Somebody Like Me

“So, Cassie, what is that you do for a living?” Jose Maria posed as he moved to place a tray of coffee down onto the table, his eyes peeking towards the brunette who sat beside his son, mumbling quietly to him.

It had been a slight surprise, the news that Sergio’s girlfriend was due to join them for dinner had taken both his mother and father by surprise, but both of his parents had been quick to warm to Cassie, something which relaxed Sergio a little. He knew that it would surprise them, the news of Cassie’s pregnancy was bound to knock them for six, but the idea that they liked her comforted him a little. He was hopeful that it meant that they’d take the news better.

Cassie, who was quietly cuddled into Sergio’s side, lifted her head a little at the sound of the older man’s voice before she offered him a polite smile. “I work in journalism” she mused softly “That’s actually how I met Sergio. A friend of mine, Sara, she needed someone to go along with her to cover Spain a few years ago and that’s when we met for the first time” she added, her voice still a little shy and nervous.

Jose, who’d moved to settle down on the sofa opposite the pair of them, nodded his head. “You’ve known each for a little while then?” he posed. He didn’t want to pry, whatever was happening between Sergio and Cassie was between the two of them, but he was a little curious about the two of them.

Sergio shrugged. “Sort of” he mused softly “I mean, we’d met before, but it wasn’t until quite recently that we started to get to know one another” he explained softly.

Jose offered him a slightly dubious look before the sound of his wife’s voice filled the air, causing him to let out a playful sigh before he pushed himself back up to his feet. “I should probably go and finish helping her clear up” he mused softly “Do you want anything else?” he offered, sparing a kind look towards Cassie.

Cassie shook her head. “No, thank you” she replied gently.

Jose spared her a kind smile before he padded out of the room, something which caused Cassie to let out a soft of relief.

Sergio, who was sat beside her, let out a small laugh before he poked her side. “See?” he quipped playfully “I told you that you didn’t have anything to be worried about” he enthused brightly. He knew that she had been worried, out of the two of them, Cassie appeared to be the worrier, but he was pleased by how well the evening had gone, even if they did still have to share the news of her pregnancy. He was pleased that his parents seemed to be fond of Cassie.

Cassie rolled her eyes playfully before she shook her head. “I’ll admit, it’s gone a lot better than I had thought it would but we’ve…we’re still got to tell them the big news” she mused, her green eyes peeking down towards the front of her sweater.

Sergio followed the line of her stare before he gently lifted his hand, gently placing it against her stomach. “You know it will be alright, don’t you?” he mumbled, breaking the silence which had settled over the two them.

Cassie, who’d been looking down at his hand, shook her head. “You don’t know that” she mused “I mean, a new girlfriend is one thing, a new pregnant girlfriend…”

“Pregnant?”

Sergio, who’d been looking towards Cassie, stilled at the sound of his mother’s voice before he turned around, his dark eyes settling on the older woman who stood in the doorway, a look of complete surprise on her face. “Mama…”

"She said ‘pregnant’, Sergio” Paqui interrupted softly “Is…Is there something you need to tell us?” she added, the tone of her voice hard to place.

Sergio blinked, still a little shocked by her original interruption, before he pushed himself up to his feet, offering his mother a spot on the couch which sat a little away from him and Cassie. “Papa, do you think you could come in here for a second?” he called, looking towards the kitchen.

The room was quiet for a couple of seconds before Jose padded back into it, offering a slightly confused look towards his son. “Sergio?” he posed.

“We need to tell you something” Sergio mumbled as he sat back down, his fingers gently knotting with Cassie’s “A few weeks ago, Cassie wasn’t quite feeling herself. She was feeling nauseous and tired and so she opted to go to a doctor who was able to confirm…to confirm that Cassie’s pregnant” he breathed, his eyes fixed on their hands.

“What?” Jose squeaked.

“Cassie and I are going to be parents” Sergio repeated softly “She’s a little over 12 weeks along now” he added, gently squeezing Cassie’s hand which fiddled nervously with his own.

“You’re going to be papa?” Paqui posed, her voice breathy and awed.

Sergio quirked a faint smile at her words before he nodded his head. “I am” he confirmed “I mean, peanut is still a little way away from arriving, but in a little over 6 months, we’re going to welcome a baby along” he added, his voice warm and enthusiastic. The words still felt unfamiliar coming out of his mouth but the more he said them, the more he got used to them.

Paqui allowed his words to linger in the air for a moment before she shook her head, a small smile appearing at the corner of her mouth. “Do you have a picture?” she posed softly.

Sergio blinked, slightly surprised by the request, before he nodded his head, moving to collect the sonogram picture from the pocket of his jacket. “This is the most recent one” he mused as he handed the picture over to his mother.

Paqui studied the image before she gently passed it over to her husband who grinned at the sight of it.

“You’re OK about this?” Sergio posed, his eyes flicking between his parents.

Paqui tilted her head. “You thought that we wouldn’t be?” she posed, her eyebrow raised slightly in amusement.

“I was worried” Sergio admitted “I mean, me and Cassie, it’s still very new and I thought…”

“You thought we’d freak out?” Jose finished for him.

“We were both worried” Cassie admitted as she stepped up to Sergio’s side, her fingers slotting through his once more.

Paqui spared a glance down towards their hand before she shook her head, a motherly smile appearing on her face. “We’re going to be grandparents” she mused softly “And regardless of how that came to be, that’s brilliant news. The rest of it, you two, you will figure it out one way or the other, but even if you don’t get things together properly, you’re still going to be parents and that’s amazing news” she fawned before she stepped forwards, gently moving to pull Cassie into a hug.

Cassie stilled, not quite expecting the affectionate action, before she hugged the older woman back. Paqui held onto her for a couple of seconds before she stepped back, taking a hold of her hand. “Come on” she mused “You can come and tell me all about it. I can’t wait to hear about how well peanut is doing” she grinned brightly before she led Cassie out of the room.

Sergio watched the two of them for a brief moment before he felt a hand nudge against his shoulder, causing himt to turn and look up at his father who looked down at him, a slightly stern expression on his face. “Padre?” he posed.

“I’m happy for you, Sergio” Jose mused “I mean, you’re going to be a wonderful padre when peanut arrives, but Cassie…”

“Papa…” he interrupted, knowing what was coming.

“She’s a nice girl, Sergio” Jose interrupted softly “And she seems to be pretty smitten with you, but we both know that this isn’t a sure thing yet and I just want to ask you to be careful. Peanut is the most important thing” he added, his tone soft and warm.

Sergio mulled his words over briefly before he nodded his head, something which caused Jose to pat his shoulder once more, wordlessly congratulating him.