Love Was Easy When We Didn't Make It So Hard

"Eric!" I screamed from the walk in closet of our new condo in Chicago. It was in the same building our previous apartment and looked much the same, just with two added bedrooms plus a much bigger living area along with a larger master suite.

"Baby?" Eric called as he hustled into the room, gripping the door jam of the closet to stop his momentum from throwing him to the cream carpet below. He took note of the tears streaming down my cheeks along with the puffiness of my eyes, telling him I had been crying for a few moments. The tip of my nose was red as well. Eric reached out for me, gathering me into his arms and gently rocking me from side to side. "What in the world is wrong?" He asked gently, his fingers ghosting over my bare back.

"M-m-m." I tried to tell him the reason for my tears, but sobs were ripping at my throat when I attempted to speak, so I knew it was useless to talk until my tears had subsided. Eric didn't push me, he just rocked me back and forth, even if staying here with me meant that he was going to miss his pre-practice work out.

"Baby." Eric murmured a few minutes later, pulling me away from his chest so he could wipe the tears away. "What has you so upset?" His brown eyes were filled with concern as he kept his large hands pressing softly into my cheeks.

"M-my jeans won't b-b-button." I told him, pointing to the denim that had refused to fasten after I had wrestled with them for a good ten minutes. I had gotten the button through the hole and had smiled in victory before the denim popped back open again. I had turned to look at the mirror and had noticed that my baby bump was now extending too far out for my jeans to accommodate. The worst part was when I thought I could just put my fat jeans on instead. I had started to look for them and then I realized, I was wearing them. Then the tears had started to pour down.

"Riley, baby, we talked about this. You have to gain weight for the baby. Gaining weight means you can't wear those jeans anymore." He stated slowly, watching my face for my reaction.

"You don't understand." I wailed to him, slapping his chest. "You are standing here with your stupid six pack and your stupid, nice fitting jeans. While I can't even squeeze my fat ass into my fat jeans!" I screeched at him, pushing him out of the way and walking into the bedroom. Gabby was laying casually on the bed as I threw myself onto the mattress. I stared up at the while ceiling as tears slipping from the corners of my eyes. I hated this part.

"Ry." Eric whispered quietly a few moments after he joined me on the bed. "I know it is hard, but it is part of the deal. Think about the baby, and how he or she is developing." He sighed when he noticed I wasn't buying it. "What do you want me to say? Just tell me what to do to make it better." He whispered quietly. "I just want you to be happy."

"I want my body back." I sobbed as he pulled me into his chest. I looked down at the jeans that still weren't buttoned and began to cry harder.

"I can't do that for you, but I can assure you that you are still the most beautiful, sexiest, woman I have ever laid eyes on." Eric murmured against the top of my head. "No one compares. I don't care what size your jeans are, what you can and can't fit into, or how much you weigh. Because you will always be beautiful to me." He kissed the top of my head before tilting my face to kiss my forehead. "You're even beautiful when you have snot dripping down from your nose." He teased me. I swiped the back of my hand under my nose and realized he was joking. I slapped at his chest before my lips broke out into a grin.

"You butthead." I insisted, rolling over to straddle his lap. His large paws held onto my hips before his fingers moved to the zipper of my ill-fitting jeans. I sighed as he unzipped it before he began tugging on the belt loops. I wiggled around with him as he pulled the denim off my body, leaving me in my panties and bra, baby bump still exposed to him. He pressed back on my shoulders and switched so he was looking down at me.

"Hello." He murmured to the baby, pressing his lips to the bump that was still relatively small. I tried to think of Kara and how long it had taken here to get from this size to relatively big. I cringed when I realized it hadn't taken too much time. I wrinkled my nose as Eric's prickly stubble brushed against the sensitive skin of my stomach. I tugged at his long hair, making him pull away and roll his eyes. I watched him glance at the clock before he sighed, looking back down at me.

"You'll be okay if I leave?" He asked me, leaning down to press a kiss against my lips.

"Yes." I assured him, looping my arms around his neck. He smiled softly at me, eyelashes fluttering as I gently pulled at the hairs at the base of his neck.

"Alright. I'll be back in time for baby's appointment." He winked at me as he climbed off the bed, pulling me up. "And put some clothes on, woman. The only time you're allowed to wear that little clothing is when I'm stripping you down." He told me as he exited the room. I rolled my eyes and walked to the closet, calling out to him.

"Technically you did strip me down, Mr. Decker." I watched him pop back in with a large grin.

"You're right." He laughed loudly before he slapped my ass loudly and headed off to practice. I shook my head at his silliness before looking in my closet for something to wear. Anything that buttoned was out of the question until I could call my mom for a solution. I fingered the pants I had, opting for a pair of purple PINK pants along with a plain white t-shirt and the matching purple sweatshirt. I snuggled into my sweats, enjoying the feel of their smoothness against my skin.

I fed Gabby, took her for a short walk, and grabbed a smoothie from Jamba Juice all before Eric was back from practice. I spent the last half hour he was gone talking to Jake. He was still having a difficult time digesting the fact that I was pregnant since it was such a weird way for him to see me. I was still his baby sister, the one he held hands with at the mall and helped with her math homework. But sometimes Jake needed reminding that I didn't need him to beat up anyone who was mean to me anymore. Sometimes he needed me to tell him that I was a lady, I was married, and I was going to be a mother.

"How is Holly?" I asked Jake as I spread some peanut butter on a piece of toast.

"She's good. Gracie is starting to become quite the handful. She runs away when she needs to be changed, take a bath, go in the car, go to bed- you name it, she doesn't want to do it. I don't know how she is so stubborn." He sighed.

"Really? You have no idea which parent she got that from?" I chuckled, taking a sip of water.

"Nope."

"Well, Jacob, ignorance is truly bliss." I chuckled as Jake laughed.

"How are you is the real question." Jake switched the topic like he usually did. He always wanted to know what I was up to and how I was feeling. I rolled my eyes and glanced at Gabby who was sleeping by the door, waiting for Eric to walk in.

"I'm alright. I can't fit into any of my jeans now, but I guess that is a good thing. We have another doctor appointment today and we're hoping to find out if we're having a boy or a girl."

"Oh really? You guys want to know, huh? I always picked you as the waiting until birth kinda people." Jake told me, the sound of crunching heard.

"No, I can't wait that long." I told him with a laugh. "You know how impatient I am with exciting things like this."

"Yeah, I guess a baby is pretty exciting." He let out a low laugh before he sucked in a breath. "Gracie! No! Do not touch that!" A loud crash was heard next before a few choice words flew loudly from Jake's mouth.

"You should be careful or her first word is going to be fuck." I told him with a laugh.

"And if that happens, I'll find a way to blame it on David." We both laughed before I let him go to tend to the mess Gracie had created.

Eric walked through the door two minutes later, tossing his bag onto the couch before collapsing next to me. He looked so tired since he was training hard for the beginning of the season. He was hopeful that this was the year the Bears actually made something of their team. I was hoping for that as well, even if the baby was due January 17th, which would be during the NFL playoffs.

"How was practice?" I asked him as he laid his head against my shoulder.

"It was fine. I felt really good out there. I think the offense is starting to click and I'm hoping that shows in the pre-season games." He mumbled.

"That's good." I mused to him, running my fingers through his hair. I glanced at the clock, sighing and patting his head. "Eric, we have to go." I told him, speaking of the doctor appointment. Since my primary doctor was in Minnesota, she was able to refer me to a temporary doctor in Chicago that I could see on a more regular basis. The two offices were like sister companies and I was confident that I would like this new doctor as much as the one in Minnesota.

We arrived at the office within twenty minutes, both of us walking in as I grabbed the forms to fill out. I wrote down my information and then grabbed the insurance card from Eric before handing it back to the front desk lady. When I walked back, I noticed Eric was looking at all the babies and severely pregnant women. His eyes were wide as he looked at a baby that wasn't particularly cute.

"So, I was wondering..." He started once I sat down, leaning in close to whisper in my ear. "If our kid looks like a devil, can we let the doctor keep it and demand a different baby?"

"Eric." I hissed at him, giving him a look that it wasn't funny and that our baby wasn't going to looking like the baby across the way. He rolled his eyes at my lack of amusement before looking around the room again. I followed his eyes, landing on a women who looked to be just at 40 weeks. She couldn't get comfortable and her husband was trying to help her get situated.

"How much you want to bet she is going right to the hospital?" Eric asked me. I just shrugged figuring that she probably would since she looked far enough along that they would induce her. "Oh! Look at that angel." He pointed to an adorable baby girl, just a few weeks old, who was curled up in her father's arms. I smiled at the sleepy baby, wondering if Eric and I could get lucky enough to have such a quiet, adorable baby.

"Riley Decker," the nurse called, scanning the room until I stood up, tugging Eric along with me. She greeted us warmly before I was lead to a scale and asked to step on. I bit my lip as the scale beeped, trying to look at Eric instead of the scale. My eyes fluttered down like tiny magnets, eyes growing wide. Eric squeezed my hand and pulled me from the scale as the nurse assured me I was at the perfect weight for how far along I was. Eric whispered sweetly in my ear that it didn't matter what the scale said, I was still beautiful.

We were lead into a white room where she checked my vitals before assuring us that the doctor would be in soon, and disappearing out of the room. I sighed and looked over at my husband who was giving me a sweet smile.

"I love you." He grinned, standing up and coming to stand between my legs. I nodded, murmuring my own I love you before dropping my head into the crook of his neck. "Are you excited?" He wondered, gesturing to finding out the gender of our baby.

"Yeah, but I'm also nervous." I giggled, "I don't know, maybe that is just the excitement I'm feeling."

"There is nothing to be nervous about." He assured me before kissing my forehead and brushing my bangs away from my face. There was a soft knock at the door before a petite looking blonde bounced into the room.

"Mr. and Mrs. Decker, my name is Dr. Young and I'll be taking care of you while you're in Chicago. Dr. Barnes sent over all the information from the Minnesota office and I've taken note that you are 18 weeks along, correct?" She asked as she washed her hands in the sink.

"Yes." I murmured to her, watching as she grabbed a pair of gloves.

"Do you have any concerns or questions you want to ask me right off the bat? Any extreme pains anywhere?" I shook my head in the negative. "Great! Then why don't we take a look at the baby, see how he or she is doing. You can just change into the gown and I'll be right back." She gave me another large smile before she dipped out of the room again.

I slipped into the hospital gown and then laid on the table, pulling the fabric up and setting the blanket over my lower half. Eric moved his chair to sit next to me, looking down at my baby bump. I could see him contemplating pouncing on it before I shook my head at him.

"No." He huffed at me before nodding, kissing my lips softly as the door opened again. Dr. Young came strutting back in and sat down, grabbing the gel as I cringed, already knowing what it would feel like.

"I guess I don't need to warn you about the coolness." She chuckled before squirting it on my stomach and moving it around with the ultrasound tool.

Eric squeezed my hand as Dr.Young moved the tool around my stomach, not saying anything just watching the screen. I wasn't nervous until several minutes had passed and she had yet to say anything. I chomped down on my lip, immediately thinking the worst before she smiled and looked over at us.

"Everything looks really great, I'm just making sure to inspect all aspects of the baby. Have you felt any sort of fluttering yet?" She asked me, a small smile turning the corners of her mouth up. I shook my head no as she laughed quietly. "The baby was kicking when I put the gel on. Not too much since its just starting to get the motions down, but baby Decker was moving." I looked over at Eric who smiled widely at me, eyes bright with excitement. All he wanted to do was press his nose to the baby and make it move. "Do you want to know what you're having?" She asked, moving the tool around again before looking at both Eric and I. We both nodded eagerly as she chuckled, pointing at the screen. "That right there, means you are definitely having a baby boy."

Eric let out a loud yes while I just stared at the screen, taking in the baby that was going to be ours in a few short months. I was going to have a son, I was going to be a mom. And then I started to cry as Eric fawned all over me, kissing under my eyes, over my nose, my cheeks, my forehead before he kissed my lips longingly.

"A boy, Riley! A flipping boy!" He squeaked as the doctor tried not to laugh at his reaction. "Hello football, baseball, fishing. Ohmygod, this is so awesome, thank you Dr. Young." He grinned widely at her before turning his attention to me.

"Do you have any questions?" She asked us as Eric wiggled excitedly.

"He's healthy right?" I asked, just to clarify.

"Yes, keep doing what you're doing." She nodded at me.

"Then I guess that is all that matters." I smiled, looking up at my husband who was beaming with adoration. He kissed the tip of my nose as I sighed happily, cupping baby Decker lightly.

"I can't wait to tell everyone that we're having a boy." Eric told me later as we filed into the apartment with our dinner- Chipotle. I pulled out my burrito bowl, taking off the tin cover and beginning to cut it up so I could devour it. "Are you happy it's a boy?" Eric asked me, taking a huge chomp out of his burrito.

"I'm just happy he is healthy. I could careless about the sex." I told him honestly. I wasn't going to get my panties in a twist over the gender when it was first of all, uncontrollable and second of all, irrelevant. All I cared about was that it was Eric's baby.

"Kara will be excited." He pointed out, reminding me of her persistent hopes that the baby would be a boy. "I'm sure she'll start planning the wedding right away." I chuckled quietly, nodding my agreement as I gave Gabby a piece of my steak. I ignored Eric's disapproving look, and continued to eat. I pushed away from the table when I finished, eating every single piece of rice, meat, and salsa that had been in the bowl. I looked across the table at Eric who was grinning.

"I'm pretty sure you can out eat me now." He chuckled, standing up and throwing our garbage away.

"Your son already has your huge appetite." I told him, hoisting myself to my feet and moving towards our bedroom. "Come take a nap with me," I demanded to him once I laid in bed, watching him move towards the bathroom to shower. "No." I whined, placing a perfect pout on my face. "Baby needs you." I bribed him, watching his eyes light up before he came to snuggle with me on the bed.

"Hi buddy." He murmured, kissing my stomach and placing both of his hands on the small bump.

"You love him more than me." I murmured to Eric, running my hands through his thick hair.

"He wouldn't be here if I didn't love you such an unfathomable amount." He insisted, making me smile softly. I leaned down to press a kiss to the top of his head. "I love both of you, so much." He tilted his face up, catching my lips at the last second. I smiled, our lips curving together. "i can't wait to take on parenting with you, baby."

"It will be a challenge, but I think we can handle it together." I grinned at him as he shimmied up the bed to lay next to me. He gathered me into his arms, playing with my hair as I laid gently on his chest. Parenthood would be a new challenge for us, but unlike the other obstacles that had stood in the way, this one would build us up rather than knock us down.