Blooming

“You did?! Where?!” I shouted, jumping up to hug him as fast as I could.
Which, considering my state of pregnancy, was not very quick.
“Riley’s mom got us a little house just down the road!” he exclaimed.
I almost fainted.
Darren still didn’t know about Lucy and Riley. In fact, Riley and I hadn’t even spoken since Lucy had told me the news. We seemed to be avoiding each other at all costs.
I turned my attention to Lucy and gave her a quizzical look. She responded with the same one.
“What?” I asked. Surely I hadn’t heard right.
“Well you know how his mom’s a realtor, right?” he said, still grinning from ear to ear. “She got us this great deal on this little house down the road! You have to see it, Sav, it’s perfect.”
By now, he had my hands in his, swaying them from side to side. I had almost never seen him this happy.
I thought back to the beginning of my pregnancy and how Darren had fainted when I told him that faithful day in the gym. I remembered how he later proposed and was heartbroken when I said no. But he was still there for this baby, his baby. Our baby. Even when I chose Riley he stood by us and loved us, even if it was from afar.
And now he was ready, I was sure. He was ready to bring anther life into this world. He might’ve been just shy of eighteen years old but I knew the person in front of me had gone from a boy to a man in a matter of only seven short months. Darren was exactly the rock I needed to get through this.
“Let’s go see it.” I said, throwing a smile his way. And with that, we walked out the door and to his car, Lucy following behind us.
* * * *
It was beautiful.
We stood in front of the small, two bed room, one story house in complete awe. The siding was a soft shade of beige with dark red shutters on each of the windows and a large mahogany door. The porch, made of beautifully primed wood, extended the full length of the front of the tiny house and the yard wrapped around at equal lengths throughout each side of our possible home.
Inside, held a master bedroom and anther small one just on the other side of the hallway. The kitchen contained enough space to fit our cooking demands and the living room, painted a calming tan color, held a small fireplace.
The price was almost exactly what Darren and I were willing to pay and although it was slightly over, we knew this house was worth it.
It was perfect.
When we walked outside, Darren and I found Mrs. Patterson waiting for us. I couldn’t believe that I’d forgotten she was in real estate.
She greeted us with a welcoming smile, in which I could see Riley’s facial features in.
“How do you like it?” she asked me.
I turned around to take it all in once more.
“It’s....” I searched for the right word. “Perfect. Thank you.”
“I pulled a few strings, but it’s Riley you should really thank. The owners just moved out this past weekend and Riley did everything he could to convince them to lower their price.” she said. “He really strikes a chord with people.”
I looked over to where Mrs. Patterson had turned her attention to find Riley and Lucy talking a few feet away. Just then, he looked over at me with an awkward smile.
I released Darren’s hand and made my way over to him. With each step I took, Lucy inched away, knowing that I needed a minute alone with him.
When I finally reached him, I couldn’t speak.
“I-I....”
Tears welled up my eyes making him appear to be no more than a blur.
“Don’t say anything,” he said simply and pulled me into his embrace.
For a while, we stayed like this, frozen in time. We swayed from side to side as I tried my hardest to keep from completely loosing it.
Just then, I felt a little kick on the right side of my stomach. When Riley looked up I knew he’d felt it too. It was the little munchkin inside me and in his own way, I think he was thanking Riley as well.