would do normal yoga, Michael.”

“Well, he is.” I glare at Vic and then turn to Mike. “You have to go to at least one of the classes. It’s not yoga, fuckface. We’ll probably be learning about breathing techniques or something.”

“How exhilarating.” He says in an obnoxiously feminine voice.

I groan, kicking him gently. “Go away...”

“Holy, shit... ” He jumps back, trying to avoid my feet. “Watch where you’re kicking!”

“Oh, please!” I smirk mischievously. “You’re into that kind of thing.”

“I think you’re confusing my fetishes with yours.” My jaw drops and Mike quickly runs around the pool table, snickering. “I’ll be back. I’m going to get some pie.”

“Don’t come back down, pervert!” Sighing quietly, I look back at Vic. “When’s the next show?”

“Um…” Vic unlocks his phone and squints down at the screen. “I know we have one next Tuesday in Los Angeles.”

“Really?” I smile playfully and pull my long hair to one side. “I mean, if I’m still part of the crew, I would love to go along...”

He gasps playfully. “Are you kidding? Of course you are! As long as you don’t start giving birth on the bus…”

January

Mike is downstairs playing away on one of his drum sets. Casey and Jaime are both down there as well, probably lying around on the couches and doing whatever else guys like them do. Most guys would lie around and watch football or a Lakers game, but then there’s my boyfriend, the father of my child, flipping his hair around and wildly banging around on drums. I actually prefer that, because I hate sports. Although, I hope he knows that he can’t play that loud when we first bring home the baby.

I get up from the couch and walk into the kitchen, my right hand cradling my stomach. I’m wearing a pair of yoga pants and one of Mike’s t-shirts. My long hair is in a messy bun on top of my head and I’m only wearing a bit of eye makeup. I’ve been busy all month, trying to plan the baby shower for February 14th. Alex helped me mail the invitations last week and now the RSVP’s are coming in. Emails, phone calls, text messages, everything. Now all I have to do is arrange the catering for almost one hundred and fifty people. Everything is being held at my parent’s house of, because apparently the parents-to-be don’t host the party? Long story short, I’m tired as hell.

Just as I open the dishwasher and start to pull out clean plates, I hear footsteps trotting up the basement stairs. Casey is the first one up. He wanders into the kitchen and flops down on a stool under the island. Jaime is next and he strolls right over to the fridge. Mike shuts the basement door and smiles at me, walking over. He tilts my face up, kissing my lips and then reaches down, pressing his palms to the sides of my belly.

“She’s still kicking.” He smiles and moves his right hand, following the movement.

“I know.” I giggle, watching his hands. “She’s moving like crazy today.”

“How’s Fetus Fuentes?” Jaime closes the fridge and then walks over to the pantry, pulling out a container of chocolate chip cookies. Such a manly snack.

“Fetus Fuentes?” I raise an eyebrow, looking over at him.

“Well, yeah. You guys don’t have a name picked out yet… What else am I supposed to call her?” He pulls the lid off and bites into a cookie.

Mike scoffs and turns around, leaning on the kitchen island. “Lana has four names picked out. Not one, but four.”

“I hope one of them is Casey.” Casey smirks and sets his phone down.

“Ooh, sorry, no.” I smile and go back to putting dishes away. “I have four definite names… But I can’t pick one until I see her.”

“Aw, how cute!” Jaime laughs sarcastically, his mouth still full. “What are the names?”

I open up the silverware drawer and starting setting the clean forks inside. “Isabella Fuentes, Daisy Fuentes, Emma Fuentes, or Ava Fuentes.”

“Ava doesn’t sound right.” Mike’s nose scrunches up and glances back at me. “I’ve told you that like a million times.”

“That’s why I said it last.” I close the drawer and walk over to Jaime, taking a cookie. “Vic came up with Isabella.”

“It reminds me of Twilight.” Casey taps his fingers to the black granite countertop. “Not that it’s bad thing. I love Bella Swan.” Then he stands up and walks to the bathroom.

“Of course you do.” I smile and sit down on his stool.

“So…” After a few minutes of silence, Jaime clears his throat and points to Mike. “He has something to tell you.”

My eyes fall on Mike and I bite down on my bottom lip, leaning forward a bit. Something to tell me? That doesn’t sound good. “What’s up?”

He’s staring back at me, fiddling with the piercing above his top lip. I can’t tell if he’s afraid to tell me or just being an idiot and trying to scare me. “We have five west coast tour dates at the end of March. We’re staying pretty close, but there are shows in Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Reno, and then back in San Diego.”

I sit back and stare up at him, unsure of what to say or how to feel about it. “How late in March?”

“We leave the 24th and get back 31st, so I’ll be gone for about seven days.”

“I’m due April 3rd and you’re just going to up and leave the entire week before?” I laugh incredulously, still staring up at him.

“Lana, I’ve been doing my best trying to get close shows or getting ones that we can drive too, so that you can come along.” He says defensively, his arms raised at his sides.

“Yeah, except for the two weeks in September that you were in Europe and the week and a half in the beginning of December that you were in Canada!” I say angrily.

“This is how I get paid!” He yells and immediately takes a step back, trying to calm down. “This is Jaime and Vic and Tony all get their money too. This is what we do, Lana. We have to travel to play for people.”

“Um, I’d rather not be dragged into this…” Jaime chuckles and takes the container of cookies, walking toward the family room.

Sighing, I rest my head in my heads, rubbing my face gently. “It’s not that I don’t want you to go! It’s just bad timing… I don’t want to be alone that close to my due date.”

“The doctor said that most woman go past their due dates… It’s just a rough estimate, baby...” He walks around the counter and holds my face. “I promise you, I’ll be in that delivery room with you. I don’t care what it takes; I’ll be there. And you can call me whenever you want. I’ll get my mom to stop in and see you everyday. If you need anything at all, she knows what to do. She’s had her fair share of kids.”

I reach up and intertwine my fingers with his, nodding slightly.

Mike smiles a bit and wipes a tear off my cheek. “Don’t cry, baby. There’s no need to be sad... I promise you it’ll be quick. You stay here and hold down the place for me.”