The Things That You Do

53: We’re Happy As We Are

“You know, we don’t have to do this tonight. The news can keep another day or two”

Alexa, who was quietly thumbing through one of her pregnancy books, startled a little at the sound of Lionel’s voice before she lifted her head, settling her stare on where he stood in the doorway, a tender smile perched on his face.

It had been a long day, with her family keen to fuss over her pregnancy, they had hung around for a little longer than she and Lionel had been expecting, but she hadn’t minded, even if it had left her a little tired. She was pleased to see that the news of her pregnancy had been so well received. She hadn’t doubted it, from the moment that she had discovered that she was expecting, she had been confident that it was news that people would be happy to hear, but still she was a little relieved by how happy her mother and Marco had been, even if she hadn’t doubted that they would be. She glad that they had been so excited.

“Huh?” she posed, quietly closing her book.

“The call to my parents” Lionel clarified “I was suggesting that we put it off for another day or so. It’s been a pretty long day and you look like you could fall asleep any minute” he added with a small half smile as he stepped a little deeper into the room, settling down on the couch at her side.

Alexa watched him sit down before she stretched her legs out, settling her feet in his lap. “It has been a pretty long day” she agreed as she leant back, stretching out slightly “But I am sure that I can keep myself awake a little longer. You want to tell your parents, don’t you?” she posed.

Lionel, who’d been tracing circles into her foot with his thumb, nodded. “I do” he noted “But if you want to wait a day or two, that’s OK” he fussed.

Alexa offered him a small look, slightly amused by his fussing, before she gently shifted her foot, nudging his side. “I’ll be fine” she quipped.

Lionel offered her a dubious look, something which made her laugh before she nudged his side once more, wordlessly telling him to go and get his laptop. Lionel spared her a another look, wordlessly asking if she was sure, before he padded out of the room, returning seconds later with his laptop in hand. Settling it down onto the coffee table, he quickly moved to start a video call with his parents before he leant back into the couch, something which caused Alexa to lean forwards, her hand gently taking a hold of his. “Are you nervous?” she murmured, lightly stroking her thumb over the back of his hand.

Lionel, who’d been quietly staring at the screen of the computer, shrugged a little before he turned, offering her a small smile. “A little” he admitted.

Alexa merely offered his hand a soft squeeze before the sound of his mother’s voice filled the air, pulling their attention back towards the laptop. “Mama” he greeted warmly.

“This is a surprise” Celia quipped with a warm grin “To what do I owe the pleasure of a call from both of you?” she added. It wasn’t uncommon, since she and her husband had visited the couple to celebrate the New Year, she had grown used to seeing Alexa from time to time when she spoke to Lionel, and it was something which pleased her, even if she knew that it was still early days between the two of them. She couldn’t help but hope that the amount of time that she spent talking to the blonde was a sign of how serious things between her and Lionel were getting.

Lionel admired the warm smile on his mother’s face before he shook his head, a small grin playing on his own face. “Is papa around?” he posed.

“He is” Celia replied “I can get him if you’d like” she added.

“That would be great” Lionel replied “Me and Alexa, we’ve got something that we’d like to tell you both” he added, sparing a look towards Alexa who offered him a soft smile in return.

Celia watched the small interaction, wordlessly fussing about how sweet the two of them were, before she leant away from the camera slightly, calling her for her husband who padded into the room, a frown on his face. “What?” he posed.

“We’ve got a call from Lionel” Celia replied “Apparently, him and Alexa have some news for us” she fussed.

“News?” Jorge posed.

Lionel shifted a little in his seat before he nodded, a timid smile on his face. “Alexa and I...we’re going to have a baby” he breathed out.

“What?” Celia squeaked, her voice more than a little surprised.

“I’m pregnant” Alexa mused “A little over twelve weeks now. We’re going to have a baby” she enthused with a grin.

Celia and Jorge shared a look, allowing a brief silence to pass over the four of them, before Celia clapped her hands together, an excited grin spreading across her face. “You’re pregnant!” she enthused.

Alexa let out a small giggle at her enthusiasm before she nodded, quickly retrieving a copy of the sonogram from her pocket before she lifted it, showing it off to the camera. Celia and Jorge scanned the image quickly before they began to fuss, something which made Lionel smile warmly, more than a little relieved that the news had gone down well. Leaning back into his seat, he watched Alexa excitedly fuss over the sonogram for a few minutes before she let out a soft yawn, something which made him chuckle softly before he ducked forwards, pressing a soft kiss against her shoulder. “You tired?” he murmured quietly.

Alexa glanced at him over her shoulder. “I might be” she replied quietly.

“Tell them” Lionel encouraged “They won’t mind” he added.

Alexa offered him a slightly dubious look, something which made him shake his head before he flicked his attention towards the laptop. “Alexa’s feeling tired” he noted “So she’s going to head upstairs. You don’t mind, do you?” he posed.

“Of course not” Celia replied “If you need to rest, we don’t mind at all. Buenos noches, Alexa” she added.

Alexa flashed her a small appreciative smile before she pushed herself to her feet, pressing a quick kiss to Lionel’s lips before she stepped away, making her way out of the room.

Lionel watched after her for a second before the sound of someone clearing their throat reached his ears, pulling his attention back towards the laptop. “Mama?” he posed.

Celia looked at him for a few seconds, her eyes searching his face, before she shook her head. “I hope you don’t think I am sticking my nose in” she mused.

Lionel frowned. “Mama...”

“I don’t want to push you” Celia interrupted “I mean, for a long time, it looked like you were going to remain oblivious to something which was remarkably obvious to everyone else, but I...I guess I am trying to ask about what happens next” she stumbled out.

Lionel glanced at the camera for a second, mulling over his mother’s words, before he shook his head, dropping his stare down towards his hands. “It’s been ten months” he pointed out “And both me and Alexa, we’re happy with the way things are right now. We moved in together pretty quickly, she’s pregnant pretty quickly too, and that means that...what happens next isn’t something we’ve talked about. We like this, what’s going on between us now, it works for us, and we’re not in a hurry for that. We’re happy as we are” he explained thoughtfully.

He wasn’t surprised by the question, with him and Alexa having been together for a while, it had only been a matter of time before people started to hint at the possibility of an engagement, but he wanted to put it off for a while. Things between them were working, after almost a year of dating, things felt settled and calm, and Lionel wasn’t in a rush to change it, especially not with the arrival of their baby on the horizon. He liked what they had going on between them.

Celia looked at him, thinking over his words for a few seconds, before she quirked a warm smile. “I’m glad” she enthused “Alexa, she’s good for you” she added.

Lionel chuckled bashfully and nodded. “She is” he agreed.

Celia smiled at the loved up expression on his face, just about refraining from adding a comment about how he had managed to miss her for so long, before she shook her head, glad to see that things between the two of them were going well.
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Thanks to Jayme112234 for the comment :)