Two Pieces

The next morning, back in Orange County, Rylee rushed around her house in a hurry. Stephanie called last minute and demanded that Rylee go to the grocery store with her. She didn’t even ask her if she wanted to tag along. She just insisted that she accompany her, which ruined Rylee’s date with Netflix and a jar of pickles. So to say she was a bit cranky was an understatement.

Times like this made her wonder if her friend overlooked the whole pregnancy thing.

She grabbed her sleek Versace sunglasses from her nightstand and pushed them up into her hair. Then she quickly brushed her fingers though her hair to accommodate the shades.

With five minutes left to spare, she made a fast waddle down the stairs.

She charged around her spacious living room, looking for her keys. She doesn’t use them for 36 hours and suddenly they disappear.

The sounds of constant honks came from outside her house, signaling Stephanie’s arrival.

Rylee let out a string of expletives. She tossed the couch pillows to the carpet, praying that her keys would be located behind one of them. With no such luck, she kicked the couch in frustration.

And to add to her frustration, Stephanie pounded at her car horn again.

Rylee quickly reached into her purse and snatched out her cell phone. She pressed Steph’s contact and tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for her to pick up.

“Can you stop with the fucking horn already?” she paced around her living room, searching for her keys again, “I can’t find my damn keys anywhere. I have no idea where I put them last.”

Stephanie giggled at her friend’s frustration. “Check the kitchen counter.”

Rylee stopped mid search and headed into the kitchen. Low and behold, her keys sat on the countertop near the toaster.

“Found them. I’ll be out in a few.” She hung up and stuffed the keys into her purse before making her way out the door.

Stephanie’s sporty red Mercedes sat parked on the curve. Rylee could hear Paramore playing as she inched closer.

She opened the passenger door and rolled her eyes at the perky red head.

She lowered herself into the seat and placed her purse down near her feet.

“What crawled up your ass?” Steph laughed, pulling away from the curb and heading toward Main Street.

“Hm, I don’t know. You!” Rylee gripped.

“Gosh, is it wrong to want to hangout with my best friend?”

“No. But incase you forgot, I’m eight months pregnant,” Rylee placed Stephs hand under her budging belly, “Do you feel that? That’s at least 5 pounds of baby that I have to carry around. I can’t just hop out of bed and be ready in 15 minutes, dammit.”

Steph started to snort from laughing. “C’mon, perk up butter cup! Besides, it’s a beautiful day. You need sunlight, Ryles. You look like a vampire..”

Rylee didn’t have a witty comeback handy. So instead she flicked through the radio stations, not in the mood for pop rock. She settled with KROQ. The heavier music brought a smile to her face.

“Is that a smile?” asked Steph in a playful tone.

Rylee stuck out her tongue in a childish manner.

“Yes,” she licked over her slightly chapped lips, “And why are you so chipper? You’re only like this when Brian is home…”

Stephanie gave a slight shrug of her shoulders. “You’ll find out soon enough,” she muttered under her breath.

The ladies each grabbed a shopping cart before making their way around the air-conditioned super market.

“I found this recipe for a pumpkin spiced cake last night,” said Steph, running her freshly manicured nails down her shopping list, “I need brown sugar, pumpkin puree and some nutmeg. I have the other ingredients in my pantry already.”

Rylee walked along side her, pushing her cart slowly. They stopped in the seasoning isle. Steph went to go look for a bottle of nutmeg while Rylee glanced aimlessly at the shelves of seasonings.

A sudden tightening feeling in her abdomen made her gasp. She groaned in discomfort, while her hand instinctively went to where the false contraction was felt. She inhaled and exhaled slowly until it passed. She knew it was nothing to worry about, since her doctor had warned her about Braxton Hicks. She gets them at least twice a day now, sometimes more. They didn’t hurt or anything. To her it felt like a mere menstrual cramp.

“Are you okay?”

She met Steph's concerned face and nodded reassuringly.

“Yeah, just a false contraction.”

Stephanie absentmindedly placed the small bottle of nutmeg in her cart while staring at Rylee’s belly with worry.

Rylee chuckled and placed a hand on her friends arm. “I’m fine. Stop worrying.”

Steph snapped out of it and nodded.

They continued on to the next isle, before stopping again. This time, Rylee placed a loaf of bread and a large jar of peanut butter into her cart while Stephanie moved on to the next isle.

“Rylee? Rylee Moreno?”

Rylee quickly turned around at the mentioning of her maiden name.

Oh God, she thought.

Thayer Peters. Self proclaimed basketball star. High school basketball star, that is. It’s been years since she’s seen this douche bag.

“Gosh, it’s been so long. You still look good, despite that,” he pointed to her rounded stomach.

Truth be told, he wasn’t even that good of a basketball player. He was just a one hit wonder. Literally. He made the winning shot five seconds before the end of the game and gained the title of “hero”. That one night of fame back in 1998 went to his head, making him an egotistical fuck ever since.

Rylee forced a smile, trying her best not to snap at him as he pointed to her stomach as if it was plagued.

“Is that Sanders' kid?”

Rylee straightened up her posture and held her head high.

“Yes. He’s my husband. What’s it to you?”

You could feel the jealousy radiate off of him, but he masked it with another cocky smile. “Just asking is all. Didn’t think you two would last this long..”

Rylee just rolled her eyes. She wasn’t about to spill any details about her marriage to him. For one, it would be quite a downer. And two, she didn’t want to give him the upper hand. It’s obvious she doesn’t like him. She never has.

Well, except for one time back in high school. She’d only been going to HB High for about two months before he asked her out. She went against Matt’s warning and gave him a chance. One date was all it took for her to despise him. Let’s just say he was very pushy. She told Matt about it and he beat his ass in front of the whole lunch crowd. She wasn’t yet aware of the feelings Matt had for her. She thought he was defending her as a friend. Thayer eventually backed down after getting the shit beat out of him. He occasionally watched from afar, cursing Matt and Rylee’s budding romance. He wanted Rylee for himself but not enough to face Matt again.

“Gosh, Ryles. I shouldn’t have left you alone over here. It’s not safe for you to be around such a disease ridden animal.”

Rylee threw her head back in laughter.

“Stephanie Daniels. Once a bitch, always a bitch,” said Thayer.

Steph smacked her lipstick-stained lips and flipped him off.

“C’mon. Let’s get checked out. You have to get home.”

“Oh Rylee? Once Matt drops you to the curb, I’ll make sure to pick you up and dust you off.”

Rylee threw him a “fuck you” and continued walking.

On the drive back to her place, Stephanie questioned Rylee's current situation.

Rylee told her everything that Matt’s parent’s had said. She also admitted to calling him last night and this morning. She got his voice mail each time. It faltered her hope a bit.

She expected Stephanie to shoot her the usual look of pity. But instead, she shot her a small smile. Rylee repeated herself, thinking Steph misunderstood.

When Steph shot her another sly smile, she snapped. “What is up with you?”

Steph tousled her long red hair and smirked. “You’ll find out soon.”

Rylee scrunched her face up in confusion. She was beginning to question the woman’s sanity. Was she eating special brownies again?

Before long, Steph pulled up to her house. “Thanks for shopping with me, girlie! It was nice. That is until Thayer Peters showed up..”

Rylee gathered up her purse, ”Yeah, it was nice to get out I guess.”

She slowly rose up from the low-lying vehicle.

“Can you pop the trunk?”

Steph nodded.

She gathered her grocery bags and slammed the trunk shut. “I’ll see you later.”

Steph waved and sped off.

Rylee battled to keep her purse on her shoulder as she made her way up the steps. She fiddled around for the right key and unlocked the door.

She groaned loudly as her purse slipped from her shoulder, adding extra pressure on her arm. She kicked the door shut and fussed all the way to her kitchen.

“Ryles?”

The bags of groceries slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.

Standing in the kitchen was her husband.

She stood there in shook. Her lip trembled at the sight of him. His face mirrored hers as he tried to contain his emotions. He quietly walked over to her.

“Matthew?” she whispered.

Once he was close enough she reached out and pulled him to her without hesitation. She wrapped her arms around his muscular frame as best as she could.

Matt was shocked. He didn’t expect this from her. But then again he really didn’t know what to expect.

All he knew was that he belonged here with his wife and baby.

Having Rylee back in his arms was well worth ending the tour early. The fans will be disappointed due to canceled shows. But he needed to do this.

He held on to her tightly, burying his face into the crook of her neck. He could feel her warm tears soak into his shirt. It started a chain reaction as tears started to stream down his face.

Neither one of them said anything for quite a while. They just stood there, wrapped tightly in each other’s embrace.

Matt slid down to his knees and rested his head on her belly. Rylee caressed his head lovingly.

“Daddy’s here, baby girl,” he spoke softly.

He pressed a lingering kiss to her stomach before standing to his feet. He cupped his wife’s face, rubbing his thumb gently over her cheek.

“You look gorgeous, baby.”

“Thank you,” she whispered.

He took hold of her hands, “I am sincerely sorry for breaking your heart, Rylee. I broke my vow to you. I’ll spend every fucking day making it up. Cause’ I’ll be damned to let you slip through my fingers again.”

Rylee smiled though her tears. She believed every word.

“While trusting you completely will take a bit more time, i-“

“And that’s understandable,” he rushed in.

She playfully rolled her eyes. “Let me finish.”

He shot her a dimpled smirk.

“Your parents told me everything that happened with Bella and after pondering a bit I’ve finally made my decision.”

“And what’s that?”

She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

“I forgive you.”