radicalducati 125. Support System
125. Support System
EMMA's POV :
"Ian...?" my voice was coarse and weak.
"I'm here," Ian's voice cooed in my ear. Slowly, my eyes fluttered open and I saw his face staring right at me. He gave me a small smile and his hand gently squeezed mine. "I'm here, baby girl,"
"What happened to me?" I tried to move my head, but it was too heavy. So I just groaned softly and stayed in place.
"You fainted and you were asleep for a while. The doctor said it's good for you to rest," Ian sat next to my pillow and leaned down to kiss the top of my head. "How do you feel?"
"Better..." I smiled weakly. "Wait, the doctor?"
I didn't remember seeing a doctor. The last thing I remembered was falling into Teresa's lap. Looking out the window, I realized that it was already sundown. I must have slept through the day.
"What time is it?" I asked again.
"It's a little over 8 PM,"
"8 PM?" I gaped and groaned. "I still haven't finished packing, I need to..."
I tried moving from the bed, but Ian gripped my arms tightly and said, "Emma, stop. Listen, I have to tell you something," His tone was stern and serious. That scared me a little.
"What is it?" I asked him.
Ian took a deep breath and let out a sigh. Taking my hand in his, he laced our fingers together and caressed my skin gently with his thumb. Swallowing hard, he looked at me with those piercing brown eyes and said, "Emma... you're pregnant. You're five weeks pregnant,"
"...What?"
"The doctor did some tests. Apparently, you fainted because of the hormones released during pregnancy,"
"I... I... what?"
My mind went completely blank. My jaw fell open and my eyes were as wide as saucers. I heard what he said loud and clear, but I couldn't wrap my mind around believing it.
Is this real? Is this true?
As if he could read my mind, Ian wrapped my head in his arms and said, "I know. I can't believe it too at first, but it's true... I saw the results..."
"I'm... pregnant...?" my voice came out in a breathless whisper.
"Yes, love," he whispered to my ear. "We're pregnant,"
We're pregnant...? Ian and I are pregnant? How...? Well, I mean, I know how. We were having sex a lot in Italy and... oh, that's right, I wasn't on the pill... We wanted to start trying after the wedding... I just don't think it was gonna happen this fast...
"We're pregnant..." I repeated the words out loud.
Oh, shit. We really are pregnant. Oh, my God. What does this mean for us? What are we gonna do!?
"Oh my God... we're really pregnant," I found myself muttering out loud. "Oh my God... oh my God!"
"It's okay, baby, it's okay..." Ian held onto me and cooed into my ear, stopping me from hyperventilating.
Placing my hand on his chest, I gripped into his shirt and looked up at him in horror, "Ian, I'm freaking out..."
"Breathe, relax," he said softly and stroked my hair gently, "Don't worry, baby, I freaked out too at first..."
"But... what? How-I mean, what are we gonna do?" I stammered, trying my hardest to breathe normally but it was getting difficult. "I mean, I'm supposed to go back tomorrow and oh my God I can't breathe-"
"Breathe, baby. Take it easy," he said with his hand cupping my cheek. He took long deep breaths and waited for me to follow after him. I tried my best to take long deep breaths, but mine was short and sharp.
Ian held onto me tightly and rocked me gently back and forth. He kept drawing deep breaths with me and whispered calming words into my ear, "It's okay. We still have time. Just rest. Don't think about it for now. We'll figure it out. Just relax,"
"Ian..."
"It's okay, baby girl. It's gonna be okay,"
My mind was racing so fast, I had to pull the brake and stopped everything just so I could breathe. I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing. Ian kept his arms around me and his comforting words lulled me into peace. And that was the last thing I remembered before falling back asleep.
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IAN's POV :
Emma looked exhausted. She didn't even stir when I peeled away and let her sleep some more. She was out cold. The doctor did give her something to make sure she was resting, so maybe that was that.
Anyway, to say that she was shocked by the news was an understatement. She completely freaked out. I didn't blame her though, none of us expected this was gonna happen so fast. And what timing too, finding out she was pregnant the day she was supposed to leave.
I had been sitting on the chair and watching Emma sleep for a few hours now. It was past midnight, but I wasn't in the mood for sleep. My head was filled with all sorts of thoughts and emotions, I didn't know where to start or how to sort them out.
Getting up from my chair, I started pacing back and forth in the room, but that wasn't helping me feel any less anxious. I was afraid that my loud sighing and groaning was gonna wake Emma up, so I decided to head out for a bit to clear my head. I was standing and pacing aimlessly out in the garden, when I heard a voice coming from behind me.
"Can't sleep?" Sergio asked.
I let out a sigh and shook my head at him. "No,"
"You heard some big news today," he said as he stood next to me. We weren't looking at each other. Our eyes were fixed on the dark horizon in front of us. "How are you feeling?"
"Confused as hell," I admitted. "And scared shitless,"
"I know what you mean," he let out a soft chuckle. "I was probably around your age when I first found out Teresa was pregnant,"
"How'd you take it?" I turned to him to study his face.
"I freaked out like a crazy lunatic, naturally," he laughed. "And let me tell you, it didn't get better with baby number two, three, and four,"
That got me to smile a little. Imagining a guy like Sergio Rossi freaking out was something I couldn't fathom. He always looked so calm, like he had everything under control. This made him a little more... human.
"You want to know a little secret?" he asked me. I nodded my head and waited for him to continue. "I don't think a man truly knows what love is until they held a child in their hand,"
"Really?"
"Oh, yes," he nodded his head vigorously. "And anyone that tells you fatherhood is the greatest thing that can happen to you in life, they are underselling it,"
Our eyes met for a split second and we smiled. I nodded my head at the intriguing point that he made. Being a father must be such an amazing experience that someone like Sergio Rossi held it so highly. He was an accomplished artist, probably the best in the world. But despite all that, he claimed fatherhood as being the greatest thing that has ever happened to him.
Let's get one thing straight, was I happy to know that Emma got pregnant? Of course, I was. I knew for a fact that I want a family with her in the future, but I was never certain of the how and when. Now that everything was happening so fast, I was blindsided. The confusion and anxiety sort of took over the joy and happiness. That didn't mean I wasn't happy, I was just...
"I'm scared, Sergio," I admitted. My voice trembled a little, involuntarily. "What if I'm not good enough to be one?"
"No one is ever good enough," he stated matter-of-factly. "But all we can do is try,"
That was really good advice. It kinda broke my heart a little to know that I would never be ready, but it was realistic. All I can do is be there every day and try. And maybe that's enough.
"What's it like, being a father?" I asked him after a while of silence. "Mine died when I was a teenager... I never really got a chance to ask him,"
The biggest smile appeared on Sergio's face as he looked out into the horizon and started to speak, "Everyone's experience is different, of course. But for me, I think that the days are long, but the years are short. So when you get a chance, just enjoy the moments that make up each day. Yes, sometimes you will be exhausted, other times you might even think you've made a big mistake. But try to take pleasure in watching them grow and become a real person. See the little moments and watch how their personalities develop. Just keep being there and watching over them. And suddenly you'll realize that they are moving out. Trust me that the years will fly. And someday you will look back and smile like I'm smiling now,"
Sergio stopped talking for a moment as his eyes began to glisten. Turning his face to me, he put a hand on my shoulder and said, "And maybe, just maybe, someday you will stand in this spot and your own son will ask you the same question you're asking me now,"
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EMMA's POV :
When I opened my eyes next, I saw the sunlight streaming in from the window. I glanced over at the clock and saw that it was a little over 7 AM. My flight today was in the afternoon, so I could still make it I wanted to.
But... do I still want to? Can I survive this without Ian next to me for the next two months?
I was still lost in my thoughts when I saw Ian coming into the room. He looked tired, like he hadn't been sleeping all night. He brought a tray of breakfast food in his hand and he smiled softly as our eyes met.
"Good morning, baby girl," he placed the tray on the bedside table next to me. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he took my hand and caressed it softly with his thumb. "How are you feeling?"
"I feel much better..." my eyes darted around the room as I noticed something was off. The room looked a lot cleaner than it normally would. All of my stuff was gone, and so was Ian's. And on the corner of the room, there stood three large suitcases, Ian's and mine. Narrowing my eyes at him, I asked, "Wait, what happened here?"
"Emma, I've been thinking about it and I've decided..." he paused for a moment before giving me the biggest and warmest smile, saying, "Let's go be a family. Let's go home. Together,"
"What...?" I gaped at him.
"I'm coming back to New York City with you," he stated.
My jaw fell open, but no words were coming out. I was floored. I didn't know how to react.
Ian reached out and gripped the side of my face firmly as he said, "I know this is scary. I know you're scared and I'm scared too, but I wanna be scared with you. Because even being scared with you is better than being brave on my own,"
"But... what about the teaching fellowship?" I spoke finally, shaking my head from side to side. "You can't leave it. It's your dream,"
"No," he cut me off sternly. His hand went to touch my stomach and suddenly I felt a flutter there. I looked up to see his warm brown eyes boring deeply into mine. "This is my dream now and you're giving it to me,"
"Ian..."
He leaned down and pressed his forehead against mine. Letting out a soft sigh, he murmured, "I love you so much, baby girl. Thank you for making all my dreams come true,"
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. My heart swelled like never before. Tears pooled around my eyes and they trickled down my cheeks involuntarily. Ian caught the tears that fell with his thumb and wiped them gently off my face. That only made me burst harder into tears. I snuggled deep into his chest and he wrapped me in his arms, securing me tightly.
"Are you sure you want...?" I asked cautiously in between sobs. "If you want to stay, I understand..."
Tilting my chin up so I could see his face, he shook his head and said, "No, baby girl, I wanna be where you are. I wanna be with my family. I've never been more sure about anything else before,"
With one hand holding onto my chin, he leaned down and planted a tender kiss on my lips. He then pulled away slightly and whispered, "La famiglia è la patria del cuore. Family is where the heart is,"
Ian then leaned further down and kissed the top of my stomach. Suddenly, I was hit with a warm feeling that I had never felt before. My heart was overflowing with a feeling of pure loving and euphoric bliss, and it was indescribable to explain in words.
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- - - - - To Be Continued - - - - -