If your heart stops beating

~*Frank’s Point of view*~

Jamia looked up from the stove as the phone rang.
“Shit. Alec, can you get that?”
“Sure.”
He jumped up and ran out into the hall. Ten seconds later he stuck his head around the door.
“Frank, it’s for you.”
I groaned and got up, wandering out into the hall and picking up the phone.
“Hello.”
“Frank?”
“Yeah.”
“Hi.”
“Hi Bob.”
“Guess what?”
“What?”
“What day is it?”
“Um... it’s New Year’s Eve.”
“Yeah... What else?”
“It’s the last day of the year.”
“Aaaand?”
“Uh... Tomorrow is the first of January.”
An impatient noise came down the line.
“I’m joking, I’m joking. Happy Birthday, Bob.”
“Thank you.”
“What’d you get?”
“Not much. Just cards. And Mikey gave me 50 cents.”
“Aw that was nice of him.”
“It was, wasn’t it?”
“Ha ha, poor you.”
He sighed. Alec stuck his head around the door, an amused expression on his face.
“Jamia says dinner’s ready and to get your fucking ass in here.”
He grinned.
“Are pregnant women always this angry?”
I nodded.
“Hey Bob, I have to go. My wife will flay me alive if I’m not at the table in five seconds.”
He sighed.
“Okay. Bye.”
“Happy Birthday.”
I put the phone down and went back into the kitchen.
“Looks good.”
“No it doesn’t. It looks like crap. I can’t cook.”
“It does not look like crap. You cook a damn sight better than I can. You’re hormonal. Sit, girl, sit.”
She waved a spoon threateningly at me and I shrank back into my seat, laughing.
“Come on, sweetie, sit down. It looks good, and I’m pretty sure it tastes good too.”
She sat down carefully and Alec took the spoon off her.
“I’ll dish up. You cooked.”
She smiled.
“Thanks Alec.”
“Oh, so you smile for the kid but not for your husband? That’s good to know, I knew I married you for a reason.”
She turned and grinned widely at me.
“Thank you. That’s all I ask. All I need is one of your smiles every day and I’ll be okay for the rest of my life.”
“Har har, flattery will get you nowhere.”
“No, I’m serious. To me, the world revolves around you.”
She smiled and we began eating.
It took me a moment to notice something was wrong. After about 30 seconds of silence, Alec dropped his fork back onto his plate and put his head in his hands.
“Alec, what’s wrong?”
Jamia stood up and put her arms around him.
“Are you okay? Talk to me, Alec.”
He pushed her away and bent over so his head was on his knees, his arms wrapped around his head. Muffled noises drifted up to us and I knelt down beside him.
“Alec?”
He turned his head slightly towards me.
“It’s what he always said.”
“What’s what who always said?”
“My dad... he always said that, to him, the world revolved around my mum. I had forgotten that... It was back when he still loved her.”
He straightened up enough that I could hug him.
“Oh, Alec... I’m sorry.”
He shook his head.
“I’m so stupid. I don’t know why that affected me now. I guess... I guess after they split up I associated it with a marriage going down the drain.”
“Alec, it’s fine. People make all kinds of mental associations that don’t make sense to other people.”
He lifted his head slightly and looked at me.
“You guys aren’t going to split up, are you?”
“Oh, no, of course not. We’re in love. We’re going to grow old together.”
He smiled.
“Okay.”
I hugged him again and then let go to return to my seat.
“You’ll be fine. Jamia’s a nice motherly soul, tell all your problems to her.”
Jamia glared at me.
“And who do I tell my problems to?”
“Santa.”
Alec laughed.
“Tell it to your diary. Isn’t that what girls do?”
Jamia sighed.
“I suppose it is.”
She pointed with her fork at Alec’s plate.
“Eat your spaghetti before it gets cold.”

**Author's Note: Aw, sad memories. Yeah, it's filler-ish. I'm getting to the point, I promise. Don't worry, for those of you who think it's going a bit flat, something exciting will happen in the next six months. Trust me.**