He led her over to the chairs; sitting on one and pulling her on his lap he let her cry till she could no more. When she was done she asked, “Why did you let me get mad like that? Why didn’t you stop me? You know how I get when I’m mad I blurt everything out that’s bugging me.”
When Seth didn’t say anything she looked at him and grimaced, “You let me go so I would tell them.”
“I was hoping you would in your anger. It’s not the way I would have wanted to tell them, but they needed to know. Don’t be mad at me.”
“I’m not I almost told my Mom this morning, until she started harping on me that we spend too much time together and we need a break. She said we were doing too much between practices, school, games, and work. That the weekends we should just relax and not see each other. The running back and forth between here and home is too much. I couldn’t tell her then, I was so mad I walked out and came here to you.”
“Babe I’m sorry this all blew up in our faces, it’s not what I wanted at all. I wanted to be able to sit down with them and tell them calmly, but you didn’t want them to know for months. I want to shout it to the world and I couldn’t. I’m not ashamed of it Lia.”
“I’m not either. I just wanted to finish the football season, so you can get that scholarship and would have my last few games as a cheerleader, but that’s all done for me. I’m fine with it, I guess, but you are not stopping football,” Lia said.
“By the looks on our parents face before I ran after you, I’m dead meat.”
“What’s your uncle doing here?”
“I called him to tell him what’s going on and that if he could he should get up here as soon as he could, because if my Dad was here we’d go at it, if he said the wrong thing to me. By the way Stefan says congratulations.”
“He’s happy for us?”
“I don’t know if he’s happy that it happened now at our ages, but he knows the love we have and knows we can’t exist without each other. We needed someone on our side up here and since Mr. Grayson isn’t family and too old to come up here right away I thought of Uncle Stefan. As you see he dropped everything and came up here.”
“When did you call him?”
“When I was looking for you and then when you went to the bathroom at the diner to tell him I found you and what was going on. We have to go back down there, Lia.”
“I don’t want to maybe in a few days,” she said.
“Where are you going to go for a few days? We have to face this now,” he said.
“I know I just don’t want to.”
“I’ll be there and no one will hurt you. If we have to I’ll ask Mr. Grayson if we both can move there.”
“I don’t think my parents will allow that. They’ll cause all kinds of trouble for Jerry.”
“You forget he’s a lawyer and he’ll help us, I know he will. Come on we have to go back down and listen to their yelling and screaming, then we’ll make our own decisions. We’ll tell them what our plans are for right now.”
Seth set her on her feet and stood up. He held on to her as she swayed, “Don’t faint on me now.”
“I won’t, but I’m exhausted. I want to lie down and rest.”
“You will once we get this over with.”
When they went back into the apartment no one heard them come in as everyone was yelling at each other, blame each other for this. Stefan saw them come in and walked over to them. “Lia are you alright you don’t look to good?”
“I’m fine.”
“No she’s not and I don’t know how much more she can take, uncle. We have to face this, but it can’t drag on long,” Seth whispered.
“Let’s get you comfortable, Lia and then we’ll discuss this rationally,” Stefan said loudly and looked at their parents with a pointed look. They quieted down as Lia sat on the sofa with Seth attached to her. He held on to her and tucked her under him so no one could get near her.
“How could you let this happen?” her mom asked.
“Yeah mom I set out for this to happen. Just what I need is to be pregnant with my fiancé living in New York and me in PA. No one set out for this to happen it just did.”
“So is that why you got engaged to her?” his Dad asked.
“No, Dad we just found out last weekend,” Seth said.
“And when were you going to tell us?” her Mom asked.
“She didn’t want to tell you till after the football season was over. So I could stay here and see if I can get a scholarship,” Seth stared to explain.
“You days of college are over,” Mr. Lombardi said. “You’ll have to get a job to support her and the baby.”
“Dad,” Lia started but was cut off.
“Who said she’s having it,” Mrs. Rossetti said.
Both of her parents said at once, “Of course she’s having it.”
“I think you all need to calm down and listen to the two of them,” Stephan said. “Let’s hear what they have to say. It’s their lives so they get to make the decisions.”
“Thanks Uncle Stephan, I know you are all upset with what Lia did today, but you have to realize the stress she’s be under the past month. What you did to us Dad was bullshit, everyone who knows us, knows we can’t be away from each other. We have grown up all our lives revolving around each other, as you all said a million times, while we were growing up. You cannot expect us to be apart now. So I’m telling you all right now, after football season I’m moving back home! I’ll live with Mr. Grayson and this was decided between me and Lia before we found out she was pregnant. We will not be apart anymore!” Seth said.
“Seth is going to try to get a scholarship for football, in fact, Jerry, Mr. Grayson, has a contact at ESU in the athletic department to see if he can get one there. He can commute for practices, games, and classes. He’s going to study for a degree in business so he can start his own garage once he’s finished. While he’s going to school, he’s going to get a job at a garage so he has that experience under his belt and try to get regular customers so that when he open’s the garage he’ll already have people who know his work. It’s going to be hard and stressful on him so all the help we can get will be great,” Lia continued.
“As for me I will finish high school and then go to college also. I’ll keep my job that I have now and will work as much as I can until the baby comes, and then go back after. I have to quit cheerleading as they won’t allow me to continue so that will leave me more time to work. Don’t worry my school work will not suffer. The baby will probably be due in the summer, end of June beginning of July so I won’t miss any school for that,” she concluded.
“Well you two do have a plan I give you that,” Mr. Rossetti said. “The one thing you left out was when are you getting married?”
“Not until Lia graduates high school. I want her to have the wedding she always wanted. We won’t have a hurried justice of the peace wedding,” Seth replied.
“You want the baby born out of wedlock,” her mom said.
“Mom it’s no big deal anymore. Seth and I will be together forever so a few months won’t matter,” Lia said.
“You don’t know the stress involved in having a child. The stress college entails and while the scholarship for Seth sounds good how’s he going to do the practices and games and work,” his dad asked.
“I do it now with going to school for eight hours, in college it won’t be in classes that long and I’ll schedule my classes around everything else. That’s if I get a scholarship great, if not I won’t have football to worry about. Then it leaves me more time to work, but like Lia said we’ll need help, and we’re asking you for that help. If you don’t want to give it then fine we’ll work something else out.”
“No one said you wouldn’t get help, we just want you to know the huge responsibility a baby is,” her mom said.
“We know and we have talked about all of it. For now we are going to bank a lot of our money, except for the thin
gs we need to get for the baby. I’ll finish football, since Lia wants me too, but I won’t be doing any other sport this year I’m going to find a job at a garage so I can start using what I learned in tech and get the experience for my own garage,” Seth said.
“We’ll help as much as we can, Lia, but it’s mostly yours and Seth’s responsibility to raise this child,” her mom said.
“I know that Mom, we will do most of it, the only problem we might face is some babysitting at night when we have to work,” she said tiredly.
“What about when you go back to school next year?” her mom said.
“We’ll worry about that when the time comes. Let’s see what Seth’s schedule is for classes. I can’t stress over that right now,” Lia said.
“When we go home we’ll make an appointment for the doctor. I have to call the insurance to see if they will pay for this pregnancy. If not who’s going to pay for it?” her mom asked.
“We’ll have to if it’s not covered,” Seth said. “We’re not leaving you guys with any of the financial responsibility.”
“If they don’t cover it you can probably get medical assistance to help,” Stefan said. “If not then I’ll pay for it. You guys will have enough to worry about without that hanging over your heads.”
“No I don’t want you to pay for it, Uncle Stefan,” Seth said.
“Do you know what it costs to have a kid these days?” his uncle said.
“Not the exact figure, but it’s my responsibility,” Seth said.
“Look, find out if the insurance will cover Lia’s pregnancy, if not try for medical assistance, if that doesn’t work we’ll discuss a repayment of the money I loan you. No arguing about it, understood?”
“We’ll discuss this more later. Lia needs to lay down the stress of today is too much,” Seth said. Helping her up from the couch he led her into his bedroom. From his door he said, “Uncle Stephan, before you go let me know.”
“I will,” Stephan said.
Lia went to the bed and collapsed on it, “God that was stressful, at least we had a plan for them. They don’t seem too mad, upset yeah, but not angry. The thing that worries me is your parents were real quite through it all.”
“I think that’s because Stephan told them to knock it off, or it would have been a disaster. I’m glad your parents didn’t blame me for it alone. That helped my Dad keep his cool too. He’s always talking how your Dad treated me for the last two years. He hated it, but at least now he sees it’s not like it used to be.”
“I hated it too Seth,” Lia said sleepily.
“Come on take a nap, and when you get up we’ll go out to eat or something,” he said.
“I don’t want to go anywhere, can we just eat here?”
“Yeah we’ll see how you feel once you get up,” he said lying down next to her and pulled her next to him so she could relax. He made sure he was on the side of bed by the door so no one disturbed her.
Chapter 31
Seth watched Lia sleep; he put his hand on her stomach, hoping everything would be alright. He knew he should go out and let her sleep, but he didn’t want to leave her. He laid there on the bed and thought about everything that has happened to them through the years. He couldn’t remember a time they weren’t together, even when he tried to break it off with her last year, they were still connected and he thought about her the whole time.
Her being pregnant was going to change their lives drastically, but he was determined to make it work out for them. He was surprised her parents didn’t flip out, but he knew his were going to the minute everyone left. He wanted to do what was right for the both of them, but if his parents gave him too much flack he was going to move back home sooner.
Since moving to New York his relationship with his Dad and deteriorated to the point he couldn’t stand him anymore and the fact that he tried to break them up really pissed him off. The more he thought about it the madder he got. He had to change his train of thought or he’d go out there and lay into his Dad about everything. He only had a few more weeks up here, and he would stick it out, for Lia’s and the baby’s sake. He figured he wouldn’t be here much anyway, between school and working so he wouldn’t have to see his Dad much.
He looked back down at Lia and knew she was in a deep sleep. He slid off the bed as to not wake her and went out into the kitchen. He heard that his uncle was still here as well as Lia’s parents, he didn’t want to face any of them now, but he knew he better. They would have a different attitude toward him than Lia, and he might as well face up to it now while she was still sleeping.
He got something to drink and went into the living room; everyone stopped talking when he came in. “Don’t stop talking on my account; since you’re talking about me anyway you might as well as it to my face.”
“How could you get her pregnant?” his mom asked.
“Uh, it’s called sex, Mom,” Seth said sarcastically.
“Don’t be a wise ass. You perfectly well what your mother meant,” his dad said his anger just under the boiling point.
“Look we didn’t set out to do this. When I told her we were moving she was really freaked out.” Seth started to explain.
“So you’re going to blame her,” Mr. Lombardi said.
“No let me finish. When I told her I had to move she was hysterical, crying, hyperventilating and everything, I was trying to calm her down. The next thing I knew we were making love, it was the first time. We didn’t plan it, we didn’t set out for it to happen it just did,” Seth said. “So if you really want to place blame if you have to, it was your fault, Dad, if you didn’t force me to move here it probably wouldn’t have happened. We both were not thinking straight and were devastated by being torn apart, but I’m not blaming anyone. It was our responsibility, both of ours and we blew it. I get that, now we have to deal with the whole mess, and we will the best way we can,” he said turning towards Lia’s parents. “I will do everything thing I can for her, I won’t leave it all on her, even though it might seem like that at times. I’ll have to work a hell of a lot to get everything we’ll need, finish high school and get into college.”
“We know that you’ll do your best for her, but will it be enough?” Mr. Lombardi asked. “I know you love my daughter; I see it every time you two are together. I’m just worried that with all the stress it’ll destroy both of you. It’s hard raising a child when your adults, let alone you two being kids yourself. Your wild Seth, you do want you want when you want and don’t think of the consequences.”
“I won’t let her down; I’ll be there for her every step of the way. I’m not saying we have any idea how hard it’s really going to be, because we don’t. That’s why Lia said we would need help. We both know it’s going to be extremely hard on us, but she can’t be under any more stress. I won’t have anyone putting any more stress on her. She’s been throwing up since right before I left almost every day, and I don’t think it was morning sickness in the beginning, it probably is now, but not back then.”
“So she was throwing up this morning in the bathroom. That’s why she avoided my question this morning when I asked her, and why she got so upset when I told her both of you need a break and not to see each other every weekend. I didn’t mean for you to stop seeing each other, but I wanted her to stop putting pressure on the both of you to figure out ways to see each other. You both have very hectic schedules and I know my daughter and how she is with you. She’s obsessed with you and she can get out of hand with it. She took what I said the wrong way, and I freaked when I didn’t know where she was. I have to apologize to her when she wakes up,” Mrs. Lombardi said.
“You knew where she was going, deep down. That’s why you had Cris call me,” Seth said.
“I didn’t have Cris call you. He called you right away when he didn’t see her at school. Cris didn’t call me at all, the school called to see if I forgot to call her off. I called Cris to see where she was and
he told me he didn’t know and that you didn’t know since he called you already. That’s when I panicked; she stormed out of the house and walked to school. I thought that she might have been in an accident or something. I didn’t think right away that she would come here. Now knowing what the both of you were dealing with it was logical that she came here.”
“Mom I’m sorry I worried you, I wasn’t thinking. I just needed Seth,” Lia said walking into the room munching on crackers.
“I’m sorry too, I was so scared and when I knew you were alright I wanted to punish you for putting me through all that,” her mom said.
“So I can still see Seth?” Lia asked laughing.
“Yeah like anyone of us will stop you two,” her mom said.
Seth looked at his Dad and said, “Say what’s on your mind, you’ve been too quiet and I know you’ll blow up later so you might as well do it now.”
“Is that what you really think? That I’m going to blow up. What can I say? That I’m disappointed in you… in both of you… because I am. We probably all are. I wanted a different life for you, one where you went to college then got married and had kids, not have a kid and then go to college, then get married. I’m mad and seriously disappointed,” he said and then walked out of the apartment.
“And you Mom, do you feel the same way?” he asked.
“I’m upset yes, and I wanted the same thing you father did, but I’m always going to be there for you, Lia and the baby. Give your Dad a little time to deal with this. He wanted a different life for us and he was hoping it would be up here.”
“Mom this is for you and him not me, my life is back home. I know all this is hard for you, but I’ll be eighteen in a week and I have to be where Lia is,” he said. “Uncle Stephan can you go look for my Dad, I don’t think he should be alone?”
“Yeah I was thinking the same thing,” Stephan said.