Page 111 of Falling in Love with Two

This right here.

This is what I’ve been waiting for. Spending my evenings with the woman I love, watching a movie, and cuddling up on the couch.

The only thing that could make it better is if Leah was ready for a full-fledged relationship.

But I won’t push.

This is just fine.

About half way through the movie, she says, “Man, I can’t believe this is the last month of my twenties.”

“That was random.”

“Yeah, well, welcome to my brain. I was just thinking about how I haven’t done a whole hell of a lot in my life. I think having a baby is the cherry on top of my twenties.”

“Yeah, having a baby is a pretty big deal. Wait, did you say you’re turning thirty in a month?”

She nods and tells me the date.

“We have to celebrate!” I announce.

“No, that’s okay. We don’t need to make it a big deal.”

“Why not?" I ask. “What do you usually do on your birthday?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

She shakes her head. “Nope. It’s never really been a cause for celebration. It’s just another day.”

“What kind of stuff did you do as a kid?”

She ponders for a moment. “The only birthday party I remember was when I was turning seven. My parents got in a huge fight. They ended up throwing a glass pitcher that landed in the middle of my Barbie birthday cake. That pretty much ended the party, and it was soon after that my dad walked out.”

She goes on to say, “Maybe I had parties before that, but I don’t remember. And after that, Mom just gave up. She and I may have gone out for dinner or something, but there was never a lot of money for gifts.”

I say, “Hold on just a second. You liked Barbie? Was it Goth Barbie?”

She laughs and gives a heavy eye roll. “I was seven. Give me a break. And I didn’t turn into a goth until after all the trauma. I really fucking loved that cake, though. It was hot pink with baby blue writing. And it had a mini Barbie dream house on top.”

She gets lost in a memory for a moment, and I can tell how painful it is for her to talk about.

I may not be able to cure all of her childhood trauma, but I sure as shit can make sure her 30th birthday is one she’ll never forget.

thirty-six

How Fucking Cute

Leah

One week later.

21 Weeks pregnant

I take a couple of deep breaths as I sit in the driveway of my childhood home. Well, the home we moved into when Mom got with Larry.

It looks basically the same.

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