Mendelssohn, Motley Crüe, and More Me

"Wait for it! Wait for it!" CC dropped out luggage and swept me up into his arms. "There we go." He walked me through the door and placed me on the floor on the other side, catching my lips in a passionate kiss.

"You didn't have to do that, CC." I chuckled.

"Yeah, I kinda did." He shrugged. "Especially because--"

"SURPRISE!" Ella yelled obnoxiously, jumping up from behind our counter. The hall didn't stretch too far. At the end were the stairs and to the left was the kitchen. To the right was the open-floor living room. It was the same house we'd been living in, but there weren't many places to hide. She got tugged back down with an "oomph!"

"--They're here." CC laughed tiredly. "I saw your cars all parked up the street. I'm not stupid."

"Damn!" Lindsey got up, brushing herself off. Ryan followed behind her with a goofy grin, placing his hands to rest on her hips. They were an adorable couple.

"Welcome home!" Sammi had moved to let Willy go and he streaked down the hall and into my arms. He was never a big jumper, but he was all over us.

Welcome home indeed.

"Hey, girl!" My sister-in-law waltzed happily over to where I lay stretched out on the couch. I'd just gotten back from my honeymoon a month or so before. I'd soon been on a flight to Chicago for a shoot, and then I'd just gotten back.

"Ugh, why are you here?" I covered my face with the pillow. Willy whimpered from where he lay on the floor by my feet.

"Hello to you too." She chuckled. "CC told me you weren't feeling well. I thought I'd stop by. Can I help?"

"Can you get me the trashcan? I feel like I'm going to be sick again."

Trust my husband to invite people over when I least wanted to see anyone. He'd gone off already to take part in a radio interview. But I couldn't complain, his music was a part of him and I loved all of him else I'd have never agreed to marry him.

"So what's wrong?"

"Food-poisoning, I think, from the plane." I sighed.

"Oh?" She frowned, handing the can to me as I sat up. "Maybe you should go to the hospital? CC said he's worried about you being dehydrated and passing out from not being able to keep anything down."

"I'm fine, Sammi." I laughed humorlessly. "It's just a bit of food-poisoning. I'll get over it."

"Some serious cases have to go to the hospital, maybe you should--oh dear." She sighed, patting my back as I got sick. "Come on, maybe you should drink something? Sprite?"

"Ew." I made a face.

"You love Sprite!" She frowned.

"Ugh, I can't even--" I was sick again.

"Wynnie…" Sammi looked at me worriedly. "I really think…" Her eyes widened. "You don't think--oh my God, Wynnie!" Her hands clapped over her mouth.

"What?" I groaned.

"You don't think you could be…pregnant?"

I chuckled dryly.

"I've been throwing up for over twenty-four hours, Sammi. It's not like it's morning sickness." I started to shake my head before I began to feel sick again.

"No, really! It could be pregnancy!" She squealed. "My sister was crazy sick when she was pregnant. She was out of commission for two weeks!"

"Great." I moaned.

I felt a poke at my boob.

"Hey!" I snapped.

"Was it sore?!" She asked.

"Why would you do that?!" I exclaimed. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Is it?"

"No! It feels like it usually does this time of month!" I rolled my eyes, slowly getting off the couch and making my way to the bathroom so that I could brush my teeth.

"So you're on your period?" She sounded disappointed.

"No. Maybe tomorrow."

She seemed to be thinking all of the information over.

"CC wants kids, you know?"

"I know." I agreed. "He talked to me about it. I went to the doctor, and I've stopped birth control."

"So you guys tried!"

"No, Sammi!" I sighed. "He's still been using a condom. We want to wait a little longer I think."

"Condoms can break, Wynnie--"

"Sammi, please drop it. I'm not in the moo--" Suddenly the room around me disappeared and I couldn't see. Everything was black.

"Wynnie? Wynnie!" My sister-in-law's voice was echoing in my head. I felt her tug me down to the floor. "That's it, I'm taking you to the hospital. And I'm calling CC and Jinxx."

"I'm f-f-fine."

"You're really not."

My vision was slowly clearing and I could recognize that she'd begun to help me up. I allowed her to support me down the steps and out the door. She took my keys to lock it after slipping WIlly's electric collar on and unlocking the dog door on the back door.

"If you feel sick, tell me. I'll pull over."

We pulled over an entirety of four times on the ten minute trip to the hospital. Each time I got violently ill.

Sammi spoke to the woman at the desk, insisting I sit down.

We'd been lead to a room, me in a wheelchair, and I'd been hooked onto an IV (against my will) while they subjected me to a small blood test, for they feared if they took too much I'd pass out again--all of this before CC and Jinxx managed to escape the clutches of the radio talk-show.

"Wynnie!" CC gasped. Sammi stepped out of the way to let him brush the hair out of my face and kiss me quickly. "Are you okay? Sammi told me you passed out--"

"I didn't pass out! I never lost consciousness!" I protested quietly.

"She isn't acting herself." Sammi said quickly. "She's snapping, she's irritated, and she didn't want to drink Sprite--"

"You wouldn't either if you were vomiting every other minute." I frowned.

Jinxx watched me with wide-eyes.

"Wynnie, you've never acted like this before. Are you sure you're okay?"

"She's more than okay." The doctor stepped through the curtain. He wore a big smile. "Mrs. Mora, I'm happy to tell you that you're pregnant."

I blinked.

Sammi squealed, clapping her hands together before shooting me an "I told you" look.

"I-I-I…" CC looked at me. "Wynnie, I love you."

"C-congrats…" My brother looked stunned. "I--wow…congrats, sis…" He looked at CC. "Congrats, man. That's…that's amazing."

CC rested his hand on my lower abdomen and his forehead on mine.

"I love you. So, so much." He said softly. I felt tears in my eyes and I blinked them away.

The doctor stood there smiling.

"I'm so glad I could be the one to tell you all the wonderful news." He said cheerfully. "Unfortunately, we'll need to keep her a few days, she has acute morning sickness and dehydration is a major concern."

CC searched my eyes worriedly.

"Of course, Dr." He agreed.

"We can move her to a room in the back of the maternity ward. We have a few openings."

"Can I stay with her?" My husband looked up.

"CC--" Jinxx began and Sammi took his hand to gently tug him back.

"Of course, I presume you're Mr. Mora?"

"Yeah." He smiled, looking back down at me. "I am. And I couldn't be happier."

***

I was only there for a few days more. I still felt like I was going to be sick by the time I left, goes to show you how much good that money spent was.

"Come on, babe." CC helped me into the car with a kiss to my temple.

"Don't throw up, don't throw up." I was whispering to myself.

We hadn't told our parents yet. My mom had recently moved to be closer to my brother and I, though. She'd moved practically cross-country to do it. She still lived closer to CC's parents, who were far enough to make taking a plane seem reasonable, but it made far more sense to drive economically.

"If you need to, tell me." CC soothed, climbing in the driver's seat.

I closed my eyes and steadied my breathing.

"Christmas is in two weeks." CC informed me.

"We're going to my mom's house this year?" I asked, trying to remember.

"Yeah. I mean…my parents are going too so that's not really a big deal." He chuckled.

"Are--"

"Yeah, Jinxx and Sammi are going, too, I think." He said slowly. "I think we should tell them."

"Before or after?" I sighed, my eyes still closed.

"During."

"During it is."

***

"No, no, no!" I groaned, trying desperately to button my jeans. "There's not even a bump!"

"It's bloating, isn't it?" CC tried to calm me down. I was crying from frustration now. I didn't have a baby bump, I wasn't at that stage yet. I was only a little over a month along! "Baby, please, breathe." He soothed, resting his chin on my shoulder and slipping his arms around to rest his hands on my lower abdomen. "It's fine. Breathe, and try again. The doctor said it's no different than having bloating from your period--"

"CC, I can't do this!" I squeaked.

"Sure you can." He chuckled, helping me tug the jeans up and button them. He left them riding a little lower. "You're wearing a huge sweater anyways. It'll cover you. Just make up some pregnancy excuse as to why you can't bend down. Say you'll have a dizzy spell or something." He kissed my temple. We stayed like that, looking in the mirror, before his hands traveled upwards to cup my breasts gently through my bra. "They're bigger?"

"That-t-t-t happ-p-pens." I sighed.

He gave me a small smile.

"Good to know."

"You're so perverted!" I giggled, watching him run away to the closet.

"So! We're going to win the ugly Christmas sweater contest this year! I swear it!"

"Nice subject change." I rolled my eyes.

"No really!"

"Because I made them?"

"How you can sew so well, I'll never know it."

"My brother is way better than me. He can--"

"I really don't need to know my bandmate's effeminate qualities. Thanks." He came back out with the two sweaters. "Why am I the Santa Clause?" He frowned.

"Because, I wanted the reindeer!" I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Ready to hang with all of the others?"

My eyes widened.

I forgot there'd be more than just the small group I'd learned to get comfortable with.

Sammi's friends, as well as my brother's other friends, would be there…I didn't know any of them.

"Shhh, it'll be fine. I promise." CC smiled, kneeling down to kiss my belly. "It's going to be her first Christmas, but not really because she's not here."

"You've decided she's a girl? She's hardly the size of your pupil, I'll bet--" Am I a horrible pregnant woman for not knowing what size my unborn child is? I feel horrible. "--And you've decided she's a girl."

"Well, I can't call her an 'it' that's rude." My husband protested.

"What if she's a boy?"

"From what I understand from the stories I've been told, Sammi has that issue a lot. We'll just suck it up and deal with it. So what if we have a son named Tink?"

"CC." I sighed. "I love you, but we aren't naming our daughter Tinkerbell."

"But she's so small!"

"All babies are!" I laughed.

"Come on, put on your ugly sweater, mommy." CC teased. "We need to get going."

I stuck my tongue out at him one last time before going to get changed.

***

"Oh my God! Mommy! I heard the news!" I felt a body tackle me into a hug as I stepped through the door. I blinked, trying to step out of the woman's grasp to identify her.

"Oh, Juliet!" I laughed, a little out of breath.

"Don't kill her! She's pregnant!" Andy laughed.

"I have water and juice and--" Sammi started listing.

Please, don't fuss. I bit my lip, feeling tense now at the sudden attention.

"You're having a kid! I am going to damn well fuss!" Ella raised an eyebrow at me, leaning against the wall. She flashed me a smile and clicked her heels over to give me a hug.

"How d-d-d-did you all kn-kn-know?" I stammered.

CC ducked his head.

The goof.

"That idiot couldn't keep his mouth shut if you sewed it shut." Jake shook his head. "Congratulations, Wynnie."

"Congrats!" Ashley agreed. "You'll make great parents…" He threw a glance at CC. "I mean, you're a good enough mother, clearly, watching that five-year-old all of the--"

"No wrestling in the house!" Sammi whined when the boys suddenly jumped at each other.

"I feel like their maturity has lessened…" Ella observed.

"It has. It's taken a startling turn for the worst."

Lindsey stepped through the door on Ryan's arm.

"Dog pile?" Ryan asked, looking at the group.

"Don't you dare." Lindsey laughed.

"Hey, football is on!" My brother shouted. All of the boys' heads snapped up and they ran into the living room.

"Lord." Sammi shook her head.

This was the start to a long evening...